It’s time our exams caught up with the future

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For qns on whether our schools or education is preparing our students adequately for the future....

The TV shows people risk death to watch

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Graduates are not screwed if they study engineering: James Dyson in response to Economist article

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artificial intelligence (AI) can never replace the human brain for creativity...AI can pretend to be creative by combining things, but I don’t think it can ever truly be creative and do something different and unexpected

AI will undoubtedly do away with routine jobs as automation has with typists...the topic of layoffs, which have been seen in the past year at tech firms including Dyson, TikTok, Google, Microsoft, Intel, Amazon and Meta.

knowledge workers, who were once thought to be safe, are also now at risk of being replaced. Those at risk include paralegals, tutors, writers, graphic designers, software coders and stock traders. 

Qn: Are the latest scientific findings and technological innovations a cause for concern?

‘Writing is thinking’: Do students who use ChatGPT learn less?

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Some chatbots tell you what you want to hear. This is dangerous

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Just like their people-pleasing human counterparts, a growing suite of technology tools and features are wired only to make people happy or delude them into feeling so.

The key people-pleasing trait of chatbots is sycophancy by design. When chatbots are deliberately engineered to affirm users and agree with them, emotional attachments between users and bots are forged. For AI companies with subscription-based business models, these affective bonds ensure that users seek to remain connected and engaged. Furthermore, sycophancy helps users feel validated and accepted by bots in what feels like a judgment-free environment, encouraging people to chat with them endlessly.

Such people-pleasing design logics can be harmful, especially when they tell users what they want to hear or show them only what they want to see.

It may please us to see an improved version of ourselves online, but when our actual selves simply do not measure up, feelings of inadequacy would naturally arise. Indeed, there have even been reports of people undergoing plastic surgery to make themselves resemble their filtered selves so as to feel more complete. 

This problem is compounded by the prevailing design ethos of the tech world which is  allergic to friction of any kind. Any speed bumps that slow down or challenge the user experience are anathema and must be swiftly engineered away. Yet the messiness of everyday life is fraught with the very things that technology seeks to eliminate: imperfections, contradictions, and the discomfort of being told “no”. So when we are habituated by technology that serves only to charm, cajole and comply with our wishes, we are setting ourselves up for grave disappointment. 

If we allow technology to become the ultimate people pleaser, we may find ourselves surrounded by tools that, in their effort to never upset us, quietly lead us astray.

For issues on dangers of AI.....

Certis to stop tracking live location of front-line officers on sick leave after union intervention

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For issues on privacy....

Note also that it is an employee's tip-off to the media that led to the change in policy -- watchdog role of the media in force here.....

New jobs will emerge with transition to autonomous vehicles: Acting Transport Minister

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Good read for whether jobs will be lost as AI takes over humans....

the role of professional drivers may change...(It) may well be you have somebody on board that does different things...noting that this may be to help load luggage, aid elderly passengers in boarding, or lead a tour group

New jobs will also emerge from driverless vehicle operations....programmers, designers, fleet managers and operations control centre staff

help them reskill, to retrain, and to take up other jobs in the economy

self-driving vehicles could help take over late-night shifts and lighten the load on drivers, improving productivity and safety.

On whether autonomous driving will displace workers, Mr Peng framed it as job transformation, noting that large-scale deployment of autonomous vehicles will take decades. “Over that stretch, society will find a way. It is just like every other transformation before this, (like) cars replacing horse carriages

Banning #SkinnyTok won’t fix the problem of viral harm

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A court reporter takes notes as justice, mercy are dispensed

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Qn: To what extent is it possible ‘to make the punishment fit the crime’? (Cam. 2013)

Panel with AI experts to review appeal of NTU student penalised for academic misconduct

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Kindness for clicks: The rise of online giving

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More sizzle and soul for Chinatown, please

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A good example of Chinatown where its preservation has arguably not been able to retain its authenticity.....

Qn: Assess the view that traditional buildings have no future in your society. (Cam. 2016)