I’m really curious about the definitions of ‘complex’ and ‘complicated’ in this article. Is this standard usage in some field or is it just this author? The definitions make a lot of sense, and they match up with a concept that has been percolating in the back of my mind for a while.
It seems that the key to society, for lack of a better term, is agency. Just like the author says the key to success in a complex system is to maximize agentic potential, the key to any regulation of technology is to maximize a user's agency. In practice, this means giving them lifelines to escape the algorithmically defined echo chamber (made possible by the limited interaction options in point 3 and the asymmetry in point 4).
But isn't that also a parallel to much of the current discussion of systemic racism? There's an illusion of choice, and the ability for an individual to pursue the best choice for themselves is limited by a heavy dose of power asymmetry.
It just seems like a lot of things happening right now boil down to a single key word.
These points are similar to what is discussed in the documentary The Social Dilemma. Though I don’t think I necessarily equate or parallel it to racism in as much as perhaps we all need to realize we too easily trust in what seems benign. We give away so much of our information on a daily basis—myself included. .
perhaps this is the kind of essay where you grab a fresh cup of coffee and settle in...
Agreed! Definitely recommend a cup of joe for this one.
Weak affinity environments reward and punish behaviours very differently from strong community environments.
Important classification was made in this article in describing how social media is creating an environment that cultivates relationships with weak affinities... Whereas compared to our traditional way of conducting our social lives with a basis of strong communities. It is no wonder there is such a strong polarity with our politics, as we can so easily hide/block those with opposite views. There is no chance to understand the context of why that person holds those particular beliefs, and all there is leftover is just an 'ugly' idea because it is one counter from yours.. especially as a good amount of us are working from home, there is that lack of community that was once found as a subpar replacement for a community in a traditional sense. Back to our Filter bubbles we go!
We need to get our heads around the fact that this kind of relationship,a relationship between humans and AI, is simply novel in our experience and that we cannot rely on any of our instincts, habits, traditions or
laws to effectively navigate this new kind of relationship.
Such a critical quote to understand, with their being a vast asymmetry between users of social media and the AI which operates their news feed. Every little trace of data we leave on social media makes their AI bigger, better, faster and stronger... as they are continually recombining novel data points to maximize your screen time. How do we ever stand a chance against these platforms?
I’m really curious about the definitions of ‘complex’ and ‘complicated’ in this article. Is this standard usage in some field or is it just this author? The definitions make a lot of sense, and they match up with a concept that has been percolating in the back of my mind for a while.
It seems that the key to society, for lack of a better term, is agency. Just like the author says the key to success in a complex system is to maximize agentic potential, the key to any regulation of technology is to maximize a user's agency. In practice, this means giving them lifelines to escape the algorithmically defined echo chamber (made possible by the limited interaction options in point 3 and the asymmetry in point 4).
But isn't that also a parallel to much of the current discussion of systemic racism? There's an illusion of choice, and the ability for an individual to pursue the best choice for themselves is limited by a heavy dose of power asymmetry.
It just seems like a lot of things happening right now boil down to a single key word.
These points are similar to what is discussed in the documentary The Social Dilemma. Though I don’t think I necessarily equate or parallel it to racism in as much as perhaps we all need to realize we too easily trust in what seems benign. We give away so much of our information on a daily basis—myself included. .
Your comments remind men’s f The Social Dilemma aa shown on Netflix.
Agreed! Definitely recommend a cup of joe for this one.
Important classification was made in this article in describing how social media is creating an environment that cultivates relationships with weak affinities... Whereas compared to our traditional way of conducting our social lives with a basis of strong communities. It is no wonder there is such a strong polarity with our politics, as we can so easily hide/block those with opposite views. There is no chance to understand the context of why that person holds those particular beliefs, and all there is leftover is just an 'ugly' idea because it is one counter from yours.. especially as a good amount of us are working from home, there is that lack of community that was once found as a subpar replacement for a community in a traditional sense. Back to our Filter bubbles we go!
Such a critical quote to understand, with their being a vast asymmetry between users of social media and the AI which operates their news feed. Every little trace of data we leave on social media makes their AI bigger, better, faster and stronger... as they are continually recombining novel data points to maximize your screen time. How do we ever stand a chance against these platforms?
It is simple. Stop using them!