AI - A force for Good or Bad?

[AHPP]

[Squaredy]

13 hours ago, Stephen Blair said:

When someone asks “All things considered, is AI good for humanity?” they’re doing something very human: trying to simplify a vast, complex subject into something digestible. That kind of question can come from a few different mindsets, depending on tone and intent:

 

The seeker of clarity – Someone genuinely curious, trying to get a sense of the overall moral balance. They know it’s complex but want to hear how others weigh the pros and cons.

The moral judge – Someone looking for a definitive stance. “Good or bad” becomes a shorthand for “should I support or fear this?”

The conversational spark – Someone starting a debate thread. They ask a simple, provocative question because it invites passionate responses.

The anxious observer – Someone uneasy about change. Framing it as “good or bad” helps them express uncertainty or fear in a socially acceptable way.

The reductionist thinker – Someone who struggles (or refuses) to sit in the grey areas. They want a clear binary even when the truth is layered.

 

 

So, that kind of question isn’t necessarily shallow — it often reveals how a person handles complexity. Some want to understand it; others want to control or contain it.

Spot on.  I remember similar questions when the Internet was really taking off in the late nineties.

 

And of course there is no simple answer.  Now with the benefit of hindsight we can say that the internet is a powerful tool.  So is a helicopter.  Both can be used for amazing good things and both be used for evil.  And of course a whole world in between.

 

No doubt AI will likewise be a powerful tool.

Edited 44 minutes ago by Squaredy

[Squaredy]

The educational establishment (especially universities) have really been caught napping by AI.  Apparently most universities have no policy or method of determining how much of students’ work is their own.  And when you add to that the fact that most assessments are now course based (very few degrees need exams now according to my ChatGpt) it is quite a pickle.

 

I had a chat with my own son’s maths teacher last year about the system they are made to use for maths homework (when he was in Year 10 so age 14).  I pointed out to the teacher that because of the way the system (Sparx maths) works it encourages pupils to cheat.  
 

He assured me it was impossible for kids to cheat as they all get set different questions.  I had to inform him that most likely every kid in his class knows exactly how to cheat using a whole variety of apps, all of which are literally in front of them on the same screen as they are using to do the homework.  Even Google lense gives the answer to all these problems, with all the correct workings to copy down for the workbook.  My twelve year old now uses Sparx Maths, and sure enough all his mates know how to cheat.

 

This raises one of the critical points.  Organisations have to very quickly come up to speed and work out what impact AI could have and how they will manage it.  Right now schools and universities are clueless as to what the impacts are, or what they need to do.