~ H-TI-S-RT-I-F-N-O-E-A-TSTS-TB ~ Humans – Think – In – Stories – Rather Than – In – Facts – Numbers – Or – Equations – And – The Simpler The Story – The Better

~ H-WAFBA-IT-T-UTW ~ Humans – Were Always Far Better At – Inventing Tools – Than – Using Them Wisely

~ T-TR-MS-PBOHOOTJM-A-CAMN-‘UC’-LTSAPU ~ The – Technological Revolution – Might Soon – Push Billions Of Humans Out Of The Job Market – And – Create A Massive New – “Useless Class” – Leading To – Social And Political Upheavals

~ IIGAT-MLAR-WCAELOW-IIFFCT-TFEWNU-EAC ~ It Is Generally Agreed That – Machine Learning And Robotics – Will Change Almost Every Line Of Work – It Is Far From Certain That – The Future Economy Will Need Us – Even As Consumers

~ IIDWIIBT-PPW-UBI-TCP-O-UBS-TCP-BOHAAD-B-NMWPYC-TRPIIDW-‘U’-A-‘B’-AM ~ It Is Debatable Whether It Is Better To – Provided People With – Universal Basic Income – The Capitalist Paradise – Or – Universal Basic Services – The Communist Paradise – Both Options Have Advantages And Drawbacks – But – No Matter Which Paradise You Choose – The Real Problem Is In Defining What – “Universal” – And – “Basic” – Actually Mean

~ TQF-MAC-ME-TQFAJ ~ The Quest For – Meaning And Community – Might Eclipse – The Quest For A – Job

~ TBS-C-BPIEI ~ The Biometric Sensor – Converts – Biological Processes Into Electronic Information

~ PGM ~ Precision-Guided Manipulation

~ DD ~ Digital Dictators

~ TRPWR-INTOAI-B-RTNSACOTHM ~ The Real Problem With Robots – Is Not Their Own Artificial Intelligence – But – Rather – The Natural Stupidity And Cruelty Of Their Human Masters

~ VRATW ~ Veteran Robots Against The War

~ D-IIPF-CS-TMOBAI-EDWSRIIARNF-O-HWCTLI-‘DD’ ~ Democracy – In Its Present Form – Cannot Survive – The Merger Of Biotech And Infotech – Either Democracy Will Successfully Reinvent Itself In A Radically New Form – Or – Humans Will Come To Live In – “Digital Dictatorships”

~ HF-WGUTITTAAOAATUAISIHH ~ Human Figureheads – Will Give Us The Illusion That The Algorithms Are Only Advisers And That Ultimate Authority Is Still In Human Hands

~ AI&NS ~ Artificial Intelligence And Natural Stupidity

~ TINRTATAIWGC-B-IAC-AVDT-I-ITATSP-C-ITATF ~ There Is No Reason To Assume That Artificial Intelligence Will Gain Consciousness – Because – Intelligence And Consciousness – Are Very Different Things – Intelligence – Is The Ability To Solve Problems – Consciousness – Is The Ability To Feel

~ FTLFD-PAOTW-WTTHIOTPT-E-AT-G-A-NT-WHUGTS-IR-TT-FC-MC-TMUSIH ~ For The Last Few Decades – People All Over The World – Were Told That Humankind Is On The Path To – Equality – And That – Globalization – And – New Technologies – Will Help Us Get There Sooner – In Reality – The Twenty-First Century – Might Create – The Most Unequal Societies In History

~ B-2100-TR-1%-MONMMOTWW-BA-MOTW-B-C-H ~ By – 2100 – The Richest – 1 Percent – Might Own Not Merely Most Of The World’s Wealth – But Also – Most Of The World’s – Beauty – Creativity – Health

~ IWWTPTCOAWAPITHOASE-TKIT-RTOOD ~ If We Want To Prevent The Concentration Of All Wealth And Power In The Hands Of A Small Elite – The Key Is To – Regulate The Ownership Of Data

~ OACABTFU-TTAIWGB ~ Once Algorithms Choose And Buy Things For Us – The Traditional Advertising Industry Will Go Bust

~ APA-MLABM-A-MELMITST-B-ALAISD-ICBWB ~ A Popular App – May Lack A Business Model – And – May Even Lose Money In The Short Term – But – As Long As It Sucks Data – It Could Be Worth Billions

~ WOTD?-TMWBTMIPQOOE ~ Who Owns The Data? – This May Well Be The Most Important Political Question Of Our Era

~ HHB-IYTTPLMOATYPTWATNTOTOE-YCVYAA-BSS-EAYAPTTOG-B-OYRTHBHB-A-TTSN-R-H-A-SS-IBFMDTJTE-HCYETVOCWRTFSTMICS? ~ Human Have Bodies – If You Think That People Live Mainly Online And That You Provide Them With All The Necessary Tools Of Their Online Existence – You Can View Yourself As A – Beneficial Social Service – Even As You Avoid Paying Taxes To Offline Governments – But – Once You Remember That Human Beings Have Bodies – And – That They Still Need – Roads – Hospitals – And – Sewage Systems – It Becomes Far More Difficult To Justify Tax Evasion – How Can You Extol The Virtues Of Community While Refusing To Financially Support The Most Important Community Services?

~ WMCTMTGODWOWSFO ~ We May Come To Miss The Good Old Days When Online Was Separated From Offline

~ WITOVAAPLF-AA-Y-TOTTAUTSTITOAALDACSFT ~ We Insist That Our Values Are A Precious Legacy From – Ancient Ancestors – Yet – The Only Thing That Allows Us To Say This Is That Our Ancestors Are Long Dead And Cannot Speak For Themselves

~ W-S-I-T-A-P-FMQTCD-W-AMPFMIIOA ~ War – Spreads – Ideas – Technologies – And – People – Far More Quickly Than Commerce Does – War – Also Makes People Far More Interested In One Another

~ ACEITBCFFACI-A-HNHALTSE-NW-CC-A-TD ~ A Common Enemy Is The Best Catalyst For Forging A Common Identity – And – Humankind Now Has At Least Three Such Enemies – Nuclear War – Climate Change – And – Technological Disruption

~ S-TGFCO-2008-TISIRD-WIBIV-A-MEAB ~ Since – The Global Financial Crisis Of – 2008 – The International Situation Is Rapidly Deteriorating – Warmongering Is Back In Vogue – And – Military Expenditures Are Ballooning

~ HS-I-OOTMIFIH-Y-WOTTDI ~ Human Stupidity – Is – One Of The Most Important Forces In History – Yet – We Often Tend To Discount It

~ OPRF-HS-IADO-H ~ One Potential Remedy For – Human Stupidity – Is A Dose Of – Humility

~ DT-TNOG-IV-PTDM-WSNU-TNOG-TJ-OPI-OEA-O-OPH ~ Don’t Take – The Name Of God – In Vain – Perhaps The Deeper Meaning – We Should Never Use – The Name Of God – To Justify – Our Political Interests – Our Economic Ambitions – Or – Our Personal Hatreds

~ TVSR-T-IHABISP-ILACIO ~ The Very Same Religions – That – Inspire Hate And Bigotry In Some People – Inspire Love And Compassion In Others

~ IOT-AM-YDNTBIAMOS-YJNT-D-ADAOS ~ In Order To – Act Morally – You Don’t Need To Believe In Any Myth Or Story – You Just Need To – Develop – A Deep Appreciation Of Suffering

~ QYCA-AUFBFY-T-AYCQ ~ Questions You Cannot Answer – Are Usually Far Better For You – Than – Answers You Cannot Question

~ TOP-R-E-IITSHIATOA-TIITT-HHANRTLOL-BITS-CTPO-AR-PMFH-A-SBFTWCOPAV ~ The Only Place – Rights – Exist – Is In The Stories Humans Invent And Tell One Another – Though It Isn’t True That – Humans Have A Natural Right To Life Or Liberty – Belief In This Story – Curbed The Power Of – Authoritarian Regimes – Protected Minorities From Harm – And – Safeguarded Billions From The Worst Consequences Of Poverty And Violence

~ PRATI-B-TLTI-A-EC-O-L-MF-A-S-CNF-WTBACRASC ~ People Rarely Appreciate Their Ignorance – Because – They Lock Themselves Inside – An – Echo Chamber – Of – Like-Minded Friends – And – Self-Confirming News Feeds – Where Their Beliefs Are Constantly Reinforced And Seldom Challenged

~ MOO-V-ASB-CG-RT-IR-A-WHOTTV-DT-GL ~ Most Of Our – Views – Are Shaped By – Communal Groupthink – Rather Than – Individual Rationality – And – We Hold On To These Views – Due To – Group Loyalty

~ T-GCIMH-RNJF-HAG-BEMS-F-IAI ~ The – Greatest Crimes In Modern History – Resulted Not Just From – Hatred And Greed – But Even More So – From – Ignorance And Indifference

~ IYWT-GGL-RPT-BAA-IAFBTTATT-BTT ~ If You Want To – Gauge Group Loyalty – Requiring People To – Believe An Absurdity – Is A Far Better Test Than Asking Them To – Believe The Truth

~ OOTGFOAI-TDTCOTW-A-TIAT ~ One Of The Greatest Fictions Of All Is – To Deny The Complexity Of The World – And – Think In Absolute Terms

~ F-IYWRI-PGMFI ~ First – If You Want Reliable Information – Pay Good Money For It

~ S-SSTT-TFC:CT/C/C/C ~ Schools – Should Switch To Teaching – The Four C’s: Critical Thinking / Communication / Collaboration / Creativity

~ T-BQFH-I-‘WITMOL?’-B-R-“HDWSS?’-TRTITWIS ~ The – Big Question Facing Humans – Isn’t – “What Is The Meaning Of Life?” – But – Rather – “How Do We Stop Suffering?” – The Realest Thing In The World Is Suffering