I was horrified by the mass shooting in Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue…all the more so against a backdrop of  the current climate of hate in the US.

But I was heartened at the showing of support from the individuals, religious people and politicians who attended or spoke at yesterday’s vigil for the shooting victims, held at the bandshell on the Boston Common.

While, of course, the same sort of thing could happen here–and it did, at the 2013 Boston Marathon–I found solace, for a time, in the eloquence and dedication to human rights–especially of Attorney General Maura Healey, Congressman Joe Kennedy, and State Treasurer Deb Goldberg–and of BU student  Ariel Stein, a Boston University student who has belonged all her life to the Tree of Life Synagogue, where the deadly shootings took place. “It is up to all of us to love,” she said.

I’m sorry to have missed talks by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Governor Charlie Baker but as one who is generally skeptical about politicians, I felt very glad to live in a state and city that elects responsible leaders–even if I sometimes don’t agree with them.

(I’ve been sending letters and will canvas to encourage infrequent voters to vote in the mid-term elections–and hope that you will do the same.)

Here’s a link to a video of the entire vigil posted on You-Tube  by Combined Jewish Philanthropies.  

–Anita M. Harris
Anita Harris is a writer and communications consultant based in Cambridge, MA. New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, a content, PR and digital marketing agency, also in Cambridge.

For anyone who loves animals, mythology, feminism, fishing and/or nature, the current exhibit at the Cambridge Art Association is a must-see. Curated by sculptor  Gin Stone,  the show, called “Creature Comforts,”  features the work of  Christine Kyle, Gail Samuelson, Gin Stone, & Daniel Zeese.

As  described by a CAA press release, the show, at the Kathryn Schultz gallery, 21 Lowell Street,  “invites the viewer to enter another environment: a landscape of contrasts, with creatures and beings spotlighted in their native realms. Some are adapted to wetlands, others to an environment unrecognizable to humans.”

On entering the gallery, I was immediately “wowed” by the fantastical, life-sized large animal shapes formed of hard foam covered by various sorts of fishing gear –many of which their creator, Gin explained,  represent mythical gods, showing both beauty and pain. The creatures–with seemingly real fur, teeth, tongues and such– are set in dioramas meant to mimic those of traditional natural history museums.

Gin says: “I am an ardent environmentalist and multimedia artist. I create humane taxidermy (anti-hunting trophies) with recycled material. I use hand dyed reclaimed longline fishing gear as a medium. The material itself is part of the work’s narrative. The local fishing culture is deeply ingrained in the environment I lives in, my studio is on Cape Cod.

Mother’s Milk

“Some of my more experimental work, as personified by the piece “Mother’s Milk – Spilled, “creates chimera and allegorical/mythological creatures. With these pieces, I incorporate a current social commentary by adding spent bullet casings, axes and other found objects to address issues such as toxic patriarchy, violence against women and children and hate crimes.”

Working in a Cape Cod studio, she writes, she is well aware of the traditional fishing community–and that “more recently the science community has come into the arena to help recover retain the health of oceans. There is frequently a clashing between these two groups. By bringing the recovery and recycling of the fishing gear to the artistic arena, I can help put a spotlight on collaboration and creativity, and perhaps a hopeful outlook on the future from everyone involved.”

Christine Kyle’s simple, organic ceramic forms  stand in for “the messiness of life.” A geometric face or window slices through each piece, keeping its attention on the search for certainty.

Their surfaces, made primarily of wax, damar resin and pigment, give each piece its own character. The statures of her creatures range within intimate dimensions. The wall portals are complementary pieces to the creatures. They add the challenge of dimensionality and the view through their portals is inward.

Gail Samuelson’s photos, shot with a large format film camera , display beauty of nature. As she writes,  for example, “old leafless trees reaching towards the sky as new plants begin to grow in the rich decaying matter of upturned stumps. It is perfectly quiet except for the sound of cracking dead wood as I make my way further into the swamp. The predawn fog rises up from the ground, briefly casting its spell. Then in a moment, the sun peaks out over the trees, lighting each leaf and cobweb. Birds begin to sing.”

Daniel Zeese is an artist, designer and educator practicing in Somerville and Boston Massachusetts. His latest work explores populations, belonging, and identity within an urban environment. Inspired by a history of textiles and the domestic objects that we bring into our home to create refuge, Daniel reveals a way to let our minds return to nature while our bodies inhabit the city.

His work investigates what it means to be within civilization while on the edge of the wilderness. Outnumbered, on the fringe of what is accepted in the city, celebrated from a distance, and threatened to exile by the powers of the majority. Daniel reacts to the continuing history of violence within cities against people who, while defining the cultural identity of a place, are often misunderstood, attacked and objectified. Later we experience the outcome, the resulting martyrdom, through the master cultural narrative. This body of work explores, in many mediums, whom it is we choose to mourn and celebrate.

You can learn more about the artists at cambridgeart.org/creature-comforts and at an artists’ talk on  Thursday, October 25, 6:30-8pm

On view at the Kathryn Schultz Gallery • 25 Lowell Street, Cambridge MA 02138
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-5pm

–Anita M. Harris

Anita Harris is a writer, photographer and communications consultant based in Cambridge, MA.

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, also in Cambridge.

Artificial intelligence is likely to transform the public sector by automating many government tasks—including making combat decisions. But, according to experts at a recent symposium held  at Harvard University, this “over-the-horizon” technology can only guide and inform government leaders. There will always be a need for human decision making—and for clear ethical standards to prevent harmful intentions.

At the September 20 conference, “AI-Government and AI Arms Races and Norms,” organized by the Michael Dukakis Institute (MDI), Professor Marc Rotenberg underscored the growing gap between informed government decision-making and the reality of our technology-driven world. “Governments may ultimately lose control of these systems if they don’t take action,” he told some 60 attendees.

Rosenberg, who teaches at Georgetown University Law School, is President of the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), and a member of the AI World Society Standards and Practice Committee,

Prof. Matthias Scheutz, Director of the Human-Robot Interaction Laboratory at Tufts University, said the greatest risk caused by AI and robotics technologies is when unconstrained machine learning is out of control. This can happen when AI systems acquire knowledge and start to pursue goals that were not intended by their human designers, he said. For example, “If an AI program operating the power grid decides to cut off energy in certain areas for better power utilization overall, it will leave millions of people without electricity, which consequently turns out to be an AI accidental failure.”

Scheutz also said that common preventive solutions inside and outside the system are largely insufficient to safeguard AI and robotics technologies. Even with “emergency buttons,” the system itself might finally set its own goal to prevent a shutdown previously set up by humans.

The best way to safeguard AI systems is to build ethical provisions directly into the learning, reasoning, recognition and other algorithms. In his presentation, he demonstrated “ethical testing” to catch and handle ethical violations.

Here’s a link to video of Scheutz’s talk. https://youtu.be/66EeYzkTxwA

Prof. Joseph Nye, emeritus of Harvard University, who created the concept of “Soft Power” diplomacy, focused on the expansion of Chinese firms in the US market and their ambition to surpass the US in AI. Nye said the notion of an AI arms race and geopolitical competition in AI can have profound effects on our society. However, he added, predictions that China will overtake the US in AI by 2030 are “uncertain” and “indeterminate” because China’s only advantage is having more data and little concern about privacy.

Nye also point out that as people unleash AI, which is leading to warfare and autonomous offensives, we should have treaties in place to control the technology, managed perhaps by international institutions that will monitor AI programs in various countries.

During the symposium, Tuan Nguyen and Michael Dukakis, cofounders of the Michael Dukakis Institute (MDI), announced MDI’s cooperation with AI World–the industry’s largest conference and expo covering the business and technology of enterprise AI, to be held in Boston December 3-5, 2018.

Nguyen said, “Our cooperation marks the determination between two organizations toward achieving the goal of developing, measuring, and tracking the progress of ethical AI policy-making and solution adoption by governments and corporations.” Nguyen also introduced Eliot Weinman – Chairman of AI World Conference and Expo as a new member of AIWS Standards and Practice Committee.

Conference details are published in the current issue of AIWS Weekly.
–Dick Pirozzolo

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, a PR, content and digital marketing firm based in Cambridge, MA.

Dick Pirozzolo is a member of the Group; the Michael Dukakis Institute, formed by Boston Global Forum, is his client. 

It’s not too late to see the work of three influential women i from three generations of ceramicists–Karen Karnes (1925-2016) , Nina Hole (1941-2016), and Ani Kasten (1976…) –at Concord’s Lacoste-Keane Gallery. But hurry, because the show closes September 1.

Karen Karnes, was an American pioneer in ceramics from the generation that came of age after WWII. Part of two legendary art communities: Black Mountain College and the Gatehill Community in New York with Merce Cunningham, John Cage and Robert Rauschenberg among others, Ms. Karnes was a modernist at heart- her inspiration came from Bauhaus. Her work has always been sculptural–even in her functional work. In the 1980’s and 90’s Karnes created her legendary winged vessels and slit forms. In the 2000’s when strength was an issue she turned to her sculptures of combined forms which can be seen as landscape, figurative or still life. Her work is sought after and collected by individuals and museums. Karen Karnes long illustrious career touched and influenced many within her field.

Nina Hole was a Danish ceramic artist well known for her large exterior “Fire Sculptures”. She traveled extensively around the world making her outdoor fire sculptures in situ with a team of assistants and volunteers. One can find her 25 large scale sculptures in countries like Australia, Japan, Denmark, Germany, Mexico, Turkey, Brazil and America. Architecture was a huge inspiration and in addition to making her fire sculptures; she made smaller scale sculptures inspired by houses, churches and buildings. Many who knew her intimately opined on how she really loved the firing processes as they allowed her to work with others. More than just an artist, she was also a huge champion of ceramics through her initiatives Clay Today, The International Ceramic Research Center Guldagergaard and CLAY–Museum of Ceramic Art.

Ani Kasten is an independent ceramic artist whose knowledge came outside the norms of ceramics. She had never touched clay before apprenticing to Rupert Spira in the UK. From England she went to Nepal where she spent four years as head of a project for developing a stoneware ceramic production facility for artisan potters.

Coming back to the US she rehabbed two houses and a studio living complex over the next 10 years all the while making her distinctive ceramics combining stoneware and porcelain with unorthodox and repurposed materials. Similar to Karnes, Kasten’s ceramic foray started in studio pottery which evolved and grew to expressive sculptures for which she is known today. Often Kasten responds to current social and political climate by reflecting them in her works.

This show brings together these influential artists from three distinct generations through their interpretation of ceramic sculpture. Each offers ways of seeing the world through their innovative and artistic expression. All are highly individualistic and mold breaking in their own rights.

“We are thrilled to represent these three legendary ceramic artists and bring their work to the public.” , said  Lucy Lacoste, the gallery’s founder.

Lacoste /Keane Gallery have been appointed the sole representative of Nina Hole’s estate in the USA.
The gallery is wheelchair accessible and free to the public.

Note: Lacoste Gallery is now Lacoste / Keane Gallery with Lucy Lacoste and LaiSun Keane as owners/directors.

The show runs through September 1, 2018.

The gallery is located at 25 MAIN STREET CONCORD, MASSACHUSETTS 01742 T: 978-369-0278 F: 978-369-3375 E: INFO@LACOSTEGALLERY.COM

–Anita M. Harris

I recently interviewed Bob Langer–MIT biotech guru extraordinaire–on behalf of the EBD Group, which holds international partnering conferences for the life sciences six times a year.  Here’s the opening…and a link to the rest, on the EBD Site. The piece will also  appear in xconomy shortly. Full disclosure…Bob is a personal friend, former classmate, and a member of the Harris Communications Group advisory board…so this should be considered a sponsored post.

–Anita M. Harris

When Bob Langer joined the MIT faculty in 1977 he had a rocky start. Trained as a chemical engineer and working on drug delivery systems, many of his ideas went against conventional wisdom. “I had people write the most insulting things about my knowledge of biology and medicine. Many thought my ideas were crazy. A number of professors wanted me to leave and my first nine grant proposals were turned down.”

Eventually, after numerous academic scientists and companies repeated and used his work Langer was able to get grant funding from the NIH. He also turned to companies for research funding—in return for licensing his patents—which, at that time, also went against the conventional grain.

Today, Langer is one of 13 Institute Professors (being an Institute Professor is MIT’s highest honor) at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. With more than 1,400 articles to his credit, he is the ninth most cited individual in history, according to Google scholar. (Sigmund Freud is first). His 1,300 patents, licensed or sublicensed to more than 350 companies in pharmaceutical, chemical, biotechnology and medical device fields, have led to more than 100 products currently in use or in clinical trials. He has received more than 220 major professional awards including the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, Priestly Medal, National Medal of Science, National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the Charles Stark Draper Prize (considered the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for engineers), and the Lemelson-MIT prize for being “one of history’s most prolific inventors in medicine.” In June 2018, he was named a US international envoy for science by the US State Department.

Despite his success, Langer remains well aware of his early setbacks, and, as a scientific advisor to some 200 companies over the past 40 years, is highly cognizant of what can go wrong.

“You can have bad animal results, failed trials, or patent problems. I’ve seen partners pull out, companies take bad loans, and the FDA create delays. Stumbling blocks can arise anywhere along the way,” he says.

One of the most difficult problems can occur early on “when a researcher has good findings but is not far enough along for investors or companies to want to spend a lot of money.” In that situation, known as “the valley of death,” Langer says, “the question is how to get enough data so that will change.”

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Anita M. Harris is a writer and communications consultant based in Cambridge, MA.

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, also in Cambridge.