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Jo Freeman writes: While some races are still too close to call, 2018 also saw a great leap upward in the number of women running and winning. More than a quarter of all candidates running for Congress or Governor this year were women (272 of 964). What 1992 has in common with 2018 is that these candidates were overwhelmingly Democrats. For the Democratic Party, this was another year of the woman; not so much for the Republicans. In November, Democratic women ran for 93 seats and won nearly half. Republican women ran for 13 and won less than a quarter. Several issues were prominent which attracted women voters. Exit polls said that the chief issue in 2018 was healthcare. Family separation of would-be immigrants was another. more »

Editor's Note: fin·tech, noun. Computer programs and other technology used to support or enable banking and financial services. "fintech is one of the fastest-growing areas for venture capitalists". "By accessing data sets with consumers' personally identifiable information and applying open-source AI tools, a phisher may be able to churn out highly targeted emails to millions of consumers at relatively low cost, containing personalized information such as their bank account number and logo, along with past transactions. In cases such as this, where large data sets and AI tools may be used for malevolent purposes, it may be that AI is the best tool to fight AI." more »

This year marks 275 years since Benjamin Franklin helped to found the American Philosophical Society, the oldest learned society in the United States. He served as the postmaster for North America when the colonies were under British rule, and he was instrumental in establishing a postal service system, known today as the United States Postal Service. A lot of Franklin’s letters basically say things like, “Please introduce me to this famous person. Please share my ideas with that influential person.” If there had been LinkedIn, he would have signed up. more »

Ferida Wolff writes: This Fall, though, has been slow in offering up its charms. The summer heat seemed to last longer than usual. I wonder if our winter weather will be different as well. Certainly different from my childhood memories of autumn. Weather-wise there are more storms, more drought, more floods all across our nation and the world. There is more political animosity, more anger, more active hatred. I try to look at people in a universal way, hoping to see what connects us rather than tears us apart. I look for the joy in life even though I know there are times for grief. more »