Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis
Photo courtesy of Peter Biles

Peter Biles

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Silhouette of a person trapped inside a giant smartphone screen symbolizing digital addiction 19887577 1

Smartphones Have Contributed to the Declining Fertility Rate, Says New Study

It's easier these days to stay inside and on a screen instead of going outside and trying to meet people

It’s at the point now, nearly twenty years later, that many colleges and universities are seeing significant drops in enrollment simply because there aren’t enough college-aged students in the application pool.

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Gradution Cap with Confetti Background, Graduation Day Concept. Generative Ai

AI Got Booed Off the Stage 

Graduating seniors don't all approve of the technology's growing presence in society 

Many graduating students may just want a simpler life where they can work, afford to live, and enter life-giving relationships.

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Abstract Human Head Infographic Illustration

Does Mental Health Awareness Actually Help People?

A new study and a forthcoming book argue that hyperawareness of mental health and illness can harm more than help

Matthew Loftus has a new book coming out on this topic later in 2026 called Resisting Therapy Culture: The Dangers of Pop Psychology and How the Church Can Respond.

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A vibrant and dynamic university campus during autumn, with students walking, chatting, and studying, capturing the essence of academic life and the pursuit of knowledge

College Closures Are Getting More Common

What’s the state of higher education halfway through the 2020s?

If the demographic problem fails to get any better in the coming years, then it seems clear that higher education will continue to see these kinds of financial challenges.

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Colorful art abstract from piles of books

Longform Nonfiction in Decline?

We still need to read long books about complicated topics

Perhaps it isn’t coincidental that this kind of longform writing is having trouble at the same time that the online news cycle gets ever more ephemeral.

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Businesspeople meet in the metaverse for a project presentation using VR 360 goggles - Combining business and technology in the virtual world

Meta Retreats from the Metaverse

While Meta is scaling back on the metaverse, it is reportedly switching focus to artificial intelligence.

The ambitious project never paid its expected dividends. Consumers simply weren’t as interested in these VR headsets as Zuckerberg thought they would be.

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Two Small Robots Interact in a Garden Setting

What is Meta Up To? Big Tech Turns to AI Investment

The social media giant bought a social media site made up of bots.

Maybe AI will force us to reckon with the reality of the soul, which I also wager that no computer system can generate.

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A young person engages with a virtual reality headset, interacting with an AI chatbot interface, set against a vibrant blue background, showcasing technology potential. XDMCP

Are Young People Getting Tired of AI?

A new article suggests teens are not universally excited about the blossoming technology

Julie Jargon wrote an interesting piece for The Wall Street Journal about teen attitudes towards AI and found that their view of it isn’t so optimistic as many might assume.

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Female hands with newspapers on color background

Washington Post Fires Hundreds of Journalists

The Post has struggled in recent years and even saw a major dip in subscriptions back in 2024

Owner Jeff Bezos has not yet succeeded in making the company financially viable in a time when so much media and journalism is now being independently created.

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Woman reading book at evening at home close up

The Decline of K-12 Literacy and What Might Help

An emphasis on storytelling might at least partially serve as a solution in K-12.

High school students struggle in places afflicted with poverty, family breakdown, and other social woes. However, it doesn’t necessarily follow that students from wealthier regions are demonstrating academic excellence.

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Robotic hand pressing a keyboard on a laptop 3D rendering

Grok’s Deepfake Capacities Modified Following Pushback

Deepfakes and AI-generated content are only becoming more prevalent on sites like X.

Grok, X’s AI program, came under fire when its users began creating explicit images and videos of real people. AI-generated deepfakes began to abound until finally, X took action to modify the AI bot’s capabilities. According to X’s Safety account: We have implemented technological measures to prevent the Grok account from allowing the editing of images of real people in revealing clothing such as bikinis. This restriction applies to all users, including paid subscribers. Additionally, image creation and the ability to edit images via the Grok account on the X platform are now only available to paid subscribers. This adds an extra layer of protection by helping to ensure that individuals who attempt to abuse the Grok account to violate Read More ›

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Animator designer Development designing drawing sketching development creating graphic pose characters sci-fi robot Cartoon illustration animation video game film production , animation design studio.

In 2026, Real Artistry Will Help Brands and Businesses

2025 was AI's big year. Will 2026 follow suit, or will the scales start to balance?

Enter Porsche, the car company, and it’s advertisement, contrasting with Coca-Cola, shows the time-tested beauties of hand-drawn and CGI animation.

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Abstract technology big data background concept.

AI Data Centers Are Using Water, and Lots of It

Will studies like this spark a new kind of pushback in the coming year?

The study has arrived on the heels of Time Magazine’s decision to elect a number of AI company CEOs as its annual “Person of the Year.”

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Old Victorian Printing Press Letters

AI Developers Named Time’s “Person of the Year”

The decision drew a lot of criticism.

On the cover of the magazine issue, tech giants including Sam Altman, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg are pictured sitting on a construction beam.

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ai copywriting bot using chatgpt for content creation artificial intelligence concept 3d illustration

New ChatGPT Ads Assume People Can’t Think for Themselves

ChatGPT wants to do it all for you.

This sort of thinking assumes that modern people are no longer intelligent enough to do the things that former generations easily managed.

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Cell phone addiction concept. Many teens hold smart device. Social media like obsession. Online communication problem. People watch mobile gadget screen. Art illustration. Cyberspace internet network.

How to Ruin a Generation: Give Everyone Smartphones

What is all of this digital content doing to the souls of kids? To everyone?

For those familiar with the novel Brave New World, this distracted, dopamine-addled brand of a society was all but predicted almost a century ago.

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Instagram Likes

New Allegations Claim Meta Dismissed Risks to Children

New complaints, same story: Meta cares more about business growth than protecting kids

This new litany of complaints feels like it will be a lot tougher for the tech behemoth to successfully battle.

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book with flames emerging from the pages, symbolizing the intense and transformative effects of published works

What Qualifies as a Book Ban?

If a novel has sold millions of copies and can be easily bought in almost any bookstore, how is it "banned"?

Many people on social media pushed back against the claim that Atwood’s famous, bestselling book has in any way been “banned.”

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