No original research, just a collection of links. These all link directly to the lensrentals blog (I have no affiliation with them), and are specifically interesting to Canon shooteres. The lensrentals blog is one of the best in photography of which I have knowledge.
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2010/07/how-autofocus-often-works
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/07/autofocus-reality-part-1-center-point-single-shot-accuracy
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/07/autofocus-reality-part-ii-1-vs-2-and-old-vs-new
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/07/autofocus-reality-part-3a-canon-lenses
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/08/autofocus-reality-part-3b-canon-cameras

A fantastic article on biases, tendencies, and misjudgments. An abridged speech can be found on youtube.

I've worked in different areas of semi for a couple years now. This article is exceptionally accurate, yet simple enough to understand with a minimum of physics, EE, and CE background.

I several times watched a talk by an Intel Fellow (internal Intel lecture) about similar topics, including the future of semiconductors. While I can't repeat what she said, this article is one of the best I've seen, similar to what she talked about, just without the incredible insight of someone working on future node development or the juicy inside details.