Disclaimer: Dear reader, you will most likely disagree somewhere on the below - yet, if we meet, I hope we shall have a very elucidating, fruitful, non-violent conversation about those disagreements with great insights and fresh angles for both of us! You have been "warned..." ## From Augmented to Artificial Intelligence We should resolve the marketing use of the acronym AI [e.g., in "GenAI"] to **Augmented** or **Assisted** Intelligence (as opposed to _Artificial_ Intelligence). For one, it seems more benign, but mainly because I believe we are ~~not~~ [edit as of the 2020s: only] a single step closer to understanding the recursive nature of self-awareness and intent than any number of decades ago. In that sense, I am a disciple of [Yann LeCun's](http://yann.lecun.com/) teachings and agree that current-day [2023+] auto-regressive language models have only constant and very limited reasoning capacity, suffer exponentially from their errors, and don't learn *from* the world, only *about* it, and mostly only through text. Second, building machines that can help us think and act more efficiently is well within our reach, there is no doubt about that [and even more so as of the 2020s]. That said, I am curious to see [the Singularity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Singularity_Is_Near) happen, as I believe a more refined intelligence than our own is an evolutionary "sine qua non." Of course there is no small chance that an intelligence modeled after the human psyche would immediately proceed to eradicate us. ## Implement the Human Rights The **Universal Declaration of Human Rights** has been humanity's most significant achievement so far—now we only need to observe it or at least keep reducing our suffering. I am a proud supporter of [Human Rights Watch](https://www.hrw.org/) (maybe the world's most important news outlet): The world-wide prevalence and acceptance of [torture](https://www.hrw.org/topic/torture) and [slavery](https://www.hrw.org/topic/refugees-and-migrants/exploitation-forced-labor-trafficking) is revolting, and to be clear, both are endemic and very active even in my "Western" society. Therefore, I consider them the top two symptoms humanity should strive to eradicate, and [HRW's agenda](https://www.hrw.org/about/about-us) can be equated to achieving that goal. In particular, the right to proper education and being taught critical thinking is something the world still needs to improve upon. Our schools need to teach people what matters in a way that works instead of filling the heads of our youngsters with the names of pharaohs and torturing kids by having them sit still for hours in a row. We need to imbue our kids with creativity and rationality. People need to understand how the monetary and political system works instead of still believing in the Gold Standard. We should teach youngsters how to develop emotional intelligence and practice nonviolent coexistence. All those items would be worthy teachings that matter - but are not taught at nearly (?) any schools (maybe some alternative Waldorf or truly Montessori schools come close, not sure). ## Prevent Social Cooling The side effects of not teaching the next generation how to think and act independently are further amplified by social networks with a [dopamine-driven, addictive user experience](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5826267/) and their ubiquitous, graphical messaging systems. Our lack of an accessible, intellectual, pragmatic, and creative education for everybody, coupled with the unprecedented increase in connectivity, has led to the rise of a "behavior change industry", and has been described as [Social Cooling](https://www.socialcooling.com/). The ad-driven nature of the "social industry" [manipulates entire peoples](https://www.theguardian.com/news/series/cambridge-analytica-files) on topics as far apart as the "anti-vax" movement, unscientific homeopathy, and all kinds of extremist left- & right-wing FUD. This causal chain leads to our splintered political opinions (which are likely not even truly our own!) and societies. Yet, as with everything, this connectivity can also be very positive, and we need to learn to yield the connective powers properly so as not to be overwhelmed by adverse side effects. Put differently, it is not the idea of a social network itself that is a problem. The faster and free dissemination of information and increased communication are good things. Rather, the ad- and engagement-driven business models need to change, as they provide nefarious political utility and lead to poor outcomes for persons unable to self-regulate the use of such networks. That will happen when humanity eventually moves on from a post-scarcity society driven by increasing gross domestic product to [steady-state economy](https://steadystate.org/) with an abundance mindset that values quality of life first, instead. In this context, I am a supporter of the [European Digital Rights](https://edri.org/) (EDRi) movement, as they are an excellent example movement for preventing the progression of this often overlooked danger. ## Practice Intellectual Buccaneering Intellectual buccaneering could be considered an extreme version of what one of my mentors calls [coherence busting](https://blog.jeffreyfredrick.com/2016/04/08/coherence-busting-explained/). Continuing down the train of thought from Social Cooling, I am a vivid defender of the **Right to Privacy** and an advocate of all kinds of free/open software. While it hopefully isn't necessary to explain the [dangers of censorship](https://www.indexoncensorship.org/about-free-of-expression/) and [authoritarianism](https://freedomhouse.org/issues/countering-authoritarianism) to anyone but the censors and oppressors. However, going maybe a step further than most, I suggest we should consider getting rid of copyright laws and the patent system altogether: Our modern copyright laws were [historically](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_copyright_law) created by the Roman Catholic Church together with English, French, and German monarchs. During the Age of Enlightenment, copyright laws were explicitly designed to prohibit the spread of knowledge and censor information and they effectively continue to do so to date. An example of that censoring was the [Stationers’ Company](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worshipful_Company_of_Stationers_and_Newspaper_Makers) enacted by royal charter of the crown of England. It’s mission was to regulate and censor the creation of books that the crown or the church considered too enlightened when the printing press arrived in the UK in 1557. Copied from Wikipedia: “Stationers were legally empowered to seize offending books that violated the standards of content set down by the Church and state; its officers could bring offenders before ecclesiastical authorities. Thus the Stationers played an important role in the culture of England as it evolved through the intensely turbulent decades of the Protestant Reformation and toward the English Civil War.” Patents, on the other hand, [arguably](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_patents) only serve patent trolls and large multinationals instead of protecting individuals (i.e., inventors). These artificial monopolies on pharmaceuticals, software, and other cutting edge technology created by the patent system are degrading livelihoods, innovation and societal evolution: For example, patents on human genes are [limiting](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BRCA1#Patents.2C_enforcement.2C_litigation.2C_and_controversy) our ability to prevent and cure cancer. Great organizations I admire and follow in this respect are [WikiLeaks](https://wikileaks.org/), [Project Tor](https://www.torproject.org/download/), and the [International Consortium of Investigative Journalists](https://www.icij.org/) (ICIJ, maybe what I'd consider the second-most important news outlet). ## Limit Climate Change A final pet peeve of mine is that I believe humanity will have to do much better on preventing **Climate Change** through global warming: As a scientist myself, I feel that climate researchers couldn't be ringing the alarm bells any louder, yet our political leaders (and many of their supporters) utterly fail to listen to them. It is a bit telling that a [young woman with Asperger\'s](https://mobile.twitter.com/GretaThunberg) has to halt her education to in turn [educate humanity](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAJsdgTPJpU) on the [expected impacts](https://academic.oup.com/reep/article/12/1/4/4804315) of climate change. Put graphically, our [delay in reducing global warming](https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/syr/) is going to a very high-interest credit card of [accruing economic debt: $16M per hour](https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/10/climate-loss-and-damage-cost-16-million-per-hour/). If we wait to get hit by unstable and extreme weather, it will by all likelihood have become technologically [impossible to return the ecosystem](https://www.ipcc.ch/2021/08/09/ar6-wg1-20210809-pr/) to the sweet spot it is in today. Unlike the other areas I care about (above), climate change is on a trajectory where the prognosis of not acting seems irresponsible at least, and cataclysmic at a global scale at worst. Therefore, any amount of climate change that we can avoid will pay off for many future generations to come, even if it is "only" a few meters less of sea level rise or a degree less of temperature variance. On the upside, severe climate change might be exactly the catalyst humanity needs to enable a change of our collective beliefs, mindset and socio-economic model. ## [Go See](Genchi%20Genbutsu.md) The Future If this sounds reasonably gloomy so far, the true insight from the above is that we have a very clear picture of how we could live in a much better world. And we have far better tools for fixing our problems than any society before us, with technologies that can also be used to build a much safer, more pleasant, and more equal world. We already have organizations working towards such a [post-scarcity society](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10523159/), for example, the [Doughnut Economoics Action Lab](https://doughnuteconomics.org) or the [Center for the Advancement of the Steady-State Economy](https://steadystate.org/). As a scientist and technologist, I believe [humanity already possesses all the know-how to build a perfect place for everyone](https://www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/from-uneconomic-growth-to-a-steady-state-economy-9781783479955.html), a world where every human being can live a more fulfilled and meaningful life in freedom with less suffering. This view is very close to [negative utilitarianism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negative_utilitarianism), as I certainly agree with the probably Buddhistic view that [reducing suffering](https://reducing-suffering.org/) is tied to [overcoming the biases and distortions in our mind](https://feelinggood.com/2017/03/23/is-happiness-a-distortion/). Therefore, the seemingly impossible can be achieved if we provide our kids with a more honest and compassionate education, replace competition with collaboration, encourage the free flow of information, increase our emotional intelligence, and reduce resource waste. Proper education develops our offspring into critical thinkers. Replacing the competitive mindset with one that encourages collaboration and wellbeing will allow us live more fulfilling lives: Lives that are not driven by the Sisyphean effort of fulfilling unmet needs but rather by a craving to maximize contentment. Practicing transparency and ensuring the free flow of information removes the basis of indifference and fear (namely, the unknown). Combine that with coaching our kids on the principles of compassion and altruism, and we stop feeding the breeding grounds of conflict and hate, too. And, if we take on the responsibility of using the planet\'s resources respectfully and living in harmony with its ecosystem, we can build a sustainable future. However, more than anything else, I believe that this \"fixing\" requires an open mind and heart and has to happen inside of us, individually, just as our collective mindset will become one of abundance, not scarcity. Yet, I expect that most others will strongly disagree with parts or even all of that worldview. We should accept and cherish those differences - and can learn the [Five Secrets of Effective Communication](The%20Five%20Secrets%20of%20Effective%20Communication.md) to connect with those who we believe are different but care about. The expectation is not that we will reach a post-scarcity utopia anytime soon, if ever. It is unrealistic to expect the powers that be would give up on those powers and refrain from proselytizing a scarcity mindset after millennia of attuning to it. The real goal is to take tiny steps towards this abundance utopia and keep going. This is precisely what [Kaizen](Kaizen.md) is about: The mindset and habit of improving our behaviors and processes. Taking one step at a time, we will end at a very different place than a perfect utopia or a gloomy demise - a place that will undoubtedly be more exciting than either of those binary outcomes or the current state. **The trick is not to seek happiness but to reduce suffering and to value meaning over possessions.**