This week’s editorial musings<\/p>\n\n\n\n
421 funding artists<\/mark><\/strong> 421 Arts Campus in Abu Dhabi has named the seven artists selected for its 2024-25 capacity-building programmes<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Alla Abdunabi<\/strong>, Ana Escobar<\/strong>\u00a0and Juma Alhaj<\/strong> in the Artistic Development Program; Shama Al Hamed<\/strong>, Adrian Pepe<\/strong>, Yousif Abdulsaid<\/strong>\u00a0and Farah Soltani<\/strong>\u00a0as artists-in-residence. The programmes give the artists funding, resources and mentoring to work on \u201cmajor projects that explore contemporary and critical issues related to the region\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Apply here<\/strong><\/mark> Our Opportunities<\/strong><\/a> page is also listing a current 421 open call for Artistic Research Grants<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 up to AED 75,000 for \u201cpractice-based research investigating contemporary social questions through interdisciplinary methodologies and active engagement with the researcher\u2019s community\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are a couple of new listings on the page, incidentally, including the chance to pitch a business idea at the next Al Quoz Creative Entrepreneurship Forum<\/strong><\/a>. You should be an early-stage business with a specific idea that fits the Forum’s (extremely broad) definition of ‘creative’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last year’s event, the first, was really successful; and while winning the pitch won’t provide a ton of cash (first place gets you AED 50,000) it all comes in handy \u2013 and the discipline of documenting an idea for the pitch is itself useful. Deadline is 31 August. We don’t know exactly when the Forum will be, but last year it was in November \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reach for the stars<\/mark><\/strong> Louvre Abu Dhabi has come up with an interactive game<\/a><\/strong> for kids aged 6 to 12 \u2013 hunt around the galleries, answer clues and solve puzzles, identify pieces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The game, called The Secret of the Dome Stars, is quite wordy to get started; the handholding character (a desert fox called Volpi) is a bit static; the voiceovers are a tad stiff and\/or actory; and to complete the whole thing we reckon you\u2019ll need at least 40 minutes. But overall it\u2019s a lot of fun, genuinely engaging and with some clever tricks (point your camera at an object you\u2019re looking for and the app will confirm whether you\u2019ve got the right one). It\u2019s a web app, available via this link<\/a><\/strong> or from QR codes in the museum, so there\u2019s no need for a download. It\u2019s free, of course, and comes in Arabic, English, and French.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Five stars for the idea, four for the implementation. More like this, please.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AI wants you<\/strong><\/mark> Data scraping is one of the biggest issues in AI right now, at least from the personal point of view \u2013 tech companies are already running out of data for building AI models, so they\u2019re claiming that anything on the internet is fair game including stuff you might have thought was (a) private or (b) yours. It\u2019ll be years before clear, internationally enforceable rules are in place (though things are better in the EU and UK, at least, thanks to relatively strict data protection regimes). In the meantime, if you don\u2019t want to let Meta train its AI on your Facebook, Instagram, Threads or WhatsApp posts, here\u2019s a helpful guide to DIY opting out<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tik boxes<\/mark><\/strong> Market researchers Ipsos have apparently released a report about TikTok’s impact on consumer behaviour (we say \u201capparently\u201d because we haven\u2019t been able to find it, and TikTok\u2019s PR agency didn\u2019t respond to our enquiries). It suggests that 80% of MENAT consumers are influenced to purchase after watching TikTok content, and more than half make unplanned purchases. “[TikTok] is more than just entertainment,\u201d said the GCC head of Ipsos. \u201cIt’s a powerful tool driving actions, shaping preferences, and boosting purchases.\u201d This is presented as a good thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you want to search for it yourself, the report is called \u2018TikTok’s Made Me\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oddities<\/mark><\/strong> Catwoman, deus ex machina, parishioner, pyromania, scuba. Which is the odd one out?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Walking in circles<\/mark><\/strong> Last week we asked you if walking around a circle of radius\u00a010,000km, would you walk roughly 62,800km (2\u03c0r)? Well, of course not. The earth’s diameter is only\u00a040,075.017 km. You can’t walk in space, can you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Things we didn\u2019t know, no.94<\/mark><\/strong> Most Americans call gifs \u201cjifs\u201d, the rest of us call gifs \u201cgifs\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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