Good morning.
Monday in Whitewater will see a morning wintry mix of rain or snow showers and a high of forty-two. Sunrise is 6:35 AM and sunset 7:22 PM, for 12h 49m 25s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 95.6% of its visible disk illuminated. Today is the {tooltip}five hundred eighth day.{end-texte}Days since Trump’s election, with 11.9.16 as the first day.{end-tooltip}
On this day in 1968, 2001: A Space Odyssey has its world premiere in Washington, D.C.
On this day in 1865, final Battle of Petersburg, Virginia heralds the Confederacy’s doom:
The final Battle of Petersburg brought about the fall of Richmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederacy. The 5th, 6th, 7th, 19th, 36th, 37th and 38th Wisconsin Infantry regiments participated in the final assault on Petersburg. The 5th Wisconsin Infantry was in front at the charge and their flag was the first one planted on the rebel works.
Recommended for reading in full —
➤ Erica Bernstien explains What Bananas Tell Us About Trade Wars:
➤ Annysa Johnson reports Federal investigation found 100-plus examples of racial disparities in MPS suspensions:
A federal investigation into alleged racial disparities in the way Milwaukee Public Schools disciplines students uncovered more than 100 instances over a two-year period in which black students were punished more severely than their white peers for the same or similar misconduct, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Education.
The document, obtained by the Journal Sentinel through an open records request, details the 3½ year investigation, which became public in January when MPS Superintendent Darienne Driver informed board members that she had entered into a settlement agreement with the department’s Office for Civil Rights.
RELATED: MPS agrees to settle U.S. civil rights complaint over discipline of black students
The report, dated Jan. 31, 2018, describes the extensive investigation, which included a massive collection of data and documentation, as well as multiple interviews with teachers, students and principals at 17 MPS schools. And it offers the first specific examples of disparities, beyond the statistical data that showed black students were suspended and expelled at far higher rates than their white peers.
➤ Ifeoma Ajunwa contends Facebook users aren’t the reason Facebook is in trouble now:
After news broke this week of Cambridge Analytica’s unauthorized siphon of millions of Facebook users’ data for political targeting, one particularly troubling reaction emerged: Some commentators implied that Facebook users themselves are also to blame for not being more discerning about or questioning how their data might be used. Coincidentally, this reaction echoed past comments by the social network’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, who had derided Facebook users for giving up their personal data.
As a law and organizational scholar who studies platforms, I find the idea that users should bear any of the blame for the unauthorized exploitation of their data on Facebook outrageous. This notion goes against legal concepts that maintain that platforms to which we entrust our personal data should be expected to protect that data and not use it to manipulate us. Yes, there is always some onus on consumers to make informed choices about products and services they consume, but Facebook’s business model of ever-changing terms of service, riddled with the indecipherable legalese used by most platforms, and its general lack of information about data governance mean that consumers are often left in the dark about Facebook’s data collection practices.
[ Why Facebook users’ data obtained by Cambridge Analytica has probably spun far out of reach ]And ultimately, after all, harvesting user data for targeted advertising was part of Facebook’s business strategy. Cambridge Analytica was able to obtain Facebook users’ data precisely because Facebook itself was already collecting and allowing third-party app developers to access that data. Facebook has extracted ever-more personal information as part of the bargain for using its platform; Cambridge Analytica may have done it in a way Facebook now says it shouldn’t have, but the firm was using the platform exactly as intended.
➤ Tom Haudricourt reports Zach Davies is eager to start the Brewers’ home opener after a year of adjustments:
To take that step forward, Davies is determined to put behind him those first-inning woes (6.27 ERA in 2017, highest of any inning he pitched) as well as crazy home-away splits. Counsell dismissed those facts and figures as mere paperwork but it was impossible to dismiss how much better Davies pitched away from Miller Park, which has favored hitters since opening in 2001.
In 17 starts at home, Davies went 8-7 with a 5.82 ERA, compared to 9-2, 2.04 in 16 games on the road. But, as an indication that he started to figure out what he was doing wrong, home or away, Davies posted a 4.90 ERA in the first half and 2.87 ERA after the break.
Live and learn.
“Early on, I kind of shot myself in the foot by throwing way too many pitches, not going deeper into ball games,” said Davies, who averaged 5 1/3 innings per start in the first half and 6 1/3 innings afterward. “So, I should have been over 200 innings, in my mind.
➤ (If) This Is the End of the Silicon Chip, Here’s What’s Next: