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What to expect when, someday, thinking machines become so sophisticated that they will invent other machines COMMENT | KENNETH ROGOFF | Most economic forecasters have largely shrugged off recent advances in artificial intelligence (for example, the quantum leap demonstrated by DeepMind’s self-learning chess program last December), seeing little impact on longer-term …

Why a quarter-century after the end of the Cold War, we unexpectedly find ourselves in a second one COMMENT | RICHARD N. HAASS | The Cold War lasted four decades, in many ways both beginning and ending in Berlin. The good news is that it stayed cold largely because nuclear weapons …

To judge the moral component of artistic expression,look not at the person who made it but at the work itself COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | Chuck Close is an American artist, famous for painting large portraits. Severely paralyzed, Close is confined to a wheelchair. Former models have accused him of asking …

COMMENT | Mark Zuckerberg | I want to share an update on the Cambridge Analytica situation — including the steps we’ve already taken and our next steps to address this important issue. We have a responsibility to protect your data, and if we can’t then we don’t deserve to serve you. …

COMMENT | Moses Twesigomwe | Whenever it rains to reasonable levels, the City of Kampala experiences unprecedented levels of flooding. The general public and the elite, especially the seasoned writers, are quick to blame city [road] engineers for poor [drainage] designs and construction. I do not envy Jennifer Ssemakula Musisi’s …

COMMENT | Henry Rugamba | I took a walk last night in my Bbunga neighbourhood all the way down to the Munyonyo junction and back. When I got back to the Bbunga market area it was just gone 8pm and the whole area was buzzing with activity, last minute shoppers picking …

A travel advisory to Uganda is now in order as the forces fail to guarantee security for persons and property COMMENT | MORRIS KOMAKECH | The chilling kidnap and murder of Suzan Magara has dented the faith of Ugandans in the security of this country. This crime was at another level …

How the U.S., which has been covertly interfering in other nations’ politics for decades, has made itself vulnerable COMMENT | WILLIAM M. LEOGRANDE | “They have no damn right,” former Vice President Joe Biden said on Feb. 16, denouncing Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. “It’s our sovereign right …

How the move by the Chinese president to entrench himself in power could change China – for better or worse COMMENT | DYLAN LOH MING HUI | Thanks to surprising new constitutional amendments – curiously, first announced in English – the path is clear for Xi Jinping and his chosen …

COMMENT | LINUS BLOMQVIST | As global demand for seafood increases alongside population and income growth, fish farming has become more necessary than ever, despite its negative environmental externalities. But how can the aquaculture industry achieve long-term sustainability, both in terms of conservation and energy usage? Demand for seafood is skyrocketing, …