Ideas that challenge / comfort / inspire
Stephen Goforth
A recent survey by Wiley found that while the majority of researchers believe AI skills will be critical within two years, more than 60 percent said lack of guidelines and training keep them from using it in their work. -Inside Higher Ed
Researchers in the EU found:
When humans got help from an AI, there were more ideas produced with less work, but the quality wasn’t better.
AI memes did better than human-only collaborative creations though the top-performing memes were human-created
The researchers concluded: “These findings highlight the complexities of human-AI collaboration in creative tasks. While AI can boost productivity and create content that appeals to a broad audience, human creativity remains crucial for content that connects on a deeper level.”
Imagine yourself as reaching into your mind and one by one removing your worries. A small child possesses an imaginative skill superior to that of adults. A child responds to the game of kissing away a hurt or throwing away a fear. This simple process works for the child because in his mind he believes that that is actually the end of it. The dramatic act is a fact for him and so it proves to be the end of the matter. Visualize your fears being drained out of your mind and the visualization will in due course be actualized.
Imagineation is a source of fear, but imagination may also be the cure of fear. “Imagineering” is the use of mental images to build factual results, and it is an astonishingly effective procedure. However, it is not enough to empty the mind, for the mind will not long remain empty. It must be occupied by something. It cannot continue in a stat of vacuum. Therefore, upon emptying the mind, practice refilling it. Fill it with thought of faith, hope, courage, expectancy.
A half-dozen times each day crowd your mind with such thoughts as those until the mind is overflowing with them. In due course these thoughts of faith will crowd out worry. Day by day, as you fill your mind with faith, there will ultimately be no room left for fear.
Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Thinking
Studies show that most organizations are immature when it comes to AI. By that, I mean that throughout the ranks—from the top executives through the rank and file—there is little knowledge of, and experience with, AI and its capabilities, and a reluctance to embrace data-assisted decision-making. All of this will mean any AI strategy will be misguided and inexecutable. If you are the leadership team and you aren’t familiar with AI, how are you going to build a strategy for AI? You can’t. -Wall Street Journal
Love is generally confused with dependence. Those of us who have grown in true love know that we can love only in proportion to our capacity for independence. -Fred (Mister) Rogers (born March 20, 1928)
A Houston pastor is making the evolving technology an integral part of his ministry – Houston Chronicle
Power of Babel: Real-Time AI Translation May Be Coming to Church Near You - Julie Roys Blog
When the Word Is Not Just Flesh: Reporting on A.I. in Religion – New York Times
AI Jesus' avatar tests man's faith in machines and the divine – Associated Press
What AI knows and doesn’t know about Islam – WIRED
Religion goes digital with AI-powered faith assistants - DW
Silicon Valley’s Obsession With AI Looks a Lot Like Religion – The Reader
At the Intersection of A.I. and Spirituality - New York Times
Explore the World’s First 3D Replica of St. Peter’s Basilica, Made with AI – Open Culture
Austin church holds AI-generated service, uses ChatGPT – KXAN
How much should AI influence preaching prep? – The Baptist Paper
Notre Dame receives grant to support development of faith-based frameworks for AI ethics – Notre Dame
Citing ‘Shadow of Evil,’ Vatican Warns About the Risks of A.I. – New York Times
The implementation of AI surveillance tools has surged since the COVID-19 pandemic. A recent investigation revealed that reporters from The Seattle Times and Associated Press inadvertently accessed nearly 3,500 sensitive student documents due to inadequate security measures surrounding the district's surveillance technology. These documents included personal writings about depression, bullying, and even LGBTQ+ struggles — information that should have remained confidential. -Read more at Mic
Think of the person (who) loses a job or a girlfriend and then finds himself in despair. The real cause of the despair is not the man’s loss of the job or the girlfriend. What the loss of the job or girlfriend really reveal is that the person was in despair all along, that his identity was built on something too fragile to be the basis of selfhood. When this fragile basis for identity is shattered, the self’s underlying emptiness was revealed.
C. Stephen Evans, Kierkegaard: An Introduction
Convolutional neural networks (CNNs or ConvNet) – These deep learning artificial neural networks, often used in computer vision for object recognition, are trained on thousands of images—and even then, they often fail when they encounter the same objects under new lighting conditions or from a different angle. CNNs were first introduced in 1989 by NYU professor Yann LeCun and have been used with autonomous vehicles and security camera systems.
More AI definitions here.
Agentic AI has “profound” issues with security and privacy, Signal President says – Tech Radar
Why AI needs a kill switch – just in case – Information Age
AI Surveillance Is Being Installed In Schools To Keep Kids Safe. But That’s Not All It’s Doing - MIC
Schools use AI to monitor kids, hoping to prevent violence. Our investigation found security risks – OC register
How to embrace AI while protecting personal information and data – NBC News
Bloomberg The DeepSeek AI Revolution Has a Security Problem – Bloomberg
AI, huge hacks leave consumers facing a perfect storm of privacy perils – Washington Post
AI Expert: More Must Be Done to Protect Data Privacy in the AI Age – Inside AI News
AI Mistakes Are Very Different Than Human Mistakes – Spectrum
How generative AI security helps mitigate risks in enterprise environments – Silicon Angle
Malware's AI time bomb - Axios
Unpacking the Role of AI in Physical Security – EdTech Magazine
A.I. chatbots becoming popular but worry privacy advocates – NBC News
Search Thought LeadersAI’s Data Dilemma: Privacy, Regulation, and the Future of Ethical AI – Unite AI
Less than half (45%) of employees think their company's latest AI rollouts have been successful versus 75% of the C-suite. -Axios
Using AI to foster self-directed learning – Times Higher Ed
More Teachers Say They’re Using AI in Their Lessons. Here’s How – Ed Week
I Used to Teach Students. Now I Catch ChatGPT Cheats – The Walrus
There’s a Good Chance Your Kid Uses AI to Cheat – Wall Street Journal
In the age of AI, colleges need to rethink how students learn – Washington Post
AI detectors are poor western blot classifiers: a study of accuracy and predictive values – PeerJ
AI: Cheating Matters, but Redrawing Assessment ‘Matters Most’ – Inside Higher Ed
Stanford AI Teaching Guides – Stanford
Here’s How Teachers Are Using AI to Save Time – Ed Week
Integrate AI as a peer reviewer in writing classrooms - KJZZ
How AI is reshaping teachers’ jobs – Ed Week
Arizona’s getting an online charter school taught entirely by AI – Tech Crunch
OpenAI Unveils New A.I. That Can ‘Reason’ Through Math and Science Problems – New York Times
Arizona charter school to be taught by AI, not teachers - LinkedIn
ChatGPT outperforms undergrads in intro-level courses, falls short later – Arstechnica
How to identify AI-generated text: 7 ways to tell if content was made by a bot – Mashable
OpenAI releases a teacher’s guide to ChatGPT, but some educators are skeptical – Tech Crunch
Cheating Has Become Normal – Chronicle of Higher Ed
Employers Say Students Need AI Skills. What If Students Don’t Want Them? – Inside Higher Ed
AI-powered tutor, teaching assistant tested as a way to help educators and students – CBS
The Course Is About Literature. Its Textbook Was Generated by AI. – Chronicle of Higher Ed
California college professors have mixed views on AI in the classroom – Ed Source
Instead of policing student use of AI, California teachers need to reinvent homework – Cal Matters
AI-detection software isn’t the solution to classroom cheating — assessment has to shift – The Conversation
I need to fill up my emptiness by feeling superior to you, pretending to be someone I am not.
It appears there’s no need to fear AI becoming sentient and replacing us humans. We’ll phase ourselves out long before the robots ever become self-aware. -Jim Nielsen
I choose how to live a life I didn’t choose. -Andrew Boyd
What: Attendees will learn how to diversify revenue streams, approach funders while safeguarding editorial independence, and adapt to the evolving funding landscape. The panel brings together three top experts with deep experience in media fundraising, business strategy, and philanthropic support for journalism, ready to share their knowledge and real-world strategies.
Who: Pradeep Gairola is vice president and business head at The Hindu, one of India’s leading newspapers; Bridget Gallagher provides fundraising strategy, implementation assistance, and counsel to US and international clients working in media, information access, and civic participation; Willem Lenders is the program manager at Limelight Foundation and co-chair of the Journalism Funders Forum; The moderator is Francisca Skoknic, an accomplished investigative journalist from Chile.
When: 9 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Global Investigative Journalism Network
Who: Zachary Piotti, Coordinator & Digital Marketing Consultant at Widener Small Business Development Center.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: The Small Business Development Center Widener University
What: Discover how AI-driven consumer intelligence can help brands and agencies drive meaningful engagement and sustainable growth by leveraging predictive consumer intelligence for enhanced acquisition with leaders from Resonate. You’ll get actionable strategies to: How to use real-time intent signals to spot and act on consumer interest as it happens; Predict churn and best customer modeling to retain customers longer and identify your next best buyers; How to gain first-touch insights to tailor the customer experience from the start with smart website personalization.
Who: Dean de la Pena Vice President, Data Strategy, and SaaS Platform, Grace Hall Product Manager, Data Products Strategy, Resonate.
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Resonate
What: The key do’s, don’ts, and pitfalls to watch for when including science in your news reporting. Among the topics covered: Knowing whether and how science can enhance your story; Different kinds of studies and what each can—and cannot—reveal; Practical tips for identifying credible scientist-sources and interviewing them; and How to get the essentials from scientific reports, studies, and press releases.
Who: Freelance science reporter Elena Renken and Ph.D. neuroscientist Dr. Tori Espensen
When: 2 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: SciLine
What: Join us to discuss the marketing trends that’ll shape your nonprofit’s future and grow your impact, including: Storytelling to impact your nonprofit; Using influencer marketing to increase fundraising; Creating digital experiences that create awareness; Building automation into your marketing and outreach efforts; Taking advantage of latest approaches to search engine optimization; How to use artificial intelligence (AI) to engage.
Who: Kiersten Hill, the driving force behind Firespring’s nonprofit solutions.
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: FireSpring
What: This session will help you move beyond the AI hype and into hands-on implementation. Discover how Google's AI tools—like Notebook LM—can streamline your workflow, enhance learning experiences, and empower your team with credible, well-structured AI outputs. You'll leave with concrete steps and resources to confidently incorporate AI into your learning programs.
Who: Nikki Le Head of Impact Evaluation, Assessment, and Research, Google.
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: ELB Learning
What: Learn how to uncover serious educator misconduct inside often insular academic institutions, including finding sources, obtaining documents, earning trust, interviewing trauma survivors, unlocking key stakeholders and holding educators and administrators accountable.
Who: Matt Drange, a reporter based out of Business Insider's San Francisco bureau. He pieced together, "The predators’ playground: Unraveling 40 years of sexual misconduct at a single California high school."
When: 7 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Student Press Law Center
What: The evolving landscape of government transparency and the fundamental role that information access plays in maintaining an accountable democracy. The discussion will address key topics such as the legal framework behind freedom of information, the obstacles faced by journalists, librarians, researchers, and citizens in securing public records, and the implications of government secrecy on public trust.
Who: Dr. David Cuillier from the Brechner Center for Freedom of Information; Dr. Frank LoMonte, a legal expert; Dr. Kenneth Evans from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Education Committee of the Government Documents Round Table
What: The self-publishing history of zines includes a long tradition of resistance through storytelling and art. While the explosive growth of generative AI in our society has been embraced by many, those interested in media literacy may have doubts about seemingly endless AI boosterism. In this session, we'll discuss making zines as an accessible way of providing opportunities for everyone to share their thoughts on the impact that generative AI will have on their professional and personal lives. Attendees will learn more about the radical possibilities of zines and create their own minizine exploring their hopes and concerns for generative AI.
Who: Violet Fox is a Cataloging & Metadata Librarian at Northwestern University’s Galter Health Sciences Library. She is the creator of the Cataloging Lab, a wiki designed to encourage collaboration in library metadata.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Media Education Lab
What: This session is designed for grassroots organizations looking to submit state public records requests to uncover critical information and hold government officials accountable. We will cover drafting effective records requests, navigating state-specific laws, engaging with agencies, and overcoming common challenges. Whether you're seeking budget documents, email communications, or policy records, we will break it down for you.
Who: Alissa Lopez, Strategic Partnerships Director at American Oversight; Elizabeth Haddix Senior Counsel at American Oversight; Julia Waddles Researcher at American Oversight.
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: American Oversight
What: After a quick review of prompt-writing fundamentals, we’ll work on prompts that can do specific designs in MidJourney, DALL-E and the LLMs, including designing a no-code website, and how to double-check that code for malware and other mistakes (there are some good free websites for this). We’ll also work more with Perplexity.ai prompts, which we only touched on in earlier sessions.
Who: Mike Reilley Senior Lecturer, University of Illinois-Chicago.
When: 2 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free for ONA members, $25 for nonmembers
Sponsor: Online News Association
What: How compelling visuals can transform climate solutions into engaging stories, the role of diverse storytellers and subjects in illuminating community-led solutions, and practical insights for capturing solutions.
Who: Photojournalists Damaso Reyes and Justin Cook; Moderated by Project Drawdown’s Drew Arrieta.
When: 2 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Project Drawdown, Solutions Journalism Network
What: We will dive into the essentials of generative AI, address key AI concerns, and demonstrate how nonprofits can benefit from using Microsoft’s AI assistant, Copilot, to achieve their goals.
Who: Joshua Peskay, RoundTable Technology, 3CPO; Kim Snyder, RoundTable Technology, VP of Data Strategy
When: 3:30 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Tech Soup, Microsoft
What: News-academic programs of every size are finding success covering local sports beyond campus. In this discussion, we will hear about what’s working in community sports coverage and how it can strengthen university-led reporting programs.
Who: John Affleck, Knight Chair in Journalism at Penn State; Michael Bruce, department chair of Journalism and Creative Media at the University of Alabama, and Molly Yanity, Director of Sports, Media and Communication at the University of Rhode Island.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: University of Vermont
What: Learn how to combat accusations and build trust by getting on the record about where you get your money, how it influences your coverage and why you rely on community support. Join us as we walk you through best practices of how you can get on the record about your funding. We’ll show examples of how other newsrooms are doing this, and give you sample disclosures you can copy to use in your own reporting.
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Trusting News
What: Help for reporters to make sense of the quickly evolving landscape for higher education students, staff and communities. Reporters will have the opportunity to share ideas, exchange tips and collaborate.
Who: Megan Henry, reporter, Ohio Capital Journal; Bianca Quilantan, higher education reporter, Politico.
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free to EWA members
Sponsor: Education Writers Association
What: How what the Trump administration is doing affects journalists covering Long Island and the region. for Long Island media.
Who: PCLI Board Member Bill Bleyer will moderate, a panel of speakers, including: Tom Brune who has covered Washington for Newsday for 25 years, Harold Holzer has been the director of the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College, John C. Zaher, founder of the Public Relations and Marketing Group.
When: 7 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: The Press Club of Long Island
CS Lewis wrote, “A desire (or emotion) is turned not to itself but to its object. Not only that, but it owes all its character to its object. It is the object which makes the desire harsh or sweet, coarse or choice, ‘high’ or ‘low.’ It is the object that makes the desire itself desirable or hateful.”
In other words, if you want to love your wife then concentrate, not on love, but on her. Likewise, if you wish more faith in God, do not concentrate on faith. Focus on God.
Stephen Goforth
We need to start focusing on AX or “agent experience.” Too many companies are focusing on adding shallow AI features all over their products or building yet another AI agent. The real breakthrough will be thinking about how your customers’ favorite agents can help them derive more value from your product. -Jim Nielsen
Sibling rivalry can be a year-round tradition for some families. Researchers at the University of Missouri followed nearly 150 pairs of siblings for a year and found their conflict fell into two overall categories:
1. Conflicts about shared resources and responsibilities that focused on equality and fairness, like whose turn it was to empty the dishwasher or, use the computer or ride in the front seat of the car. These siblings were more likely to become depressed.
2. Meanwhile, those who argued over privacy and personal space, such as borrowing clothes without asking or entering a room without permission, were more likely to be anxious and have low self-esteem. The most vulnerable for this twist were younger siblings.
The researchers say how these preteens and teens reacted to the conflict had to do with what they believed was at stake. Details about this study are in the journal Child Development.
Stephen Goforth
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