^CategorySocial Media

sunset on a yurt , in the grassland of Mongolia

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post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
September 28, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Education, Global Technology, Social Media, Surveillance, Technocracy

Tagged
Bainuu, China, Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Cultural genocide, Culture, education, Featured, Inner Mongolia, Language, Mongolia, Schools, Southern Mongolia, Xi Jinping}

High-Tech Suppression of China’s Mongol Region Provokes Protests

_{But Mongolian protesters against Chinese-dominated schools are threatened with loss of social credit, which means no jobs or loans} _{Heather Zeiger

September 28, 2020

8

Artificial Intelligence, Education, Global Technology, Social Media, Surveillance, Technocracy}

China is removing the Mongolian language and culture from the curriculum and textbooks in Inner Mongolia (see outline map), an autonomous region in China. In August, leaked government documents showed that language and literature, civics, and history will be taught in Mandarin rather than Mongolian in schools where Mongolian is the primary language. Additionally, the new textbooks replace stories about historic Mongolian heroes with Chinese ballads and expunge a popular folk verse that expresses pride in the Mongolian culture and language. In response, many parents in Inner Mongolia (called Southern Mongolia locally) have been keeping their children from attending school on September 1. In retaliation, state authorities threaten their jobs and social credit status: Southern Mongolia has quickly become a Read More ›

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post

Author
News
Date
September 13, 2020

Categorized
Ethics, Religion, Social Media

Tagged
BlessU-2, Buddhism, David O'Hara, Facebook, Japan, Mark Zuckerberg, Michael Bird, Robots, Virtual Ifta}

Will We Outsource Religion and Spirituality to AI ?

_{A philosopher makes the case. But he worries, are we really outsourcing caring about others?} _{News

September 13, 2020

6

Ethics, Religion, Social Media}

Last Sunday, we looked at the question raised by Professor David O’Hara of Augustana University (South Dakota) as to whether AI could someday have mystical experiences. Of course, a lot depends on whether AI can have any experiences at all. An agnostic himself, O’Hara has also asked us to consider how robot priests will “change human spirituality”: What matters is not whether we have invented true artificial intelligence, but whether we believe we have invented it. If we trust the machine, we might let it function as a mystic or a priest, even if it isn’t one. This raises the interesting question of what to do when someone makes a machine that is actually intended to play the role of Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
August 26, 2020

Categorized
Data Privacy, Global Technology, Social Media, Surveillance

Tagged
___longform, bias, ByteDance, China, Featured, Intercept (publication), Michael Schuman, TikTok, Virtual eugenics, Zhang Yiming}

Why Some Nation States Are Banning TikTok

_{The United States is not alone in questioning the social medium’s allegiance to the Chinese government} _{Heather Zeiger

August 26, 2020

10

Data Privacy, Global Technology, Social Media, Surveillance}

Why is TikTok so controversial? It’s the first Chinese technology company that has reached a billion users outside of China. Its main demographic is Generation Z—teens and twenty-somethings. If you take a look at TikTok videos, most are goofy and irreverent. They’re frenetic shorts of everything from fashion tips to pranks and, of course, (bad) dancing. TikTok’s stated mission is to “inspire creativity and bring joy.” What could go wrong? Here’s what. Working with China, as Disney and the NBA can attest, comes with certain strings attached, including acquiescing to the Chinese Communist Party’s rules for acceptable speech. Because ByteDance, which owns TikTok, is a Chinese company (although partly owned by investors from the U.S. and Japan), the Chinese Communist Read More ›

senior woman with family photo on tablet pc screen

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post

Author
News
Date
August 12, 2020

Categorized
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind, Social Media

Tagged
___longform, Alain Brunet, Albert Tsao, Edvard Moser, Google effect, hippocampus, Jared Cooney Horvath, Matthew Cobb, May-Britt Moser, media, Memory, Memory erasure, Memory formation}

What Neuroscientists Now Know About How Memories Are Born and Die

_{Where, exactly are our memories? Are modern media destroying them? Could we erase them if we wanted to?} _{News

August 12, 2020

10

Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind, Social Media}

At one time, neuroscientists believed that there must be a “seat” of memory in the brain, something like a room with a door marked Memory. They settled on two structures called hippocampi, on either side of the brain’s base. The illustration shows the the hippocampus of the right hemisphere (public domain). But memories turned out to have no fixed address. Neuroscientist Matthew Cobb, author of The Idea of the Brain (2020, excerpt here), tells us, But the hippocampuses are not the site of memory storage. Rather, these brain regions are the encoders and the routes through which memory formation seems to pass. The memories that are processed by the hippocampuses seem to be distributed across distant regions of the brain. Read More ›

Technology addicted family: parents and child use laptop and mobile phones. Modern family values - Mom, dad with daughter obsessed with devices overuse social media, internet addiction concept.

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post

Author
News
Date
August 9, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Data Privacy, Religion, Social Media

Tagged
Alexa, Babylon Bee (satire site), Featured, loneliness, New media management}

If New Tech Enhances Our Lives, Why Does It Make Us Crazy?

_{It doesn’t have to. Let’s think this through} _{News

August 9, 2020

5

Artificial Intelligence, Data Privacy, Religion, Social Media}

It has never been easier to connect but somehow we don’t. Andrew McDiarmid, author of the blog Thinking and thriving in the digital age, asks us to consider why loneliness (and suicide) have accompanied the rise of new communications technology. And he offers a challenge: Here are just a few questions to ask yourself about each tech tool you have. Is using this tool a wise use of my time? Does it encourage me to think for myself? Does it enable me to use my God-given abilities and spiritual gifts? Does it help me accomplish what God wants me to do? Does using this tech compromise my witness to others by causing me to stumble or get distracted? Does it Read More ›

The Atomic Bomb Dome Panorama in Hiroshima and the surounding garden in autumn at sunset on the side of Motoyasu River in Japan, with the Peace Memorial Park

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post

Author
Denise Simon
Date
August 4, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Data Privacy, Social Media, Surveillance

Tagged
Arab Spring, Donald Trump, FBI, Geofeedia, Kodak, Law enforcement, Political activism}

Does Government Watch Us on Social Media? Yes… So Does Business

_{They may all be getting to know you way better than you feel comfortable with} _{Denise Simon

August 4, 2020

5

Artificial Intelligence, Data Privacy, Social Media, Surveillance}

Discerning public opinion on political and national security issues via social media platforms showed its worth during the Arab Spring of 2010. The protests, which began in Tunisia, spread throughout the Middle East, where social media were the key platform for expressing anger about corruption, poverty, human rights violations, unemployment, and authoritarianism. These protests resulted in changes to leadership and policy in Libya, Egypt, and Yemen. They also resulted in immigration issues and sadly, even terror attacks, military conflicts, and civil war. Social media not only enables coordinated action such as rallies, strikes, resistance, riots, and other methods of activism but also provides status reports and communicates outcomes. One research team has developed an AI metric for predicting such events: Read More ›

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post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
July 27, 2020

Categorized
Data Privacy, Social Media

Tagged
bitcoin, Blue Checkmark (Twitter), Coindesk, Featured, Hackers, OG usernames, Twitter}

What’s the Main Thing We Should Learn from the Big Twitter Hack?

_{Yes, Twitter got control of its platform back but not before its credibility in security matters was significantly weakened} _{Jonathan Bartlett

July 27, 2020

5

Data Privacy, Social Media}

As we reported at the time, on July 15, hackers gained control of a number of Twitter “Blue Checkmark” accounts. Twitter hands out Blue Checkmarks to accounts that exert heavy influence and have verified identities. That status permits many parody accounts to operate without generating confusion over who is really tweeting, the account or the parody. In any case, on Twitter, the Blue Checkmarks have quite a bit of power. They get access to analytics on their posts so they can measure (and manipulate) their engagement with their followers. Many influencers look for “Blue Checkmark” status to see if an account is worth engaging with. Twitter even allows the “Blue Checkmarks” to filter their conversations so as to limit them Read More ›

Grey Wolf (Canis lupus) Between Trees Looks Up and to Right Winter - captive animal

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post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
June 18, 2020

Categorized
Global Technology, Social Media

Tagged
___longform, China, COVID-19, Diplomacy, Featured, Twitter, Wolf Warriors}

The Age of the Wolf Warrior: China’s Post-Pandemic Strategy

_{The younger diplomats take their cue from a Chinese Rambo-style movie and the rewritten history they learned at school} _{Heather Zeiger

June 18, 2020

8

Global Technology, Social Media}

While countries around the world have been dealing with the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus), China has claimed disputed areas in the South China Sea, taken over the Hong Kong government, and flown planes over Taiwan. One result was a standoff between warships from the U.S., Australia, and China. A 2016 international tribunal in The Hague ruled that China has no legal sovereignty over most of the South China Sea. China, saying that the ruling was void, claims areas that are also claimed by Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, and Japan. The Chinese Liberation Army has also increased the number of troops at its border with India (the Line of Actual Control) disputed since the Sino-Indian war in 1962 (below Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
June 15, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Business and Finance, Social Media

Tagged
Android, apple, Featured, NDEF, NFC, Nokia, NXP, RFID, Tactile web}

What You Need to Know About The Tactile Web

_{It’s a user-directed integration of technology into life} _{Jonathan Bartlett

June 15, 2020

4

Artificial Intelligence, Business and Finance, Social Media}

Many people have heard the term RFID, “radio frequency identifier,” a technology pioneered in the 1980s for creating tracking chips that needn’t be powered to work. This technology has improved quite a bit over the years. The technology area in which RFID originated is called NFC, for “Near-Field Communication.” In themselves, NFC chips are small and unpowered, but they can receive power from nearby devices, thus enabling them to communicate. The amount of work that modern NFC chips can do is amazing. The NXP firm, for instance, manufactures chips that can do full-blown data encryption and signing. These chips are not only powerful, they are also very inexpensive. NFC tags are available as label stickers at prices as low as Read More ›

medical statistics and graphic charts with stethoscope

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post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
May 26, 2020

Categorized
Mathematics, Medicine and Health, Social Media

Tagged
___longform, 91-DIVOC, COVID-19, Featured, Statistics}

Making Sense of the Numbers Behind COVID-19

_{Media and politicians put statistics before us to sway our opinions. But what do they really mean?} _{Heather Zeiger

May 26, 2020

9

Mathematics, Medicine and Health, Social Media}

Numbers can frighten or enlighten. The secret is making them explain themselves. Here’s a quick primer.

Asian business woman talking to her colleagues about plan in video conference. Multiethnic business team using computer for a online meeting in video call. Group of people smart working from home..

^{Type
post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
April 12, 2020

Categorized
Global Technology, Social Media, Work

Tagged
Featured, Online conference, Online conference materials, Online conference policy, Technology tests}

Online Conferences, Part 3: Conference Documents and Technology Tests

_{Before we go live, what documents should we provide? What tests should we do?} _{Jonathan Bartlett

April 12, 2020

8

Global Technology, Social Media, Work}

Coordinating online events requires several important documents. Four packets of information are absolutely critical to running an online conference well.

^{Type
post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
April 12, 2020

Categorized
Global Technology, Social Media, Work

Tagged
Featured, Master of Ceremonies (online conference), Online conference, Online conference personnel, Room host}

Online Conferences, Part 2: Conference Personnel

_{How the people who make it happen work their magic} _{Jonathan Bartlett

April 12, 2020

4

Global Technology, Social Media, Work}

Understanding various roles like Room Host and Master of Ceremonies, and finding the right people for them, will go a long way to making the conference a success.

^{Type
post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
April 5, 2020

Categorized
Ethics, Global Technology, Social Media, Technocracy

Tagged
___longform, China, COVID-19, Featured, Twitterbots}

The Dragon’s Deception: Conspiracy Theories and False Numbers

_{China’s global attempt to rewrite the history of coronavirus (COVID-19) is running up against incriminating evidence} _{Heather Zeiger

April 5, 2020

8

Ethics, Global Technology, Social Media, Technocracy}

The Chinese Communist Party has touted the superiority of an authoritarian government over a democratic one in handling the virus outbreak. But American intelligence sources say that it was the punishment that local officials might receive from the authoritarian system that led to the initial coverup of the outbreak.

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post

Author
Brendan Dixon
Date
March 20, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Medicine and Health, Social Media

Tagged
censorship, Content moderation, COVID-19, Featured}

AI Is Not Ready to Moderate Content!

_{In the face of COVID-19 quarantines for human moderators, some look to AI to keep the bad stuff off social media} _{Brendan Dixon

March 20, 2020

6

Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Medicine and Health, Social Media}

Big social media companies have long wanted to replace human content moderators with AI. COVID-19 quarantines have only intensified that discussion. But AI is far, far from ready to successfully moderate content in an age of where virtual monopolies make single point failure a frequent risk.

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post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
March 17, 2020

Categorized
Business and Finance, Global Technology, Social Media, Work

Tagged
COVID-19, Quarantine, Remote working, Teleworking}

We Will Never Go Back to the Pre-COVID-19 Workplace

_{The virus forced us to realize: Staying together apart has never been so easy} _{Jonathan Bartlett

March 17, 2020

3

Business and Finance, Global Technology, Social Media, Work}

While many people (myself included) have railed against the excesses of technology and its tendency to weaken community spirit and understanding, it turns out that, in the present crisis, it is having the opposite effect. We aren’t really alone in the same way any more.

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post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
February 16, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Natural Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Social Media, Technocracy, Transhumanism

Tagged
Cyborgs, Jacob Schatzer, Posthumanism, transhumanism, Transhumanism and the Image of God (book)}

Is Transhumanism Uncomfortably Tempting?

_{An ethicist asks us to stop and reflect} _{Denyse O'Leary

February 16, 2020

6

Artificial Intelligence, Natural Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Social Media, Technocracy, Transhumanism}

Jacob Schatzer identifies three issues in the essay, “The Allure of Transhumanism,” that might prompt some queasy recognitions in all of us, at times.

Rest in Peace Posters of Dr Li Wenliang, who warned authorities about the coronovirus outbreak seen at Hosier Lane in Melbourne, Australia. Hosier Lane is known for its street art.

^{Type
post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
February 1, 2020

Categorized
Global Technology, Medicine and Health, Social Media, Surveillance

Tagged
___longform, censorship, China, Coronavirus, Featured, Quarantine}

Censorship? But Coronavirus Doesn’t Care!

_{Back when SARS was a threat, social media wasn’t the giant it is today. Censorship, secrecy, and detention are less effective tools of control now} _{Heather Zeiger

February 1, 2020

10

Global Technology, Medicine and Health, Social Media, Surveillance}

Coronavirus provides a test. The Chinese Communist Party offers mainland Chinese people security and prosperity in exchange for the sacrifice of personal freedom. But when the government cannot uphold its end of the agreement—security—the people may become less tolerant of the human rights violations. And the age of information makes it much easier to discover them.