Greener Grass
/The grass is always greener wherever you water it. –Anonymous
ideas that challenge / comfort / inspire
You are who you are becoming
/You are who you are becoming. Your virtue as a human individual is not related to any static, unchanging identity; it is about the person you are turning into—who you are today, as opposed to who you were yesterday, or could be tomorrow. You truly are, in Aristotelian terms, the life story you are writing through your actions and habits; as the historian and philosopher Will Durant summarized Aristotle’s view, “We are what we repeatedly do.”
Research has consistently shown that when people see themselves as engaged in change and capable of progress, they are happier. You will have a better chance of realizing happiness if you can see yourself as a dynamic agent of your own progress.
Arthur C. Brooks writing in The Atlantic
12 Webinars this week about AI, Journalism & More
/Mon, Oct 28 - Election Fact-Checking Tools and Best Practices
What: We’ll explore ways to fight back against misinformation and disinformation during election coverage. We’ll use tools such as Google Fact-Check Explorer to track fact-checked images and stories. We’ll use reverse image search, Google Pinpoint and other Google tools to check election claims. We’ll break down doctored video and audio with FramebyFrame and Deepfake-o-meter. We’ll also look at the innovative Rolliapp.com to track disinformation spreaders on social channels.
Who: Mike Reilley has been a lecturer in data and digital journalism at the University of Illinois Chicago and is a digital tools trainer in the Google News Initiative training program.
When: 1:30 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: RTDNA/Google News Initiative
Tue, Oct 29 - Documenting War Through Photography with Ron Haviv
What: Insights into capturing images that serve both as historical records and tools for justice. This session will focus on how journalists can use photography to investigate war crimes, shining a light on how images can be critical pieces of evidence in the search for truth.
Who: Award-winning photojournalist Ron Haviv. From conflict zones to courtrooms, Haviv’s work has been instrumental in documenting atrocities and ensuring accountability.
When: 9 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Global Investigative Journalism Network
Tue, Oct 29 - Leveraging AI Tools like ChatGPT to Accelerate Your Business Growth
What: Discover how AI tools like ChatGPT can revolutionize your business operations and drive exponential growth. Topics include: An introduction to AI and how it can be integrated into business operations; Real-world examples of how businesses use AI tools like ChatGPT to enhance productivity and customer engagement; Step-by-step guidance on how to start using AI tools in your business with minimal cost and effort; Future Trends: Insights into the future of AI and how businesses can stay ahead of the curve.
Who: Jeff Bullock, CEO & Founder of PRISM AI Consultants.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Small Business Development Center, Widener University
Tue, Oct 29 - Funding Quality Journalism Isn’t Just Good for Democracy—It’s Good for Business
What: The critical role of supporting quality journalism, particularly with the nation approaching a major election in November. Amid growing misinformation, advertisers can play a key part in protecting democracy by investing in trusted news environments. The session will feature findings from a joint Teads and Lumen study.
Who: Jesse Waldele, Wall Street Journal; Jana Meron, Washington Post; Alexis Williams; Rick Corteville, Lenovo; Mike Dupree, Teads; John Trotter, Teads; Kate Chunka, MMA.
When: 12:30 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Teads, Marketing Management Association
Tue, Oct 29 - Navigating Disinformation
What: The critical role of AI in shaping this election cycle, unpacking the complexities of disinformation and its implications for journalism.
Who: Jiore Craig Resident Senior Fellow at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, focuses on Digital Integrity.
When: 5 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: National Association of Hispanic Journalists
Wed, Oct 30 - The Digital Media Sweet Spot
What: Designed for sales leaders, you'll learn how digital products work together to get your clients the best results.
Who: Shannon Kinney, Dream Local Digital
When: 11 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Local Media Association
Wed, Oct 30 - Electoral Frontiers': Democracy's Challenge to Rising Authoritarianism
What: Around the world, authoritarianism is seeing a resurgence, challenging democratic norms and institutions. New regimes exploit democratic processes to gain power, then systematically erode civil liberties, minority rights, and checks on their authority. Even countries with long democratic histories are grappling with the danger of authoritarian political movements that threaten to undermine long-standing democratic traditions and values. Join the Pulitzer Center to discuss the rise of authoritarianism and threats to democracy.
Who: Ana Luiza Albuquerque is a Brazilian journalist and a staff reporter at Folha de S.Paulo, where she covers politics and human rights; Simon Ostrovsky is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and a PBS NewsHour special correspondent who has covered the Middle East, Asia, and the countries of the former Soviet Union extensively throughout his career.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: The Pulitzer Center
Wed, Oct 30 - Webinar Examines How AI Lawsuits Could Affect Copyrighted Content
What: A panel of experts who’ll discuss the lawsuits and AI’s impact on copyright law and protections for writers.
Who: Regan Smith, senior vice president and general counsel at the News/Media Alliance, and a recognized expert in intellectual property law and policy; Umair Kazi, director of policy and advocacy at the Authors Guild, a professional organization of over 15,000 writers; Maggie Harrison Dupré, an award-winning journalist and senior staff writer for Futurism, where she covers AI and its intersections with media, information and the internet.
When: 1:30 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: American Society of Journalists & Authors
Wed, Oct 30 - Content That Converts: Strategies for Impactful Newsletters
What: In this session, learn how to create engaging newsletters that not only captivate your audience but also boost your revenue and support your goals. Whether you’re an experienced newsletter creator or just starting out, this webinar will offer actionable insights and practical strategies to enhance your newsletter’s effectiveness.
Who: David Arkin, CEO of David Arkin Consulting
When: 2 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Indiegraf
Wed, Oct 30 - Making the call: How the AP calls election results
What: This webinar will dig into questions about how the Associated Press conducts their election counting, how the count and certification process works, and how reporters should use and convey that information to the public. Attendees will gain a clear understanding of the elections process, helping to build trust amid widespread election misinformation.
Who: Katie Bernard, Politics Reporter at The Philadelphia Inquirer; Sally Buzbee (moderator), Visiting Nieman Fellow at Harvard University and former executive editor of The Washington Post and The Associated Press; Tia Mitchell, Washington Correspondent at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; David Scott, Vice President and Head of News Strategy at The Associated Press; Robert Yoon, Elections and Democracy Reporter at The Associated Press
When: 2 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard
Wed, Oct 30 - Retirement Planning for Freelance Journalists
What: Regardless of age , freelance journalists need to have a strong financial plan and retirement options in mind before they are needed. Find out how to build a more-secure future for yourself, your family and your freelance business in this practical session about planning in increments, income stream and tax diversification, the value of a rainy-day fund, adjusting savings for inflation, and more.
Who: Financial services professionals Bennie Currie and Celeste Garrett
When: 7 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Society of Professional Journalists
Fri, Nov 1 - Case Study: Enhancing Fact-Checking with AI at Der Spiegel
What: The Spiegel Group, one of Germany’s most influential media companies, built out an AI tool to support their fact-checking process. Their experimental AI fact-checking system aims to automate routine verification tasks, potentially improving efficiency and accuracy while maintaining journalistic integrity and leveraging human expertise. Join us for a live session to learn how they built it, what they’ve learned and what comes next, and to ask your questions about how the tool came together.
Who: Spiegel Group representatives
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Online News Association
Matchless
/To run yourself down hinders you doing what you can. In effect, when you belittle yourself, you are belittling God. He made you who you are – with your unique talents and lacks. To compare yourself with others is not good. Remember, you are God’s unique original! What an honor and privilege it is to be designed by the Almighty God! He know the end from the beginning. He never makes a mistake. He created you an individual – none other like you – for a purpose.
Ella May Miller
Grace
/Grace must find expression in life, otherwise it is not grace. –Karl Barth
Hot New Job: AI Librarian
/The AI revolution is creating demand for hot new job: AI librarian. “The growing demand for AI librarians “highlights how the evolution of technology is creating roles that merge traditional skills like information management with modern demands in data-driven environments. Companies need experts who can curate and translate the data into actionable insights.” -Digiday
I’m uncomfortable with Ideas that are Different than Mine
/Insecurity causes us to have a low tolerance for differing ideas or opinions because they seem to be a threat to our authority or validity. We sense that differentness will require us to step away from our comfort zones, potentially exposing our weaknesses.
Les Carter, Imperative People: Those Who Must Be in Control
16 Recent Articles about AI & Robotics
/Future of farming? Carbon Robotics raises $70M for AI robots that blast weeds with lasers – Geek Wire
The Battle Over Robots at U.S. Ports Is On – Wall Street Journal
Microsoft is using AI-powered robots to help dismantle and destroy hard drives used in its data centers – Tech Radar
This AI humanoid robot helped assemble BMWs at US factory – Ars Technica
A.I. Begins Ushering In an Age of Killer Robots – New York Times
We Need to Control AI Agents Now Automated bots are about to be everywhere, with potentially devastating consequences. – The Atlantic
Is robotics about to have its own ChatGPT moment? – MIT Tech Review
An open-source vision-language-action model for robotics called OpenVLA has been released. – Venture Beat
Ray Kurzweil is (still, somehow) excited about humans merging with machines – The Washington Post
One-third of U.S. military could be robotic says former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff – Axios
Forget drones, this street-smart robot could be future of local deliveries – Fox News
Sotheby's to auction its first artwork made by a humanoid robot – CBS News
MIT engineers enabled robots to self-correct after missteps and carry on with their chores. – MIT Tech Review
In America’s Factories, Even the Robots Are Getting Less Work – Wall Street Journal
The US Army is testing killer robot dogs with AI-powered rifles in the Middle East – Futuris
AI and robots take center stage at ‘world’s largest tech event’ - CNN
AI Definitions: Large Language Models
/Large Language Models (LLMs) - AI trained on billions of language uses, images and other data. It can predict the next word or pixel in a pattern based on the user’s request. ChatGPT and Google Bard are LLMs.
The kinds of text LLMs can parse out include grammar and language structure, word meaning and context (ex: The word green may mean a color when it is closely related to a word like “paint,” “art,” or “grass”), proper names (Microsoft, Bill Clinton, Shakira, Cincinnati), and emotions (indications of frustration, infatuation, positive or negative feelings, or types of humor).
More AI definitions here
Project Clean Machine
/Adobe’s “Project Clean Machine” is an editing tool that “automatically removes annoying distractions in images and videos, like camera flashes and people walking into frames. For example, if a background firework causes a few seconds of the shot to be overexposed, Clean Machine will ensure the color and lighting are still consistent throughout the video when the flash itself is removed.”
More at The Verge
You are what you learn
/If all you know is how to be a gang member, that's what you'll be, at least until you learn something else. If you become a marine, you'll learn to control fear. If you go to law school, you'll see the world as a competition. If you study engineering, you'll start to see the world as a complicated machine that needs tweaking.
I'm fascinated by the way a person changes at a fundamental level as he or she merges with a particular field of knowledge. People who study economics come out the other side thinking a different way from people who study nursing. And learning becomes a fairly permanent part of a person even as the cells in the body come and go and the circumstances of life change.
You can easily nitpick my definition of self by arguing that you are actually many things, including your DNA, your body, your mind, you environment and more. By that view, you're more of a soup than a single ingredient. I'll grant you the validity of that view. But I'll argue that the most powerful point of view is that you are what you learn.
It's easy to feel trapped in your own life. Circumstances can sometimes feel as if they form a jail around you. But there's almost nothing you can't learn your way out of. If you don't like who you are, you have the option of learning until you become someone else. Life is like a jail with an unlocked, heavy door. You're free the minute you realize the door will open if you simply lean into it.
Suppose you don't like your social life. You can learn how to be the sort of person that attracts better friends. Don't like your body? You can learn how to eat right and exercise until you have a new one. You can even learn how to dress better and speak in more interesting ways.
I credit my late mother for my view of learning. She raised me to believe I could become whatever I bothered to learn. No single idea has served me better.
Scott Adams, Dilbert.com
20 Recent Articles about AI & Healthcare
/Zoom will now use an AI-powered medical notetaker for telehealth visits – Fast Company
New JAMA channel highlights AI’s role in medicine - Washington Post
How Generative AI Is Transforming Medical Education – Harvard Medicine
AI in Medicine: Are Large Language Models Ready for the Exam Room? – Medscape
New JAMA channel highlights AI’s role in medicine – Washington Post
Why Surgeons Are Wearing The Apple Vision Pro In Operating Rooms - TIME
Cancer diagnostics' rapid evolution thanks to AI – Axios
Microsoft announces new AI tools to help ease workload for doctors and nurses - CNBC
As AI-powered health care expands, experts warn of biases – Semafor
How AI could monitor brain health and find dementia sooner – Washington Post
10 Uses Cases of Predictive Analytics in Healthcare - Appinventiv
New AI Tool Rivals Human Experts In Cancer Diagnosis And Prognosis – Science Blog
The AI revolution in health care - Washington Post
Enhancing fairness in AI-enabled medical systems with the attribute neutral framework – Nature
Generative AI-assisted Peer Review in Medical Publications: Opportunities Or Trap - JMIR Publications
Would you trust AI to scan your genitals for STIs? – the 19th
That Message From Your Doctor? It May Have Been Drafted by A.I. – New York Times
When AI looked at biology, the result was astounding - Washington Post
How AI can help — and hurt — when people fundraise for urgent medical needs – Marquette
Google’s AI-backed healthcare search tool now available for general use – Health Care Dive
Using AI for Orchestrating Tasks
/Anthropic is rolling out a new experimental feature that controls a computer for you "by looking at a screen, moving a cursor, clicking buttons, and typing text." A video introduction.
The custard pie
/God always has another custard pie up his sleeve. -Lynn Redgrave in "Georgy Girl"
Immediate Living
/Consider the difference between the person who has been toiling in the hot sun and is desperately thirsty and the wine connoisseur who wants to sample a new pinot noir from California. Both have a desire to drink something liquid, but the resemblance ends there. There desire of the first person is rooted in the raw structure of the body, which needs and craves water. No reflection or education is needed to have such a desire. In order to appreciate the difference between a pinot noir and a cabernet sauvignon, However, it may be necessary to have a cultivated taste, with an imaginative grasp of the vocabulary used to describe the subtle “notes” of the wines. The person who simply wants to get drunk every night as well as the person who prides himself on his refined and elegant taste in wine… are focused solely on the satisfaction of the desires the person happens to have and are thus in one sense “immediate.”
A person may know a great deal about ethical theory without having much in the way of ethical character. It is possible, then, for a person to be well-developed intellectually but existentially not developed at all, and therefore still immediate.
C. Steven Evans, Kierkegaard: An Introduction
18 Articles about the Business of Running an AI Company
/OpenAI Inks Deal With Hearst, Marking Another Major Media Partnership - Hollywood Reporter
Three Mile Island owner seeks taxpayer backing for Microsoft AI deal – Washington Post
Nvidia and VAST pitch new AI method for companies to access their data – Semafor
Turning OpenAI Into a Real Business Is Tearing It Apart – Wall Street Journal
Why Is OpenAI Trying to Raise So Much Money? – New York Times
New OpenAI update brings advanced voice features to any app - Semafor
OpenAI to Become For-Profit Company - Wall Street Journal
Amazon releases a video generator — but only for ads – Tech Crunch
For Now, There’s Only One Good Way to Power AI – The Atlantic
OpenAI closes in on largest VC round of all time – Axios
Google Paid $2.7 Billion to Bring Back an AI Genius Who Quit in Frustration - Wall Street Journal
Microsoft’s Hypocrisy on AI – The Atlantic
New bidding war for AI's biggest brains – Axios
Three Mile Island’s Nuclear Plant to Reopen, Help Power Microsoft’s AI Centers - Wall Street Journal
Nvidia earnings show AI boom is still on, though cracks have formed - The Washington Post
The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2024 – TIME
Light-Based Chips Could Help Slake AI’s Ever-Growing Thirst for Energy – Wired
We need clarity about the deals between AI companies and news publishers. Here’s why – Reuters
AI Definitions: Constitutional AI
/Constitutional AI is similar to reinforcement learning but rather than using human feedback, the researcher presents a set of principles (or “constitution”) and asks the model to revise its prompt answers to comply with these principles.
More AI definitions here
The Best Moments
/Contrary to what we usually believe.. the best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times — although such experiences can also be enjoyable — the best moments usually occur when a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile. Struggling to overcome challenges, and then overcoming them, are what people find to be the most enjoyable times in their lives. People typically feel strong, alert, in effortless control, unselfconscious, and at the peak of their abilities. Find rewards in the events of each moment . . . to enjoy and find meaning in the ongoing stream of experience, in the process of living itself.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
The Good & Bad of Meta Glasses
/Blind woman tells how she is helped by Meta glasses. Meanwhile, Harvard students use Meta’s smart glasses to dox people in real time.
10 Webinars this Week about Journalism, AI, Social Media & More
/Mon, Oct 21 - Introduction to Reporting on AI
What: We will dissect what makes a good AI accountability story, from quick turnaround stories to more ambitious investigations, and dig deeper into a few examples. Held in English and Arabic.
Who: Gabriel Geiger, an Amsterdam-based investigative journalist specializing in surveillance and algorithmic accountability reporting.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Pulitzer Center and the Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism
Tue, Oct 22 - AI & Copyright
What: The issues of copyright when using artificial intelligence (AI).
Who: Cheryl Coyle from Central Piedmont Community College
When: 10 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: NC Library Assoc.
Tue, Oct 22 - Using AI Effectively in PowerPoint
What: We'll explore simple, effective ways to use AI within PowerPoint and beyond, all to boost your presentation game.
Who: Geetesh Bajaj Microsoft, PowerPoint MVP (Most Valuable Professional). Owner, Indezine.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Training Magazine Network
Wed, Oct 23 - Navigating Artificial Intelligence: Perplexity.ai, Claude 3, and More
What: Discover a range of AI tools like Perplexity.ai and Claude 3, and learn how to choose the right ones to address your specific needs and challenges.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Small Business Development Center, Widener University
Wed, Oct 23 - What’s New With News/Academic Partnerships in Public Media
What: We’ll share our challenges and successes in producing high-quality student journalism.
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: University of Vermont
Wed, Oct 23 - Student Photojournalism Workshop
What: Learn to use imagery to expose hidden truths about their own communities and advocate for change.
Who: Nitashia Johnson, a multimedia artist and educator.
When: 5 pm, Pacific
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Pulitzer Center and the Las Fotos Project
Wed, Oct 23 - 10 things to do to ensure your search traffic grows
What: We’ll look at the technical and content-focused tactics that will ensure you’re winning the local SEO game.
Who: David Arkin, CEO of David Arkin Consulting
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Local Media Association
Wed, Oct 23 - Master Your Social Media Message: A Take Away Framework for Consistent Content Creation
What: Learn a new approach to social media marketing that gets straight to the heart of your audience and takes the pressure off posting! Each participant receives a fill-in-the-blank Content Creation Workbook to apply to your specific business, which makes showing up on social media consistently your new normal. Take the guesswork out of promoting your business online.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Small Business Development Center, Widener University
Thu, Oct 24 - Teaching Media Literacy with Social Media News
What: In this webinar, Roy will introduce us to media evaluation techniques he learned at CIA and show us how anyone—not just CIA analysts—can build their skills at evaluating the accuracy, credibility, logic, and argumentation of posts on social media. He will argue that these skills are critical for us to engage in civic discourse and build a stronger democracy.
Who: Roy Whitehurst, a former CIA analyst and instructor who spent 30+ years evaluating written information, photos, videos, and other media collected by the CIA and then taught media literacy skills to new CIA analysts. He is the author of the new book, Teaching Media Literacy with Social Media News: Practical Techniques for Middle and High School Classrooms.
When: 4 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Media Education Lab
Fri, Oct 25 - Learn how 8 journalists using AI are transforming their work Oct 25
What: Presentations of real-world applications of AI that are redefining the future of journalism.
Who: Nikita Roy, program lead, host of the Newsroom Robots podcast, and ICFJ Knight Fellow; Dustin Block – Former Audience Development Lead at Graham Media Group; Caiwei Chen– Freelance Journalist; David Cohn – Senior Director of Research & Development at Advance Local; Selymar Colón – Managing Director of Platea Media at Red Ventures Puerto Rico; Rodney Gibbs – Head of Audience & Product at the National Trust for Local News; Monsur Hussain – Head of Innovation at the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development; Ludwig Siegele – Senior Editor of AI Initiatives at The Economist; Clare Spencer – AI Delivery Manager at Newsquest Media Group
When: 10 am, Central
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: The AI Journalism Lab at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY.