Machine learning faces the problem of inductive risk, since it depends on human considerations, but also because it makes inferences based on empirical data. This is the case for both stages of scientific modelling. In the first phase, model construction runs the risk of the necessary process of feature extraction. And in the second stage, thresholds set by scientists influence the validation of the model. However, induction is the core of machine learning and epistemic values cannot help to overcome this problem....

The ‘Old Big Picture’, the grand narrative so to speak, of science and technology is often concerned with a specific period of time and geography. That is usually the Scientific Revolution and the Industrial Revolution taking place in Western Europe. In both cases the focus is on technical achievements which have led to progress and thus to the diffusion of scientific knowledge throughout the world (Basalla, 1967). However, as other historians, such as Cañizares (2017) and Pomeranz (2000), show, these events are not the same to different people at different times, meaning that there are alternatives to the ‘standard narrative’....

Sleep takes up about a third of our life and is of biological importance. A common thought, however, is that people who sleep little are efficient, while people who sleep long are lazy (Khazan, 2014). But, researchers gain more and more insights of sleeping habits and the consequences of sleep deprivation, which range from lack of concentration to increased health issues. It seems like our society starts to appreciate sleep again....