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Upriver Press

@upriverpress.com
91 followers 124 following 329 posts

Independent publisher of award-winning scholarly nonfiction books about critical issues of our times. upriverpress.com Book reviews at: upriverpress.substack.com

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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 29/09/2026
Upriver Press author Luis Garicano, professor at the London School of Economics, recently provided a lecture on his new book "Messy Jobs: The Work That AI Cannot Reach." The lecture offers an overview of the book, which we hope everyone will read. www.youtube.com/live/uqtSXxX... #AI #Work
youtube.com
Book discussion: Messy Jobs: The Work that AI Cannot Reach
YouTube video by Peterson Institute for International Economics
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 28/09/2026
Recently, a certain political leader argued that we should all change the term #AI to SI, with the latter meaning “superintelligence.” SI might be fine, as long as the S stands for “stolen.” www.upriverpress.com/uprivercurre...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 26/09/2026
At least one political leader wants to change AI to SI (for superintelligence). We're fine with using SI as long as the S stands for "stolen." #AI #copyrights #intellectualproperty
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 23/09/2026
Editing great books + listening to John Coltrane = joy #publishing #books
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 19/09/2026
Unsealed court documents reveal that "Microsoft employees debated whether what OpenAI was doing represented the 'largest theft of labor in human history.'" @nytimes.com Remember that #AI models are built on troves of confiscated intellectual property. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/17/t...
nytimes.com
Microsoft and OpenAI Workers Worry About ‘Largest Theft of Labor’ in History
Newly unsealed court documents showed concern within Microsoft and OpenAI over the use of millions of news articles to develop A.I. systems.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 17/09/2026
The #AI companies have landed themselves, and all of us, into a classic "Zugzwang" situation. In chess, a Zugzwang occurs when a player must make a move but only has horrible options. The doomed player begins to see the impending checkmate. See our new word history. upriverpress.substack.com
A black and white photograph of a chess board on which the king is knocked down and surrounded by other chess pieces.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 15/09/2026
Looks like the #AI companies, who need revenue but admit the tech they created is extremely dangerous, are in a classic "Zugzwang." That's a chess term for when a player only has bad choices for potential moves.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 14/09/2026
"What is reading but silent conversation?" -- Walter Landor Which is yet another reason why we need to avoid machine-regurgitated books ... #reading #books
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 12/09/2026
Upriver Press author John Turner (PhD U. of Chicago), in a @whartonschool.bsky.social publication, presents ways for #Congress to reform #socialsecurity. His book "Social Security for Future Generations" can help millions of Americans. pensionresearchcouncil.wharton.upenn.edu/blog/social-...
pensionresearchcouncil.wharton.upenn.edu
Social Security for Future Generations: Reforming the Reform Process
Social Security faces a growing solvency challenge, but congressional gridlock makes reform increasingly difficult. In their latest blog, John Turner and Serena E. McCarthy propose three ways to refor...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 07/09/2026
Today we toured Distillery 291 (winner of international whisky awards) in Colo. Springs. We learned that every bottle label is printed with a 1940s letterpress. Everything at this company is artisan, highly crafted, personal--the antithesis of the AI/Amazon/Google age. #printing
Photo of a 1940s letterpress used by a distillery to print its bottle labels.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 07/09/2026
"Laws die, books never." -- Lord Lytton (1803-1873), British literary patron #books #reading #publishing
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 05/09/2026
"Tyranny consists in the desire to dominate everything regardless of order." French scientist and theologian Blaise Pascal in "Pensées" (published 1670) #AI #politics #elections #democracy
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 03/09/2026
The 90-year-old #socialsecurity program could be insolvent in 2033 unless #Congress acts. Our book by economist Dr. John Turner provides practical, economically sound guidance for how to do that. Maybe encourage your representative and senators to read it. www.upriverpress.com/home/social-...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 01/09/2026
Oxford University's Bodleian Library published a book of ancient curses used against people who destroyed or stole #books. Perhaps they should apply to the #AI companies that steal books?
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 26/08/2026
Guy sends us link to a 20-minute podcast with some dudes ranting about moving the US monetary system back to the gold standard. We respond by recommending a scholarly book written by a renowned economist on the history of the monetary system. No response. Keep reading books! #books #reading
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 24/08/2026
Kim Phillips-Fein, professor at Columbia University, wrote an article about potential conflict stemming from America's #inequality in today's @nytimes.com. The Upriver Press book "Inequality by Design" provides tools for a better world ... without conflict. www.upriverpress.com/home/inequal...
upriverpress.com
Inequality by Design — Upriver Press
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 18/08/2026
If you hear the word “Princeton,” you probably think about that renowned university. But there's also #PrincetonNewJersey, a town with a remarkable history. Upriver Press will release this fall a comprehensive history of the town. www.upriverpress.com/uprivercurre... #princeton #history #newbooks
upriverpress.com
New Upriver Press Book Coming Soon — Upriver Press
If you hear the word “Princeton,” you probably think about that renowned university. That place where Einstein delivered some important lectures. What you probably don’t realize is that the town of Pr...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 11/08/2026
As #AI companies run roughshod over society while consolidating control over knowledge, data, and intellectual property, this 2003 book provides readers with an overarching history of how companies have defined and redefined their responsibilities to society. upriverpress.substack.com #bookreviews
Commercial district shrouded in air pollution.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 06/08/2026
"In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through to you." -- Mortimer Adler #books #reading
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 06/08/2026
"For books are not absolutely dead things, but do contain a potency of life in them to be as active as the soul was whose progeny they are." -- John Milton, English poet (1608-1674) #books #reading #publishing
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 05/08/2026
We at Upriver Press never use AI for anything. Not even in personal life. We are all fine. FYI. #AI #work
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 04/08/2026
Upriver Press just moved to a new office in downtown Colorado Springs! The historic Exchange Building, beautifully preserved, was built in 1908. We are not far from the US Olympic Committee HQ and we get to see Pikes Peak every day (14,115 feet).
Photograph of The Exchange Building. Behind the eight-story building is the front range of the Rocky Mountains.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 03/08/2026
"Why must we treat all technology as if it were foregone, irresistible, like the weather, rather than a choice we make with eyes wide open? Why can’t we see that blithely shrinking the domain and value of human work shrivels humanity itself?" -- J.R. Moehringer in @nytimes.com August 2, 2026 #AI
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 02/08/2026
In his book "Manipulation," Cass Sunstein shows how our lives are permeated with efforts to manipulate what we buy and believe. This reduces our freedom, costs us a lot of money, and undermines our democracy. New book review here: upriverpress.substack.com/p/our-nightm... #AI #businessethics
upriverpress.substack.com
Our "Nightmare of Consumerism"
Upriver Press Book Review
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 27/07/2026
Lawsuits against #AI companies are piling up. One case found that #Anthropic had illegally stored a whopping 7 million pirated books to train Claude. We're seeing a massive takeover and consolidation of the world's intellectual property. Chart from Statista.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 26/07/2026
Book #publishers have filed a lawsuit against Google contending that the company knowingly disregarded intellectual property rights, illegally using troves of books to train #AI models. Anthropic did the same thing. OpenAI and Meta both face lawsuits. AI businesses lack ethics, which hurts society.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 24/07/2026
Best ever opening sentence to a book's acknowledgements page: "In the best capitalist tradition, this book has been built on the backs of many underpaid and abused workers." (In The Company: A Short History of a Revolutionary Idea, 2003.) #publishing #books
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 21/07/2026
A federal judge just finalized a ruling against #AI company Anthropic for stealing 500,000 #books. The Association of American Publishers called the ruling "an important victory ... hold big tech accountable for its unscrupulous appropriation of intellectual and creative properties." #publishing
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 15/07/2026
There is an important article in @theatlantic.com titled The End of Reading Is Here. Since the TV age started in the 1950s, "The decline of reading seems to be ushering in a less rational ... mode of thinking. It's difficult to see any advantages in that." #medialiteracy #reading #criticalthinking
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 11/07/2026
Social Security faces insolvency in 2032. Members of Congress view #SocialSecurity as the "third rail" of politics, so they delay reforms. Upriver Press authors Dr. John Turner and Serena McCarthy provide three simple ways that #Congress can move forward. www.upriverpress.com/uprivercurrent
upriverpress.com
The Upriver Current — Upriver Press
Substantive articles and features about our books and current affairs, and interviews with Upriver Press authors.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 10/07/2026
These guys don't like it when someone steals their intellectual property, but they have no problem stealing the intellectual property of authors, publishers, musicians, photographers ...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 10/07/2026
In our AI age of fakery, no one knows what is factual or fake. The US World Cup team, hearing that FIFA allowed a star player to play against Belgium said, “I think a lot of us thought it was AI at first ... We weren’t sure if it was true or not." www.nytimes.com/athletic/742... #AI #medialiteracy
nytimes.com
How the world, including President Trump, reacted to Balogun's ban reprieve
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 09/07/2026
Will #AI take your job? Princeton economist Markus Brunnermeier hosts Luis Garicano (London School of Economics) about his new Upriver Press book "Messy Jobs: The Work That AI Cannot Reach." This book will help you think clearly about the future of #careers. www.youtube.com/watch?v=70Ie...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 08/07/2026
Our new #bookreview focuses on the photography of Lewis Hine, who documented the 1.7 million children exploited by companies in the early 1900s. A great book published by @princetonupress.bsky.social upriverpress.substack.com/p/revealing-...
upriverpress.substack.com
Revealing the Dignity of Exploited Children
Upriver Press Book Review
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 07/07/2026
The @nytimes.com reports that US #AI companies are upset that Chinese "developers have illicitly leveraged American technology" (i.e., stolen their intellectual property). Funny how the same US companies don't worry about stealing the IP of thousands of #authors and #publishers and #musicians and...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 01/07/2026
"The love of money and the love of learning rarely meet." -- English metaphysical poet George Herbert (1593-1633) #books #reading #education
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 30/06/2026
There's a vital election coming in November. Media literacy is more important than ever, especially in the age of #AI fakery and manipulation. Here's a book that can help. www.upriverpress.com/home/overcom... #medialiteracy #elections #journalism
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 29/06/2026
"This is simply a must-read book if you are interested in the future of work in the age of AI." -- Alex Imas, director of AGI economics at Google DeepMind. #AI #work #economics www.upriverpress.com/home/messy-j...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 27/06/2026
Bookstores are helping to reduce loneliness. Sarah Arnold at @parnassusbooks.bsky.social says, “Technology and social media promised to bring us together, but more often it feels like they siphon each of us into a solitary lifestyle, and it’s hurting us.” lithub.com/a-bookstore-... #reading #books
lithub.com
A Bookstore Boom in a Time of Literacy Decline
I was standing in line at Chaucer’s Books, my local indie, when it occurred to me that the line was longer than usual. This has been happening regularly enough that I’ve stopped being s…
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 25/06/2026
While everyone focuses on how #AI might improve productivity, Alison Pugh, aUniversity of Virginia professor, she says we are constructing a “social architecture” around technological efficiency rather than human well-being. upriverpress.substack.com/p/the-datafi... #books #work
upriverpress.substack.com
The Datafication of People
Upriver Press Book Review
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 24/06/2026
"When Amazon launched in 1994, there were more than 5,000 bookstores in the US. By 2019, that had dropped to 1,887 stores. Now there are over 3,300!" @bookshop.org has sent almost $50 million dollars to local bookstores. Your support of local #bookstores matters!
bookshop.org
Bookshop.org: Buy books online. Support local bookstores.
A better way to buy books online. Every purchase financially supports local independent bookstores.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 23/06/2026
Starting today @bookshop.org is offering free shipping (through June 26). This fantastic company is a B-Corp that has donated nearly $50 million to local bookstores. We encourage readers to avoid Amazon. There are better options for society. #books #reading #bookstores
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 22/06/2026
Stripe CEO Patrick Collison says this about our new book "Messy Jobs": "There is a lot of woolly thinking on the topic of #AI and #jobs. This excellent book is by far the most economically literate account." www.upriverpress.com/home/messy-j... #work #careers #economics
upriverpress.com
Messy Jobs: The Work That AI Cannot Reach — Upriver Press
Apocalyptic predictions that AI will eliminate millions of jobs have caused widespread fear. When people hear that AI can write, code, and diagnose, they often jump to a scary conclusion: If machines ...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 19/06/2026
In 1642, Blaise Pascal pioneered calculating machines (called Pascalines). A prescient Pascal quote relevant to AI: "The [calculating machine] produces effects closer to thought than anything done by animals, but it does nothing to justify the assertion that it has a will like the animals." #AI
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 19/06/2026
Harvard Business School professor Raffaella Sadun says this about our new book "Messy Jobs": "A rigorous, original, and engaging account of how AI will reshape organizations and labor markets, and what it will take to thrive in them." www.upriverpress.com/home/messy-j... #AI #work #economics
upriverpress.com
Messy Jobs: The Work That AI Cannot Reach — Upriver Press
Apocalyptic predictions that AI will eliminate millions of jobs have caused widespread fear. When people hear that AI can write, code, and diagnose, they often jump to a scary conclusion: If machines ...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 16/06/2026
The Pope recently uploaded some theology about the ethics of AI. A reminder that technology ethics should matter. upriverpress.substack.com/p/the-pope-u... #AI #ethics #economics #work
upriverpress.substack.com
The Pope Uploads Theology to the AI Cloud
Upriver Press Book Review
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 15/06/2026
Pope on #AI: If we allow "the logic of efficiency, control, and profit alone shape personal, social, and economic decisions," we risk "reducing creation to an object of exploitation and human beings to mere cogs in a system driven to ever greater efficiency." www.vatican.va/content/leo-...
vatican.va
Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Leo XIV Magnifica Humanitas (15 May 2026)
ENCYCLICAL LETTER MAGNIFICA HUMANITAS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE LEO XIV ON SAFEGUARDING THE HUMAN PERSON IN THE TIME OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE [ Multimedia ] ___________________________
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 13/06/2026
The new Upriver Press book "Messy Jobs: The Work That AI Cannot Reach" was just featured in The Atlantic. Read the article here: www.theatlantic.com/economy/2026... #AI #jobs #work #books #economics
theatlantic.com
Three Ways to Think About AI and Jobs
Whether automation will make human workers obsolete depends on more than just how smart the AI is.
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 12/06/2026
Nobel Prize-winning economist Bengt Holmström says this about the new Upriver Press book "Messy Jobs." "The authors use simple, powerful logic to illuminate how AI will reshape work and organizations." www.upriverpress.com/home/messy-j... #AI #work #economics #business
upriverpress.com
Messy Jobs: The Work That AI Cannot Reach — Upriver Press
Apocalyptic predictions that AI will eliminate millions of jobs have caused widespread fear. When people hear that AI can write, code, and diagnose, they often jump to a scary conclusion: If machines ...
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Upriver Press @upriverpress.com · 12/06/2026
The documentary "Turn Every Page" is an inspiring portrayal of a 50-year friendship between author Robert Caro and editor Robert Gottlieb. As #AI invades the #publishing industry, one tragic loss could be meaningful friendships. Hope that does not happen. www.sonypictures.com/movies/turne...
sonypictures.com
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