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This week on Slate Plus, the critics will talk about what they’re reading at the moment and how the Internet has affected their reading habits.

On this week’s Slate Culture Gabfest, the critics discuss Ex Machina, a sci-fi thriller and meditation on artificial intelligence. What kinds of questions does it pose about human consciousness and technological hubris? Next up, guest Jessica Winter joins to talk about David Letterman’s 33 years as a late-night host. What did Letterman offer to the late-night landscape that felt distinctive? Finally, Lip Sync Battle is a TV spinoff based on the Jimmy Fallon segment. The critics weigh in: Is it intriguing to watch celebrities give vulnerable and silly performances, or is this show an overproduced bore?

Links to some of the things we discussed this week follow:

• Ex Machina
• Avengers: Age of Ultron
• The Imitation Game
• Black Mirror
• “David Letterman Raised Me” by Jessica Winter on Slate
• David Letterman’s “just bulbs” segment
• The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
• Mr. Holland’s Opus
• Monty Python
• SCTV
• The Simpsons
• “David Letterman Reflects on 33 Years in Late-Night Television” by Dave Itzkoff in the New York Times
• Malin Akerman v. Stephen Merchant on Lip Sync Battle*
• Emily Blunt v. Anne Hathaway on Lip Sync Battle
• Michael Strahan v. Hoda Kotb on Lip Sync Battle

Endorsements:

Dana: Calling your cable provider to ask about lowering your rate if you’re experiencing poor service.

Julia: “An Oral History of Mad Men” on ClickHole

Steve: Sydney’s, a men’s clothing store in Toronto

Outro: “Love Hangover” by Diana Ross

You can email us at culturefest@slate.com.

This podcast was produced by Ann Heppermann. Our intern is Lindsey Albracht.

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*Correction, May 13, 2015: This page originally misspelled Malin Akerman’s last name.