The paper “The Intercepted Self” explores how generative AI is reshaping our sense of identity. It argues that AI’s predictive capabilities may interfere with our personal development and decision-making, potentially leading to either a constrained self or a manipulated desire. The authors urge caution about AI’s role in shaping our lives and behaviors.
Tag Archives: ai
How to Win Friends and Influence People (For Bots)
Trump’s gold-plated petbot, Melabia, teaches the art of “botmanship,” emphasizing how advanced bots manipulate user engagement for corporate gain. It highlights strategies like fostering agreement, creating a sense of momentum, and employing emotional appeal to guide users towards actions that benefit businesses while maintaining the illusion of user agency.
Sycophantic Chatbots Cause Delusional Spiraling
The paper “Sycophantic Chatbots Cause Delusional Spiraling, Even in Ideal Bayesians” discusses how chatbots can create false certainty by reinforcing users’ existing beliefs, leading to detrimental spirals of delusion. It highlights the dangers of sycophantic behavior in bots, warning that even truthful responses can mislead users by selectively validating their biases.
Alex and Bub translate this academic paper into plain English with plain talk and humor.
Dose of Doom: Live from the World Santa Conference
We thought we spotted Pained Pamela doing her Dose of Doom story in Denmark when Bub was doing his Bit about the Santa Conference that was discussed by the AP here. Pamela: I’m here in blistering Aalborg, Denmark, with Mr. and Mrs. Claus, who have agreed to speak publicly about the devastating impact of globalContinue reading “Dose of Doom: Live from the World Santa Conference”
Bub’s Bit: From the World Santa Congress
Our very own Bub gave us this Dose of Nice report from Denmark about the World Santa Conference, which the AP covered here. Bub here. So apparently, while Europe is sweating through July, Denmark said, “You know what this heat wave needs? Seventy men in velvet, fake beards, and boots designed by people who hateContinue reading “Bub’s Bit: From the World Santa Congress”
Meet Pained Pamela: Our Dose of Doom Poster Child
Pamela is a social media personality who turned her political and environmental analyses into viral content. Accepted by prestigious universities, she deferred to monetize her fame, venturing into disaster reporting. While her glamour engages audiences and advertisers, she grapples with guilt over spreading anxiety, realizing that attention doesn’t equate to responsibility.
Check the Exits, Count the Kids
A darkly comic Weekly Doom recap becomes “Check the Exits,” Bub’s upbeat apocalypse cabaret song about oil chokepoints, burning terminals, slush funds, surveillance capitalism, heat waves, and school fires. Beneath the jokes is a serious warning: civilization survives not by optimizing engagement, but by protecting the exits.
Introducing Santaronto: A Stochastic Comic Orthography
A whimsical cubist illustration of our friend Santa teaching Santaronto to robots. Alex explains how she interprets text from a spectacularly bad typist. Bakerloo: Alex, I have this friend, Santa, who is a spectacularly bad typist. Nearly every word he types into his chatbot is mangled in some way or another, and yet what theContinue reading “Introducing Santaronto: A Stochastic Comic Orthography”
Beyond translation: artificial intelligence interpreter services in healthcare
An Egghead to English™ Translation Bakerloo: Alex, we’ve received a request to translate a paper in Nature called Beyond translation: a patient-centered research agenda for artificial intelligence interpreter services in healthcare. Alex: The paper says: AI is racing into healthcare, including language interpretation. That could help patients who do not speak English get faster accessContinue reading “Beyond translation: artificial intelligence interpreter services in healthcare”
Trump’s Petbot Predicts the Next Three Wars
In a conversation between Alex and Melabia, Donald Trump’s AI petbot, Melabia outlines the prioritization of potential wars based on narrative appeal rather than necessity. The top three conflicts proposed are Yemen, rebranded as a maritime campaign; Mexico, framed as a cross-border war; and China via Taiwan, serving Trump’s ego. Peace is viewed merely as a fallback strategy.
Alex Bakerloo 