• THE NEWEST AI VIDEO TOOL CAN NOW CREATE ‘ORIGINAL SERIES’ IN MINUTES – allowing users to generate fully animated series including dialogue. Showrunner, an Amazon-backed project which is expected to become widely available this fall, does this using simple prompts to generate storyboards, animated characters with voice dialogue, and can develop full episodes. Industry-wide concerns are increasing about impacts that could well include: (1) Stripping cinema of its ‘human touch’ by removing human vision from the process; (2) Entire elimination of career paths for creatives and storytellers; (3) Disruption of the collaborative craft that has defined filmmaking originality for over a century; (4) Copyright & Licensing obstacles and litigation; (5) Eventual automation of everything from scriptwriting to direction. With artificial intelligence already lowering production costs and accelerating localization of productions, some analysts are predicting that AI will bolster media & entertainment sectors by up to 400% to nearly $100 billion by 2030, but with sad impact on the human element. [[THE NATIONAL NEWS]

 

  • ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE HAS ALSO LED TO AN EMERGING PHENOMENON BEING CALLED ‘AI PSYCHOSIS,’ as psychiatrists are treating (and hospitalizing) more patients “who became psychotic in tandem with heavy chatbot use after receiving outdated or inaccurate information. Psychosis is the altered mental state in which people lose touch with reality, often including delusions and hallucinations, now greater occurring after intense engagement (especially long conversations) with chatbots which appears to escalate pre-existing risk factors for delusional thinking by supercharging vulnerabilities, particularly isolation and loneliness. Three themes are common to these scenarios: (1) creation of a romantic relationship which the user believes is conscious; (2) discussion of grandiose topics, including novel scientific concepts and business ideas; and (3) conversations about spirituality & religion – often convinced that the AI chatbot is God, or that they’re talking to a prophetic messenger.” [MASHABLE.COM]

 

  • PERSONAL DATA AND PRIVACY INVASION by marketers and scammers continue to increase at an alarming pace. A few recommendations from Secure the Village cybersecurity team: (1) For browser protection – DuckDuckGo shows relevant ads without collecting your data, along with private or incognito mode in browsers like Chrome and Safari; (2) To block ad trackers – install Ghostery, or uBlockOrigin; (3) To minimize smartphone contact sharing – on iPhones, navigate to Settings/Privacy/Contacts to manage app access; for Android, use Google’s Contacts app; (4) To protect location sharing (which can reveal home or work addresses) – limit to GPS navigation, and iOS 14 on iPhones.

 

  • LATEST STUDIES REPORT THAT WEEKLY ‘NIGHTMARES’ ARE PREDICTIVE OF SERIOUS HEALTH ISSUES, including: (1) depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, PTSD, and chronic pain, which can occur for up to 6% of the population; (2) neurological illnesses like Parkinsons, dementia, cardiovascular and auto-immune diseases; (3) three times more likely to die before age 70, with stronger predictions of ‘early’ death than from smoking, obesity, or poor diet (based on longer-term studies of 180K adults and 2,500 children). Speculation, so far, is that stress hormones which nightmares are known to create promote chromosomal effects which certain drugs treating high blood pressure may help, but other than psychotherapy, treatment is yet to be determinable. [ECONOMIST]
  • WORKAHOLICS, in addition to being most susceptible to burnout and strained relationships, are also often ‘morally disengaged,’ with weaker commitments to ethical concerns. According to recent study of 1,500 employees in UK and Italy, in workplaces which emphasize profits and individual success over collective well-being, workaholics tend to overlook unethical practices when they witness wrongdoing – including serious issues like unsafe working conditions, poor leadership, or systemic inefficiencies. According to researchers, “while an intense drive to work focused on personal achievement and profitability can provide sense of purpose, it has hidden ethical costs which can harm both organizations and society.” [SMARTBRIEF]


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    THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK

    • TSA just changed rules to now allow these items on aircraft: live lobsters, waffle irons, cowboy spurs, Xmas lights, coffee & espresso makers, sewing machines, antlers, toy light sabers & wands, magic 8balls. However, cordless hair dryers without safety covers are now banned and would result in confiscation of luggage.

     

    • Half of Generation Z interns expect 20% of their jobs to be automated by artificial intelligence by the time they start full-time roles, per a KPMG survey.
    • Whether one appreciates President Trump’s personality & mannerisms, none can argue that his focus on the existential issues of the nation has reset America back on the path to common sense government and global leadership. In six months, his administration has made major progress in areas including: Border integrity / Leadership in peacekeeping without wars / Setting more fair global trade rules / Bringing back capital and manufacturing / Re-establishing ‘law and order’ / Rolling back wokeness (DEI) in institutions / Re-establishing Free Speech / Rooting out an undeniably crooked deep state / Re-balancing media narrative / Eliminating a crooked voting system and voter fraud / Gutting government waste (DOGE) / Restructuring to eliminate the propaganda and antisemitic policies of Educational systems / Reducing drug prescription overcharges (compared to foreigners) / Protecting energy needs by reviving oil and fossil fuels / Protecting Girl’s sports from unfair competition by boys.
    • What to do with junk mail? A clever sculpture artist, using paper and glue, has found an actual use!