Figuring Out AI Consciousness
AI generated image Artificial Intelligence keeps popping up everywhere from generative AI which created the image above to the financial sector. What AI is currently doing is copying and reformatting…
technology
Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Derek Lynch writes about the need to recognize that humanity isn’t separate from the living environment it needs to survive. Eric Ralls points…
Desalination on the Cheap for the Masses
Water water everywhere and plenty of drops to drink. Researchers from MIT have found a way to passively convert seawater into drinking water using a setup so simple it seems…
Be My Eyes, Be My AI
The visual impaired population is getting more support from AI to help them ‘see’ the world around them. The already very successful human-powered app Be My Eyes (we’ve covered it…
The AI Incident Database Catalogs AI Errors
The threat Artificial Intelligence holds is unknown and many people are rightfully concerned about the potential harm that AI can cause. The AI Incident Databaseo help us as a society…
On Student Absences
I’ve been thinking about the concern with kids not going to school for reasons beyond the rampant illnesses caused by letting a highly-infectious virus run wild. The Fortune article suggests…
A Republican and a Democrat take on big tech
The headline in The New York Times “Lindsey Graham and Elizabeth Warren: When It Comes to Big Tech, Enough Is Enough” caught my eye for two reasons, both good. First,…
The amazing American economy
Reading a very good book recently I was once again reminded of the irrepressible nature of the American economy. The book is Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most…
Should We Bring Back The Lord’s Day Act
No I am not going all religious on you This would be more of a Day for Humanity, a day that would not belong to the billionaires and millionaires but…
Should We Bring Back The Lord’s Day Act
No I am not going all religious on you This would be more of a Day for Humanity, a day that would not belong to the billionaires and millionaires but…
Collision 2023 Day 3
The final day of Collision conference and there are still more startups to write about. It’s neat that there are so many companies looking to address the UN SDGs! Loop…
Collision Day 2
I’m back at Collision Conference for another day of finding startups doing good in the world. Let’s see what today brings. Ensogo provides a system for teams to track and…
Collision 2023 Day 1
I’m at Collision conference today in Toronto looking for some cool new good things to share. I’ll update this post as I find stuff. A record-breaking 30 percent of startups…
Generative AI—threat or opportunity?
“No contract! No content!” and “Here’s a pitch: Pay us, Bitch!” Thus the Hollywood members of the Writers Guild of America colourfully voice their views during their strike against the…
Machine Learning Improves Enzyme Eating Plastic
A bacteria that eats plastic may sound too good to be true since we have so much plastic waste littering the planet. The rouble with plastic eating bacterias is that…
The FBI Wants You To Block Ads
The FBI finally agrees with culture jammers. Online advertising has gotten so bad that the FBI now suggests everyone should make use of tracking blocking software, also known as ad…
Futuristic Fusion Finally Fires Up
Fusion power has been just a decade away for decades, or at least that was the joke. Yesterday it became outdated because it was revealed that nuclear fusion was ignited,…
NASA Starts Spotting Super Methane Emitters
Natural gas, AKA methane, is really bad for the planet, and since it occurs some places “naturally” we need to find these new sources to stop them emitting. A classic…
Use This App to Avoid Shady Companies
Too many companies say they care about an important issue, sponsor events, and then turn around and fund organizations (or politicians) that actively fight the important issue. This behaviour by…
Farewell to a great environmentalist
I was saddened to read this week of the death of British environmental scientist James Lovelock. He had a good run, dying at the great age of 103. In a…