Originally shared by Art Markman

Unregulated and perversely motivated, social media has become a problem. Article includes some proposals to mitigate this.

Originally shared by Singularity Hub

It’s Time to Make Social Media More Responsible https://suhub.co/2C53ZYp

Originally shared by Judah Richardson

The total short-run impact of automation on low-wage employment may be economically small even when technological substitution is taking place.

I found this thought-provoking. Particularly since I’d just read a post on how YouTube is a hostile environment for women with STEM shows, and blocked a commenter who was demonstrating why. In retrospect, maybe I should have reported him as well.

Originally shared by Michael “Draco” R

This brings us to the only thing I know for sure in all this: often, the online abusers win because the game is set up for them to win the moment they decide to play.

…

But ultimately, if we care about abuse, we cannot care most about whether we have comforted, converted, or even fed them.

We have to care more about the people they hurt.

Teaching a machine to debate involves breaking down how humans debate. It’s complex.

Originally shared by Singularity Hub

How Do You Win An Argument? IBM’s New AI Has a Formula https://suhub.co/2MTl1cK

“How do we, collectively, allocate wealth?” is one question at the heart of this article. The others are also pretty interesting.

Originally shared by Yonatan Zunger

I’ve heard a lot of discussion about Universal Basic Income and Job Guarantees of late. Some of it seems like a good idea, but I’ve also seen some very thoughtful critiques (from both the Left and the Right) which have convinced me that neither is quite what we’re looking for.

I spent some of a lazy Sunday evening thinking about this some more, where these ideas succeed and fail, and what some of the building blocks of a better solution might look like. Here’s where I am right now — and I should warn you that far from being a perfect answer, these are preliminary thoughts, still uncertain and subject to much revision as we continue to discuss.

The most common result of internal conflict “ending” seems to be that the people who had been fighting it switch over to being violent criminals, since that’s what they know. (As I understand it, this is what has happened in Ireland with the remnants of the IRA and the Protestant militias; they’re now criminal gangs, though arguably they always were.)

When violence has impacted the whole of society, it’s very difficult to move on from it.

Notably missing from this analysis is South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission. I know a little about its existence, but nothing about its long-term effects; any South Africans want to comment? Masha du Toit?

Originally shared by Yonatan Zunger

How do you reintegrate people who have participated in mass violence into society? We don’t often think about this, but our past successes, and failures, to do so have defined our world profoundly.

I wrote this as a follow-up to a side comment I made in a tweet thread this morning about ICE’s child seizure policy. (https://twitter.com/yonatanzunger/status/1007296192378597382) I decided to dive more deeply into it, because it’s something most people don’t know much about the history of, and it’s important.

What happens when you make a public good free to use? What benefits does that realize?

Originally shared by Kam-Yung Soh

Radical move. But not exactly no cost to citizens. As explained in the article, “To ride Tallinn’s network of trams, buses and trains for free, you must be registered as a resident, which makes the municipality profit €1,000 from your income tax every year. All you need to do then is getting a €2 green card and carrying your ID on public transport” “Tallinn, known for its digital government and successful tech startups, is often referred to as Europe’s innovation capital. Now celebrating five years of free public transport for all citizens, the government is planning to make Estonia the first free public transport nation. Allan Alaküla, Head of Tallinn European Union Office, shares some valuable insights for other cities.

Five years ago, citizens of Tallinn were asked in a referendum if free public transport should be realized. Why should citizens be involved in such political decisions?

“A decision for a long-term project should not only be taken by the current elected council, but it should be locked politically by asking for support from the public. Although a local referendum is not legally binding, the mandate from the popular vote is stronger than just from the council.”

[…]

Who is profiting the most from free buses, trams and trains in Tallinn?

“A good thing is, of course, that it mostly appeals to people with lower to medium incomes. But free public transport also stimulates the mobility of higher-income groups. They are simply going out more often for entertainment, to restaurants, bars and cinemas. Therefore they consume local goods and services and are likely to spend more money, more often. In the end this makes local businesses thrive. It breathes new life into the city.””

I’m sure that in such a complicated set of laws, there are things that should not be there, but I applaud the general intent: to protect us from manipulation and exploitation of our data.

Originally shared by Singularity Hub

Will Europe’s Looming Tech Rules Prove to Be a Template for the World? https://suhub.co/2wknNUR