“Today, Everyone Online Lies However They Please”
We meet Vu Nguyen—Vunyo, to his friends—again to chat about the present and future of journalism, about technology, and about the challenges and the bright sides of life in Bulgaria. A former journalist at The New York Times and a top-level IT specialist in the US, he and his wife decided to move back to Bulgaria after their son started calling the laptop “grandma”; he then won hearts on the Bulgarian edition of MasterChef and ran his own restaurant for a while. Today he is back in the world of information technology, but now here at home.
62The Fake News Hunter
It is called Tanbih, it comes from Qatar, and it promises to rescue us elegantly from fake news and disinformation. We meet its creator, Dr. Preslav Nakov, a world-class specialist in natural language processing with artificial intelligence. How can an algorithm tell that a news story is fake… before it has even been written?!
63Linus the Lionheart
“Nobody has ever told me I'm cool. I'm just the thing halfway between a normal person and a tech geek,” says Linus Torvalds. The computer engineer is surely one of the heroes of today's online world: the projects he created, Linux and Git, laid much of the groundwork for life on the internet as we know it. What kind of man is Linus? How does fame sit with him? And what does it feel like to start… an accidental revolution?
64“It’s Time We Thought About Mental Fitness, Too!”
How do we overcome the difficulties that online communication creates? Which character traits give away a good programmer? When is it time to draw a firm line and slow things down at work, before burnout arrives? The answers come from Velina Getova, a psychologist with extensive experience in information technology.
65Uncle Bob, the Programmers' Much-Hated Moses
Robert Martin, or simply Uncle Bob, is an iconic figure in the history of programming. He formulated the SOLID principles, which every beginner programmer is expected to know by heart at their first job interview. Uncle Bob is also one of the authors of the Agile Manifesto, which changed work in the industry forever. So why doesn't he enjoy the fame he deserves today?
66“Google Is Far More Dynamic and Chaotic Than It Looks from the Outside”
Minko Gechev works at Google as a senior developer on the Angular team. What is it like to be part of Google? How is studying at Sofia's Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics like studying at MIT? Why are programmers often more “closed off” people, and what does it take to succeed in the profession? Answers from a programmer with an impressive résumé and a curious outlook.
67“To Succeed Online, You Have to Put a Piece of Your Heart into It”
Marina Shiderova is a person of both art and technology. She and her team at Fram Creative studio create next-generation digital design that turns opening a web page into convenience, aesthetic pleasure and adventure. Together we look for one more valuable perspective on the technological present and on success online—from the standpoint of design and art.
68Will Artificial Intelligence Take Programmers' Bread?
Could artificial intelligence put programmers out on the street in the foreseeable future? Today it is a particularly promising time to enter the profession, but will that still be true once algorithms get better at writing code? The question came up loudly with the launch of GitHub Copilot, yet it runs much deeper and is far more interesting. We have gathered plenty of arguments for and against, and we leave the answer to you.
69“Conflicts Arise Because We Don’t Bother to Listen to Each Other”
Hari Haralambiev teaches soft skills to people in IT. We sit down with him to talk about all the stereotypes surrounding programming and the people who do it. About hard and soft skills. About difficult conversations. About leadership and the road to success. About the struggles every team goes through. About the human side of an industry that has become so fashionable and so attractive in recent years: software.
70Svetlin Nakov: Today, the Fight for Freedom Is Fought in the Digital World
Svetlin Nakov, the founder of SoftUni, can talk about today's (and tomorrow's) computer world for hours. Engagingly and knowledgeably, with a sense of humor and real insight. Here is what he has to tell us.
