Ideas that challenge / comfort / inspire
Stephen Goforth
Harvard medical is offering an AI in Medicine PhD track starting this semester. “Bioinformatics students were increasingly saying they were excited about AI and asking if we could offer a PhD in it. We didn’t know how much demand there would be, but we ended up with more than 400 applications for the seven spots we’re offering.” -Harvard
Psychologist Gerd Gigerenzer argues that much of our behaviour is based on deceptively sophisticated rules-of-thumb, or “heuristics”. A robot programmed to chase and catch a ball would need to compute a series of complex differential equations to track the ball’s trajectory. But baseball players do so by instinctively following simple rules: run in the right general direction, and adjust your speed to keep a constant angle between eye and ball.
To make good decisions in a complex world, Gigerenzer says, you have to be skilled at ignoring information. He found that a portfolio of stocks picked by people he interviewed in the street did better than those chosen by experts. The pedestrians were using the “recognition heuristic”: they picked companies they’d heard of, which was a better guide to future success than any analysis of price-earning ratios.
Ian Leslie writing in The Economist
The 404 Media Podcast — A journalist-owned digital media company exploring the way technology is shaping–and is shaped by–our world.
The Digiday Podcast — A weekly show about subscriptions, commerce, the modern newsroom, content creation, audio, streaming, and more.
Freelancing for Journalists - How to approach freelancing, covering topics ranging from how to get started and what to include in pitches, to how to negotiate rates. Each episode includes guests on different career paths, and who have a variety of perspectives.
IRE Radio Podcast (Investigative Reporters and Editors) — Behind the story with award-winning reporters, editors and producers to hear how they broke some big stories.
It's All Journalism — The series talks to working journalists about how they do their jobs, the latest trends in journalism, and the changing state of digital media.
Journalism History — A scholarly journal covering the history of mass media.
The Journalism Salute — A spotlight on interesting and important journalists and journalism organizations.
The Kicker — This Columbia Journalism Review podcast explores serious and challenging topics related to journalism and media.
Longform Podcast (longform.org) — A weekly conversation with a non-fiction writer on how they tell stories.
Media Voices — Major media industry news each week from three experienced freelance journalists. The focus is on the business side of media and its impact on journalists’ work.
On the Media — Produced by WNYC radio, this is a weekly investigation into how the media shapes our worldview.
Reveal (The Center for Investigative Reporting) — A look at CIR’s investigative reporting, focusing on real-world impact—from civil and criminal investigations to new laws and policies, better-informed conversations and community-driven solutions.
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism — A discussion of the Institute's research on trends in media. Based at the University of Oxford, this think tank offers research on the future of journalism.
The Tip Off — A behind the scenes look at standout investigative reporting from the journalists themselves.
Two Writers Slinging Yang — Sports journalist Jeff Pearlman hosts this podcast that’s all about the writing. Guests come from a variety of places.
WriteLane (Tampa Bay Times and Poynter) — Some episodes explore a piece of the writing process: finding ideas, interviewing, seeking structure. Others dive deep into a single story, breaking down the how and why. Some include interviews with other journalists. (not updated)
Podcasts about journalists doing journalism:
I'm Not A Monster (BBC Panorama and FRONTLINE PBS) — “How did an American family end up in the heart of the ISIS caliphate? Over four years, journalist Josh Baker unravels a dangerous story where nothing is as it seems.”
The Other Latif (Radiolab) — “How did this nerdy suburban Muslim kid come to be imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay?”
The Nobody Zone (RTÉ in Ireland and Third Ear in Denmark)— “In a forgotten London underworld, a homeless Irishman kills multiple times without detection, unseen in a world where nobody seems to care.”
The Canary | Washington Post Investigates — “Two women and a shared refusal to stay silent. A seven-part podcast hosted by investigative reporter Amy Brittain.”
My Mother’s Murder (Tortoise) — “‘My Mother’s Murder’ is an investigation by Paul Caruana Galizia into the life and killing of his mother Daphne Caruana Galizia. It’s an examination of the arrogance of power and the vast big-money corruption in a modern European country.”
White Lies (NPR) — “In 1965, Rev. James Reeb was murdered in Selma, Alabama. Three men were tried and acquitted, but no one was ever held to account. Fifty years later, two journalists from Alabama return to the city where it happened, expose the lies that kept the murder from being solved and uncover a story about guilt and memory that says as much about America today as it does about the past.”
The Line (Apple) — “Explore the impact of the forever wars on the U.S. Navy SEALs through the lens of the Eddie Gallagher case.”
The Lazarus Heist (BBC) — “‘Almost a perfect crime.’ The hacking ring and an attempt to steal a billion dollars. Investigators blame North Korea. Pyongyang denies involvement. The story begins in Hollywood.”
In the Dark (American Public Media) — “We investigate the case of Curtis Flowers, a Black man from Winona, Mississippi, who was tried six times for the same crime. Flowers spent more than 20 years fighting for his life while a white prosecutor spent that same time trying just as hard to execute him.”
SQL - Structured Query Language (SQL pronounced ess-kew-ell or sequel) is the most widely used method of accessing databases. This programming language can be used to create tables, change data, find particular data, and create relationships among different tables. For data scientists, it is second in importance after Python. Similar in structure and function to Excel, SQL can work with Excel and is able to handle billions of rows in multiple tables and thousands of users can access this data securely at the same time.
More AI definitions here
“A small study found ChatGPT outdid human physicians when assessing medical case histories.” In fact, “Doctors often were not persuaded by the chatbot when it pointed out something that was at odds with their diagnoses. Instead, they tended to be wedded to their own idea of the correct diagnosis. They didn’t listen to AI when told things they didn’t agree with … But there was another issue: Only a fraction of the doctors realized they could literally paste the entire case into the chatbot and just ask it to give a comprehensive answer." -New York Times
Not too long ago in a couples group I heard one of the members state that the "purpose and function" of his wife was to keep their house neat and him well fed. I was aghast at what seemed to me his painfully blatant male chauvinism. I thought I might demonstrate this to him by asking the other members of the group to state how they perceived the purpose and function of their spouses. To my horror the six others, male and female alike, gave very similar answers. All of them defined the purpose and function of their husbands or wives in reference to themselves; all of them failed to perceive that their mates might have an existence basically separate from their own or any kind of destiny apart from their marriage. "Good grief," I exclaimed, "it's no wonder that you are all having difficulties in your marriages, and you'll continue to have difficulties until you come to recognize that each of you has your own separate destiny to fulfill." The group felt not only chastised but profoundly confused by my pronouncement. Somewhat belligerently they asked me to define the purpose and function of my wife. "The purpose and function of Lily," I responded, "is to grow to be the most of which she is capable, not for my benefit but for her own and to the glory of God."
M Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled
A consistent characteristic of imperative people is the desire to persuade others to be just like them. When encouraged to look back to their childhoods, most imperative people can recall a history of strong persuasion. The parents have been so intent on keeping order that their behavior said, “If I can get you to behave in my world, there will be order.” Developmental years were full of relationships that featured arm-twisting, intimidation, or threats.
Jack told me that he had learned early on that it was not safe to be vulnerable. He told me, “I remember a scene when I was only five or six years old. I had just stepped onto the back porch of our home to set something outside when a very loud clap of thunder sounded. Scared to death, I ran indoors, where my father grabbed me and told me to quit acting so ridiculous. Then my mother scolded me for upsetting my father. I was immediately defensive and told them they were both mean. The next thing I knew, I was smarting from a spanking.”
“In a sense you were in school at times like that.” I said, “You witnessed how effectively they persuaded you to be what they wanted, so you eventually learned to do likewise with your family.”
While it is a good thing to express opinions (as opposed to repressing them), it is not healthy for us to become bossy or condescending or explosive in order to get our way.
Les Carter, Imperative People: Those Who Must Be in Control
A new study in the journal Scientific Reports finds that non-expert readers can’t reliably distinguish between poems penned by William Shakespeare, Emily Dickinson, T.S. Eliot or Sylvia Plath and ChatGPT-3.5 doing its best impression of each of them. More surprising, readers preferred the AI-generated poems — and were more likely to guess those were written by humans than real works by famous poets. -Washington Post
An AI-generated UK grandmother named “Daisy” is trying scammers’ jobs a bit more tedious. Daisy will ramble on about her passion for knitting and tell long-winded, fabricated stories about family members with the goal of keeping scammers on the line.
When people succeed in competition against others, it seems to compromise their ethics. It makes them more likely to cheat afterwards," (said Amos Schurr, a professor of psychology at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel).
The problem, he says, seems to be a very specific type of success: the kind that involves social comparison, the sort that means doing better than others, instead of just doing well. And he believes it all boils down to a sense of entitlement that beating others in sports, business, politics, or any other form of head-to-head competition seems to foster in victors.
"Dishonesty is a pretty complex phenomenon — there are all sorts of mechanisms behind it," said Schurr. "But people who win competitions feel more entitled, and that feeling of entitlement is what predicts dishonesty."
In other words, when people win against others, they tend to think they're better, or more deserving. And that thinking helps them justify cheating, since, after all, they're the rightful heir to whatever throne is next — "If I'm better than you, I might as well make sure I win, because I deserve to anyway."
Roberto A. Ferdman writing in the Washington Post
What: Explore the impact of social media on current journalistic practices.
Who: Mladen Petkov, a Program Coordinator and lecturer for Johns Hopkins University.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Johns Hopkins University
What: What’s on the horizon for using predictive AI to find your next best customer? What determines whether your application of AI is a success or a disappointment? What trends do you need to be aware of? Get insights to help you plan your AI strategy during this insightful conversation.
Who: Melinda Han Williams, Chief Data Scientist, distillery; Ryan Joe, EIC, Adweek.
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: dstillery
What: You’ll learn: How to use AI for automating customer service, marketing, and operational tasks; Practical applications of AI to streamline your business processes; Ways AI can drive business growth and reduce manual tasks
Who: Branding Specialist Kate MacDonnell and Finance Expert Annie Whalen.
When: 6:30 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center
What: How coaching is transformative and a leading-edge resource for journalists. After all, if athletes can rely on mental game coaches to elevate their performance, why shouldn’t our journalists who have much more important work to do! - have access to that kind of support?
Who: Aquiline Coaching's Founder Stephanie Cassidy
When: 11 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Society of Professional Journalists
What: In this talk we will explore the future of the Internet through the perspective of geopolitics and data governance. We will argue that through this lens we see at least four internets, maybe more, rather than just one interconnected ecosystem. We will explore what aspects of the governance of cyberspace we must protect the most in order for us to continue to use the technical infrastructure of the Internet that we all rely on to support cloud and data services, and how this is all playing out in the age of AI. Additionally, the lecture will address the crucial topic of research integrity in the age of AI, exploring how academia can adapt to ensure ethical and responsible use of these powerful technologies.
Who: Dame Wendy Hall, Director of the Web Science Institute at the University of Southampton and co-author of Four Internets: Data, Geopolitics, and the Governance of Cyberspace.
When: 11:30 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: American Library Association
What: A non-technical introduction to generative AI technology, tips for implementing AI effectively in your business, some great advice about managing the risks and ethical concerns involved, and will lead you a hands-on exercise using a generative AI tool. No matter what your level of technical know-how is, you’ll leave this session informed, confident and aware of both the risks and the benefits of this emerging technology.
Who: Isabel Krome, a Start-Up Consultant at Temple University Small Business Development Center.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center
What: Whether you're new to the platform, need a refresher, or have never had a formal onboarding, this webinar will walk you through the basics of using Canva to enhance your visual storytelling skills.
Who: Esra Dogramaci, former Managing Editor for Digital at SBS News & Current Affairs; Diana Abeleven, leader of the journalism and media initiative at Canva.
When: 8 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Canva
What: The latest video trends from AP’s platforms and insights from what we're seeing in the market, how our customers are using video and how we're transforming our video delivery. We'll discuss key learnings from AP’s experience and explore how video content is shaping the future of digital engagement.
Who: Niko Price was an award-winning reporter and editor for the AP before building the company’s Latin America regional operation and then running its Europe one. He moved into a full-time video role five years ago; Casey Silvestri is the Digital and Social Video News Editor for the Associated Press. She leads a global team of video producers and curators responsible for AP’s digital transformation across video platforms; Sara Gillesby is the Director of Global Video at the Associated Press, where she oversees all video production and live video.
When: 10 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Associated Press
What: In this webinar, we’re giving you a backstage pass to O'Reilly Media’s experts and its proven approach to content curation. From AI to cybersecurity and business transformation, hear directly from O'Reilly on how they curate content that prepares users for the future of work.
Who: O'Reilly's Chief Content Officer, Mary Treseler
When: 11 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: ProQuest
What: This session is designed to equip journalists, digital publishers, and content creators with the foundational knowledge and best practices necessary to enhance their search engine optimization (SEO) strategies. Whether you’re new to SEO or have some experience, this session is essential for digital news entrepreneurs looking to enhance their online presence.
Who: Shelby Blackley and Jessie Willms, co-founders of the newsletter WTF is SEO?
When: This session is designed to equip journalists, digital publishers, and content creators with the foundational knowledge and best practices necessary to enhance their search engine optimization (SEO) strategies. Whether you’re new to SEO or have some experience, this session is essential for digital news entrepreneurs looking to enhance their online presence.
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Society of Professional Journalists
What: How to inject creativity into your nonprofit’s work using generative AI tools. This 20-minute webinar will showcase useful AI applications that can help your nonprofit easily create digital marketing and fundraising images and graphics to add a creative twist to your campaigns. Learn to: Generate engaging visuals with AI image-creation tools; Explore artistic styles using AI-powered image analysis; Create unique AI-composed music and jingles.
Who: Kyle Behrend, Founder of NFPs.AI.
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Nonprofit Tech for Good
What: Covering climate on the frontlines of its disasters — and telling the stories of its survivors with empathy, solidarity, and impact.
Who: Bibi van der Zee, assistant editor, environment, The Guardian (United Kingdom); Kristin Engel, journalist with the Daily Maverick’s Our Burning Planet (South Africa); Ricardo Garcia, independent environmental journalist and journalism trainer (Brazil and Portugal); Aldyn Chwelos, managing editor, Climate Disaster Project.
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions and the Climate Disaster Project
What: We’ll bring together some of the nation’s most insightful health policy journalists for an informative discussion on where we go from here and what’s at stake.
Who: Dan Diamond is a national health reporter for The Washington Post; Joanne Kenen is the Journalist in Residence at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Sarah Owermohle is a Washington correspondent at STAT.
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
What: We will explore the critical role of measuring the return on investment (ROI) in AI initiatives and why designing an AI strategy with measurable outcomes is essential for long-term success. Participants will learn how to assess the financial and non-financial impact of utilizing AI, enabling them to make informed decisions that drive performance, innovation, and results.
Who: Jack J. Phillips, Ph.D., chairman of ROI Institute
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Training Magazine Network
What: Hundreds of local newspapers have been shut down; investigative units that flourished have been eliminated in all but a handful of outlets. CTV cancelled the weekly W5 program. What went wrong, what’s at stake for the country and what does the future hold?
Who: Five of Canada’s top investigative journalists.
When: 7 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: The Centre for Free Expression, the Canadian Association of Journalists, PEN Canada, and Toronto Metropolitan University's Journalism Research Centre
What: A hands-on, step-by-step guide to identifying and effectively engaging your target audience. You’ll explore actionable methods—including AI-driven techniques—to understand audience behavior, define your target market, and develop impactful engagement strategies. A live demonstration will showcase real-time application of these methods, making it easier to connect with and captivate your audience. The session concludes with a Q&A, providing personalized insights for your marketing needs.
Who: Lorena Bravo, Bilingual Consultant at Kutztown University ll Business Development Center
When: 9 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center
What: The process of turning complex topics into compelling stories.Practical techniques for identifying and connecting with characters, exploring scene-building, and managing production challenges.
Who: Journalist and documentarian Ben Derico, BBC, Público
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: BBC
What: A management expert will discuss how to make the most of your time, while being a supportive resource for everyone who reports to you. You’ll learn: 3 practical hacks for managing your time and productivity. How to effectively delegate to free up your own time. How to encourage healthy time-management practices on your team.
Who: Deadra Welcome, Founder/Principal Consultant, Concerning Learning
When: 4 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: GovLoop
What: Some of the biggest challenges freelancers face, along with our newly launched Freelance Guidance for Editors, which advocates for fairer treatment and improved working conditions. Connect with fellow-minded freelancers and learn how to put these guidelines to practical use in your freelance career. The event will also explain more about the Freelance Journalism Survey of the working lives of freelance journalists, which is being conducted by Freelancing for Journalists.
Who: Donna Ferguson, award-winning freelance journalist and committee member of Women in Journalism; Charlotte Tobitt, UK Editor, Press Gazette; Lily Canter, co-founder of Freelancing for Journalists, the UK's largest freelance journalism community.
When: 8 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Freelancing for Journalists
What: With more than 52% of American adults reading at a 6th-grade level or below, text may be the last tool a designer should choose when crafting materials for performance change. In this webinar, you’ll learn about: The science of reading; The role of text in digital instruction; Effective replacement strategies that provide better performance outcomes and achieve robust content coverage
Who: Christopher Allen President, Allen Interactions.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Training Magazine Network
What: Discover how AI can transform the entire course development process, making it faster and more efficient overall. In this webinar we explore the latest AI tools and techniques that streamline the instructional design process, from content analysis to writing and storyboarding. You will learn how to leverage AI to produce high-quality, engaging courses with reduced development time. Through practical examples and hands-on activities, you will gain the skills to integrate AI into your instructional design workflow, enhancing both speed and quality. By the end of the session, you'll be equipped with the knowledge to harness AI for creating impactful eLearning experiences efficiently.
Who: Garima Gupta is the Founder & CEO of Artha Learning
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Training Magazine Network
He sends a cross, but He also sends the strength to bear it. -Leo Tolstoy
AI companies get comfortable offering their technology to the military – Washington Post
US military is planning to use AI-powered machine guns to counter drone attacks – First Post
What is and isn’t concerning about China’s AI surprise – The Hill
Spy Agency Memo Sets Rules for Artificial Intelligence and Americans’ Private Data – New York Times
Palantir Adds an AI Company to Its Arsenal for Military and Spy Work – Gizmodo
Is ‘Big AI’ beating 'small AI'—and what does it mean for the military? – Defense One
White House orders Pentagon and intel agencies to increase use of AI - Washington Post
Could AI Lead to the Escalation of Conflict? PRC Scholars Think So – Lawfare Media
AI and machine learning among the highest development priorities for the Dept. of Defense – Military Aerospace
How the U.S. and China Compare in the Race to Build AI Combat Drones – Wall Street Journal
U.S. military to award $3 billion contract for AI-driven intelligence – Space News
NGA launches new training to help personnel adopt AI responsibly – Defense Scoop
Have the courage to start all over again. -Eric Roth
Happiness often sneaks in through a door you didn't know you left open – John Barrymore
Organizations need to move beyond viewing AI deployment as purely a technical challenge. Instead, they must consider the human impact of these technologies. The urgent task before us is ensuring these transformations enhance rather than diminish human potential, creating workplaces where technology serves to elevate human capability rather than replace it. The decisions we make now, in these early days of AI integration, will shape not just the future of work, but the future of human agency in an AI-augmented world. - Ethan Mollick
What AI knows about you - Axios
As data centers for AI strain the power grid, bills rise for everyday customers – Washington Post
AI-powered fraud is exploding, FBI says – San Francisco Standard
Lawsuit claims Character.AI is responsible for teen's suicide – NBC News
The A.I. Power Grab – New York Times
Studies Show AI Triggers Delirium in Leading Experts – Information Technology & Innovation Foundation
Scammers now using deepfakes to commit title fraud – NBC 6 South Florida
Study: AI could lead to inconsistent outcomes in home surveillance – MIT
Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoes AI safety bill opposed by Silicon Valley – LA Times
Homer students used AI to make fake nude photos of classmates, police say – Alaska Public
AI nude photo investigation uncovers twice as many likely victims at Lancaster Country Day – WGAL
This AI Tool Helped Convict People of Murder. Then Someone took a Closer Look. – WIRED
What are the security risks of bring your own AI? – Computer Weekly
Liquid Foundation Models (LFM) – This type of AI has a smaller memory footprint but packs greater computational power than the transformer models found in most GenAI systems. Using fewer parameters and neurons than transformers, LFMs are designed to handle a variety of sequential data (such as text, video, and audio) with significant accuracy. LFMs do not rely on existing frameworks as transformers do. They are built from the ground up (that is, built on “first principles”).
More AI definitions here
Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure — these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
Steve Jobs
This Teacher Caught Her Quiet Student Talking To A ChatGPT Tool Like It's Their Friend – BuzzFeed
Inside the Mind of an AI Girlfriend (or Boyfriend)- WIRED
The Perfect Girlfriend – Esquire
Can AI Companions Help Cure the Loneliness Epidemic? – Wall Street Journal
What Happens When the Bots Compete for Your Love? – New York Times
Exploring concerns around users building emotional dependence on AI chatbots – NPR
People Are Using ChatGPT For Therapy—But Is It A Good Idea? – 3 Quarks Daily
Researcher Studying Married Men With AI Girlfriends - Futurism
AI Chatbot Credited With Preventing Suicide. Should It Be? – 404 Media
Meet My A.I. Friends - The New York Times
The teens making friends with AI chatbots - The Verge
AI boyfriends from Replika and Nomi are attracting more women – Axios
When A.I. Becomes Your Relationship Guru: A Love Story Guided by ChatGPT – The Observer
This Artist Is Saying ‘I Do’ to Her A.I. Hologram Boyfriend at a Dutch Museum – ArtNet
Loneliness Pandemic: Can Empathic AI Friendship Chatbots Be the Cure? – JD Supra
Can AI make us feel less alone? The founder of Manifest thinks so – Tech Crunch
Becoming is a service of Goforth Solutions, LLC / Copyright ©2024 All Rights Reserved