A recent 60 Minutes episode focused on employees in IT that were replaced H1-B Visa contractors. What the reporter failed to notice, or mention, is that every terminated employee was over 50 (my estimate based on appearance).
> ... the “Wizards Wanted” section of its website. Indeed, given that a “wizard” generally is defined as “a man who has magical powers,” and virtually without exception images of wizards are male, Magic Leap’s recruiting verbiage contains a not-so-subtle “women-need-not-apply” message.
Ummm... technically there is an equivalent 'typically female' term for a woman with magical powers.
I think Magic Leap would still be in trouble if they had used that term in their recruiting literature.
This stackexchange entry (https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/182876/why-are-f...) is interesting re: this subject. Basically, the accepted answer asserts that treating 'witch' as a female wizard is a Harry Potterism and that the corresponding male term for witch is warlock.
Another answer suggests 'wizardess' may be the better female term for wizard.
At least in tech we use the same terms for both male and female programmers :)
Objection your honor, the sevent-daughter-of-a-seventh-son can be a wizard, thus i demand the charge be dropped based upon precedence of Terry Pratchet vs Gender Stereotypes.
I rest my case.
"Magic Leap is probably one of the most secretive technology companies of our generation"??! It's no secret that they're a fraud. That cat's out of the bag.
I mean, come on: just watch Rony Abovitz's TEDxSarasota talk [1] that he so fittingly presented at the Ringling College of Art & Design [2], whose trademarked mission phrase is "Shattering the myth of the starving artist.™".
Yes, those very same Ringling brothers [3], whose colleague P. T. Barnum said: "There's a sucker born every minute." Send in the clowns.
Charlatans like these give the rest of the industry a terrible name.
Guess the unfortunate thing about trying to solve big problems* with the Silicon Valley startup model is that the pressure to get disruptive overnight to satisfy VC ROI expectations is that you get companies like this or Theranos that promise groundbreaking advances and do them in complete Apple-like secrecy without oversight.
> During Campbell’s last four months at Magic Leap, Abovitz—who always had been pouty and prone to temper-tantrums, began to dig his heels in even more in the face of dissenting ideas and to explode ever more frequently into child-like fits of rage, threatening retribution when he didn’t get his way, felt betrayed or was portrayed publically in an unfavorable light.
Ugh. It's just depressing how often you see people like this in positions of power.
Senior Engineer Eric Adams sent out an email December 4, 2015 through a company email list serv for social activities for Magic Leap employees and their families, which email bore the subject line, “Board (sic) Wives at home while you are loving it at the Leap,” which stated:
----
Hello Leapers:
My wife is starting a Google group outside of the Magic Leap locked domain.
It is called “Magic Leap spouses” and should be findable as such.
It is sort of a social meeting place for all the spouses that have been displaced, alone in the daytime and are new to the area, would like to have lunch with or just to have someone local to hang out with when their significant other is slaving away at work thru-out the 12-Hr day. Or are they just nagging you because you moved here?
Please forward this Email to your wife if she would like to get better acclimated to South Florida. The group is not public and is reasonably private (by email invite/accept) as to not accidentally disclose any Magic Leap secrets.
----
The gender-neutral reference to “spouses” notwithstanding, implicit in the subject line and the reference to “your wife” is the assumption — which is not too far from wrong — that all the employees were men with wives who didn’t work outside the home and were “alone in the daytime.”
"Eric Akerman, vice president of IT, is a high school buddy of Abovitz. He is a loud and outspoken and several misogynistic comments have emanated from his department and from him."
"Vice president of IT Akerman, on Nov. 8, 2016, told a large group of people who asked why he voted for Trump that it was 'because Melania is hot.'"
Rony Abovitz gets away with corporate murder - most of the reputable senior executives have fled his his Plantation, Florida Jones town or being sued. He raised the money to waste on lawsuits, just look at the records and testimonies - there is no product, just Abovitz's bullshit. He is not capable of delivering a product. Google made a stupid investment, and with Sundar and Scott Hassan on their board they are still allowed to run a shit show with Google's approval. No other startup could pull one like this. Total Magic Shit.
The complaint itself is interesting. Lots of inside information on not just the discrimination issue, but other critical commentary about the company.
One example:
"admonitions ignored in favor of her malecolleagues’ assertions that the images and videos presented on Magic Leap’s website and on YouTube were “aspirational,” and not Magic Leap’s version of “alternate facts.”"
I know it's settling a lawsuit, but isn't it nice that Magic Leap has actually done something for once?
More seriously, I'm continually annoyed by this "woman hired to combat sexism" thing. It's a special case of a scenario plenty of us will recognise: where a problem with your boss is somehow your problem to sort out.
There is also the fact that if the trial went public, she could seriously damage the company with NON-discrimination claims. For example:
"Campbell also raised concerns that what Magic Leap showed the public in marketing material was not what the product actually could do—admonitions ignored in favor of her male colleagues’ assertions that the images and videos presented on Magic Leap’swebsite and on YouTube were “aspirational,” and not Magic Leap’s version of “alternate facts.""
That could kill investment. I'd wager her lawyers knew this and it's likely considered a "good" legal tactic to force a settlement.
[+] [-] BrainLesion|8 years ago|reply
In 17 years of working IT, I have never heard this saying and nothing even close.
[+] [-] apetresc|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] apsec112|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rdiddly|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] throwanem|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tps5|8 years ago|reply
(But I do believe it)
[+] [-] wavefunction|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] louprado|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|8 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] myth_buster|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] zardo|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] johngalt|8 years ago|reply
> ... the “Wizards Wanted” section of its website. Indeed, given that a “wizard” generally is defined as “a man who has magical powers,” and virtually without exception images of wizards are male, Magic Leap’s recruiting verbiage contains a not-so-subtle “women-need-not-apply” message.
Ummm... technically there is an equivalent 'typically female' term for a woman with magical powers.
I think Magic Leap would still be in trouble if they had used that term in their recruiting literature.
[+] [-] jaredsohn|8 years ago|reply
Another answer suggests 'wizardess' may be the better female term for wizard.
At least in tech we use the same terms for both male and female programmers :)
[+] [-] dragonwriter|8 years ago|reply
"Sorceress"?
[+] [-] EthanHeilman|8 years ago|reply
Magician, Mage, Conjuror, Illusionist, Phosphomancer are all gender neutral.
[+] [-] Apocryphon|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] moomin|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Pica_soO|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jjawssd|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] DonHopkins|8 years ago|reply
I mean, come on: just watch Rony Abovitz's TEDxSarasota talk [1] that he so fittingly presented at the Ringling College of Art & Design [2], whose trademarked mission phrase is "Shattering the myth of the starving artist.™".
Yes, those very same Ringling brothers [3], whose colleague P. T. Barnum said: "There's a sucker born every minute." Send in the clowns.
Charlatans like these give the rest of the industry a terrible name.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8J5BWL8oJY
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringling_College_of_Art_and_De...
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringling_Bros._and_Barnum_%26_...
[+] [-] unclesaamm|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Apocryphon|8 years ago|reply
* https://www.technologyreview.com/s/429690/why-we-cant-solve-...
[+] [-] barry-cotter|8 years ago|reply
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There%27s_a_sucker_born_every_...
[+] [-] md224|8 years ago|reply
Ugh. It's just depressing how often you see people like this in positions of power.
[+] [-] s73ver|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|8 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] DonHopkins|8 years ago|reply
----
Hello Leapers:
My wife is starting a Google group outside of the Magic Leap locked domain.
It is called “Magic Leap spouses” and should be findable as such.
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/magic-leap-spouses
It is sort of a social meeting place for all the spouses that have been displaced, alone in the daytime and are new to the area, would like to have lunch with or just to have someone local to hang out with when their significant other is slaving away at work thru-out the 12-Hr day. Or are they just nagging you because you moved here?
Please forward this Email to your wife if she would like to get better acclimated to South Florida. The group is not public and is reasonably private (by email invite/accept) as to not accidentally disclose any Magic Leap secrets.
----
The gender-neutral reference to “spouses” notwithstanding, implicit in the subject line and the reference to “your wife” is the assumption — which is not too far from wrong — that all the employees were men with wives who didn’t work outside the home and were “alone in the daytime.”
----
[+] [-] 11thEarlOfMar|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] stuffedBelly|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] DonHopkins|8 years ago|reply
"Vice president of IT Akerman, on Nov. 8, 2016, told a large group of people who asked why he voted for Trump that it was 'because Melania is hot.'"
[+] [-] hillbillie|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tyingq|8 years ago|reply
One example:
"admonitions ignored in favor of her malecolleagues’ assertions that the images and videos presented on Magic Leap’s website and on YouTube were “aspirational,” and not Magic Leap’s version of “alternate facts.”"
[+] [-] zardo|8 years ago|reply
Some videos said they were shot through magic leap technology, presumably they were. The rest are mock-ups and concepts.
[+] [-] moomin|8 years ago|reply
More seriously, I'm continually annoyed by this "woman hired to combat sexism" thing. It's a special case of a scenario plenty of us will recognise: where a problem with your boss is somehow your problem to sort out.
[+] [-] fleitz|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] alasdair_|8 years ago|reply
"Campbell also raised concerns that what Magic Leap showed the public in marketing material was not what the product actually could do—admonitions ignored in favor of her male colleagues’ assertions that the images and videos presented on Magic Leap’swebsite and on YouTube were “aspirational,” and not Magic Leap’s version of “alternate facts.""
That could kill investment. I'd wager her lawyers knew this and it's likely considered a "good" legal tactic to force a settlement.
[+] [-] unknown|8 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] s73ver|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vkou|8 years ago|reply