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Imagine, if you will, the summer of 2008. George W. Bush is still in the White House. Katy Perry is topping the charts. Apple just unveiled the iPhone 3G. And The Atlantic has people talking about its latest cover story: “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” In it, tech writer Nicholas Carr confessed that he and his circle were struggling to concentrate long enough to finish a book. The culprit? The internet.
A short decade and a half later and another momentous-feeling technology is taking hold: generative AI. Students are using it to write reports on books they haven’t read. Lawyers are using it to write briefs with fake citations. As one unfortunate soul after another makes the news for relying too much on AI, it’s hard not to ask: Is ChatGPT making us stupid?
That’s what Aaron French, a professor of information systems at Kennesaw State University, was wondering. French has been studying artificial intelligence for two decades, and he sees clear parallels between today’s anxiety over generative AI and the fears Carr raised in 2008. Drawing on his research, French argues that generative AI, much like Google, doesn’t have to make us stupid – but it very well could, if we let it.
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Technology is no substitute for independent thought.
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Aaron French, Kennesaw State University
Maybe the tool matters less than the user.
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Environment + Energy
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Jeffrey Basara, UMass Lowell
Large parts of the central and eastern U.S. have seen at least 50% more precipitation than normal. An atmospheric scientist explains why and what creates flash flood weather.
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Dana Zartner, University of San Francisco
Approaches vary in terms of who is filing the lawsuit, against whom, and whether it is based on protecting human rights or the rights of the environment itself.
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Jacqueline Peel, The University of Melbourne
Countries have wide-ranging obligations to adequately tackle climate change, the International Court of Justice has found. Those who don’t could be legally liable.
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Ethics + Religion
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Thomas S. Bremer, Rhodes College
Native American groups were aware of the region’s dramatic features. Since the national park’s creation, other faiths have also been inspired by its beauty, from Christians to New Age groups.
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Politics + Society
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Cassandra Burke Robertson, Case Western Reserve University
Hiding ICE attorneys’ names in immigration court proceedings violates a fundamental principle that has protected Americans for centuries: open courts.
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Alex Hinton, Rutgers University - Newark
Trump voters still reliably back the president, believing that most of the criticism of him is fake news.
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Arts + Culture
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Francisco Tijerina, Washington University in St. Louis
Not long ago, Mexico’s LGBTQ+ performers were mostly in the closet. Today, some are sponsoring products and starring in their own TV shows.
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Popi Sotiriadou, Griffith University
Despite faster, fitter athletes and advancements in technology, cycling’s governing body wants to slow things down.
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Health + Medicine
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Thomas Schrepfer, University of Florida; Rex Haberman, University of Florida
Perhaps surprisingly, it’s possible to get swimmer’s ear without a dip in the pool, lake or ocean. Two doctors explain what this painful infection is and how to get rid of it.
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