—By Robert Mahari, a joint JD-PhD candidate at the MIT Media Lab and Harvard Law School whose work focuses on computational law, and Pat Pataranutaporn, a researcher at the MIT Media Lab who studies human-AI interaction.
Worries about AI often imagine doomsday scenarios where systems escape control or even understanding. But there are nearer-term harms we should take seriously: that AI could jeopardize public discourse; cement biases in loan decisions, judging or hiring; or disrupt creative industries.
However, we foresee a different, but no less urgent, class of risks: those stemming from relationships with nonhuman agents.
AI companionship is no longer theoretical—our analysis of a million ChatGPT interaction logs reveals that the second most popular use of AI is sexual role-playing. We are already starting to invite AIs into our lives as friends, lovers, mentors, therapists, and teachers. Even the CTO of OpenAI warns that AI has the potential to be “extremely addictive.”
Vorkosigan cycle by Lois McMaster Bujold. What a gifted writer she is. Cannot recommend highly enough. Falling Free is a prequel; the main story begins with Shards of Honor.
There is nothing more helpless and irresponsible than a man in the depths of an ether binge.
I have a good bit of milkweed growing in the lower field most years. I try to wait until after it's seeded out before mowing for winter, just because it brings the butterflies. Smells great when mowed. I think I'll just leave it for the butterflies though.
Real food comes from Walmart y'know.
But, seriously, probably not going to eat it.
WARNING: The above post may contain thoughts or ideas known to the State of Caliphornia to cause seething rage, confusion, distemper, nausea, perspiration, sphincter release, or cranial implosion to persons who implicitly trust only one news source, or find themselves at either the left or right political extreme. Proceed at your own risk.
"If you do not read the newspapers you're uninformed. If you do read the newspapers, you're misinformed." -- Mark Twain
The Civil War: A Narrative, by Shelby Foote, a military (mostly), political, and social overview of the Civil War in three volumes, almost 3,000 pages and one-and-a-half million words. It'll be the fourth time reading it. Shelby Foote was a wonderful writer, novelist-turned-historian.
More social damage from the increased reliance on digital identitty?
Study finds dramatic decline in people's desire to stand out from other people
The study looked at three dimensions of uniqueness: concern about other people's reactions, desire to break the rules and the willingness to defend beliefs publicly. All three facets declined but the most dramatic were people being hesitant to defend their beliefs publicly (a 6.52% decline) and becoming more concerned with what people think about them (a 4.28% decline).
This data suggests that individuals see that expressing uniqueness might compromise their ability to fit in with others or may even lead to being ostracized.
"A 6.52% decline is a dramatic population change in as short as 20 years," said William Chopik, lead author of the study and associate professor in the Department of Psychology.
Thinking about the idea that each of us lives in a universe of our own and how they overlap with others' universes, quantumly entangled in the big picture.
"Iron Lake" by William Kent Krueger. Winner of the Anthony award, the Berry award for best first novel, and American Writers Prize.
First book in a series of 14. Pretty good read so far.
Neuroprotection of low dose carbon monoxide in Parkinson’s disease models commensurate with the reduced risk of Parkinson’s among smokers
K. N. Rose, M. Zorlu, A. Fassini, H. Lee, W. Cai, X. Xue, S. Lin, P. Kivisakk, M. A. Schwarzschild, X. Chen & S. N. Gomperts
npj Parkinson's Disease volume 10, Article number: 152 (2024) Cite this article
1688 Accesses
44 Altmetric
Metricsdetails
Abstract
Paradoxically, cigarette smoking is associated with a reduced risk of Parkinson’s Disease (PD). This led us to hypothesize that carbon monoxide (CO) levels, which are constitutively but modestly elevated in smokers, might contribute to neuroprotection. Using rodent models of PD based on α-synuclein (αSyn) accumulation and oxidative stress, we show that low-dose CO mitigates neurodegeneration and reduces αSyn pathology. Oral CO administration activated signaling cascades mediated by heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), which have been implicated in limiting oxidative stress, and in promoting αSyn degradation, thereby conferring neuroprotection. Consistent with the neuroprotective effect of smoking, HO-1 levels in cerebrospinal fluid were higher in human smokers compared to nonsmokers. Moreover, in PD brain samples, HO-1 levels were higher in neurons without αSyn pathology. Thus, CO in rodent PD models reduces pathology and increases oxidative stress responses, phenocopying possible protective effects of smoking evident in PD patients. These data highlight the potential for low-dose CO-modulated pathways to slow symptom onset and limit pathology in PD patients.
Sales of dog strollers in South Korea outstripped those of actual baby buggies last year. The country has the world’s lowest birth rate, at just 0.72 — barely one-third that needed to maintain the population. Half of South Korean women below 49 say they have no plans to have children. The number of dogs, meanwhile, jumped to a record high: There are now twice as many registered as in 2018, and sales of dog strollers have quadrupled in the last five years. The government is worried: One minister said young people are “not loving each other… instead they love their dogs.” The dogs may not all be on board: One man told The Wall Street Journal that his adult daughter bought a stroller, but “the dog keeps jumping out.”
Scientists issue PSA after discovering highly invasive NYC species capable of spreading across entire East Coast: 'We're talking about a big, big issue here'
Comments
These teenagers from Türkiye are runners-up for The Earth Prize for their cheap and fast solution to crop failure.
https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/07/11/i-feel-angry-about-climate-change-meet-the-turkish-teens-channelling-their-rage-into-solut
We need to prepare for ‘addictive intelligence’
—By Robert Mahari, a joint JD-PhD candidate at the MIT Media Lab and Harvard Law School whose work focuses on computational law, and Pat Pataranutaporn, a researcher at the MIT Media Lab who studies human-AI interaction.
Worries about AI often imagine doomsday scenarios where systems escape control or even understanding. But there are nearer-term harms we should take seriously: that AI could jeopardize public discourse; cement biases in loan decisions, judging or hiring; or disrupt creative industries.
However, we foresee a different, but no less urgent, class of risks: those stemming from relationships with nonhuman agents.
AI companionship is no longer theoretical—our analysis of a million ChatGPT interaction logs reveals that the second most popular use of AI is sexual role-playing. We are already starting to invite AIs into our lives as friends, lovers, mentors, therapists, and teachers. Even the CTO of OpenAI warns that AI has the potential to be “extremely addictive.”
Vorkosigan cycle by Lois McMaster Bujold. What a gifted writer she is. Cannot recommend highly enough. Falling Free is a prequel; the main story begins with Shards of Honor.
There is nothing more helpless and irresponsible than a man in the depths of an ether binge.
Hunter S. Thompson
Milkweed Pods: A Native Summer Vegetable to Grow, Cook, and Eat
https://www.gardenista.com/posts/milkweed-pods-native-vegetable/
I have a good bit of milkweed growing in the lower field most years. I try to wait until after it's seeded out before mowing for winter, just because it brings the butterflies. Smells great when mowed. I think I'll just leave it for the butterflies though.
Real food comes from Walmart y'know.
But, seriously, probably not going to eat it.
"If you do not read the newspapers you're uninformed. If you do read the newspapers, you're misinformed." -- Mark Twain
This title caught my eye at the Airbnb 🤪
A good cigar and whiskey solve most problems.
The Civil War: A Narrative, by Shelby Foote, a military (mostly), political, and social overview of the Civil War in three volumes, almost 3,000 pages and one-and-a-half million words. It'll be the fourth time reading it. Shelby Foote was a wonderful writer, novelist-turned-historian.
More social damage from the increased reliance on digital identitty?
Study finds dramatic decline in people's desire to stand out from other people
The study looked at three dimensions of uniqueness: concern about other people's reactions, desire to break the rules and the willingness to defend beliefs publicly. All three facets declined but the most dramatic were people being hesitant to defend their beliefs publicly (a 6.52% decline) and becoming more concerned with what people think about them (a 4.28% decline).
This data suggests that individuals see that expressing uniqueness might compromise their ability to fit in with others or may even lead to being ostracized.
"A 6.52% decline is a dramatic population change in as short as 20 years," said William Chopik, lead author of the study and associate professor in the Department of Psychology.
https://phys.org/news/2024-08-decline-people-desire.html?fbclid=IwY2xjawEpn1lleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHQWztk-NVG_QNvn7ihroSYoOQn5lz6cn3gDkswxgs_Fmt9ypKRd7Coy9jw_aem__D_Qj--OhkLQHGesticPXg
No better way to ostracize people than do a study highlighting the ostracization
Your post makes me feel like an outsider.
Trapped in the People's Communist Republic of Massachusetts.
https://www.space.com/x-class-solar-flare-eruption-rule-breaking-sunspot-video
this is promising:
Subgroup Analysis from a Phase 1/2 Randomized Clinical Trial of 2.6% EDTA Ophthalmic Solution in Patients with Age-Related Cataract
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0002939424003490
Thinking about the idea that each of us lives in a universe of our own and how they overlap with others' universes, quantumly entangled in the big picture.
https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/the-many-worlds-theory/
And this:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-universe-is-not-locally-real-and-the-physics-nobel-prize-winners-proved-it/
https://apple.news/AnjdKS7LEScOTZfTSmsgXDg
Better stock up while you can. Nicaragua is getting closer and closer to being another Cuba
Ant geopolitics
Over the past four centuries quadrillions of ants have created a strange and turbulent global society that shadows our own
https://aeon.co/essays/the-strange-and-turbulent-global-world-of-ant-geopolitics
https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/08/fabian-knecht-fictional-nature/
"Iron Lake" by William Kent Krueger. Winner of the Anthony award, the Berry award for best first novel, and American Writers Prize.
First book in a series of 14. Pretty good read so far.
Living for the unremarkable moments
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/09/02/age-life-moments-love/
"The Enemy" by Lee Child.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41531-024-00763-6
Neuroprotection of low dose carbon monoxide in Parkinson’s disease models commensurate with the reduced risk of Parkinson’s among smokers
K. N. Rose, M. Zorlu, A. Fassini, H. Lee, W. Cai, X. Xue, S. Lin, P. Kivisakk, M. A. Schwarzschild, X. Chen & S. N. Gomperts
npj Parkinson's Disease volume 10, Article number: 152 (2024) Cite this article
1688 Accesses
44 Altmetric
Metricsdetails
Abstract
Paradoxically, cigarette smoking is associated with a reduced risk of Parkinson’s Disease (PD). This led us to hypothesize that carbon monoxide (CO) levels, which are constitutively but modestly elevated in smokers, might contribute to neuroprotection. Using rodent models of PD based on α-synuclein (αSyn) accumulation and oxidative stress, we show that low-dose CO mitigates neurodegeneration and reduces αSyn pathology. Oral CO administration activated signaling cascades mediated by heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), which have been implicated in limiting oxidative stress, and in promoting αSyn degradation, thereby conferring neuroprotection. Consistent with the neuroprotective effect of smoking, HO-1 levels in cerebrospinal fluid were higher in human smokers compared to nonsmokers. Moreover, in PD brain samples, HO-1 levels were higher in neurons without αSyn pathology. Thus, CO in rodent PD models reduces pathology and increases oxidative stress responses, phenocopying possible protective effects of smoking evident in PD patients. These data highlight the potential for low-dose CO-modulated pathways to slow symptom onset and limit pathology in PD patients.
move over "cat ladies":
Sales of dog strollers in South Korea outstripped those of actual baby buggies last year. The country has the world’s lowest birth rate, at just 0.72 — barely one-third that needed to maintain the population. Half of South Korean women below 49 say they have no plans to have children. The number of dogs, meanwhile, jumped to a record high: There are now twice as many registered as in 2018, and sales of dog strollers have quadrupled in the last five years. The government is worried: One minister said young people are “not loving each other… instead they love their dogs.” The dogs may not all be on board: One man told The Wall Street Journal that his adult daughter bought a stroller, but “the dog keeps jumping out.”
https://www.wsj.com/world/asia/nation-low-birthrate-childlessness-dog-strollers-south-korea-e9778517 (paywalled)
Makes sense actually
So they stopped eating half the dogs they normally do?
Trapped in the People's Communist Republic of Massachusetts.
Only place I've ever been that had no stray dogs.
Don't let the wife know what you spend on guns, ammo or cigars.
There's still a huge market for dogs to eat there, even though it's officially illegal. They love eating small dogs and puppies.
Trapped in the People's Communist Republic of Massachusetts.
Scientists issue PSA after discovering highly invasive NYC species capable of spreading across entire East Coast: 'We're talking about a big, big issue here'
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/manhattant-project?tab=observations
https://www.yahoo.com/news/scientists-issue-psa-discovering-highly-103039627.html
As always, the comments in the Yahoo article are a good read.