Monthly Wrap - December 2023

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Wishing all a 2024 in which we THRIVE and not merely SURVIVE! Health. Life balance. Vision. And for all of us, the pleasure of using our giftedness to make a difference!

On my personal efforts - The launch of the first volume in the four-volume children's YES! series in late 2023. A seed to quietly spread. The adult Balance the Triangle efforts continue. Thinking. Research. Pondering directions. Efforts in strategy and tactics will continue throughout 2024. Details as they evolve.

Now, on to the month...

TECHNOLOGY

• Continuing development of fusion technology. The World's Biggest Nuclear Fusion Reactor Just Came Online : ScienceAlert
• The research arena of the arcane and often difficult-to-follow quantum world remains vigorous. New theory claims to unite Einstein's gravity with quantum mechanics (phys.org)
• And here - Singularities don't exist, claims black hole pioneer Roy Kerr - Big Think
• Here is a plan outline on the quantum universe. Physicists announce plan for research into Universe mysteries - Big Think
• Biology, health, disease, and AI - Mapping the micro and macro of biology with spatial omics and AI | MIT Technology Review
• One among many end-of-year predictive efforts - Preparing for the future: Exploring what artificial intelligence in 2025 will look like - TechBullion
• And lists, another end-of-year tradition. He was one of interest. - 5 brilliant books that pioneered new subgenres of literature - Big Think
• Another good list if you're interested in human behavior - Behavioral Scientist’s Notable Books of 2023 - By Antonia Violante & Evan Nesterak - Behavioral Scientist
• And yet another interesting list if you're a content creator - 15 Startups Tackling The Future of The Content Creators Economy (sociable.co)
• And here, thoughts on how that economy is evolving - How the creator economy is evolving with AI | Jim Louderback | VentureBeat
• Not really surprising, except I was surprised they thought so - OpenAI's ChatGPT exhibits a surprisingly human-like transmission chain bias (psypost.org)
• A new evolutionary law proposal - On the roles of function and selection in evolving systems | PNAS
• And here a review of evolution and life - What was it like when life first became possible? - Big Think
• Worthy effort - All Tech Is Human is intentionally designed to tackle complex tech & society issues while moving at the speed of tech — All Tech Is Human
• Interesting map tech direction prediction - The Future Of Maps Is Immersive (forbes.com)
• Generative AI interfaces explore gen 2 options - Generative AI Workspace: Visualize, Create, Impact — Jeda.ai

US

• Friend and colleague John C. Havens eloquently and passionately covers thriving. Worth following on LinkedIn if you don't already. Here, he continues and expands focus on the areas of AI, well-being, and sustainability. From Risk to Regeneration: Prioritizing People and Planet as the Metrics for Responsible AI | LinkedIn.
• As we relate to evolving technology, we face evolving challenges. SEC Chair Warns AI "Herding" Could Drive Markets "Off an Inadvertent Cliff" (futurism.com)
• Another - Suckup software: How sycophancy threatens the future of AI (freethink.com)
• We are wired to look first for threats. Balancing that prediction and survival wiring is challenging. Cheating Fears Over Chatbots Were Overblown, New Research Suggests - The New York Times (nytimes.com)
• This was a fascinating experiment around how we, as humans, respond differently to first-person and third-person pronouns. I found myself responding differently, and I know better. Which begs the question - why insist on first-person pronouns in AI chat interfaces? Much to explore here. Fortunately, I'm not a conspiracy theorist. But there are both light and dark forces here. https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/chuckmetz_here-is-a-gpt-persona-that-is-designed-activity-7141593245783928832-yvnH
• Interesting neuroscience developments throughout the year. Here is one. Memories Help Brains Recognize New Events Worth Remembering | Quanta Magazine
• A very interesting sociological take - The Rise of the Meta City (hbr.org)

It was a busy month with real-world holidays, obligations, and joys. Behind those scenes, trends and developments, of course, continued. 2024 promises another year of rapid change and challenges to our humanity as we try to balance ourselves with exponential technology growth.

Thrive!

Chuck