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Barbara Gobus's avatar

I am a retired teacher who worked in a private, all-girls high school. The curriculum was rigorous and the students were so smart, I had to study and prepare classes very carefully so I could remain one step ahead. I felt fulfilled and claimed to all and sundry that my IQ increased because of them. We know that education is an important step in counteracting misinformation, and I am having a tough time coming to grips with the dumbing down of America. We have a president who doesn't (can't?) read and says he loves the poorly educated; his cronies lie as often as he does; and I hear the boasting of those who skip classes and eschew knowledge. What can we do?

You in your small corner and I in mine.

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Politics And Aphrodisiacs's avatar

In my view just because something can be invented doesn’t mean it should be. A whole lot of questions should be asked prior and they never are. Look at how innocent it all started with Facebook. How great. Pictures of your family events can be shared with others. It all seemed harmless enough until it spawned other social media and now it’s all mostly turned into a sewer. The future wasn’t contemplated. Who knew that the crazy guy with weird ideas in your home town would be able to find simpatico crazies all over the world to plot harm with thanks to the invention of social media? Now we’re facing an entity in the form of AI taking a wrecking ball to original human thought too. As awful a turn social media has taken AI has the capacity to someday blow up the planet if commanded to. It can only perform what it’s asked to do and because it’s an entity there is no nuanced capability for it to think is blowing up the world really such a good idea or not? I’m sure it’s very old school thinking on my part but sometimes I think we’d all be better off if we had to meet people in person or write an actual letter by hand and put it in the mailbox. Every random thought that pops into our minds doesn’t need to be shared with the world on some social media platform. Imagine what a wonderful and more peaceful world it would be if the likes of Trump and Musk had to keep their crazy ideas to themselves. My idea of heaven.

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julie elder's avatar

This is getting scary!

But I loved your article on Grok vs Musk…omgeeeee! 🤣

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elliott oberman's avatar

B-2 bombers head west over Pacific, the B-2 is the only U.S. aircraft able to carry the 30,000-pound bunker-busting bombs thought to be capable of penetrating Iran’s underground Fordow nuclear enrichment facility. Israel said it launched airstrikes against Iran, including against the Isfahan nuclear site, as Iran sent missiles and drones toward Israel.

Inside the powerful Peter Thiel network that anointed JD Vance

Peter Thiel’s midterm bet: the billionaire seeking to disrupt America’s democracy

Liberal democracy, in his view, had turned the United States government into a dissent-squashing Ministry of Truth working toward a “homogenizing, brain-dead, one-world state” – a problem to which only rightwing nationalism could provide an “all-important correct

Elon Musk and Peter Thiel’s War on Democracy

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Frau Katze's avatar

Yes, Trump bombs Iran.

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elliott oberman's avatar

Nice to have advance knowledge, I got some insider's, u Becho baby! More attacks coming if Iran does stand down.

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Frau Katze's avatar

I’m hoping Iran backs down.

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elliott oberman's avatar

They're having words back and forth; like; Iran is threatening to attack US bases in Iraq, and Trump is responding with the US will respond with great Force if Iran attacks our people. US was just assisting Israelis' in managing the conflict. Meanwhile the racist Trump's base is pissed that trump got involved, a bunch of crap back and forth!

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Frau Katze's avatar

There’s a strong isolationist, possibly antisemitic wing in MAGA. They’re not happy at all.

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Sue Munda's avatar

Well, we knew AI was headed here. That’s its main function. World wide fox news on steroids.

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erg art ink's avatar

Someone this week said that AI/AIG etc. were fed relatively clean human big data points to train pre 2022. Since then, even AI cannot detect what information has been machine vs human generated. What goes into their big brain reasoning now? Our post truth reality.

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Sandra's avatar

Very helpful. We need folk like you to help us understand what is REALLY going on with AI and big tech. This is complicated stuff and guidance like yours is deeply appreciated. Very important work you are undertaking and I thank you. 🙏

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Patris's avatar

Fkg hell

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Linda Rivera's avatar

Thank you for this article Dean, even though it scares the crap out of me! Have a great weekend.

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BJ Zamora's avatar

I guess a whole lot of people never read Asimov.

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David Regehr 🇨🇦's avatar

I'm just going to stay far away from AI. It is to easily turned into propaganda.

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Frau Katze's avatar

I never trusted it.

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David Regehr 🇨🇦's avatar

Me neither.

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Irascible Ink's avatar

This. THIS is the shit that keeps me up at night. I KNOW a paranoid conspiracy theorist. Chemtrails, 5G anti-vax, satellites reading your thoughts... She should never have this kind of confirmation, not that the internet in general hasn't already, but JFC. I can't deal with reality deniers anymore. Doing so is making ME need therapy. How fucking back-assward is THAT???

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