AI - A force for Good or Bad?

[Macpherson]

On 16/11/2025 at 22:33, sime42 said:

 

FFS. 

 

 

 

Hi ., I'm not sure whether the FFS is because you think that this article is a load of shyte or because you're shocked by the reality of what is actually happening exponentially right in front of the eyes of anyone that can still see ?

 

Personally the article scares the crap out of me quite a bit more than a gain of function Corona virus psy op, and all this in about 30 years since the advent of the internet, which I frankly despise even though I'm using it to communicate with you, which is one of the things I'd imagine " they're " desperate to police.

 

We've had the carrot, and here comes the effin stick.

Edited 3 hours ago by Macpherson

[Welshfred]

22 hours ago, Squaredy said:

So about the time that suddenly everyone had a computer in their pocket, rather than a communication device.

 

First I Phone came out 2007. From there commercial interests have led us by the nose. 

I get your point about elitism, although there was a brief period of internet cafes or similar venues and libraries of course. I think the instant/constant accessibility is part of the problem, better when the internet was something you chose to go and do rather than an omnipresent brain extension. That's where the addiction comes in. 

AI was always the natural extension of this. Social media? Where else was all the "real life" data for training LLMs how to seem human going to come from?

[Welshfred]

Quite long but worth it

 

What AI doesn’t know: we could be creating a global ‘knowledge collapse’ | Artificial intelligence (AI) | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

---

The long read: As GenAI becomes the primary way to find information, local and traditional wisdom is being lost. And we are only beginning to realise what we’re missing

 

 

[sime42]

10 hours ago, Macpherson said:

 

Hi ., I'm not sure whether the FFS is because you think that this article is a load of shyte or because you're shocked by the reality of what is actually happening exponentially right in front of the eyes of anyone that can still see ?

 

Personally the article scares the crap out of me quite a bit more than a gain of function Corona virus psy op, and all this in about 30 years since the advent of the internet, which I frankly despise even though I'm using it to communicate with you, which is one of the things I'd imagine " they're " desperate police.

 

We've had the carrot, and here comes the effin stick.

 

Morning. 

 

The latter, the ffs was a mix of shock, horror, sadness etc. All those bad vibes. I do think the author of the article had a bit of an agenda, but the essential message was correct. AI is BAD. It confirmed the opinion I already held.

 

I'm in agreement with you. I can still see, with my own eyes rather than through an AI lens. The prospects are scary. It wouldn't be quite so bad if it wasn't being pushed on us by bad people. And it wouldn't quite so bad if so many good people didn't welcome it into their lives with open arms. I don't understand why more people aren't more sceptical. 

 

Even the boss boss of Google is in the news today saying that you shouldn't believe what AI tells you. And yet people blindly trust it. 

 

I'm not sure whether to wish for the AI bubble to burst or not. What do you think?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Squaredy]

53 minutes ago, Welshfred said:

Quite long but worth it

 

What AI doesn’t know: we could be creating a global ‘knowledge collapse’ | Artificial intelligence (AI) | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

---

The long read: As GenAI becomes the primary way to find information, local and traditional wisdom is being lost. And we are only beginning to realise what we’re missing

 

 

That is an intelligent article, making fair points.  But as the author points out the knowledge collapse started many many years ago.  AI may hasten it, but the threats he identifies have existed for thousands of years at least.  Societies evolve, they grow and shrink, and even in my own little area I could easily point to loss of traditional skills and knowledge.  There is probably not a solution, but luckily there are always people around who will develop niche interests and learn about their heritage and (some) past skills.

 

But we can't preserve the past as if it is a crime to develop and evolve.  The skills of coracle making, eel trapping, hunting and cooking small birds and amphibians, foraging for roots, turning hawthorn berries into nutritious food, and a million other traditions have all but disappeared from my area, but life goes on and new customs develop.

 

I do not dismiss what the author is saying, and yes we can all guard against following each other like sheep.  This should start with parents and schools encouraging kids to think independently, analytically and critically.  If a school fails to embrace plurality of opinion and approach they are failing their pupils.  If a school and parents help a child use their brain and think about the issues of the world and their community they are setting them up to use AI and other tools (like modern construction methods mentioned in the article) for their own and others' benefit.

 

Critical thinking is the key; not ludditeism.

[Steven P]

phones... still use a 'basic' phone, mostly because it pisses off the bank every time I go in there, but also very satisfying to know that when I am out and about my nose isn't glued to it - all it will tell me is that I phoned my mum last Wednesday. All it will tell the advertising bots is... I phoned my mum last Wednesday.

 

There are benefits, but, not sure they are more than the brain drain it is creating. I bubble will burst when the predicted advertising revenues don't match what they sell they will.

[sime42]

10 hours ago, Steven P said:

phones... still use a 'basic' phone, mostly because it pisses off the bank every time I go in there, but also very satisfying to know that when I am out and about my nose isn't glued to it - all it will tell me is that I phoned my mum last Wednesday. All it will tell the advertising bots is... I phoned my mum last Wednesday.

 

There are benefits, but, not sure they are more than the brain drain it is creating. I bubble will burst when the predicted advertising revenues don't match what they sell they will.

 

Fair play to you. I feel that your days of being able to get away without having a stupid smart phone glued to your nose are numbered though. Life is getting increasingly difficult for anyone without one, based on the current trajectory.

 

22 hours ago, Squaredy said:

I am not sure I have the answer here.  I think school life was better before smartphones. It is so sad seeing so many people walking around staring at their screens all the time, no doubt much of the time on social media.  
 

But where do you draw the line?  It is not always bad.  Having said that I think schools should take a strong line and this would make it easier for parents.  But I fear the teachers love technology as it can do much of their work for them.  My boys school uses an awful system called Sparx Maths which does all the lesson planning, sets all the homework, marks all the homework, shows pupils help videos for any work they are stuck on.  The teacher barely needs to turn up.  The kids hate it and in many cases it makes them hate maths.  But it looks like it is the future.

 

If I had my way all homework would be paper based.  In fact pretty much all schoolwork would be paper based.  Generally kids work out really fast how to use technology.  It is the traditional skills they need help with.

 

 

I'd be hardline and draw the line at smart  phones for children. As in they don't have them. Phone call phones, yes, they could be useful, even a necessity in an emergency. Internet, social media, AI capable pocket computers, no. The harms far outway any goods. Definitely no SMs in school to start with. Schools themselves, or dare I say it, the government should be able to enforce it. Fat chance of any govnt doing anything healthy like that though so it'll have to be decent schools taking the initiative in the first instance. A few have already put in a no phones on site policy, so that's a good start.

 

The headmistress at my son's school is very sensible and progressive on this front. She's strongly pushing the Smartphone Free Childhood campaign. It's one of those things that should follow the snowball effect. Once a critical mass is reached it'll drive itself. Children won't be coerced by peer pressure into getting one. I hope it succeeds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Welshfred]

11 hours ago, Steven P said:

because it pisses off the bank every time I go in there

 

You go into a bank? A physical building? I don't think my bank has a branch for 50 miles...

So the bank has to be in the phone. And the phone has to be up to a standard dictated by the bank.

Funny old world.

 

[Steven P]

Yes, a real branch! Lady there got upset when suggesting I upgraded my phone "but what will you do when we only do apps" - pointed at the different bank opposite "I'll just go do my banking with them"

[Mark J]

On 16/11/2025 at 22:07, Squaredy said:

Good grief, the writer of that article has some serious hang ups!  I guess he walks everywhere and uses a typewriter to send letters to his friends!  Which to be fair there is nothing wrong with. And also to be fair he does make some valid points.  But he lost me when he said AI is racist.  And the example he gave was pathetic.

 

I think we can all agree that AI has its risks, just the same as probably every technological advancement from planting seeds to grow your crops to machines replacing skilled workers also has risks and downsides.  In fact you could reasonably argue that where it all started going wrong for humanity is when we learnt agriculture ten thousand years ago:  life expectancy plummeted, we became stunted due to lack of variety in diet and almost every major catastrophe that has happened since would have been impossible before large scale farming.

 

But put your hand up if you want to go back to a hand to mouth existence where you hope you can feed your family and keep them alive for one more day.

 

Surely we need to learn to harness AI and use it for our ends.  After all it can’t be uninvented!

I agree that we need to learn to harness AI and use it to our own ends. I have been doing just that with the help of a mate who is lecturing architectural students on its potential. I can see a significant increase in workflow by automating things. 

I do think that all that data in the wrong hands is a recipe for disaster.