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Archives for March 2019

High Quality Forgery?

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I tend to be skeptical about conspiracy theories and wild projections about what “might happen”.  I am also one who likes to sees more benefit from technology than harm. With a technology background and propensity to keep abreast of topics like “block chain” and “big data” I feel able to sort through a lot of the alarming headlines.

Imitation writing

We are reaching a point, though, where there are legitimate reasons to raise enough alarm about the ability to control technology in a number of areas.  Fortunately, many people in the industry have enough concern to manage some of the risks, at least in the short term.  One firm has created such a powerful word generator that is almost impossible to distinguish from a real person. They have decided to not make it widely available because of fear of how it might be used in the wrong hands. (We already know how less sophisticated tools have used social media to disrupt governance around the world.) The developers are proposing a requirement that computer generated messages be labeled “not human”.

Imitation video

It’s now possible to create talking videos of people who are no longer alive, or to deliver messages that are fake, in the form of very believable videos.  A Ted Talk by one of the developers of the technology indicates they are also working on ways to identify the fake videos.  Unfortunately,  making that ability widespread is an even bigger challenge.

Most people realize that a photo can be photo-shopped to create a fake picture.  The ability to fake videos is still a surprise to many people. The technology is related to the mobile app SnapChat that adds adornments to a person’s face. The graphic effects of action movies today will hopefully help people realize that video can be altered.

There are realistic things that can be done to harness new technologies and manage the risks. We are now reaching a point where some constraints and guidelines are needed. The European Union has made some meaningful steps that we should seriously consider.

The WALL-E Movie

Disney produced a movie in 2008 about a world where computers had tricked humans into an easy life where they thought they were in control, but were really being controlled by the computers. Humans were being coddled in space. Wall-e was a robot on earth cleaning up the trash that humans had left behind.

He becomes more human and ends up saving the humans to return to earth. Neither the problem nor the solution in the movie are realistic, but it does give food for thought.

 

Bound to Repeat

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Aren’t you tired of getting the same old feedback? Or if you’ve been stunned by feedback you’ve received, how do you keep it from showing up again? Unless you understand your blind spots you are bound to repeat them.

Executive Presence Tip by Carol Keers

Millennials More Open to Therapy

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The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) claims “Millenials Are the Therapy Generation“.  They are more likely to go for treatment and more public about having a therapist. Attitudes have come a long way about emotional and mental health.

As a teenager, I was not successful in trying to get my family into counseling. It was another thirty years before I went to counseling myself, following a divorce. It was one of the best things I have done for my emotional life. My peers, at the time, would look at me with a certain amount of fear at the thought of doing therapy. I’m glad to hear that the stigma has been lowered for the millennials.

As a sign of the times, therapy is now available via phone apps, text chat, phone call, or video, in addition to the office visit or groups. It probably makes sense. My communications with coaching clients have similarly migrated to technology-supported communication.

Want to Learn

Millennials are much more committed to learning and growing than earlier generations. Learning about themselves and how to better cope makes sense. Celebrities are also more open about therapy and issues like depression.  There has also been a positive impact from social media where therapy is often discussed in positive terms.

There has been a five-fold increase of therapy in colleges today compared to ten years ago. Over five years, Blue Cross has reported about 50% increase in that age group for those seeking help for depression.

The WSJ also identified a multidimensional perfectionism tendency, as well. As a result, they tend to want to learn more, even when they are pretty good already.

Context

It would not be hard to imagine that the increased tension in society is impacting college students as well. They will be dealing with the results of climate change and national debt well after the older generation is gone. Many people who are new to the workforce did not have the training and acclimation that comes from having part-time jobs during high school and college. The demonstration of a commitment to personal improvement is very encouraging for the future of our society.