This week’s Digest is all about technology and its impact not only on our training, but the broader world. In hardware, shrinking computers can now fit just about any sensor you can imagine into a bike, allowing riders to adjust to real-time conditions and eke out every advantage over the competition, no matter how small. Turning to apps, we examine how to harness social media and social fitness apps to keep us motivated and hold us accountable in our training. As a bonus, we’ll also see how data from social fitness apps like Strava are even helping cities make smarter infrastructure investments. Finally, taking step back to look at the bigger picture, we’ll consider how, despite amazing progress over the past fifty years, we’re still only in the first phase of Artificial Intelligence.

Argon18 Develops Jet Fighter Tech To Keep Drag In Check
Since the advent of carbon fiber technology road bikes have started to look more and more like fighter jets. Now, with the use of sophisticated integrated computer systems, they’re finally starting to perform like them.
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Social Media and the Climate of Fitness
It’s easy to make fun of #fitspo and roll your eyes at gym selfies. But training is as much psychological as it is physical, and a solid support network—even a virtual one—can be the difference between success and failure. By drawing lessons from the science of behavior change, we can shape our social media use to support, instead of hinder, our training goals.
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Th Hype—And Hope—Of Artificial Intelligence
What we thought of as artificial intelligence 50 years ago is now, for most part, already a reality. What we think of as artificial intelligence now may well be, in 50 years, basic computing. Amidst these dizzying changes, Om Malik sets out to cut through the hype and uncover the hope.
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How A Fitness App For Cyclists Is Reshaping City Planning
Bicycle commuting is on the rise across the nation. As more cyclists take to the road to get to work, cities are trying to find ways to keep everyone safe and are turning to an app called Strava to do so. Using complex heat maps to discover riding and routing tendencies, municipal governments are discovering ideal locations for new bike lanes.