Algorithms Are a Boy’s Worst Friend

"The new research looks closely at adolescent engagement on these platforms and the content they find there. The newsfeeds of boys and young men are full of posts and activity urging them to be more masculine, shun weakness, and embrace gender stereotypes.

For many, what they see is taking a toll on their mental health. Nearly three-quarters of adolescent boys regularly encounter digital masculinity content, from the importance of image and appearance to weapons and fighting. Our survey found that the greater the exposure, the more likely boys were to suppress their emotions or avoid displays of vulnerability. Boys with heavy exposure to digital masculinity were nearly three times more likely to report lower self-esteem than those with little exposure."

Shared by dr tech, like and 1 save total

Pupils fear AI is eroding their ability to study, research finds | Artificial intelligence (AI) | The Guardian

"Despite AI’s popularity, 62% of the students said it has had a negative impact on their skills and development at school, while one in four of the students agreed that AI “makes it too easy for me to find the answers without doing the work myself”.


Researchers fool university markers with AI-generated exam papers
Read more
A further 12% said AI “limits my creative thinking” while similar numbers said they were less likely to solve problems or write creatively."

Shared by dr tech, like and 1 save total

The platform exposing exactly how much copyrighted art is used by AI tools | Artificial intelligence (AI) | The Guardian

"Google and OpenAI’s generative artificial intelligence is supposed to be just that – generative, meaning it develops novel answers to our questions. Ask it for a time-travelling doctor, you get one that their systems have created. But how much of that output is original?

The problem is working out how much tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and its video generator Sora 2, and Google’s Gemini and its video tool Veo3, rely on someone else’s art to come up with their own inventions, and whether using source material from the BBC, for example, is an infringement of the broadcaster’s copyright."

Shared by dr tech, like and 1 save total

Republicans use deepfake video of Chuck Schumer in new attack ad | Chuck Schumer | The Guardian

"The National Republican Senatorial Committee crossed into dystopian new territory for political campaigning on Friday after releasing an attack ad that features an artificially generated video of the Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer.

The deepfake video, posted on Friday to the Senate Republicans’ social media account, shows an AI-generated Schumer robotically repeating the phrase “every day gets better for us” in reference to the ongoing government shutdown. A small disclaimer tucked in the corner acknowledges its artificial origins."

Shared by dr tech, like and 1 save total

Why a Traditional Investment Portfolio is Better than Real Estate - Flow Financial Planning, LLC

Shared by Karl Fisch, like and 1 save total

Police Say People Keep Calling 911 Over an 'AI Homeless Man' TikTok Prank

"The basic premise of this prank is pretty simple: Kids use generative AI tools to create an image of a person, usually an unkempt man who looks like he’s come in from living on the street, in their home, and send it to their parents. The kids pretend that the person claimed to know their parents, or just wanted to come in for a nap. Then, they wait as their parents lose their minds and demand they kick the person out. That’s kinda the whole thing."

Shared by dr tech, like and 1 save total

How AI could radically change schools by 2050 — Harvard Gazette

"“I think most cognitive aspects of mind — the disciplined mind, the synthesizing mind, and the creative mind — will be done so well by large language machines and mechanisms that whether we do them as humans will be optional,” he said. “On the other hand, I don’t believe for a minute that aspects of respect — how we deal with other human beings — and ethics — how we deal with difficult issues as citizens, as professionals — can or should be consigned to even the most articulate and multifaceted, intelligent machines.”

The panelists acknowledged concerns that students might offload cognitive labor to AI, decreasing their critical reasoning skills. "

Shared by dr tech, like and 3 saves total

Why did our friends stop posting on social media? - BBC Worklife

"KC: I think so. I think it's coming sooner than we expect, just because there's no incentive to post anymore. Why post your selfies or post your breakfast if you don't get attention for it, you can't reach your friends and you're just competing with all of this remote, abstracted garbage out there?

Maybe social media was this aberration in a way, or a detour. And this idea that every normal person should share their life in public was kind of flawed from the beginning. And we're now waking up from that a little bit and seeing the damage that it's wrought and moving on a little bit with our habits."

Shared by dr tech, like and 1 save total

‘I realised I’d been ChatGPT-ed into bed’: how ‘Chatfishing’ made finding love on dating apps even weirder | Dating | The Guardian

"The majority of Chatfishers say they would never dream of letting AI do all of their talking. Most are like 38-year-old Londoner Nick, who sees it as a tool to help foster stronger connections with app matches. He works in tech and lives with his girlfriend; they’re in an open relationship and both date other people casually. He sometimes uses ChatGPT in his conversations on the dating apps Feeld and Bumble. “If I’m using a dating app,” he says, “I want to start a conversation that feels meaningful from the beginning so I can hook the other person in – but also I don’t want to spend too much time on it. Equally, while I want it to be ‘meaningful’, I don’t necessarily want to get super heavy and emotional straight away – it feels like quite a balancing act.” ChatGPT, he says, helps him tread that fine line: offering enough charm to spark a connection, without the investment of time or emotional labour that might otherwise feel wasted if the match fizzles out after a handful of messages."

Shared by dr tech, like and 3 saves total

CometJacking: One Click Can Turn Perplexity's Comet AI Browser Into a Data Thief

"Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a new attack called CometJacking targeting Perplexity's agentic AI browser Comet by embedding malicious prompts within a seemingly innocuous link to siphon sensitive data, including from connected services, like email and calendar.

The sneaky prompt injection attack plays out in the form of a malicious link that, when clicked, triggers the unexpected behavior unbeknownst to the victims."

Shared by dr tech, like and 1 save total