insert_link Science & Technology Are tomorrow’s engineers ready to face AI’s ethical challenges? Finding ethics’ place in the engineering curriculum. PeopleImages/iStock via Getty Images Plus By Elana Goldenkoff, University of Michigan and Erin A. Cech, University of Michigan A chatbot turns hostile. A test version of a Roomba vacuum collects images of users in private situations. A Black woman is falsely identified as a suspect on the basis of facial recognition software, which tends to be less accurate at identifying women […] todayApril 22, 2024 12
insert_link Science & Technology TikTok fears point to larger problem: Poor media literacy in the social media age Tiktok is not the only social media app to pose the threats it’s been accused of. picture alliance via Getty Images By Nir Eisikovits, UMass Boston The U.S. government moved closer to banning the video social media app TikTok after the House of Representatives attached the measure to an emergency spending bill on Apr. 17, 2024. The House voted on each of the four components of the bill, […] todayApril 22, 2024 11
insert_link Science & Technology Understanding AI outputs: study shows pro-western cultural bias in the way AI decisions are explained AI models’ outputs need to be properly explained to the people affected. DrAfter123/Getty Images By Mary Carman, University of the Witwatersrand and Uwe Peters, Utrecht University Humans are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) to inform decisions about our lives. AI is, for instance, helping to make hiring choices and offer medical diagnoses. If you were affected, you might want an explanation of why an AI system produced the […] todayApril 19, 2024 13
insert_link Lifestyle Websites deceive users by deliberately hiding the extent of data collection and sharing Within the first three seconds of opening a web page, over 80 third parties on average have accessed your information. (Shutterstock) By Raymond A. Patterson, University of Calgary; Ashkan Eshghi, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick; Hooman Hidaji, University of Calgary, and Ram Gopal, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick Websites sometimes hide how widely they share our personal information, and can go to great lengths to […] todayApril 17, 2024 21
insert_link Science & Technology To understand the risks posed by AI, follow the money Shutterstock/Chaosamran_Studio Tim O'Reilly, UCL; Ilan Strauss, UCL; Mariana Mazzucato, UCL, and Rufus Rock, UCL Time and again, leading scientists, technologists, and philosophers have made spectacularly terrible guesses about the direction of innovation. Even Einstein was not immune, claiming, “There is not the slightest indication that nuclear energy will ever be obtainable,” just ten years before Enrico Fermi completed construction of the first fission reactor in Chicago. Shortly thereafter, the consensus […] todayApril 11, 2024 13
insert_link Lifestyle In a future with more ‘mind reading,’ thanks to neurotech, we may need to rethink freedom of thought Our minds are buffeted by all kinds of influences, though some seem more menacing than others. wenjin chen/DigitalVision Vectoria via Getty Images Parker Crutchfield, Western Michigan University Socrates, the ancient Greek philosopher, never wrote things down. He warned that writing undermines memory – that it is nothing but a reminder of some previous thought. Compared to people who discuss and debate, readers “will be hearers of many things and will […] todayApril 10, 2024 10
Science & Technology We saw one of the most powerful magnets in the Universe come to life – and our theories can’t quite explain it Artist’s impression of a magnetar. Carl Knox, OzGrav/Swinburne University of Technology Marcus Lower, CSIRO; Gregory Desvignes, Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, and Patrick Weltevrede, University of Manchester After a decade of silence, one of the most powerful magnets in the universe suddenly burst back to life in late 2018. The reawakening of this “magnetar”, a city-sized star named XTE J1810-197 born from a supernova explosion, was an incredibly violent […] todayApril 9, 2024 12
insert_link Science & Technology Nato marks 75th anniversary Today (Thursday) marks the 75th anniversary of the foundation of NATO. To mark the occasion, a ceremony was held in Brussels, before foreign ministers resumed day 2 of their talks. From the NATO headquarters, Abby Throndson has more. todayApril 4, 2024 16
insert_link Science & Technology Denmark to host AI supercomputer for drug research The owner of Novo Nordisk, the drugmaker that gave the world Ozempic and Wegovy, is funding a new supercomputer powered by Nvidia’s artificial intelligence technology with a key aim of discovering new medicines and treatments. CNN reports that the supercomputer, named Gefion, is expected to be ready for pilot projects before the end of the year and will be housed in Denmark’s National Center for AI Innovation. todayMarch 27, 2024 5
Paying it forward: Kenyan coastal doctor Bashrahil Mohammed Mafudh has made it his life’s work to care for the most vulnerable in his community, at no cost.
