tag:theconversation.com,2011:/uk/technology/articlesScience + Tech – The Conversation2024-03-28T18:54:37Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2264302024-03-28T18:54:37Z2024-03-28T18:54:37ZA rare condition makes other people’s faces look distorted. Why a new case is important<p>If you’ve seen portraits painted by <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1111/j.1468-2982.2000.00113.x">Pablo Picasso</a> or <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2014.00581/full">Francis Bacon</a>, you might not be surprised to hear that both men may have suffered from a disorder that affects how faces are perceived. </p>
<p><a href="https://prosopometamorphopsia.faceblind.org/">Prosopometamorphopsia</a> (PMO) is a condition where faces appear distorted, and sometimes even demonic. In most cases, these distortions alter how images of faces look, as well as those seen in person. This makes it difficult for sufferers to assess the accuracy of illustrations depicting what they see because the illustration itself will appear distorted. </p>
<p>However, a case described in a <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)00136-3/abstract">recent study</a> gave researchers new insight into PMO. Unlike most other cases, the 58-year-old man (referred to as VS) perceived images of faces without distortion. Unfortunately, when he saw people in person over the last 31 months, every face appeared stretched and “demonic” to him. </p>
<p>Not to be confused with <a href="https://theconversation.com/i-should-know-you-face-blindness-and-the-problem-of-identifying-others-8884">prosopagnosia</a> (poor face recognition but without visual distortions), PMO is thought to be extremely rare and people who have it perceive faces as drooping, stretched, out of position, or either smaller or larger than normal. These distortions might apply to the whole face, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0028393208004971">only one side</a>, or even be restricted to particular features like the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3540293/">nose and mouth</a>.</p>
<h2>What causes prosopometamorphopsia?</h2>
<p>In contrast with prosopagnosia, which can either be acquired (through injury, for example) or developmental (present from birth), PMO seems only to be the result of the former. A <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010945221000836">2021 study</a> by researchers in the Netherlands reviewed 81 cases of PMO. The causes included <a href="https://www.vinmec.com/en/news/health-news/brain-infarction-what-you-need-to-know/">brain infarction</a> (disrupted blood flow to part of the brain), <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK559173/#:%7E:text=type%20of%20stroke.-,Hemorrhagic%20stroke%20is%20due%20to%20bleeding%20into%20the%20brain%20by,bleeding%20into%20the%20subarachnoid%20space.">haemorrhagic stroke</a> (bleeding into the brain), surgery complications, head injury, and brain tumour. However, in 24% of cases, there appeared to be no structural abnormalities to the brain. Instead, PMO was associated with other diagnoses like epilepsy, migraine and schizophrenia.</p>
<p>Reassuringly, in the majority of cases, people with PMO appear to recover from their condition. This might be either a full or partial recovery, sometimes resulting from treatments that address the underlying cause (such as anti-epileptic drugs for epilepsy, or surgery to remove a brain tumour). However, some people seem to recover without any intervention. The time for recovery ranges from hours to years, but the typical recovery period is often days to weeks. </p>
<h2>Is face recognition affected?</h2>
<p>Despite the fact that people with PMO sometimes experience seeing profound facial distortions, their ability to recognise faces rarely seems to be affected. However, sufferers may simply be relying on other cues to help with recognition, like the person’s voice or clothes. For some people, distortions only appear after seconds or minutes of seeing someone’s face, allowing them time to identify the person first. Researchers have also tried to model how PMO-like distortions could <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010945221003440">affect face recognition</a>. They found that the distance between the viewer and face played a significant role in how accurately faces were recognised by participants.</p>
<p>A <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)00136-3/abstract">recent study</a> by researchers in New Hampshire, US, focused on the case of a man known as VS. He had a lesion in his <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/hippocampus">hippocampus</a> (a region of the brain mainly associated with memory) but no other medical issues of note.</p>
<p>Although VS saw people’s faces as stretched and with deep grooves (in his words, appearing “demonic”), facial images were unaffected for him. The researchers presented VS with in-person faces and the same faces on a computer screen. Next, the researchers used image-editing software to modify each photo so that it matched VS’s descriptions, listening to his real-time feedback. </p>
<p>It was the first time researchers could create photorealistic visualisations of these kinds of distortions, providing a depiction of how people with PMO can see those around them.</p>
<p>VS’s distortions also appeared to be <a href="https://jov.arvojournals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2792559">affected by colour</a>, so researchers investigated what happened when VS viewed faces through coloured plastic filters. They found that green filters decreased, and red filters intensified, the distortions compared with the no-filter baseline. These results showed that colour filters worn in glasses could reduce face distortions in PMO, and that colour might affect how we perceive face shape in general.</p>
<h2>What can we learn?</h2>
<p>As researchers continue to build on our knowledge of PMO, it is likely that more insights will be revealed about how the general population processes faces. Among the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0028393223000519">many questions</a> yet to be answered, some involve how and where faces are represented in the human brain. We also still have a lot to learn about the specific nature of PMO’s distortions, what they can tell us, and why they seem to resolve themselves in some cases but not others. For now, PMO is both a fascinating and disturbing condition, and one that could potentially teach us a great deal about human face perception.</p>
<p>Given that PMO is so rare and we still have so much to learn about it, please consider getting in touch with me (the <a href="https://staff.lincoln.ac.uk/rkramer">author</a> of this article) if you think you may be suffering from it. Remember that those with PMO don’t really think that the world is distorted, and instead realise that their vision is different in some way.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226430/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robin Kramer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A highly unusual new case is giving scientists insights about what causes illusions of facial distortionRobin Kramer, Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology, University of LincolnLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2268342024-03-28T18:54:32Z2024-03-28T18:54:32ZAfter the Baltimore bridge collapse, we need clear-eyed assessments of the risks to key infrastructure<p>Catastrophic collapses of major bridges are thankfully rare. Notable examples in the last couple of decades include the failure of the <a href="https://www.dot.state.mn.us/i35wbridge/collapse.html">I35-W in Minneapolis in August 2007</a>, and the collapse of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/genoa-bridge-collapse-maintaining-these-%20structures-is-a-constant-battle-against-traffic-and-decay-101627">Morandi bridge in Genoa 11 years later</a>. When such events do occur, public attention is understandably focused on the nature of the collapse, which can extend over hundreds of metres in seconds, and its underlying causes. </p>
<p>Whether because of an extreme loading event or an accident, these supposedly rare events in the life of a bridge still need to be assessed before they happen, and mitigation measures taken in accordance with all the potential consequences. This type of analysis is known as a “risk-based consequence assessment”. The cost of taking additional measures in the near term can prevent major adverse consequences further down the road.</p>
<p>With many of these structures being over 50 years old, we often hear that a bridge’s condition may have been compromised by deterioration and increased traffic loads – both in the size and frequency of vehicles. Also, older bridges were designed to standards that have been superseded by new knowledge and technology.</p>
<p>While these factors have helped convince some politicians to increase their infrastructure budgets, including through the <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-%20releases/2021/11/06/fact-sheet-the-bipartisan-infrastructure-deal/">Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal</a> in the US, the tendency has been to focus on stronger, more resilient new structures and on higher maintenance for existing structures. The latter makes it easy for politicians to show the money spent has had a positive impact, because it results in an overall reduction in the number of bridges classified as obsolete or deficient.</p>
<p>Given the enormous scale of the bridge maintenance problem – the American Road Transportation Builders Association has estimated that <a href="https://theconversation.com/disasters-like-bridge-collapses-put-%20transportation-agencies-emergency-plans-to-the-test-207779">one in three US bridges needs repair</a> – it makes sense to spread available funding widely. However, this approach can have serious shortcomings if it does not set clear priorities based on the scale of potential consequences from accidents and failures.</p>
<p>One of the two central pylons of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Scott_Key_Bridge_(Baltimore)">Francis Scott Key bridge</a> in Baltimore was rammed by a 300m-long container ship at around 1.30am on March 24, leading to progressive collapse of the bridge’s entire <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truss_bridge">truss</a> within four seconds. </p>
<p>Although the 47-year-old bridge had been <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/francis-scott-key-bridge-baltimore-condition-container-ship-what-we-know-how-collapse-happened/">found to be in a “fair” condition</a> during its most recent inspection in 2008, and was “fully up to code” according to Maryland’s governor after the collision, experts agreed that a catastrophic collapse <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/francis-scott-key-%20bridge-baltimore-condition-container-ship-what-we-know-how-collapse-happened/">was to be expected</a> given the magnitude of the ship’s impact. Maintenance workers were on the bridge at the time filling potholes, including the <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68673146">six people who died</a>.</p>
<h2>Direct and indirect consequences</h2>
<p>Bridge collapses due to vessel collisions have happened before and unfortunately will happen again. In a similar incident in 1980, <a href="https://www.structuremag.org/?p=20417">the Sunshine Skyway bridge in Tampa Bay</a>, also a steel truss structure, was hit by a barge, resulting in 35 casualties due to the collapse of over 400m (1,300ft) of its span. </p>
<p>Around the world, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials has reported 31 major bridge collapses <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marstruc.2020.102840">due to vessel collisions</a> between 1960 and 2002, resulting in 342 deaths.</p>
<p>The latest, the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, has cut off one of three transport links across the Patapsco river in the busy Baltimore port area. Given its importance as a transport hub, this will have major economic implications that could have been anticipated. </p>
<p>More than 30,000 vehicles that were using the Key Bridge daily now have to seek alternative routes. Significantly, the other two local crossings are via tunnels, which imposes limits on the type of traffic that can cross the river because the transporting of hazardous materials through tunnels is prohibited.</p>
<p>Shipping traffic into and out of the Baltimore port has been suspended until further notice. Removal of the debris will be a complex operation, and work to ensure all vessel types can navigate the river safely will take time. Further restrictions will then need to be in place when the new bridge is constructed.</p>
<p>There are already signs that supply chains around the world are being affected by the bridge collapse, especially in the car and light truck sector, and in farm and construction machinery. </p>
<p>The economic consequences of this catastrophic event will be substantial at both city and state level. Early estimates on liability insurance payouts suggest the total cost may <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/17cf3f2e-e64d-4666-b1c2-2723347c2ada">exceed US$1.5 billion (£1.2 billion)</a>. </p>
<p>Judging by what has happened after past bridge collapses, there could be negative impacts on jobs and the local economy: about 14,000 people work in the port itself, and another 140,000 are employed in related services. </p>
<p>Above all, six people lost their lives. But the human cost could have been much worse if the incident had taken place during rush hour. Had the impact occurred with a vessel carrying hazardous materials, the environmental costs could have been dramatic as well.</p>
<p>Given what we know from previous incidents about the severity of ship-bridge collisions and major bridge collapses, it was clear this bridge was of critical importance.</p>
<p>A number of mitigation options are available to bridges, including the installation of protection devices around the bridge supports (pylons) in the form of fenders or artificial islands, to deflect a ship or lessen the energy of a collision. </p>
<p>For bridges in general, there are measures that can help on the ship side too, such as requiring the use of tugboats or introducing stricter limits on speeds, depending on the type of cargo and vessel size. It is not clear, however, whether these would have made any difference in the case of the Baltimore bridge collapse.</p>
<p>Above all, by undertaking a risk-based consequence assessment every decade or so, authorities that are responsible for vital infrastructure can help visualise changing risks and prioritise their responses appropriately. In the case of river bridges, ever-increasing ship sizes, speedier turnaround times and higher cargo volumes have all increased the risks – and the costs of a catastrophic collision or collapse.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226834/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marios Chryssanthopoulos has received funding from UKRI, Network Rail, Highways Agency and the European Commission.</span></em></p>The collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge is already affecting global supply chains.Marios Chryssanthopoulos, Professor of Structural Systems, University of SurreyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2267852024-03-28T10:23:50Z2024-03-28T10:23:50ZBaltimore Key Bridge: how a domino effect brought it down in seconds<p>The <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-us-canada-68663071">collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge</a> in Baltimore on 26 March was a shocking and tragic event. Six people remain unaccounted for in the disaster, which saw the world’s third largest continuous truss bridge fall into the Patapsco river.</p>
<p>The cause was Singapore-flagged container ship, the Dali, which veered off course, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/baltimore-bridge-collapse-ship-what-caused-crash-francis-scott-key-dali/">colliding with one of the bridge’s supports</a>, or piers. As the 300 metre-long vessel slammed into the structure, it triggered what’s known as a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123023002177">progressive collapse</a>, where a domino effect leads to the entire structure failing. The bridge, built more than 45 years ago, crashed down into the frigid water at 1:28am eastern standard time (5:28 UTC).</p>
<p>But how could one ship bring down this 366m (1,200 ft) structure within seconds of the collision? </p>
<p>A progressive collapse involves the failure of a single element, like the pier, and results in the sequential failure of other connected components. These can include the metallic truss and the bridge’s deck. This type of collapse can have catastrophic consequences in terms of the risk to human life, as well as to the economy of an area and the local environment. </p>
<p>Although it’s impossible to account for every scenario, bridges can be built with inherent features that enhance their resistance to progressive collapse. Typically, bridges can withstand some degree of damage to a pier or part of the superstructure. The bridge deck can even remain safe for vehicles depending on the circumstances.</p>
<p>However, in the case of the Baltimore bridge collapse, the metallic truss was designed <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2024/03/26/francis-scott-key-bridge-history-baltimore/">as one continuous system</a>. The space between each support, or pier, is known as the truss span. The collapse of one of the piers effectively doubled the truss span to the next support. This dramatic increase in span exerted a much larger force on the remaining truss structure. </p>
<p>While continuous truss systems are favoured because they can redistribute weight in the event of damage, in this case, the remaining truss elements couldn’t withstand all that extra force after the pier failed. </p>
<p>This resulted in the complete collapse of the truss section above the damaged
pier. The collapse didn’t stop there, however. Due to the interconnected nature of the trusses, the remaining section was initially pulled upwards. The sudden release of this tension created a powerful dynamic effect, ultimately causing the entire bridge to collapse.</p>
<h2>Rare event</h2>
<p>It’s certainly not unknown for ships to strike bridge supports. On May 9, 1980, <a href="https://www.fox13news.com/news/sunshine-skyway-bridge-francis-scott-key-baltimore-tampa-st-pete-florida-pinellas-hillsborough-collapse-boat-freighter">a strikingly similar event</a> took place when a freighter <a href="https://eu.jacksonville.com/picture-gallery/news/state/2019/05/08/photos-sunshine-skyway-bridge-disaster/809810007/">collided with a support pier of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge</a> in Tampa Bay, Florida. As a result, the bridge failed over a similar distance as the Baltimore collapse.</p>
<p>But while bridge designers are acutely aware of the potential for collisions, these are – at the same time – rather rare events. The impact forces on a support pier are also highly variable. A higher speed or heavier ship will significantly increase the force on the pier. And higher vessel traffic in the water boosts the probability of a collision.</p>
<p>In addition, the current method used in the US for calculating the collision force of a ship is based on <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.1201/b15621-9/vessel-collision-design-bridges-michael-knott-zolan-prucz">research conducted between 1967 and 1976</a>. However, a different method would have been used for the Key Bridge, which opened in 1977. Needless to say, vessels as heavy and fast as the Dali were not a common sight in 1977. </p>
<p>In fact, the collision force under some scenarios is likely to be <a href="https://www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/baltimores-366m-span-steel-truss-bridge-collapses-after-being-struck-by-container-ship-26-03-2024/">well beyond the capacity of bridge piers to withstand</a>. This is why bridges have other systems of protection, such as dolphins – a group of pilings situated in the water near a pier, which serve to deflect a vessel or take the energy out of a collision.</p>
<p>There isn’t any information about the system that was installed when the Key Bridge opened in 1977. And some observers have questioned whether the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/26/us/baltimore-key-bridge-structure-support-pier.html">protective barriers around the Baltimore bridge were sufficient</a>.</p>
<p>Regular structural assessments and retrofits are crucial to ensure a bridge meets current safety standards. Concrete and steel, the primary materials in this bridge, are susceptible to deterioration from factors like corrosion and other environmental conditions. </p>
<p>In general, insufficient maintenance or inadequate retrofits can be contributing factors when bridges collapse. However, it must be said there is no evidence this was a factor in this case – and the Key Bridge <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20240326081517/https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/26/us/baltimore-key-bridge-collapse-tuesday/index.html">was said to be “up to code”</a> when the disaster occurred. </p>
<p>There will be more detail to come on this dramatic and tragic event. And the findings will surely inform future approaches to the design and protection of bridges across busy waterways.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226785/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Mohamed Shaheen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We’ll need to learn the lessons from this disaster.Dr Mohamed Shaheen, Lecturer in Structural Engineering, Loughborough UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2265212024-03-27T17:16:39Z2024-03-27T17:16:39ZFinland is the happiest country in the world – but our research suggests the rankings are wealth and status-oriented<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584492/original/file-20240326-24-oun0n8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C10%2C7040%2C4668&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/handsome-unshaven-young-darkskinned-male-laughing-640011838">Cast Of Thousands/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Finland steadily ranks as the happiest country in the world. In March 2024 the country was, for the seventh year in a row, ranked as the happiness champion. The ranking is based on one simple question, using a ladder metaphor, that is asked to people across <a href="https://www.gallup.com/178667/gallup-world-poll-work.aspx">nearly every country</a> in the world. But my team’s <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-52939-y/metrics">new experimental study</a> suggests that the ladder metaphor makes people think about power and wealth. </p>
<p>Since 2005, the Gallup analytics organisation has worked to measure happiness across the entire planet. The mission is particularly important as more and more governments say they are prioritising the wellbeing of their people. </p>
<p>For example, all OECD countries now measure <a href="https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/4e180f51-en.pdf?expires=1711448500&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=BAB0C9F199AFC965F0D16D60F6C3CD1B">the happiness</a> of their people <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/wellbeing/articles/ukmeasuresofnationalwellbeing/dashboard">including the UK</a>. More than a decade ago, Bhutan declared that the primary goal of their government was <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4581665">“gross national happiness”</a>, not gross domestic product. </p>
<p>The world ranking is based on one simple but powerful question, called the Cantril Ladder: </p>
<p><em>Please imagine a ladder with steps numbered from zero at the bottom to ten at the top. The top of the ladder represents the best possible life for you and the bottom of the ladder represents the worst possible life for you. On which step of the ladder would you say you personally feel you stand at this time?</em></p>
<p>As you read the question, what does the top of the ladder metaphor make you think of and what does it represent to you? Is it love, money, your family – or something else? </p>
<p>I recently led a group of researchers from Sweden, the US and the UK. We investigated these questions in a study on 1,600 UK adults, and published our results in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-52939-y/metrics">Nature Scientific Reports</a>. We carried out an experiment with five independent groups.</p>
<p>One group was asked what the top of the ladder represented to them. Another group was asked the exact same question, but this time the ladder metaphor, including the picture of the ladder, was removed and the term “ladder” replaced with “scale”. </p>
<p>Our study found that the ladder metaphor made people think more of power and wealth and less about family, friends and mental health. When the ladder metaphor was removed, people still thought of money, but more in terms of “financial security” rather than terms like “wealth”, “rich” or “upper class”. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Man punching the air as cash notes float in the air." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584494/original/file-20240326-30-9rhaoq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584494/original/file-20240326-30-9rhaoq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584494/original/file-20240326-30-9rhaoq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584494/original/file-20240326-30-9rhaoq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584494/original/file-20240326-30-9rhaoq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584494/original/file-20240326-30-9rhaoq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584494/original/file-20240326-30-9rhaoq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Money isn’t always the same thing as happiness.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/portrait-very-happy-young-man-rain-148789697">Minerva Studio/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In a third group, people interpreted a question where the ladder metaphor as well as the top v bottom description in the question were removed. In a fourth and fifth independent group, in addition to the above changes, the phrase “best possible life” was substituted with “happiest possible life” and “most harmonious life,” respectively. </p>
<p>People in the happiness and harmony groups thought less about power and wealth and more about broader forms of wellbeing such as relationships, work-life balance and mental health, compared to the other groups.</p>
<h2>People don’t want the top of the ladder</h2>
<p><strong>My</strong> research team also asked people where they wanted to be on the scale of the different questions. Researchers often assume that people want the best possible life but, to our knowledge, no one had tested this. The results showed that in none of the groups did more than half the participants want a ten, the best possible life. The typical desire was a nine. </p>
<p>Except for the group with the ladder analogy. They typically wanted an eight. The ladder metaphor made people think more of power and wealth at the expense of relationships, mental health and work-life balance – and made people want a lower score.</p>
<p>What does this say about the happiness rankings where Finland are frequently the champions? Well, there is a risk that the ranking is based on a narrow, wealth and power-oriented form of happiness, rather than a broader definition. This does not mean that Finns are unhappy, but the type of happiness they excel at may be power and wealth-focused.</p>
<p><strong>Our</strong> study findings raises the question of what type of happiness we want to measure. A person’s idea of happiness can’t be determined by a researcher. That is why researchers must ask people about their concept of happiness. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00030/full#h4">Research has shown</a> that when people define happiness, they only mention wealth and status to a small degree. It is well established that money <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2208661120">relates to wellbeing</a> but the money effect is weaker than many other happiness factors, where good quality social relationships have the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953616300478">strongest effect</a>.</p>
<p>Recent research from <a href="https://pubsonline.informs.org/doi/full/10.1287/mnsc.2023.4766">the University of Oxford</a> shows happiness actually causes people to be more productive and the most important factor for happiness at work is belongingness. Salary, on the other hand, is believed to be the most important driver for happiness at work, but it turns out to be a much weaker driver of happiness at work <a href="https://dpuk71x9wlmkf.cloudfront.net/assets/2020/03/16144229/Indeed-Work-Happiness-in-America-2020.pdf">than belongingness</a>. This aligns with the general message from the happiness science that relationships are the most important factor for happiness.</p>
<h2>What type of happiness do we want to measure?</h2>
<p><a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0223221">Previous research</a> has shown that the Cantril Ladder reflects people’s income levels and social status to a larger degree than other <a href="https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/jep.22.2.53">wellbeing metrics</a>. The current study adds more evidence that perhaps the simple but powerful question could be supplemented with extra questions in the future, to clarify what people mean by happiness.</p>
<p>Our study was conducted solely in the UK, so of course this research should be performed in other countries too, given the global nature of this topic. However, our results indicate that we aren’t necessarily measuring happiness and wellbeing in a way that is in line with how we actually define those concepts in our lives.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226521/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>August Nilsson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Much is written about the world happiness rankings. But it seems not everyone interprets the survey question the same way.August Nilsson, PhD Candidante in Organizational Psychology, Lund UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2265582024-03-27T17:07:01Z2024-03-27T17:07:01ZThe total solar eclipse in North America could help shed light on a persistent puzzle about the Sun<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584141/original/file-20240325-24-ot473c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/totality-during-2023-australian-total-solar-2344355767">aeonWAVE / Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>A <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/types/#hds-sidebar-nav-1">total solar eclipse</a> takes place on <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2024/">April 8 across North America</a>. These events occur when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, completely blocking the Sun’s face. This plunges observers into a darkness similar to dawn or dusk.</p>
<p>During the upcoming eclipse, the path of totality, where observers experience the darkest part of the Moon’s shadow (the umbra), crosses Mexico, arcing north-east through Texas, the Midwest and briefly entering Canada before ending in Maine.</p>
<p>Total solar eclipses occur roughly <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/solar-eclipse-guide.html">every 18 months at some location on Earth</a>. The last total solar eclipse that crossed the US took place on August 21 2017. </p>
<p>An international team of scientists, led by Aberystwyth University, will be conducting experiments from <a href="https://www.fox4news.com/news/2024-eclipse-dallas-crowds-traffic">near Dallas</a>, at a location in the path of totality. The team consists of PhD students and researchers from Aberystwyth University, Nasa Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, and Caltech (California Institute of Technology) in Pasadena. </p>
<p>There is valuable science to be done during eclipses that is comparable to or better than what we can achieve via space-based missions. Our experiments may also shed light on a longstanding puzzle about the outermost part of the Sun’s atmosphere – its corona.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Eclipse shadow" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584503/original/file-20240326-18-9yqs13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584503/original/file-20240326-18-9yqs13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584503/original/file-20240326-18-9yqs13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584503/original/file-20240326-18-9yqs13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584503/original/file-20240326-18-9yqs13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584503/original/file-20240326-18-9yqs13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584503/original/file-20240326-18-9yqs13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The path of eclipse totality passes through Mexico, the US and Canada.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5186/">NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Sun’s intense light is blocked by the Moon during a total solar eclipse. This means that we can observe the <a href="https://solarscience.msfc.nasa.gov/corona.shtml">Sun’s faint corona</a> with incredible clarity, from distances very close to the Sun, out to several solar radii. One radius is the distance equivalent to half the Sun’s diameter, about 696,000km (432,000 miles).</p>
<p>Measuring the corona is extremely difficult without an eclipse. It requires a special telescope <a href="https://www.space.com/what-is-a-coronagraph.html">called a coronagraph</a> that is designed to block out direct light from the Sun. This allows fainter light from the corona to be resolved. The clarity of eclipse measurements surpasses even coronagraphs based in space.</p>
<p>We can also observe the corona on a relatively small budget, compared to, for example, spacecraft missions. A persistent puzzle about the corona is the observation <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781119815600.ch2">that it is much hotter</a> than the photosphere (the visible surface of the Sun). As we move away from a hot object, the surrounding temperature should decrease, not increase. How the corona is heated to such high temperatures is one question we will investigate.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Solar eclipse." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584507/original/file-20240326-20-xairh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584507/original/file-20240326-20-xairh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584507/original/file-20240326-20-xairh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584507/original/file-20240326-20-xairh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584507/original/file-20240326-20-xairh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584507/original/file-20240326-20-xairh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584507/original/file-20240326-20-xairh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/solar-eclipse-diagram-1146598682">Andramin / Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We have two main scientific instruments. The first of these is Cip (coronal imaging polarimeter). Cip is also the Welsh word for “glance”, or “quick look”. The instrument takes images of the Sun’s corona with a polariser. </p>
<p>The light we want to measure from the corona is highly polarised, which means it is made up of waves that vibrate in a single geometric plane. A polariser is a filter that lets light with a particular polarisation pass through it, while blocking light with other polarisations. </p>
<p>The Cip images will allow us to measure fundamental properties of the corona, such as its density. It will also shed light on phenomena such as the solar wind. This is a stream of sub-atomic particles in the form of plasma – superheated matter – flowing continuously outward from the Sun. Cip could help us identify sources in the Sun’s atmosphere for certain solar wind streams.</p>
<p>Direct measurements of the magnetic field in the Sun’s atmosphere are difficult. But the eclipse data should allow us to study its fine-scale structure and trace the field’s direction. We’ll be able to see how far magnetic structures called large “closed” magnetic loops extend from the Sun. This in turn will give us information about large-scale magnetic conditions in the corona.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Coronal loops." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584489/original/file-20240326-24-zlpsmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584489/original/file-20240326-24-zlpsmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584489/original/file-20240326-24-zlpsmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584489/original/file-20240326-24-zlpsmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584489/original/file-20240326-24-zlpsmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584489/original/file-20240326-24-zlpsmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584489/original/file-20240326-24-zlpsmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Coronal loops are found around sunspots and in active regions of the Sun.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/coronal-loops-an-active-region-of-sun/">NASA/Solar Dynamics Observatory</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The second instrument is Chils (coronal high-resolution line spectrometer). It collects high-resolution spectra, where light is separated into its component colours. Here, we are looking for a particular spectral signature of iron emitted from the corona. </p>
<p>It comprises three spectral lines, where light is emitted or absorbed in a narrow frequency range. These are each generated at a different range of temperatures (in the millions of degrees), so their relative brightness tells us about the coronal temperature in different regions. </p>
<p>Mapping the corona’s temperature informs advanced, computer-based models of its behaviour. These models must include mechanisms for how the coronal plasma is heated to such high temperatures. Such mechanisms might include the conversion of magnetic waves to thermal plasma energy, for example. If we show that some regions are hotter than others, this can be replicated in models. </p>
<p>This year’s eclipse also occurs during a time of heightened solar activity, so we could observe a <a href="https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/coronal-mass-ejections">coronal mass ejection (CME)</a>. These are huge clouds of magnetised plasma that are ejected from the Sun’s atmosphere into space. They can affect infrastructure near Earth, causing problems for vital satellites. </p>
<p>Many aspects of CMEs are poorly understood, including their early evolution near the Sun. Spectral information on CMEs will allow us to gain information on their thermodynamics, and their velocity and expansion near the Sun.</p>
<p>Our eclipse instruments have recently been proposed for a space mission called <a href="https://www.surrey.ac.uk/research-projects/feasibility-study-moon-enabled-sun-occultation-mission-mesom">Moon-enabled solar occultation mission (Mesom)</a>. The plan is to orbit the Moon to gain more frequent and extended eclipse observations. It is being planned as a UK Space Agency mission involving several countries, but led by University College London, the University of Surrey and Aberystwyth University.</p>
<p>We will also have an advanced commercial 360-degree camera to collect video of the April 8 eclipse and the observing site. The video is valuable for public outreach events, where we highlight the work we do, and helps to generate public interest in our local star, the Sun.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226558/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Huw Morgan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The eclipse will allow scientists to get rare measurements of the Sun’s atmosphere.Huw Morgan, Reader in Physical Sciences, Aberystwyth UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2262572024-03-26T17:01:56Z2024-03-26T17:01:56ZHow long before quantum computers can benefit society? That’s Google’s US$5 million question<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583117/original/file-20240320-26-rmpub2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=5%2C0%2C3828%2C2160&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/quantum-computer-black-background-3d-render-1571871052">Bartlomiej K. Wroblewski / Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Google and the XPrize Foundation have launched a competition worth US$5 million (£4 million) to develop <a href="https://blog.google/technology/research/google-gesda-and-xprize-launch-new-competition-in-quantum-applications/">real-world applications for quantum computers</a> that benefit society – by speeding up progress on one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, for example. The principles of quantum physics suggest quantum computers could perform very fast calculations on particular problems, so this competition may expand the range of applications where they have an advantage over conventional computers.</p>
<p>In our everyday lives, the way nature works can generally be described by what we call <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_physics#:%7E:text=Classical%20physical%20concepts%20are%20often,of%20quantum%20mechanics%20and%20relativity.">classical physics</a>. But nature behaves very differently at tiny quantum scales – below the size of an atom. </p>
<p>The race to harness quantum technology can be viewed as a new industrial revolution, progressing from devices that use the properties of classical physics to those utilising the <a href="https://www.energy.gov/science/doe-explainsquantum-mechanics#:%7E:text=Quantum%20mechanics%20is%20the%20field,%E2%80%9Cwave%2Dparticle%20duality.%E2%80%9D">weird and wonderful properties of quantum mechanics</a>. Scientists have spent decades trying to develop new technologies by harnessing these properties. </p>
<p>Given how often we are told that <a href="https://projects.research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/en/horizon-magazine/quantum-technologies">quantum technologies</a> will revolutionise our everyday lives, you may be surprised that we still have to search for practical applications by offering a prize. However, while there are numerous examples of success using quantum properties for enhanced precision in sensing and timing, there has been a surprising lack of progress in the development of quantum computers that outdo their classical predecessors.</p>
<p>The main bottleneck holding up this development is that the software – using <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/npjqi201523">quantum algorithms</a> –
needs to demonstrate an advantage over computers based on classical physics. This is commonly known as <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-quantum-advantage-a-quantum-computing-scientist-explains-an-approaching-milestone-marking-the-arrival-of-extremely-powerful-computers-213306">“quantum advantage”</a>.</p>
<p>A crucial way quantum computing differs from classical computing is in using a property known as <a href="https://spectrum.ieee.org/what-is-quantum-entanglement">“entanglement”</a>. Classical computing <a href="https://web.stanford.edu/class/cs101/bits-bytes.html">uses “bits”</a> to represent information. These bits consist of ones and zeros, and everything a computer does comprises strings of these ones and zeros. But quantum computing allows these bits to be in a <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/resources/cloud-computing-dictionary/what-is-a-qubit">“superposition” of ones and zeros</a>. In other words, it is as if these ones and zeros occur simultaneously in the quantum bit, or qubit.</p>
<p>It is this property which allows computational tasks to be performed all at once. Hence the belief that quantum computing can offer a significant advantage over classical computing, as it is able to perform many computing tasks at the same time. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-quantum-advantage-a-quantum-computing-scientist-explains-an-approaching-milestone-marking-the-arrival-of-extremely-powerful-computers-213306">What is quantum advantage? A quantum computing scientist explains an approaching milestone marking the arrival of extremely powerful computers</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Notable quantum algorithms</h2>
<p>While performing many tasks simultaneously should lead to a performance increase over classical computers, putting this into practice has proven more difficult than theory would suggest. There are actually only a few notable quantum algorithms which can perform their tasks better than those using classical physics.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Quantum chips - rendering" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583127/original/file-20240320-20-fnde2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583127/original/file-20240320-20-fnde2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=369&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583127/original/file-20240320-20-fnde2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=369&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583127/original/file-20240320-20-fnde2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=369&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583127/original/file-20240320-20-fnde2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583127/original/file-20240320-20-fnde2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583127/original/file-20240320-20-fnde2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/futuristic-cpu-quantum-processor-global-computer-1210158169">Yurchanka Siarhei / Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The most notable are the <a href="https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/physics/quvis/simulations_html5/sims/cryptography-bb84/Quantum_Cryptography.html">BB84 protocol</a>, developed in 1984, and <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-95973-w">Shor’s algorithm</a>, developed in 1994, both of which use entanglement to outperform classical algorithms on particular tasks. </p>
<p>The BB84 protocol is a cryptographic protocol – a system for ensuring secure, private communication between two or more parties which is considered more secure than comparable classical algorithms.</p>
<p>Shor’s algorithm uses entanglement to demonstrate how current <a href="https://www.rand.org/pubs/commentary/2023/09/when-a-quantum-computer-is-able-to-break-our-encryption.html#:%7E:text=One%20of%20the%20most%20important,secure%20internet%20traffic%20against%20interception.">classical encryption protocols can be broken</a>, because they are based on the factorisation of very large numbers. <a href="https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/365700">There is also evidence</a> that it can perform certain calculations faster than similar algorithms designed for conventional computers. </p>
<p>Despite the superiority of these two algorithms over conventional ones, few advantageous quantum algorithms have followed. However, researchers have not given up trying to develop them. Currently, there are a couple of main directions in research.</p>
<h2>Potential quantum benefits</h2>
<p>The first is to use quantum mechanics to assist in what are called <a href="https://arxiv.org/abs/2312.02279">large-scale optimisation tasks</a>. Optimisation – finding the best or most effective way to solve a particular task – is vital in everyday life, from ensuring traffic flow runs effectively, to managing operational procedures in factory pipelines, to streaming services deciding what to recommend to each user. It seems clear that quantum computers could help with these problems.</p>
<p>If we could reduce the computational time required to perform the optimisation, it could save energy, reducing the carbon footprint of the many computers currently performing these tasks around the world and the data centres supporting them.</p>
<p>Another development that could offer wide-reaching benefits is to use quantum computation to simulate systems, such as combinations of atoms, that behave according to quantum mechanics. Understanding and predicting how quantum systems work in practice could, for example, lead to better drug design and medical treatments. </p>
<p>Quantum systems could also lead to improved electronic devices. As computer chips get smaller, quantum effects take hold, potentially reducing the devices’s performance. A better fundamental understanding of quantum mechanics could help avoid this.</p>
<p>While there has been significant investment in building quantum computers, there has been less focus on ensuring they will directly benefit the public. However, that now appears to be changing.</p>
<p>Whether we will all have quantum computers in our homes within the next 20 years remains doubtful. But, given the current financial commitment to making quantum computation a practical reality, it seems that society is finally in a better position to make use of them. What precise form will this take? There’s US$5 million dollars on the line to find out.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226257/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adam Lowe does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Quantum computing has huge promise from a technical perspective, but the practical benefits are less clear.Adam Lowe, Lecturer, School of Computer Science and Digital Technologies, Aston UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1950562024-03-26T12:50:05Z2024-03-26T12:50:05ZWhy did modern humans replace the Neanderthals? The key might lie in our social structures<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502800/original/file-20230101-16-hk5jco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C16%2C2705%2C1674&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Rock art showing a hunter-gatherer ritual dance; Kondoa, Tanzania</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Longrich</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Why did humans take over the world while our closest relatives, the <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/who-were-the-neanderthals.html#:%7E:text=The%20best%2Dknown%20Neanderthals%20lived,is%20around%20130%2C000%20years%20old.">Neanderthals</a>, became extinct? It’s possible we were just smarter, but there’s surprisingly little evidence that’s true.</p>
<p>Neanderthals had <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-24290-7">big brains</a>, language and <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/sciadv.aba3831">sophisticated tools</a>. They made <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aap7778">art</a> and <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0914088107">jewellery</a>. They were smart, suggesting a curious possibility. Maybe the crucial differences weren’t at the individual level, but in our societies.</p>
<p>Two hundred and fifty thousand years ago, Europe and western Asia were <a href="https://theconversation.com/war-in-the-time-of-neanderthals-how-our-species-battled-for-supremacy-for-over-100-000-years-148205">Neanderthal lands</a>. <em>Homo sapiens</em> inhabited <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.aao6266">southern Africa</a>. Estimates vary but perhaps <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1199113">100,000 years ago</a>, modern humans migrated out of Africa. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2022466118">Forty thousand</a> years ago Neanderthals disappeared from Asia and Europe, replaced by humans. Their slow, inevitable <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0903446106">replacement</a> suggests humans had some advantage, but not what it was.</p>
<p>Anthropologists once saw Neanderthals as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/evan.21918">dull-witted brutes</a>. But recent archaeological finds show they rivalled us in intelligence. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502739/original/file-20221230-14-cx4yog.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502739/original/file-20221230-14-cx4yog.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502739/original/file-20221230-14-cx4yog.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502739/original/file-20221230-14-cx4yog.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502739/original/file-20221230-14-cx4yog.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502739/original/file-20221230-14-cx4yog.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502739/original/file-20221230-14-cx4yog.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Neanderthal hand axes, Aisne, France.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Metropolitan Museum of art</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Neanderthals <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-a-handful-of-prehistoric-geniuses-launched-humanitys-technological-revolution-171511">mastered fire before we did</a>. They were deadly hunters, taking big game like <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2011.11.019">mammoths</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/1099-1212(200009/10)10:5%3C379::AID-OA558%3E3.0.CO;2-4">woolly rhinos</a>, and small animals like <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4419-8219-3_10">rabbits and birds</a>. </p>
<p>They gathered <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2018.02.009">plants</a>, <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1016868108">seeds</a> and <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0024026">shellfish</a>. Hunting and foraging all those species demanded deep understanding of nature. </p>
<p>Neanderthals also had a sense of beauty, making beads and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/aug/02/tinted-cave-stalagmites-are-neanderthal-art-say-archaeologists">cave paintings</a>. They were spiritual people, <a href="https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2019.207">burying their dead with flowers</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2090183-neanderthals-built-mystery-underground-circles-175000-years-ago/">Stone circles</a> found inside caves may be Neanderthal shrines. Like modern hunter-gatherers, Neanderthal lives were probably steeped in superstition and magic; their skies full of gods, the caves inhabited by ancestor-spirits.</p>
<p>Then there’s the fact <em>Homo sapiens</em> and Neanderthals <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1006340">had children together</a>. We weren’t that different. But we met Neanderthals many times, over many millennia, always with the same result. They disappeared. We remained.</p>
<h2>The hunter-gatherer society</h2>
<p>It may be that the key differences were less at the individual level than at the societal level. It’s impossible to understand humans in isolation, any more than you can understand a honeybee without considering its colony. We prize our individuality, but our survival is tied to larger social groups, like a bee’s fate depends on the colony’s survival. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Cave dwellers gathered around a campfire" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501921/original/file-20221219-24-ujgcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501921/original/file-20221219-24-ujgcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501921/original/file-20221219-24-ujgcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501921/original/file-20221219-24-ujgcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501921/original/file-20221219-24-ujgcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501921/original/file-20221219-24-ujgcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501921/original/file-20221219-24-ujgcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Neanderthals lived in smaller groups.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/cave-dwellers-gathered-around-campfire-208334998">Esteban De Armas/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Modern hunter-gatherers provide our best guess at how early humans and Neanderthals lived. People like the Namibia’s <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harmless-People-Elizabeth-Marshall-Thomas/dp/067972446X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=UARD13U3IN5L&keywords=harmless+people&qid=1671374437&s=books&sprefix=harmless+people%2Cstripbooks%2C77&sr=1-1">Khoisan</a> and Tanzania’s <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hadza-Hunter-Gatherers-Tanzania-Origins-Behavior/dp/0520253426">Hadzabe</a> gather families into <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/africa/article/abs/kung-bushman-bands/A2D674BE115E1A10399BD4CE7EFA1EC9">wandering bands of ten to 60 people</a>. The bands combine into a loosely organised tribe of a thousand people or more.</p>
<p>These tribes lack hierachical structures, but they’re linked by shared language and religion, marriages, kinships and friendships. Neanderthal societies may have been similar but with one crucial difference: smaller social groups. </p>
<h2>Tight-knit tribes</h2>
<p>What points to this is evidence that Neanderthals had <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-06-genetic-diversity-neanderthals-principal-extinction.html">lower genetic diversity</a>.</p>
<p>In small populations, genes are easily lost. If one person in ten carries a gene for curly hair, then in a ten-person band, one death could remove the gene from the population. In a band of fifty, five people would carry the gene – multiple backup copies. So over time, small groups tend to lose genetic variation, ending up with fewer genes.</p>
<p>In 2022, DNA was recovered from <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05283-y">bones and teeth</a> of 11 Neanderthals found in a cave in the Altai Mountains of Siberia. Several individuals were related, including a father and a daughter – they were from a single band. And they showed low genetic diversity.</p>
<p>Because we inherit two sets of chromosomes – one from our mother, one from our father – we carry two copies of each gene. Often, we have two different versions of a gene. You might get a gene for blue eyes from your mother, and one for brown eyes from your father. </p>
<p>But the Altai Neanderthals often had one version of each gene. As the study reports, that low diversity suggests they lived in small bands – probably averaging just 20 people.</p>
<p>It’s possible Neanderthal anatomy favoured small groups. Being robust and muscular, Neanderthals were heavier than us. So each Neanderthal needed more food, meaning the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-24290-7">land could support</a> fewer Neanderthals than <em>Homo sapiens</em>. </p>
<p>And Neanderthals may have mainly <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2109315119">eaten meat</a>. Meat-eaters would get fewer calories from the land than people who ate meat and plants, again leading to smaller populations.</p>
<h2>Group size matters</h2>
<p>If humans lived in bigger groups than Neanderthals it could have given us advantages.</p>
<p>Neanderthals, strong and skilled with <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/01/neanderthal-spears-threw-pretty-well/581218/">spears</a> were likely good fighters. Lightly built humans probably countered by <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-019-0990-3#:%7E:text=The%20multiple%20findings%2C%20such%20as,is%20more%20than%2020%2C000%20years">using bows</a> to attack at range. </p>
<p>But even if Neanderthals and humans were equally dangerous in battle, if humans also had a numeric advantage they could bring more fighters and absorb more losses.</p>
<p>Big societies have other, subtler advantages. Larger bands have more brains. More brains to solve problems, remember lore about animals and plants, and techniques for crafting tools and sewing clothing. Just as big groups have higher genetic diversity, they’ll have higher diversity of ideas.</p>
<p>And more people means more connections. Network connections increase exponentially with network size, following <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metcalfe%27s_law">Metcalfe’s Law</a>. A 20-person band has 190 possible connections between members, while 60 people have 1770 possible connections. </p>
<p>Information flows through these connections: news about people and movements of animals; toolmaking techniques; and words, songs and myths. Plus the group’s behaviour becomes increasingly complex.</p>
<p>Consider ants. Individually, ants aren’t smart. But interactions between millions of ants lets colonies make elaborate nests, forage for food and kill animals many times an ant’s size. Likewise, human groups do things no one person can – design buildings and cars, write elaborate computer programmes, fight wars, run companies and countries. </p>
<p>Humans aren’t unique in having big brains (whales and elephants have these) or in having huge social groups (zebras and wildebeest form huge herds). But we’re unique in combining them. </p>
<p>To <a href="https://allpoetry.com/No-man-is-an-island">paraphrase poet John Dunne</a>, no man – and no Neanderthal – is an island. We’re all part of something larger. And throughout history, humans formed larger and larger social groups: bands, tribes, cities, nation states, international alliances. </p>
<p>It may be then that an ability to build large social structures gave <em>Homo sapiens</em> the edge, against nature, and other hominin species.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195056/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicholas R. Longrich does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Neanderthals and humans may have been equally smart and skilled, but some evidence points to humans living in larger groups.Nicholas R. Longrich, Senior Lecturer in Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences at the University of Bath, University of BathLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2262802024-03-25T18:23:58Z2024-03-25T18:23:58ZWhat we learned from teaching a course on the science of happiness<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584034/original/file-20240325-22-w4hm2x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=35%2C47%2C7899%2C5222&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/black-woman-on-road-enjoying-window-2281799399">PeopleImages.com - Yuri A/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When you deliver a university course that makes students happier, everybody wants to know what the secret is. What are your tips? What are your top ten recommendations? These are the most asked questions, as if there is some quick, surefire path to happiness.</p>
<p>The problem is that there are no life-transforming discoveries, because most of what works has already been talked about. Social connection, mindfulness, gratitude letters, acts of kindness, going for a walk in nature, sleep hygiene, limiting social media use. These are some of the 80 or so <a href="https://ggia.berkeley.edu/">psychological interventions</a> which have been shown to work to improve our wellbeing (to a lesser or greater extent).</p>
<p>But if we already know so much about what works, then why are we still fielding requests for top happiness tips?</p>
<p>The data tells us that students and young people today are increasingly unhappy, with national surveys finding wellbeing is lowest among the young <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9403847/">in the UK</a> <a href="https://www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/SAES_2021_FINAL.pdf">and the US</a> compared to other age groups.</p>
<p>It was for this reason we began teaching the science of happiness course at the University of Bristol in 2019 – to counter some worrying downward trends. During the course, we teach lessons from <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-so-serious-the-untapped-value-of-positive-psychology-61766">positive psychology</a> and create opportunities for students to put these lessons into practice. </p>
<h2>Learning the science of happiness</h2>
<p>We award credit based on engagement — an important component of not only education, but also getting the most out of life — rather than graded assessments. It would be ironic to talk about the problems of performance anxiety and student perfectionism only to then give our students a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1469787418819728?journalCode=alha">graded exam</a>. </p>
<p>Course credit without examination? That must be a breeze you might say. However, for many students, turning up on time to over 80% of lectures and tutorials, completing journal entries on a weekly basis and submitting a final group project turned out to be more of a challenge than they predicted. </p>
<p>Around 5% of students fail to meet the course demands each year, and have to complete a reassessment in the summer. Creating consistent positive habits in the face of all of life’s other demands is not a trivial request.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, the science of happiness course is extraordinarily popular. It also appears to be effective. Every year we find increases of around 10-15% on measures of students’ mental wellbeing at the end of the course, compared to a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2055102921999291">waiting-list control group</a>. </p>
<p>However, we recently published the findings from <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10734-024-01202-4">a study</a> that followed up with students one to two years after they had taken the science of happiness course, before they graduated. When we looked at the overall trends, students’ initially elevated scores of happiness had largely returned to their original levels.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Two women hold each other with happy expression on their faces" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584035/original/file-20240325-28-yk1ma4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584035/original/file-20240325-28-yk1ma4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584035/original/file-20240325-28-yk1ma4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584035/original/file-20240325-28-yk1ma4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584035/original/file-20240325-28-yk1ma4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584035/original/file-20240325-28-yk1ma4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584035/original/file-20240325-28-yk1ma4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">It’s not easy to maintain this level of happiness.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/happy-friends-holding-each-other-1038614926">Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We were not dejected, though. One of the mechanisms we teach on the course is <a href="https://www.verywellmind.com/hedonic-adaptation-4156926">hedonic adaptation</a>: we get used to both good and bad things. Since humans have a brain wired to pay extra <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1037/1089-2680.5.4.323?journalCode=rgpa">attention to problems</a>, it comes as no surprise that the initial wellbeing boost we created in the course disappeared as students returned to focusing on life’s hassles.</p>
<p>However, we observed that not all students followed this pattern. Approximately half the cohort reported that they continued to regularly practice some of the things they had learnt, such as gratitude or mindfulness, many months or years after completing the course. </p>
<p>Although the students who no longer practised the activities returned to their happiness baselines, on average, those who did keep up with at least some of the recommended activities showed no such drop. They maintained their elevated levels of wellbeing up to two years later.</p>
<p>In many ways, mental health is no different from physical health. Few people expect to see long-lasting muscle gains after one trip to the gym. For the most part, we are begrudgingly aware that there are no shortcuts if you want to remain fit and healthy. You have to stick with the program. </p>
<h2>New habits</h2>
<p>The same applies to our happiness. Unless we keep working at it, the improvements are temporary. Indeed, if we did have to focus on just one top tip it might be to learn how to harness lessons from psychology to <a href="https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits">build the better habits</a> we need for lasting change. For example, aiming for small incremental changes rather than an unsustainable overhaul of your whole life.</p>
<p>One thing we question is whether the self-care industry may be sending out the wrong message by telling people happiness is all about making yourself feel better. One of us, Bruce Hood, writes <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.co.uk/books/The-Science-of-Happiness/Bruce-Hood/9781398526372">in his new book</a>, that becoming a happier person in the long term is less to do with focusing on ourselves, and much more to do with focusing on others. </p>
<p>Self-care may bring some short term benefits, but enriching the lives of others can offer wellbeing effects that are less susceptible to adaptation over time.</p>
<p>Ultimately, whatever methods or activities we choose to improve our wellbeing, we would do well to remember that happiness is always a work in progress.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226280/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah Jelbert receives funding from the Elizabeth Blackwell Institute </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bruce Hood does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We followed up students years after they took our course to find out whether they still reported better wellbeing.Sarah Jelbert, Lecturer in Psychology, University of BristolBruce Hood, Professor of Developmental Psychology in Society, University of BristolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2253162024-03-25T18:23:57Z2024-03-25T18:23:57ZHow nature can alter our sense of time<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581900/original/file-20240314-16-9cpzvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=31%2C38%2C4233%2C2801&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/sunflowerclock-indicative-on-approach-noontime-57794410">Kisialiou Yury/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Do you ever get that feeling that there aren’t enough hours in the day? That time is somehow racing away from you, and it is impossible to fit everything in. But then, you step outside into the countryside and suddenly everything seems slower, more relaxed, like time has somehow changed.</p>
<p>It’s not just you - recent research showed nature can regulate our sense of time. </p>
<p>For many of us, the combined demands of work, home and family mean that we are always feeling like we don’t <a href="https://iaap-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/apps.12357">have enough time</a>. Time poverty has also been exacerbated by <a href="https://doi.org/10.7312/rosa14834-018">digital technologies</a>. Permanent connectivity extends working hours and can make it difficult to switch off from the demands of friends and family.</p>
<p><a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pan3.10601">Recent research</a> suggests that the antidote to our lack of time may lie in the natural world. Psychologist Richardo Correia, at the University of Turku in Finland, found that being in nature may change how we experience time and, perhaps, even give us the sense of time abundance.</p>
<p>Correia examined research which compared people’s experiences of time when they performed different types of tasks in urban and natural environments. These studies consistently showed that people report a sense of expanded time when they were in nature compared to when they were in an urban environment. </p>
<p>For example, people are more likely to perceive a walk in the <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pan3.10601#pan310601-bib-0025">countryside as longer</a> than a walk of the same length in the city. Similarly, people report <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.3664">perceiving time as passing</a> more slowly while performing tasks in natural green environments than in urban environments. Nature seems to slow and expand our sense of time. </p>
<p>It’s not just our sense of time in the moment which appears to be altered by the natural world, it’s also our sense of the past and future. Previous research shows that spending time in nature helps to shift our focus from the immediate moment towards our future needs. So rather than focusing on the stress of the demands on our time, nature helps us to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2013.2295">see the bigger picture</a>.</p>
<p>This can help us to prioritise our actions so that we meet our long-term goals rather than living in a perpetual state of “just about keeping our head above water”. </p>
<p>This is in part because spending time in nature appears to make us <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0097915">less impulsive</a>, enabling us to delay instant gratification in favour of long-term rewards.</p>
<h2>Why does nature affect our sense of time?</h2>
<p>Spending time in nature is known to have many benefits for <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598%20019%2044097%203">health and wellbeing</a>. Having access to natural spaces such as beaches, parks and woodlands is <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP1663">associated with</a> reduced anxiety and depression, improved sleep, reduced levels of obesity and cardiovascular disease, and improved wellbeing. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Man carrying large clock under his arm in park with trees" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581901/original/file-20240314-30-ytbq44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581901/original/file-20240314-30-ytbq44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581901/original/file-20240314-30-ytbq44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581901/original/file-20240314-30-ytbq44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581901/original/file-20240314-30-ytbq44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581901/original/file-20240314-30-ytbq44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581901/original/file-20240314-30-ytbq44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Nature can help expand our sense of time.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/alarm-timing-clock-schedule-punctual-time-523875211">Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Some of these benefits may explain why being in nature alters our experience of time. </p>
<p>The way we experience time <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35902608/">is shaped by</a> our internal biological state and the events going on in the world around us. As a result, emotions such as stress, anxiety and fear can distort our sense of the passage of time. </p>
<p>The relaxing effect of natural environments may counter stress and anxiety, resulting in a more stable experience of time. Indeed, the absence of access to nature during COVID-19 may help to explain why people’s sense of time became so distorted during the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02225.x">pandemic lockdowns</a>.</p>
<p>In the short term, being away from the demands of modern day life may provide the respite needed to re-prioritise life, and reduce time pressure by focusing on what actually needs to be done. In the longer term, time in nature may help to enhance our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02225.x">memory and attention capacity</a>, making us better able to deal with the demands on our time. </p>
<h2>Accessing nature</h2>
<p>Getting out into nature may sound like a simple fix, but for many people, particularly those living in urban areas, nature can be hard to access. Green infrastructure such as trees, woodlands, parks and allotments in and around towns and cities are essential to making sure the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169204607000503">benefits of time</a> in nature are accessible to everyone. </p>
<p>If spending time in nature isn’t possible for you, there are other ways that you can <a href="https://www.sciencefocus.com/magazine/new-issue-get-more-time">regain control of your time</a>. Start by closely examining how you use time throughout your week. Auditing your time can help you see where time is being wasted and to identify action to help you to free up more time in your life. </p>
<p>Alternatively, try to set yourself some boundaries in how you use time. This could be limiting when you access emails and social media, or it could be booking in time in your calendar to take a break. Taking control of your time and how you use it can help to you overcome the sense that time is running away from you.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225316/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ruth Ogden receives funding from The British Academy, The Wellcome Trust, the Economic and Social Research Council, CHANSE and Horizon 2020.
This piece was written as part of the ESRC grant project “TIMED: TIMe experience in Europe’s Digital age" (ES/X005321/1) supported by CHANSE and the British Academy project "The Times of a Just Transition" (GCPS2\100005).
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jessica Thompson is the CEO for City of Trees, a Manchester (UK) based community forestry charity and is involed in academic research to better understand the impacts of civic environmental activity through an academic lens. </span></em></p>Time pressure is bad for your health- but the answer may be right outside your door.Ruth Ogden, Professor of the Psychology of Time, Liverpool John Moores UniversityJessica Thompson, PhD candidate in Environment and wellbeing, University of SalfordLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2256022024-03-22T16:22:07Z2024-03-22T16:22:07ZMy search for the mysterious missing secretary who shaped chatbot history<p>The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Distinctive Collections archive is quiet while the blizzard blows outside. Silence seems to be accumulating with the falling snow. I am the only researcher in the archive, but there is a voice that I am straining to hear.</p>
<p>I am searching for someone – let’s call her the missing secretary. She played a crucial role in the history of computing, but she has never been named. I’m at MIT as part of my research into the history of talking machines. You might know them as “chatbots” – computer programmes and interfaces that use dialogue as the major means of interaction between human and machine. Perhaps you have talked with Alexa, Siri or ChatGPT.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/2023-in-review/the-year-ai-ate-the-internet">Despite the furore</a> around generative artificial intelligence (AI) today, talking machines have a long history. In 1950, computer pioneer Alan Turing <a href="https://academic.oup.com/mind/article/LIX/236/433/986238">proposed a test</a> of machine intelligence. The test asks whether a human could differentiate between a computer and a person via conversation. Turing’s test spurred research in AI and the nascent field of computing. We now live in that future he imagined: we talk to machines.</p>
<p>I am interested in why early computer pioneers dreamt of talking to computers, and what was at stake in that idea. What does it mean for the way we understand computer technology and human-machine interaction today? I find myself at MIT, in the middle of this blizzard, because it was the birthplace of the mother of all bots – Eliza.</p>
<h2>Eliza’s speech</h2>
<p>Eliza was a computer program developed by the mustachioed MIT professor of electrical engineering, Joseph Weizenbaum, in the 1960s. Through Eliza, he aimed to make conversation between human and computer possible.</p>
<p>Eliza took typed messages from the user, parsed them for key word triggers and used transformation rules (where the meaning of a statement can be deduced from one or more other statements) <a href="http://elizagen.org/">to produce a response</a>. In its most famous version, Eliza purported to be a psychotherapist, an expert responding to the user’s needs. “Please tell me your problem” was the opening prompt. Eliza could not only receive input in the form of natural language, it gave the <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/365153.365168">“illusion of understanding”</a>.</p>
<p>The program’s name was a nod to the protagonist of George Bernard Shaw’s play <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/3825/3825-h/3825-h.htm">Pygmalion</a> (1912) in which a Cockney flower seller is taught to speak “like a lady”. Like the Audrey Hepburn musical of 1964, this Eliza took the world by storm. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1968/06/15/archives/computer-is-being-taught-to-understand-english.html">Newspapers and magazines hailed</a> the fruition of Turing’s dream. </p>
<p><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160129154303/http:/blog.modernmechanix.com/computers-their-scope-today/1/#mmGal">Even Playboy</a> played with it. Eliza’s legacy is <a href="https://peabodyawards.com/award-profile/eliza-1964/">significant</a>. Siri and Alexa are the direct descendants of this program.</p>
<p>Accounts of Eliza tend to focus on a <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Computer_Power_and_Human_Reason.html?id=1jB8QgAACAAJ">Frankensteinian tale</a> of the inventor’s <a href="https://archive.org/stream/margaretbodenmindasmachineahistoryofcognitivesciencetwovolumesetoxforduniversitypressusa2006/Margaret%20Boden%20-%20Mind%20As%20Machine_%20A%20History%20of%20Cognitive%20Science%20Two-Volume%20Set-Oxford%20University%20Press%2C%20USA%20%282006%29_djvu.txt">rejection of his own creation</a>. Weizenbaum was horrified that users could be “tricked” by a piece of simple software. He renounced Eliza and the whole <a href="https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/6500618">“Artificial Intelligentsia”</a> in the coming decades – to the <a href="https://www.nybooks.com/articles/1983/12/08/computers-in-your-future/">chagrin</a> of his <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Machines_Who_Think.html?id=r2C1DwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=weizenbaum&f=false">colleagues</a>.</p>
<p>But I am not in the archive to hear Eliza’s voice, or Weizenbaum’s. In all these accounts of Eliza, one woman crops up again and again – our missing secretary.</p>
<h2>The missing secretary</h2>
<p>In <a href="https://cacm.acm.org/research/contextual-understanding-by-computers/">his accounts of Eliza</a>, Weizenbaum repeatedly worries about a particular user:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>My secretary watched me work on this program over a long period of time. One day she asked to be permitted to talk with the system. Of course, she knew she was talking to a machine. Yet, after I watched her type in a few sentences she turned to me and said: ‘Would you mind leaving the room, please?’</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Weizenbaum saw her response as <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Computer_Power_and_Human_Reason.html?id=1jB8QgAACAAJ">worrying evidence that</a>: “Extremely short exposures to a relatively simple computer program could induce powerful delusional thinking in quite normal people.” Her reaction sowed the seeds for his later abhorrence for his creation.</p>
<p>But who was this “quite normal” person? And what did she think of Eliza? If the missing secretary played such an <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?redir_esc=y&id=UVXtBAAAQBAJ&q=ELIZA#v=snippet&q=ELIZA%20effect&f=false">important role</a>, then why don’t we hear from her? In this chapter of the history of talking machines, we only have one side of the conversation.</p>
<p>Back in the archive, I want to see if I can recover the secretary’s voice, to understand what we might learn from Eliza’s user. I work my way through Weizenbaum’s yellowed papers. Surely, among the transcripts, code print outs, letters and notebooks there will be evidence? There are some clues, reference to a secretary in letters to and from Weizenbaum. But no name.</p>
<p>I broaden my hunt to administrative records. I look in department papers and the collections of Weizenbaum’s workplace, Project MAC – the hallowed centre of computing innovation at MIT. No luck. I contact the HR office and MIT’s alumni group. I stretch the patience of the ever-generous archivists. As my last day arrives, I still hear only silence.</p>
<h2>Listening to silences</h2>
<p>But the hunt has revealed some things. How little organisations have historically cared about the people who produced, organised and saved so much of their knowledge, for one. </p>
<p>In the history of institutions such as MIT and computing more generally, the writers of those records – often poorly paid, <a href="https://amita.alumgroup.mit.edu/s/1314/bp19/interior.aspx?sid=1314&gid=20&pgid=56230">low status</a> women – <a href="https://www.computinghistory.org.uk/pages/45621/women-in-computing/">are largely written out</a>. Our silent secretary is the <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Gramophone_Film_Typewriter.html?id=zSrte54_9ZwC&printsec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false">quintessential</a> effaced, <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Literary_Secretaries_Secretarial_Culture.html?id=iAskDwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false">anonymous transcriber</a> of the documents on which history is built.</p>
<p>The contributions of the users of talking machines – their labour, expertise, perspectives, creativity – are all too often ignored. When the model is “talk”, it’s easy to think those contributions are effortless or unimportant. But belittling these contributions has real consequences, not only for the talking machine technology <a href="https://en.unesco.org/Id-blush-if-I-could">we design</a>, but also for the ways we value the human input in those systems.</p>
<p>With generative AI we speak of user input in terms of “chat” and “prompts”. But what kind of legal status can “talk” claim? Should we, for example, be able to claim copyright over those remarks? What about the work on which those systems are trained? How do we recognise those contributions?</p>
<p>The blizzard is worsening. The announcement rings out that the campus is closing early due to the weather. The missing secretary’s voice still eludes me. For now, the history of talking machines remains one sided. It’s a silence that haunts me as I trudge home through the muffled, snowbound streets.</p>
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<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/something-good-156">Sign up here</a>.</em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225602/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca Roach's research was supported by a Leverhulme Trust Research Fellowship for the project “Machine Talk: Literature, Computing and Conversation after 1945” and facilitated by the expertise and patience of staff at MIT's Distinctive Collections.</span></em></p>I’m hunting for the woman whose use of an early chatbot turned the inventor against his creation.Rebecca Roach, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Literature, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2263612024-03-22T14:32:05Z2024-03-22T14:32:05ZStellar murder: when stars destroy and eat their own planets<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583649/original/file-20240322-22-txhykg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=3%2C0%2C1036%2C584&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nasa.gov/missions/chandra/nasas-chandra-planets-can-be-anti-aging-formula-for-stars/">NASA/CXC/M.Weiss</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Our Sun is both our best friend and our worst enemy. On the one hand, we owe our very existence to our star. Earth and the other planets in the Solar System formed out of the same cloud of gas and dust as the Sun. </p>
<p>And without its light, there could be no life on this planet. On the other hand, there will come a day when the Sun ends all life on Earth and, eventually, destroys Earth itself.</p>
<p>The risks that stars can pose to their planets are highlighted by <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00847-6">a new study published in Nature</a>. The authors looked at stars similar to our Sun and found that at least one in 12 stars exhibits traces of metals in its atmosphere. These are thought to be the scars of planets and asteroids that have been ingested by the stars. </p>
<p>Planets should never feel too comfortable as they orbit their parent star, as there are at least two ways in which their star can betray their trust and bring about their violent demise. </p>
<h2>Tidal disruption</h2>
<p>The first is through a process called “tidal disruption”. As a planetary system forms, some planets will find themselves orbiting their star along paths that are either not quite circular or are slightly inclined relative to the plane of the star’s rotation. When that happens, the gravitational force exerted by the star on the planet will slowly correct the shape or the alignment of the wayward planet’s orbit. </p>
<p>In extreme cases, the gravitational force applied by the star will destabilise the planet’s orbit, slowly pulling it closer and closer. If the hapless planet strays too close, it will be torn apart by the star’s gravity. This happens because the side of the planet facing the star is slightly closer than the side facing away (the difference is the planet’s diameter). </p>
<p>The strength of the gravitational pull exerted by the star depends on the distance between it and the planet, so that the side of the planet facing the star feels a slightly stronger pull than the side facing away. </p>
<p>On Earth, this difference in the strength of the force of gravity creates the daily ebb and flow of the tides. In essence, the Sun is trying to deform Earth, but is far enough away that it only manages to pull on the waters of its oceans. But a planet dangerously close to its star will find its very crust and core being pulled apart by these tides. </p>
<p>If the planet is not too close to the star, its shape will merely be deformed into that of an egg. Just a little closer to the star, and the difference between the gravitational pull on its different sides will be enough to completely tear it apart, reducing it back to a cloud of gas and dust that spirals into the star and vaporises in its hellish fires.</p>
<p>The process of tidal disruption was first suggested some 50 years ago. For the last couple of decades, astronomers — including my group — have observed dozens of bright tidal disruption flares caused by <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/resource/tidal-disruption-event/">stars shredded by supermassive black holes</a> in the centres of galaxies. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Planet and binary star." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583650/original/file-20240322-26-mpjqcm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583650/original/file-20240322-26-mpjqcm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583650/original/file-20240322-26-mpjqcm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583650/original/file-20240322-26-mpjqcm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583650/original/file-20240322-26-mpjqcm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583650/original/file-20240322-26-mpjqcm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583650/original/file-20240322-26-mpjqcm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The new study in Nature looked specifically at stars orbiting each other in binary systems.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.nasa.gov/details/PIA21470">NASA/JPL-Caltech</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Last year, for the first time, a group of astronomers reported observing a similar, dimmer flare that was consistent with <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/missions/neowise/caught-in-the-act-astronomers-detect-a-star-devouring-a-planet/">a planet being disrupted and consumed by its star</a>. </p>
<p>Tidal disruption of planets may be quite common, as shown by the new finding that at least 1 in 12 stars exhibits signs that <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00847-6">they have ingested planetary material</a>. </p>
<p>Other studies have found that between a quarter to half of all white dwarfs – the remnants of stars up to twice as massive as our Sun – sport similar scars. As their name implies, white dwarfs are white hot. With surface temperatures of tens of thousands of degrees, the hottest white dwarfs emit ultraviolet and X-ray light energetic enough to <a href="https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/a-dead-star-is-vaporizing-its-planets">vaporise their orbiting planets</a>.</p>
<h2>The end of Earth</h2>
<p>Rest assured; Earth won’t be destroyed via tidal disruption. Our planet’s end will come in about five billion years, when the Sun will transition into a red giant. </p>
<p>Stars are powered by <a href="https://www.energy.gov/science/doe-explainsnuclear-fusion-reactions#:%7E:text=Nuclear%20Fusion%20reactions%20power%20the,The%20leftover%20mass%20becomes%20energy.">the process known as fusion</a>, where two light elements are combined to make a heavier one. All stars start out their lives fusing the element hydrogen in their cores into the element helium. This fusion process both stabilises them against implosion, due to the incessant pull of gravity, and creates the light that makes them shine. Our Sun has been fusing hydrogen into helium for roughly 4.5 billion years. </p>
<p>But 4.5 billion years from now, the hydrogen in the Sun’s core will run out. All fusion in the core will stop, and gravity, unopposed, will force the star to contract. As the core contracts, it will heat up until the temperature is high enough for helium to fuse into carbon. </p>
<p>Fusion will once again stabilise the star. In the meantime, though, the outer envelopes of the star will expand and cool, giving the now giant star a redder hue. As the red giant Sun expands, it will <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-sun-will-eventually-engulf-earth-maybe/">engulf Mercury, Venus and Earth</a> – it may even reach all the way out to the orbit of Mars. </p>
<p>Earth may have another five billion years to go, but we will not be here to witness its extinction. As the Sun burns through its hydrogen stores, it steadily grows brighter: every billion years, its luminosity increases by about 10%. </p>
<p>A billion years from now, the Sun will be bright enough to <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-sun-wont-die-for-5-billion-years-so-why-do-humans-have-only-1-billion-years-left-on-earth-37379">boil away Earth’s oceans</a>. So, the next time you bask in the warm rays of the Sun, remember: it’s got it in for us.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226361/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Or Graur receives funding from UKRI Science and Technology Facilities Council.. </span></em></p>There are several ways in which stars can destroy and swallow their own planets.Or Graur, Associate Professor of Astrophysics, University of PortsmouthLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2259422024-03-21T18:01:44Z2024-03-21T18:01:44ZUS election: turning off TikTok is a big risk for the Democrats<p>Popular social media platform TikTok <a href="https://www.risch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2023/7/china-using-tiktok-as-indoctrination-machine-against-america-s-youth-gop-senator-warns">stands accused</a> of holding US data in China, fostering censorship, and spreading disinformation. Its popularity poses a dilemma for US politicians, but especially Democrats who have heavily relied on the app to reach its core base of young voters.</p>
<p>Is it “<a href="https://www.politico.eu/newsletter/china-watcher/times-up-for-tiktok/">time up</a>” for TikTok in the US? And will it be the Democrats’ own leader, President Joe Biden, who ultimately decides to close down the platform heading into the 2024 elections?</p>
<p>On March 13 the US House of Representatives <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2024/tiktok-ban-house-vote/">voted</a> 352 to 65 to order TikTok’s parent company, Beijing-based <a href="https://eu.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2024/03/18/tiktok-sale-ban-chinese-government-us-security/72988111007/#:%7E:text=Chinese%20government%20has%20seat%20on%20ByteDance%20board&text=The%20Chinese%20government%20doesn%27t,access%20to%20U.S.%20user%20information.">ByteDance</a>, to sell the app (which is believed to have 150 million US users) or else face prohibition in the US over its <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-tiktoks-parent-company-an-agent-of-the-chinese-state-in-china-inc-its-a-little-more-complicated-225749">alleged links to the Chinese Communist party</a>.</p>
<p>The bill follows <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2023/03/14/tiktok-may-split-with-china-based-bytedance-to-avoid-us-ban-report-says/?sh=1c0a7305423d">reports</a> that TikTok’s American executives are already exploring options for voluntarily splitting with ByteDance in a preemptive move to avoid regulatory scrutiny. </p>
<p>Although the bipartisan bill is by no means guaranteed to pass the Senate – where Democrat majority leader Chuck Schumer has <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/technology/4529110-schumer-non-committal-on-house-passed-tiktok-ban/">not committed</a> to bring it to a vote on the floor – Biden has said <a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/biden-backs-effort-to-force-sale-of-tiktok-by-chinese-owners-ba989656">he would sign the proposal</a> if it comes to his desk.</p>
<p>The campaign implications of this loom large. Many Democrats fear that banning TikTok in the lead-up to the election would be a self-inflicted political disaster, particularly when it comes to courting young voters.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-biden-is-investing-in-influencers-to-help-with-this-years-election-224912">Why Biden is investing in influencers to help with this year's election</a>
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<p>One consultant <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/bidens-tiktok-dilemma-a-ban-could-hurt-democrats-more-than-republicans-a74bcf2a">called</a> the Democrats “politically insane” for putting TikTok in jeopardy. And US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/24/democrats-tiktok-ban-china-00088659">speculated</a> that blocking TikTok would lead to Democrats to “literally lose every voter under 35, forever”.</p>
<p>The impact of losing even a few marginal percentage points of votes from the under 35 crowd matters. </p>
<p>Young voters were <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/07/joe-biden-youth-vote-gaza-climate-change">pivotal</a> in elevating Biden to the White House in 2020. However, some <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/meetthepressblog/number-public-polls-show-young-voters-turning-biden-rcna125794">polling</a> shows Biden lagging behind former president Donald Trump among gen-Z and young millenials. </p>
<h2>Investing in TikTok</h2>
<p>In recent months, Democratic party operatives have not-so-quietly invested enormously into voter outreach on TikTok, in the hopes of shoring up the youth vote. The Biden campaign account, @BidenHQ, has more than <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@bidenhq?lang=en">266,000 followers</a> and @thedemocrats has over <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@thedemocrats?lang=en">529,000</a>.</p>
<p>The overwhelmingly young, progressive user base is likely to resent the government taking away their favourite app. A ban could also severely limit the Democratic party’s ability to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-ban-tiktok-would-rob-biden-democrats-2024-election-tool-2024-03-14/">connect with younger voters</a> through advertising and other forms of engagement.</p>
<p>The Biden campaign, the Democratic National Committee and Democrat-aligned groups have spent millions of dollars <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-biden-is-investing-in-influencers-to-help-with-this-years-election-224912">courting influencers</a> who appear on TikTok and other social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and Instagram. Recently, the White House even hosted a star-studded gala for hundreds of would-be digital leaders.</p>
<p>Beyond Biden, many of the Democratic party’s most visible rising stars – such as <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@aocinthehouse?lang=en">Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez</a>, who has more than 900,000 followers on TikTok – use the app to communicate with their constitutents and fans. Similarly, US transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2020/10/14/media/pete-buttigieg-fox-news/index.html">has made a name for himself</a> on TikTok for his viral take-down videos of Fox News hosts.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/11/15/more-americans-are-getting-news-on-tiktok-bucking-the-trend-seen-on-most-other-social-media-sites/">Data from non-partisan organisation Pew Research</a> shows that the number of voters aged 18-29 who get their news from TikTok has jumped to 32%, a more than threefold increase since the 2020 election. Additionally, a <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/poll-numbers-help-explain-bidens-camp-joined-tiktok-rcna138489">poll by NBC</a> found that young TikTok users skew Democrat over Republican by a margin of 47% to 30%.</p>
<h2>Trump makes a U-turn</h2>
<p>Biden’s position on TikTok has not gone unremarked on by his rival, who’s tried to exploit the controversy for political gain. In 2020, Trump proposed an executive order to outlaw the app in the US, which was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/09/27/tiktok-ban-injunction/">rejected</a> by a federal judge. But now the former president is <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/03/12/trump-tiktok-ban-lobbying/">embracing it</a>.</p>
<p>According to reports, that could be partially due the lobbying efforts of <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-tiktok-ban-reversal-china-jeff-yass-why.html">influential Republican donor Jeff Yass</a>, whose investment firm owns an <a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/jeff-yass-tiktok-bytedance-ban-congress-15a41ec4">estimated 15% of ByteDance</a>. Yet it’s also likely to be due to Trump perceiving an opportunity to peel off young voters from Democrats.</p>
<p>“Frankly, there are a lot of people on TikTok that love it,” Trump <a href="https://time.com/6900348/tiktok-ban-donald-trump-congress/">declared</a> in a recent interview. “There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it.”</p>
<p>Even if Democrats have been more aggressive in leveraging TikTok, Republicans have made inroads in countering this appeal. This includes Trump <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-hosts-conservative-influencers-libs-tik-tok-babylon-bee-dinner-rcna67396">cosying up</a> to Libs of TikTok and the Babylon Bee, two popular pro-Trump social media influencers.</p>
<h2>Election timing</h2>
<p>A potential forced divestment of TikTok could land right in the heat of the 2024 election season. If Biden were to sign the legislation, ByteDance would be <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktoks-potential-buyers-2024-3">granted six months to identify a purchaser</a>. A ban could be put in place as early as October of this year, with the election slated for November 5.</p>
<p>Democrats may be calculating that the odds of a sale not going through are low. For example, former US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has already <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/14/former-treasury-secretary-mnuchin-is-putting-together-an-investor-group-to-buy-tiktok.html">announced</a> that he’s convening an investor group prepared to buy TikTok if it goes on the market.</p>
<p>Still, the mere act of putting at risk a platform that millions of young voters use for hours of every day can only have political downsides.</p>
<p>The closure of TikTok would boost demand for other social media platforms, as users search for substitutes. Trump, for example, has <a href="https://twitter.com/CNBC/status/1767171638510964812">lamented</a> that banning TikTok would “make Facebook bigger”. </p>
<p>This would force Democrats to rethink their strategies, to build new followings, and to repackage their messaging for alternative apps. Yet divergent demographics of user bases would ensure that it wouldn’t be a perfect, one-to-one transition. </p>
<p>For instance, according to the research firm <a href="https://apnews.com/article/facebook-teenagers-tiktok-instagram-young-adults-fc9f6daa605e7c7f6fd5f4eaa90141fa">Insider Intelligence</a>, roughly a quarter of Facebook users are between the ages of 18 to 34. On TikTok it’s almost half. </p>
<p>Biden may well perceive that the national security threats posed by TikTok are too steep a price to accept its continuation as it is. But whether he will push ahead with closing down TikTok ahead of November is – like the election result – hard to call.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225942/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thomas Gift does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Many Democrats fear that banning TikTok would lose them votes from young people.Thomas Gift, Associate Professor and Director of the Centre on US Politics, UCLLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2262622024-03-21T18:01:43Z2024-03-21T18:01:43Z‘Dark stars’: dark matter may form exploding stars – and observing the damage could help reveal what it’s made of<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583424/original/file-20240321-23-mbtrm1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C262%2C1280%2C597&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">We wouldn't be able to see them directly, but they could be out there.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://esawebb.org/images/potm2301a/">ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, A. Martel</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Dark matter is a ghostly substance that astronomers have failed to detect for decades, yet which we know has an enormous influence on normal matter in the universe, such as stars and galaxies. Through the massive gravitational pull it exerts on galaxies, it spins them up, gives them an extra push along their orbits, or even rips them apart. </p>
<p>Like a cosmic carnival mirror, it also bends the light from distant objects to create distorted or multiple images, a process which is called <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/gravitational-lensing-112201">gravitational lensing</a>. </p>
<p>And <a href="https://journals.aps.org/prd/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevD.109.043018">recent research</a> suggests it may create even more drama than this, by producing stars that explode.</p>
<p>For all the havoc it plays with galaxies, not much is known about whether dark matter can interact with itself, other than through gravity. If it experiences other forces, they must be very weak, otherwise they would have been measured.</p>
<p>A possible candidate for a dark matter particle, made up of a hypothetical class of weakly interacting massive particles (or <a href="https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/july-2015/miraculous-wimps?language_content_entity=und">WIMPs</a>), has been studied intensely, so far with no observational evidence.</p>
<p>Recently, other types of particles, also weakly interacting but extremely light, have become the focus of attention. These particles, called <a href="https://bigthink.com/starts-with-a-bang/axions-dark-matter/">axions</a>, were first <a href="https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/the-other-dark-matter-candidate?language_content_entity=und">proposed in late 1970s</a> to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2019/11/19/the-strong-cp-problem-is-the-most-underrated-puzzle-in-all-of-physics/">solve a quantum problem</a>, but they may also fit the bill for dark matter. </p>
<p>Unlike WIMPs, which cannot “stick” together to form small objects, axions can do so. Because they are so light, a huge number of axions would have to account for all the dark matter, which means they would have to be crammed together. But because they are a type of subatomic particle known as a <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abj3618">boson</a>, they don’t mind.</p>
<p>In fact, calculations show axions could be packed so closely that they start behaving strangely – collectively acting like a wave – according to the rules of quantum mechanics, the theory which governs the microworld of atoms and particles. This state is called a <a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/ultracold-atoms/">Bose-Einstein condensate</a>, and it may, unexpectedly, <a href="https://www.livescience.com/63977-axion-stars-form-quickly.html">allow axions to form “stars”</a> of their own. </p>
<p>This would happen when the wave moves on its own, forming what physicists call a “soliton”, which is a localised lump of energy that can move without being distorted or dispersed. This is often seen on Earth in vortexes and whirlpools, or the bubble rings that <a href="https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/what-will-dolphins-make-of-these-underwater-bubble-rings">dolphins enjoy underwater</a>.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://journals.aps.org/prd/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevD.109.043018">new study</a> provides calculations which show that such solitons would end up growing in size, becoming a star, similar in size to, or larger than, a normal star. But finally, they become unstable and explode. </p>
<p>The energy released from one such explosion (dubbed a “bosenova”) would rival that of a supernova (an exploding normal star). Given that dark matter far outweighs the visible matter in the universe, this would surely leave a sign in our observations of the sky. We have yet to find such scars, but the new study gives us something to look for.</p>
<h2>An observational test</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://phys.org/news/2024-02-explosive-axion-stars-dark.html">researchers behind the study</a> say that the surrounding gas, made of normal matter, would absorb this extra energy from the explosion and emit some of it back. Since most of this gas is made of hydrogen, we know this light should be in radio frequencies. </p>
<p>Excitingly, future observations with the <a href="https://theconversation.com/in-australia-and-south-africa-construction-has-started-on-the-biggest-radio-observatory-in-earths-history-195818">Square Kilometre Array</a> radio telescope may be able to pick it up.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Artist's impression of the SKA telescope." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583420/original/file-20240321-20-b3sckt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583420/original/file-20240321-20-b3sckt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583420/original/file-20240321-20-b3sckt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583420/original/file-20240321-20-b3sckt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583420/original/file-20240321-20-b3sckt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583420/original/file-20240321-20-b3sckt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583420/original/file-20240321-20-b3sckt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Artist’s impression of the SKA telescope.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">wikipedia</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>So, while the fireworks from dark star explosions may be hidden from our view, we might be able to find their aftermath in the visible matter. What’s great about this is that such a discovery would help us work out what dark matter is actually made of – in this case, most likely axions.</p>
<p>What if observations will not detect the predicted signal? That probably won’t rule out this theory completely, as other “axion-like” particles are still possible. A failure of detection may indicate, however, that the masses of these particles are very different, or that they do not couple with radiation as strongly as we thought.</p>
<p>In fact, this has happened before. Originally, it was thought that axions would couple so strongly that they would be able to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EjezghXkaw">cool the gas inside stars</a>. But since models of star cooling showed stars were just fine without this mechanism, the axion coupling strength had to be lower than originally assumed.</p>
<p>Of course, there is no guarantee that dark matter is made of axions. WIMPs are still contenders in this race, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/from-machos-to-wimps-meet-the-top-five-candidates-for-dark-matter-51516">there are others too</a>. </p>
<p>Incidentally, some studies suggest that WIMP-like dark matter <a href="https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.051101">may also form “dark stars”</a>. In this case, the stars would still be normal (made of hydrogen and helium), with dark matter just powering them. </p>
<p>These WIMP-powered dark stars are predicted to be supermassive and to live only for a short time in the early universe. But they could be observed by the James Webb space telescope. A recent study has claimed <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/jwst-might-have-spotted-the-first-dark-matter-stars/">three such discoveries</a>, although the jury is still out on whether that’s really the case.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, the excitement about axions is growing, and there are many plans to detect them. For example, axions are expected <a href="https://theconversation.com/this-australian-experiment-is-on-the-hunt-for-an-elusive-particle-that-could-help-unlock-the-mystery-of-dark-matter-187014">to convert into photons</a> when they pass through a magnetic field, so observations of photons with a certain energy are targeting stars with magnetic fields, such as neutron stars, or even <a href="https://home.cern/science/experiments/cast">the Sun</a>.</p>
<p>On the theoretical front, there are efforts to refine the predictions for what the universe would look like with different types of dark matter. For example, axions may be distinguished from WIMPs <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-look-at-einstein-rings-around-distant-galaxies-just-got-us-closer-to-solving-the-dark-matter-debate-204109">by the way they bend the light</a> through gravitational lensing.</p>
<p>With better observations and theory, we are hoping that the mystery of dark matter will soon be unlocked.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226262/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andreea Font does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We may be able to find traces of dark matter star explosions.Andreea Font, Reader in Theoretical Astrophysics, Liverpool John Moores UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2259062024-03-20T17:15:37Z2024-03-20T17:15:37ZHow a balloon-borne experiment can do the job of the Hubble space telescope<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583085/original/file-20240320-20-8uzvny.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=45%2C34%2C3788%2C2121&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">SuperBIT waiting for launch while its giant helium balloon is inflated.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Bill Rodman/NASA</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>An astronomical telescope designed to complement the ageing <a href="https://esahubble.org/">Hubble Space Telescope</a> lifted off from New Zealand’s south island on April 16 2023. But as a sphere the size of a football stadium rose silently and slowly over the Tauhinukorokio mountains, calls started coming in from residents. </p>
<p>Local police and radio stations, however, had been briefed by Nasa that the giant helium balloon would lift the two-ton <a href="https://sites.physics.utoronto.ca/bit">SuperBIT</a> telescope to 40km above sea level, over the next three hours. The mission, in which we were involved, was to test whether a balloon-borne telescope could capture <a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/superpressureballoon/category/2023-campaign/superbit/">deep space images</a> with high enough resolution to study the unknown substance, dubbed <a href="https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/What_are_dark_matter_and_dark_energy">dark matter</a>, that is 85% of all material in the universe.</p>
<p>The observations and subsequent data analysis have proved that balloon-borne experiments can be just as useful as those launched by rockets, but are much cheaper. It is now up to scientists, government agencies and private companies to make the most of them.</p>
<p>For the next month, <a href="https://earth.nullschool.net/#2023/05/01/2300Z/wind/isobaric/10hPa/orthographic=-213.50,-71.03,550">polar stratospheric winds</a> carried SuperBIT <a href="https://www.csbf.nasa.gov/map/balloon10/Google728NT.htm">around the world every eight days</a>, mainly over the Antarctic ocean but clipping the tip of South America. It went where the wind carried it, but could look in any direction. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Flight path of SuperBIT, five and a half times around the Southern ocean." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582186/original/file-20240315-24-1009uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Flight path of SuperBIT.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nasa</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Each day, solar panels recharged its batteries. At night, it photographed the sky, including the <a href="https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230427.html">Tarantula nebula</a>, a light source 160,000 light years away, and clusters of galaxies 20,000 times farther. </p>
<p>Without a tripod, SuperBIT used gyroscopes to stabilise any swinging (we discovered that the stratosphere is remarkably calm … except in turbulence above the Andes, where SuperBIT once dropped 1,000 feet). It was the first balloon-borne telescope to achieve <a href="https://pubs.aip.org/aip/rsi/article/91/3/034501/1032358/Robust-diffraction-limited-near-infrared-to-near">Hubble-like performance</a> for the short wavelengths of light that are visible to a human eye.</p>
<p>The balloon and the telescope continued to work perfectly, but satellite communication links gradually failed. We think radiation damaged SuperBIT’s <a href="https://www.starlink.com">antennae</a>. We could still download data by <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2226-4310/10/11/960">dropping hard drives</a>, attached to the telescope, to the ground. But ultimately, Nasa wanted their balloon back, so we brought the telescope down by parachute to Argentina. </p>
<p>This was SuperBIT’s <a href="https://arxiv.org/abs/1807.02887">fifth flight</a>, building on ten years of graft. </p>
<h2>Balloon benefits</h2>
<p>Unlike orbital missions, if balloon payloads don’t work first time, they can be fixed and relaunched. This fosters simple, creative design. Components now proven to <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/somd/space-communications-navigation-program/technology-readiness-levels/">work in space</a> include hair gel (to hold things), chicken roasting bags (to keep them warm), and parts of bows used by Olympic archers (to let them go).</p>
<p>Failure and success are both opportunities to learn. After each flight, we make-do-and-mend, or improve the technology. For example, since cameras have rapidly got better and cheaper, we have fitted SuperBIT with a new sensor each year. All this reduces costs.</p>
<p>Most of the cost of traditional spaceflight is to mitigate the risk of failure. Compromises are always needed between safety, protecting expensive equipment and getting data. </p>
<p>If a balloon mission goes wrong, it usually matters less, because we get the equipment back. SuperBIT was built mainly by <a href="https://sites.physics.utoronto.ca/barthnetterfield">Canadian PhD students</a>, who have already spun-out a new <a href="https://www.starspectechnologies.com">tech company</a>.</p>
<p>Risk management is different for balloons, and Nasa doesn’t always get the balance right. Waiting for “perfect” weather and the perfectly designed balloon <a href="https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20210017816/downloads/2021%20Balloon%20Technology%20Presentation%20-%20Overview%20of%20the%20NASA%20Scientific%20Balloon%20Activities%20-%20Fairbrother.pptx.pdf">grounded all launches from Texas in 2017</a>. Physically impossible calculations of risk, such as a balloon bursting three times, nearly tanked the 2023 programme. </p>
<p>A balloon can only burst once. But <a href="https://cnes.fr/en">France’s</a> and <a href="https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng">Canada’s</a> space agencies, the US <a href="https://ncar.ucar.edu/">National Center for Atmospheric Research</a> and the UK Science Research Council have all proved that a balloon can be relaunched every few days. Risk assessment can be more realistic. Balloon teams can continually test, play around with and improve the process. For rocket launches, there is one chance only.</p>
<h2>Growing international interest</h2>
<p>Geography is important in developing a successful national balloon programme. Countries with expansive landmass can carry out short flights within their own airspace, such as Canada and the US. Northern European countries can use <a href="https://earth.nullschool.net/#2023/07/02/1500Z/wind/isobaric/10hPa/orthographic=-52.92,30.22,533">stable and reliable summer winds</a> to extend flights across the Atlantic ocean, for example from Scotland to Canada.</p>
<p>Countries can also launch from the territory of partner nations around the world, such as the UK <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/space-bridge-across-the-world-will-help-uk-and-australia-get-ahead-in-global-space-race">launching from Australia</a>. </p>
<p>Geopolitics also influences the choice of flight path: a lesson well learned from the <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-66062562">rogue Chinese balloon</a> that flew over the US in 2023 and was ultimately shot down. Crossing any country’s airspace requires permission, and we avoid war zones or areas of conflict where the balloon could be mistaken for a hostile target. This is one reason we launched from New Zealand.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="SuperBIT held by a crane for final checks." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582942/original/file-20240319-28-a2dkvq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=217%2C0%2C3814%2C2933&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582942/original/file-20240319-28-a2dkvq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582942/original/file-20240319-28-a2dkvq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582942/original/file-20240319-28-a2dkvq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582942/original/file-20240319-28-a2dkvq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582942/original/file-20240319-28-a2dkvq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582942/original/file-20240319-28-a2dkvq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">SuperBIT held by a crane for final checks.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Richard Massey</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Government interest in national balloon programmes is increasing, as new material science and manufacturing techniques have created balloons that retain helium, lengthening flights from days to months. The US reaffirmed their interest in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/12/20/fact-sheet-strengthening-u-s-international-space-partnerships/">2023 government paper</a> and <a href="https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/sciences/balloons/about-stratospheric-balloons.asp">Canada</a>, <a href="https://cnes.fr/en/how-stratospheric-balloons-work%20and%20https://www.hemera-h2020.eu/facilities-2/cnes-balloons/">France</a> and <a href="https://sscspace.com/esrange/">Sweden</a> have long-established balloon programmes. </p>
<p>The UK ran a world-leading balloon programme until the 1990s. Abandoning it lost an opportunity to train scientists and engineers into leadership roles. British teams are still often invited to join French or US satellite missions, but we no longer lead or decide what gets built. We foresee few technical, geographic or political barriers to the UK restarting a balloon programme in parallel to its nascent rocket launches.</p>
<h2>Balloons are high enough</h2>
<p>Officially, space begins 100km above sea level. But there is no magic line, and <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-3881/abbffb">precious little atmosphere above 40km</a>. There, stars stop twinkling and the sky is black. Long exposure astronomical photographs become pin sharp and reveal faint, distant objects that are blurred to astronomers on the ground.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="SuperBIT shrouded in early-morning mist before launch." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582920/original/file-20240319-28-8sm5fb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582920/original/file-20240319-28-8sm5fb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582920/original/file-20240319-28-8sm5fb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582920/original/file-20240319-28-8sm5fb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582920/original/file-20240319-28-8sm5fb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582920/original/file-20240319-28-8sm5fb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582920/original/file-20240319-28-8sm5fb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">SuperBIT shrouded in early-morning mist before launch.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Steven Benton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Balloon cameras or spectrographs can also look down, and are high enough to capture Earth observations just like those from satellites. They can also take atmospheric measurements around them, including of the ozone layer in the stratosphere.</p>
<p>Balloons won’t replace all rockets, as they can’t travel higher than 40km.
And even though helium is a <a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/11/01/775554343/the-world-is-constantly-running-out-of-helium-heres-why-it-matters">finite resource</a>, balloons are more “environmentally-friendly”. They require no rocket fuels during launch, don’t add to increasing space debris in orbit – and at the end of their working life, they aren’t <a href="https://theconversation.com/satellites-are-burning-up-in-the-upper-atmosphere-and-we-still-dont-know-what-impact-this-will-have-on-the-earths-climate-223618">burnt up in the atmosphere</a>. What’s not to like?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225906/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Massey has received funding for SuperBIT from the Royal Society and from UKRI's Science and Technology Facilities Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Fionagh Thomson has carried out consultancy work for the UK space agency. She is an elected member of the sustainability committees for the Royal Astronomical Society and the European Astronomical society.</span></em></p>Giant helium balloons are a cheap, more environmentally friendly alternative to rocket launches – and you get the satellite back.Richard Massey, Professor of extragalactic astrophysics (dark matter and cosmology), Durham UniversityFionagh Thomson, Senior Research Fellow in Disruptive Technologies, Space/Environmental Ethics, Visual ethnographer, Durham UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2223032024-03-20T13:59:13Z2024-03-20T13:59:13ZConspiracy theorists seem to favour an intuitive thinking style – here’s why that’s important<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580680/original/file-20240308-26-fcuzuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C0%2C5982%2C3979&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/wrapped-mouth-forefinger-sign-conspiracy-1238620543">Ralf Geithe/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>I have been researching the psychology of conspiracy beliefs for seven years now and people often ask me why people believe in them. This is not a simple question. </p>
<p>There <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/pops.12568">are many reasons</a> people might endorse conspiracy theories. Something that stands out to me, though, is how our thinking styles can influence the way we process information and therefore <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/11/11/207">how prone we can be</a> to conspiracy beliefs.</p>
<p>A preference for <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/acp.2995">intuitive thinking</a>, over <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/acp.3790">analytical thinking styles</a> seems to be linked to endorsement of conspiracy theories. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/11/11/207">Intuitive thinking</a> is a thinking style reliant on immediate and unconscious judgments. It often follows gut feelings, whereas analytical thinking is about slower, more deliberate and detailed processing of information. </p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/intelligence-doesnt-make-you-immune-to-conspiracy-theories-its-more-about-thinking-style-220978">I’ve written before</a> about how we can develop a more effortful, analytical thinking style to reduce our predisposition to conspiracy beliefs. </p>
<p>Research has shown critical thinking skills have many life benefits. For example, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1871187116300384?casa_token=HdOYh26XhEgAAAAA:HYLmEBNeaggtWPqyvt94Mhhi4nNOvzPfji6tud3HPHB2Okhz4mEpzJ9HyX7Hmgal1jl8PkyJew">a study from 2017</a> found that people who scored higher in critical thinking skills reported fewer negative life events (for instance, getting a parking ticket or missing a flight). Critical thinking was a stronger predictor than intelligence for avoiding these types of events. It’s not clear why this is. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Girl thinking with arms resting on a table, arrows in different directions above her head" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580683/original/file-20240308-26-xrwt5a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580683/original/file-20240308-26-xrwt5a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580683/original/file-20240308-26-xrwt5a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580683/original/file-20240308-26-xrwt5a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580683/original/file-20240308-26-xrwt5a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580683/original/file-20240308-26-xrwt5a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580683/original/file-20240308-26-xrwt5a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Analytical thinking can make you less likely to believe in conspiracy theories.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/thinking-girl-solving-problem-135457706">Marijus Auruskevicius/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>On the other hand, <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/11/11/207">intuitive thinking</a> has been linked to thinking errors. For example, intuitive thinking styles can lead to over-reliance on mental shortcuts, which can also increase susceptibility to <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/acp.2995">conspiracy theories</a>. </p>
<p>This can lead to dangerous consequences. For example, greater intuitive thinking has been linked to <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08870446.2019.1673894?casa_token=pJXUleitfAQAAAAA:mgqoHZ9oqgTvliAYLVRwbCJET1kDYFE6P3tOsN3jIJjnVvnZq-a1beoHacw67dqGgzZR6hm3KpmY">anti-vaccine conspiracy beliefs</a> and vaccine hesitancy.</p>
<p>However, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/29/steve-jobs-and-albert-einstein-both-attributed-their-extraordinary-success-to-this-personality-trait.html">extremely successful people</a>, such as Albert Einstein and Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, argued the importance of using their intuition and attributed their achievements to intuitive thinking. </p>
<h2>The value of intuitive thinking</h2>
<p>One benefit of <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/MD-04-2017-0333/full/html">intuitive thinking</a> is that it takes little or no processing time, which allows us to make decisions and judgments quickly. And, in some circumstances, this is vital. </p>
<p>People working in <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/MD-04-2017-0333/full/html">crisis environments </a>(such as the fire service) report the need to use intuitive thinking styles. During crises, it can be unrealistic to consistently use analytical thinking. </p>
<p>Experienced crisis managers often rely on intuitive thinking in the first instance, as their default strategy, but as the task allows, draw on more analytical thinking later on. Critical and intuitive thinking styles can be used in tandem. </p>
<p>What is important also is that this type of intuition develops through years of experience, which can produce <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/MD-04-2017-0333/full/html">expert intuition</a>. </p>
<p>Intuition can be crucial in other areas too. <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01420/full">Creativity</a> is often seen as a benefit of intuitive thinking styles. A review <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01420/full">conducted in 2016</a> of research into idea generation found that creativity is positively linked to intuitive thinking. </p>
<p>Although creativity is difficult to define, it can be thought of as similar to problem solving, where information is used to reach a goal, in a new or unexpected way. </p>
<p>However, it is also important to note that the 2016 review found that combining intuitive and analytical thinking styles was best for idea evaluation. </p>
<h2>What is the solution?</h2>
<p>Now, research often focuses on developing ways to improve analytical thinking in order to reduce endorsement of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0010027714001632?casa_token=EczBVWzrbWsAAAAA:Hq12hyS1txB3Ia_eM5yCVuReXqoVyGafhz2CTrq5U2JkTDsJs7Wl-LKm7Op_H3JVXWF9K5YQLQ">dangerous conspiracy theories</a> or reduce <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fstl0000188">thinking errors and misconceptions</a>. </p>
<p>However, we often consider analytic and intuitive thinking styles as an either-or, and when making decisions or judgments we must choose one over the other. However, a 2015 <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/bdm.1903">meta-analysis</a> (where data from multiple studies are combined and analysed) of 50 years of cognitive style research found evidence that these thinking styles could happen at the same time. </p>
<p>Rather than two opposing ends of a spectrum, they are separate constructs, meaning that these thinking styles can happen together. Research in decision-making also suggests that <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01088/full">thinking style is flexible</a> and the best decisions are made when the thinking style a person uses aligns with the situation at hand. </p>
<p>Some situations are more suited to analytical thinking styles (such as number tasks) while some are more suited to using intuition (such as understanding facial expressions). An adaptive decision-maker is skilled in using both thinking styles.</p>
<p>So perhaps one way to reduce susceptibility to conspiracy theories is improving adaptive decision-making. <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0258985">My 2021 study</a> found that when people were confronted with the misconceptions they had previously made, overestimating the extent to which others endorse anti-vaccine conspiracy theories, they re-evaluated their decisions. This could suggest that thinking styles can depend on the situation and information at hand. </p>
<p>Although in many situations <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1871187116300384?casa_token=HdOYh26XhEgAAAAA:HYLmEBNeaggtWPqyvt94Mhhi4nNOvzPfji6tud3HPHB2Okhz4mEpzJ9HyX7Hmgal1jl8PkyJew">analytical thinking is better</a>, we shouldn’t dismiss the intuitive thinking style conspiracy theorists seem to favour as unworkable or inflexible. The answer could lie in understanding both thinking styles and being able to adjust our thinking styles when needed.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222303/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Darel Cookson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The pros and pitfalls of this type of thinkingDarel Cookson, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Nottingham Trent UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2256042024-03-19T18:17:35Z2024-03-19T18:17:35ZSmart rings’ ultra-precise movement tracking takes wearable technology to the next level<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581943/original/file-20240314-26-1uz986.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6382%2C4248&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/male-hands-blue-velvet-box-containing-2053213751">Vigen M / Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There is a lot of hype about smart rings right now – <a href="https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/samsung-galaxy-ring-everything-we-know-so-far/">Samsung is due to release a Galaxy ring</a>, and there is unsubstantiated speculation that <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidphelan/2024/02/27/apple-developing-ring-to-beat-samsung-galaxy-ring-report-claims/?sh=4195d8954e2c">Apple is considering a ring too</a>. But why would you want a smart ring in the first place?</p>
<p>The short answer is that they are likely to fulfil the same health and activity tracking as a watch, leaving your wrist free for a more fashionable or traditional timepiece.</p>
<p>But they can also track the your body’s movements much more precisely than other wearable technology, and record detailed information about the movement of your hands. This could allow you to control and interact with other technology in new ways – but also raise even more concerns about privacy.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://ouraring.com/">Oura ring</a> has been available since 2015 and one of us, Max, has been wearing one for more than five years. He does this to track sleep and activity data during times when he does not want to wear a watch (including sleeping). These rings track changes in your body temperature, heart rate, heart rate variability (the time intervals between heart beats), blood oxygen levels, and physical activity. A smart watch can also do much of this. </p>
<p>It is expected that the Galaxy Ring will do the same (at least that is what one of <a href="https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/smart-ring-competition-heats-up-with-samsungs-announcement-of-galaxy-ring/">their announcements focuses on</a>), and be added to its health and fitness range.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, <a href="https://www.patentlyapple.com/2023/08/apple-has-won-a-major-smart-ring-patent-designed-to-control-companion-device-uis-speed-scroll-documents-use-in-air-gesture.html">Apple’s patent application</a> indicates that its version may do more than monitor health. It may help control other devices, and vibrate to give users notifications.</p>
<h2>Benefits all round?</h2>
<p>Fingers are better than wrists at making specific gestures. With many more finger gesture options than arm positions, and finger gestures being the primary mode of interaction for VR (virtual reality) headsets, one probable future for smart rings is to control other devices. This would allow for the more precise detection of actions like pinching and pointing. </p>
<p>Multiple rings could work together to achieve this, with other devices. Apple’s ring patent, for example, implies that rings could be worn in different bands along the length of a single finger (not an uncommon choice with normal rings), allowing a company to know how your finger is angled. If communicating with a watch, smart rings could detect finger and hand position in relation to your arm. This potentially provides more precise interactions with VR headsets.</p>
<p>In being able to carefully track fingers, rather than wrists, smart rings might allow technology companies to understand, model, and help improve many more activities, especially in situations where cameras and sensors are less likely to be found. </p>
<p>One example of this is learning to play classical guitar, which does not involve as much strumming with the whole arm or at the wrist, but where all the skill is in the fingers. Bringing sensors closer to the body’s more dexterous touch sensors means that technology companies can more closely understand what you are doing. </p>
<h2>Status symbols</h2>
<p>Rings are jewellery, often worn to be seen. Apple is well known for making aesthetics a priority in its products. While the Galaxy ring looks a lot like the Oura Ring, it’s likely that Apple will consider the importance of personalisation and style.</p>
<p>Rings are not just worn on fingers, of course. Could rings for piercings, that go inside the body to some extent, like those on our ears or lips, give us additional data on ourselves? </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Woman runner using smart watch." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582558/original/file-20240318-18-3tco3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582558/original/file-20240318-18-3tco3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582558/original/file-20240318-18-3tco3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582558/original/file-20240318-18-3tco3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582558/original/file-20240318-18-3tco3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582558/original/file-20240318-18-3tco3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582558/original/file-20240318-18-3tco3t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Smart watches have found a particular use in fitness and health monitoring.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/young-fitness-woman-runner-checking-time-705175816">Ground Picture / Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There might also be value in incorporating smart technology into other adornments. There are already smart products <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/tech/best-smart-jewelry?r=US&IR=T">designed to be worn as necklaces</a>. Potentially necklaces could help monitor stress levels because stress is closely linked to breathing patterns. There has also been a <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90853727/this-bra-tracks-your-vital-signs">smart bra</a>.</p>
<h2>Rings signify attachment</h2>
<p>The most well-known association that a ring has is as a gift of commitment and attachment. Researchers have looked at how we can use digital technology to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1145/634067.634252">communicate with loved ones who are not physically present</a>. Apple’s smart ring patent includes haptic feedback (where technology applies forces or vibrations to the user to simulate the experience of touch).</p>
<p>Smart wedding rings could be used to transmit messages between partners – to let one of them know the other is thinking about them. For example, an interaction such as twisting the ring could make your partner’s ring vibrate.</p>
<p>However, new smart devices will generate new forms of data and tracking, raising important questions about privacy and ethics. As with other wearable technology, there may be things people do not want to track. Imagine a message from your workplace telling you: “We see you aren’t typing at your desk right now.” </p>
<p>Social problems are also a possibility. If smart technology was incorporated into wedding rings, it could give people a way of tracking what their partners were doing even more closely than smartphones can.</p>
<p>These questions highlight the importance of governments focusing on the <a href="https://www.rai.ac.uk/">responsible use of AI</a>, as well as responsible innovation. <a href="http://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/media-centre/news-and-blogs/2023/11/be-smarter-than-your-smart-tech/">Research shows</a> that over half of British people (52%) feel like they do not know how their personal data is being collected and used.</p>
<p>Companies could create more targeted advertising based on changing circumstances, as when someone learns they are pregnant. Some regions of the world even offer cheaper life insurance to people with better health data from wearables.</p>
<p>What we should ask is: what is responsible and irresponsible for companies to track and try to infer about people from their wearables? This question should be at the forefront of thinking in the big tech companies.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225604/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Horia Maior receives funding from UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Max L Wilson receives funding from the UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, and the European Union, as well as past research funding support from Google Research.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Steve Benford receives research funding from The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, UKRI and the European Union. He has previously received funded from Unilever to research smart mirrors.</span></em></p>Smart rings can collect information about us that smartphones and smart watches struggle to.Horia Maior, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, University of NottinghamMax L Wilson, Associate Professor of Human-Computer Interaction, University of NottinghamSteve Benford, Professor of Collaborative Computing, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2247862024-03-19T18:17:34Z2024-03-19T18:17:34ZDeepfakes are still new, but 2024 could be the year they have an impact on elections<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580733/original/file-20240308-30-tf2e5r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3865%2C2582&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/deep-fake-ai-face-swap-video-2376208005">Tero Vesalainen / Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Disinformation caught many people off guard during the <a href="https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/ATAG/2018/620230/EPRS_ATA(2018)620230_EN.pdf">2016 Brexit referendum</a> and <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-07761-2">US presidential election</a>. Since then, a mini-industry has developed to analyse and counter it.</p>
<p>Yet despite that, we have entered 2024 – a year of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_elections_in_2024">more than 40 elections</a> worldwide – more fearful than ever about disinformation. In many ways, the problem is more challenging than it was in 2016. </p>
<p>Advances in technology since then are one reason for that, in particular the development that has taken place with synthetic media, otherwise known as deepfakes. It is increasingly difficult to know whether media has been fabricated by a computer or is based on something that really happened. </p>
<p>We’ve yet to really understand how big an impact deepfakes could have on elections. But a number of examples point the way to how they may be used. This may be the year when lots of mistakes are made and lessons learned.</p>
<p>Since the disinformation propagated around the votes in 2016, researchers have produced countless books and papers, journalists have retrained as <a href="https://www.poynter.org/fact-checking/2022/391-global-fact-checking-outlets-slow-growth-2022/">fact checking and verification experts</a>, governments have participated in <a href="https://www.igcd.org/">“grand committees”</a> and centres of excellence. Additionally, <a href="https://royalsociety.org/blog/2022/03/how-libraries-can-fight-disinformation/">libraries</a> have become the focus of resilience building strategies and a range of new bodies has emerged to provide analysis, training, and resources.</p>
<p>This activity hasn’t been fruitless. We now have a more nuanced understanding of disinformation as a social, psychological, political, and technological phenomenon. Efforts to support public interest journalism and the cultivation of critical thinking through education are also promising. Most notably, major tech companies <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/meta-set-up-team-counter-disinformation-ai-abuse-eu-elections-2024-02-26/">no longer pretend to be neutral platforms</a>. </p>
<p>In the meantime, policymakers have rediscovered their duty to <a href="https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and-policy/priorities-2019-2024/europe-fit-digital-age/digital-services-act_en">regulate technology</a> in the public interest. </p>
<h2>AI and synthetic media</h2>
<p>Regulatory discussions have added urgency now that AI tools to create synthetic media – media partially or fully generated by computers – have gone mainstream. These deepfakes can be used to imitate the voice and appearance of real people. Deepfake media are impressively realistic and do not require much skill or resources. </p>
<p>This is the culmination of the wider digital revolution whereby successive technologies have made high-quality content production accessible to almost anyone. In contrast, regulatory structures and institutional standards for media were mostly designed in an era when only a minority of professionals had access to production.</p>
<p>Political deepfakes can take different forms. The recent Indonesian election saw a <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2024/02/12/asia/suharto-deepfake-ai-scam-indonesia-election-hnk-intl/index.html">deepfake video “resurrecting” the late President Suharto</a>. This was ostensibly to encourage people to vote, but it was accused of being propaganda because it produced by the political party that he led.</p>
<p>Perhaps a more obvious use of deepfakes is to spread lies about political candidates. For example, <a href="https://ipi.media/slovakia-deepfake-audio-of-dennik-n-journalist-offers-worrying-example-of-ai-abuse/">fake AI-generated audio</a> released days before Slovakia’s parliamentary election in September 2023 attempted to portray the leader of Progressive Slovakia, Michal Šimečka, as having discussed with a journalist how to rig the vote.</p>
<p>Aside from the obvious effort to undermine a political party, it is worth noting how this deepfake, whose origin was unclear, exemplifies wider efforts to scapegoat minorities and demonise mainstream journalism. </p>
<p>Fortunately, in this instance, the audio was not high-quality, which made it quicker and easier for fact checkers to confirm its inauthenticity. However, the integrity of democratic elections cannot rely on the ineptidude of the fakers.</p>
<p>Deepfake audio technology is at a level of <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ai-audio-deepfakes-are-quickly-outpacing-detection/">sophistication that makes detection difficult</a>. Deepfake videos still struggle with certain human features, such as the representation of hands, but the technology is still young.</p>
<p>It is also important to note the Slovakian video was released during the final days of the election campaign. This is a prime time to launch disinformation and manipulation attacks because the targets and independent journalists have their hands full and therefore have little time to respond.</p>
<p>If it is also expensive, time-consuming, and difficult to investigate deep fakes, then it’s not clear how electoral commissions, political candidates, the media, or indeed the electorate should respond when potential cases arise. After all, a false accusation from a deepfake can be as troubling as the actual deepfake.</p>
<p>Another way deepfakes could be used to affect elections can be seen in the way they are already widely used to <a href="https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/04/22/a-lifelong-sentence-the-women-trapped-in-a-deepfake-porn-hell">harass and abuse</a> women and girls. This kind of sexual harassment fits an <a href="https://theconversation.com/online-abuse-could-drive-women-out-of-political-life-the-time-to-act-is-now-214301">existing pattern</a> of abuse that limits political participation by women. </p>
<h2>Questioning electoral integrity</h2>
<p>The difficulty is that it’s not yet clear exactly what impact deepfakes could have on elections. It’s very possible we could see other, similar uses of deepfakes in upcoming elections this year. And we could even see deepfakes used in ways not yet conceived of.</p>
<p>But it’s also worth remembering that not all disinformation is high-tech. There are other ways to attack democracy. Rumours and conspiracy theories about the integrity of the electoral process are an insidious trend. <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/1abd7fde-20b4-11e9-a46f-08f9738d6b2b">Electoral fraud is a global concern</a> given that many countries are only democracies in name. </p>
<p>Clearly, social media platforms enable and drive disinformation in many ways, but it is a mistake to assume the problem begins and ends online. One way to think about the challenge of disinformation during upcoming elections is to think about the strength of the systems that are supposed to uphold democracy. </p>
<p>Is there an independent media system capable of providing high quality investigations in the public interest? Are there independent electoral administrators and bodies? Are there independent courts to adjudicate if necessary? </p>
<p>And is there sufficient commitment to democratic values over self interest
amongst politicians and political parties? This year of elections, we may well find out the answer to these questions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224786/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Eileen Culloty coordinates the Ireland Hub of the European Digital Media Observatory, which is part-funded by the European Commission to undertake fact-checks, analysis, and media literacy.</span></em></p>As technology has advanced, AI-generated deepfakes have become more convincing.Eileen Culloty, Assistant Professor, School of Communications, Dublin City UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2256932024-03-18T13:44:27Z2024-03-18T13:44:27ZSpace tourists and crew suffer high radiation risks – regulation is needed to protect them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581725/original/file-20240313-18-7nh0go.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=70%2C44%2C4210%2C2798&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Richard Branson, next to White Knight Spaceship 2.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/spaceport-america-new-mexico-october-17th-2008061687">Jared Ortega/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In a decade or two, journeys into space could become as normal as transatlantic flights. In particular, the number of humans travelling into space with the help of commercial companies, such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/virgin-galactic-space-tourism-takes-off-with-bransons-inaugural-flight-164142">Virgin Galactic</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/virgin-galactic-and-blue-origin-can-they-be-more-than-space-joyrides-for-millionaires-164513">Blue Origin</a>, will increase significantly. </p>
<p>But such travel comes with huge radiation risks. Sudden changes in space weather, such as solar flares, for example, could have significant health implications for crew and passengers. Now <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0265964624000043">our recent paper</a>, from the University of Surrey, Foot Anstey LLP Space and Satellite Team, has found that current legislation and regulation don’t do enough to protect space tourists and crew.</p>
<p>Changes in space weather could expose space tourists to radiation doses in excess <a href="https://www.icrp.org/publication.asp?id=ICRP%20Publication%20103">of the recommended maximum</a> 1 millisievert (mSv) yearly uptake for a member of the public and 20mSv yearly for those working with radiation. Research at the University of Surrey shows that during an extreme space weather event, flight participants could receive doses in excess of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2468896723000289">100mSv</a>.</p>
<p>Current <a href="https://www.caa.co.uk/uk-regulations/aviation-safety/civil-aviation-act-1982-the-ano-2016-the-rules-of-the-air-2015-and-the-dg-regulations-2002/the-civil-aviation-air-navigation-order-2016/">legislation and regulation</a> focusing on potential radiation exposure for space tourists is limited and largely untested. There is a heavy focus on conventional non-radiation risk and wider safety, with guidance stemming from regulation of normal commercial flights. However, these are significantly different to space tourism enterprises. </p>
<p>Similarly, the law around space flights and their associated risk liability <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-space-tourism-travelling-faster-than-space-law-43586">is complex</a>. Space law incorporates a mix of international law (such as international agreements, treaties and conventions), domestic legislation and guidance. </p>
<h2>Cancer risk</h2>
<p>Exposure to low levels of background natural radiation is part of everyday life. Most people are not aware of this exposure and the potential risks to our health. For example, an 0.08mSv effective dose from a commercial flight from the UK to the US.</p>
<p>However, exposure to elevated levels of ionising radiation, such as those possible during space weather events, can potentially cause damage to DNA. The risk of space travel therefore ranges from a minor increase in health defects to serious health implications such as cancers.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Diagram illustrating the comparison of radiation doses." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581729/original/file-20240313-26-4razll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581729/original/file-20240313-26-4razll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=678&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581729/original/file-20240313-26-4razll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=678&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581729/original/file-20240313-26-4razll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=678&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581729/original/file-20240313-26-4razll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581729/original/file-20240313-26-4razll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581729/original/file-20240313-26-4razll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Comparison of radiation doses.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There has been significant risk assessment of radiation exposure on Earth; for example in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ress.2004.08.022">nuclear industry</a>. This is unlike the space tourism industry, which is still in its infancy. </p>
<p>Previous <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actaastro.2010.08.035">research</a> has focused on the potential risk assessment for astronauts from radiation exposure and long duration missions outside low-Earth orbit. But this does not consider risks for those on short trips to space as tourists. Thus, there is still significant work to be done to assess the unique risk for space tourist flights and the supporting guidance and regulation.</p>
<p>Any existing regulation, such as the <a href="https://www.caa.co.uk/uk-regulations/aviation-safety/civil-aviation-act-1982-the-ano-2016-the-rules-of-the-air-2015-and-the-dg-regulations-2002/the-civil-aviation-air-navigation-order-2016/">UK Air Navigation Order</a> and <a href="https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14/chapter-III/subchapter-C/part-460">Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) space flight regulations</a>, that is applicable to potential space flights focuses on crew, rather than paying passengers.</p>
<p>The space tourism industry is currently not fully aware of the radiation risks, we discovered. It is instead relying on incomplete “informed consent” for non-crew participants. The current regulation for the industry therefore places the risk burden firmly on the space tourist. We argue more legislation and regulation are needed.</p>
<h2>Our recommendations</h2>
<p>We made a series of recommendations in our report. But they are advisory. They are intended for the industry and regulators to consider as the space tourism sector continues to develop, particularly the FAA and the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). </p>
<p>We suggest these bodies collaborate with industry, including space tourism companies, spacecraft manufacturers and space research organisations, to understand the technical challenges and risks associated with new spaceflight activities.
Such collaboration would help ensure that regulations are practical, effective and reflective of the latest technological advances.</p>
<p>We also advise considering international standards. As the commercial space industry becomes more global, it will be important for the CAA and FAA to collaborate with international regulatory bodies elsewhere, such as the <a href="https://www.icao.int/Pages/default.aspx">International Civil Aviation Organization</a> (ICAO) and <a href="https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/copuos/index.html">the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (Uncopuos)</a>, to develop consistent regulations that apply across multiple jurisdictions.</p>
<p>Safety should be a critical consideration for any new regulations related to spaceflight. The CAA and FAA will need to ensure that new regulations adequately address risks associated with spaceflight. This is particularly exposure to radiation, but also the potential for accidents or system failures.</p>
<p>Finally, we encourage innovation. The commercial space industry is characterised by rapid innovation and technological advancement. Any new regulations must not stifle this innovation. The CAA and FAA will need to develop regulations that strike a balance between promoting safety, encouraging the development of new technologies and approaches, and enabling growth of the industry.</p>
<p>Ultimately, the CAA and the FAA will need to be flexible and adaptive. As the industry continues to evolve, they should review and update regulations to ensure they remain relevant and effective.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225693/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chris Rees does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Sudden changes in space weather, such as solar flares, for example, could have significant health implications for crew and passengers.Chris Rees, Postgraduate Researcher of Space Risk Engineering, University of SurreyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2253822024-03-15T17:34:38Z2024-03-15T17:34:38ZElon Musk’s brain implant company offers an intriguing glimpse of an internet connecting human minds<p>Elon Musk’s <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2017/3/27/15077864/elon-musk-neuralink-brain-computer-interface-ai-cyborgs">company called Neuralink</a>, launched in 2016, aims to <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-elon-musk-neuralink-20170421-htmlstory.html">implant a piece of technology</a> in people’s brains that would allow them to control a computer or phone by thought alone. This is otherwise known as a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3497935/">brain-computer interface</a>. </p>
<p>After years of <a href="https://theconversation.com/neuralink-put-a-chip-in-gertrude-the-pigs-brain-it-might-be-useful-one-day-145383">experimenting on animals</a>, Neuralink recently announced the implantation of one of their devices in the brain of a person.</p>
<p>Yet “neurotechnology”, of which this is a form, holds the promise of alleviating human suffering and allowing <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06377-x">people with disabilities to regain lost capacities</a>.</p>
<p>And it raises further questions. Would people without disabilities also embrace technology that directly connects with their brains and nervous systems? What would happen in future if people were able to link themselves to devices, infrastructure and even other people’s brains in a kind of brain-computer internet?</p>
<p>It’s now time to begin to think about those questions. Medical conditions such as <a href="https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/locked-syndrome">locked-in syndrome</a> prevent people from communicating or moving their limbs. Neuralink’s device is initially aimed at restoring capacities to people with such conditions by controlling a computer cursor to communicate, or using a robotic arm to feed themselves. </p>
<p>However, the longer term aspirations of the company, as expressed by Musk, include the capacity to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnkoetsier/2020/08/28/elon-musk-wants-to-put-a-fitbit-in-your-skull-to-summon-your-tesla/?sh=f71cac7586a9">summon a self-driving vehicle by thought alone</a>. These aspirations suggest that neurotechnology might connect people to a wide variety of technological systems currently in everyday use.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-brain-is-the-most-complicated-object-in-the-universe-this-is-the-story-of-scientists-quest-to-decode-it-and-read-peoples-minds-222458">The brain is the most complicated object in the universe. This is the story of scientists' quest to decode it – and read people's minds</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What are brain-computer interfaces?</h2>
<p>Brain-computer interfaces (BCI) detect the electrical activity in the brain connected to a person’s intentions. For example, if a person wants a cursor to move to the right, they might imagine waving their hand. This brain activity is decoded and converted into a command for a cursor. </p>
<p>This approach can work with a robotic arm, the lights in a smart home, a video game, or <a href="https://www.usf.edu/news/2018/mind-machine-students-to-compete-usf-first-ever-brain-drone-race.aspx">even a drone or robot</a>. A BCI can be thought of as a “universal controller”, or as the eminent neuroscientist Professor Rafael Yuste has described it, <a href="https://courier.unesco.org/en/articles/rafael-yuste-lets-act-its-too-late">an iPhone for the brain</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Elon Musk" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581735/original/file-20240313-22-mv5ska.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581735/original/file-20240313-22-mv5ska.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581735/original/file-20240313-22-mv5ska.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581735/original/file-20240313-22-mv5ska.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581735/original/file-20240313-22-mv5ska.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581735/original/file-20240313-22-mv5ska.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581735/original/file-20240313-22-mv5ska.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Elon Musk believes BCIs could be used to control self-driving vehicles by thought alone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/paris-france-june-16-2023-elon-2318800285">Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Neurotechnology can be invasively implanted in the brain or nervous system, or come in the form of wearable technology, such as a headset or earbuds. Air traffic controllers with external headsets can have their brains monitored to alert them when their attention levels are dropping. </p>
<p>Children in <a href="https://archive-yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/mind-control-chinas-classrooms">Chinese high schools</a> have already had their brains monitored by teachers. The company <a href="https://www.brainwavescience.com/">Brainwave Science</a> even offers a product to security services and police that can monitor suspects’ brains during interrogations.</p>
<p>However, things might go even further, as forms of direct <a href="https://theconversation.com/brain-to-brain-interfaces-the-science-of-telepathy-37926">brain to brain communication</a> are being tested. Instead of calling your friend or texting them, you might one day communicate telepathically. Rudimentary forms of direct brain to brain communication between humans (and even between humans and various animals) have already been achieved.</p>
<h2>Military uses</h2>
<p>Various militaries are also interested in the potential of “super soldiers” enhanced with neurotechnology, as they could operate more effectively in challenging environments, such as urban settings.</p>
<p>This would incorporate weapon systems, sensing and monitoring the human brains of military personnel in a distributed system of battlefield control. A particularly striking example of this approach comes in the form of the <a href="https://www.uts.edu.au/news/tech-design/mind-control-robots-reality">thought-controlled robotic dogs</a> that have recently been demonstrated by the Australian Army.</p>
<p>This brings to mind the fictional <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borg">Borg civilisation</a> from Star Trek, who are a similar mix of biology and machine parts. The alien Borg are individuals connected by neurotechnology that operate together as an entity. The implications of an interconnected system of humans and machines enabled by neurotechnology is something we should start to think about, along with what values <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/290974852_We_Are_the_Borg_Human_Assimilation_into_Cellular_Society">that society might have</a>.</p>
<p>We can envisage all kinds of scenarios. In future, it’s possible that those who operate critical infrastructure in cities could have their brains monitored to prevent accidents. People with mobility issues might increasingly interact with devices in their home, turning lights on and off and controlling domestic robots via their brain-computer interfaces. </p>
<h2>Wider take-up?</h2>
<p>At some point, people without disabilities could also decide to dispense with handheld remote control appliances in favour of controlling devices with their brains. Prisoners and offenders in the community could be monitored in real-time to assess their <a href="https://lsj.com.au/articles/a-clockwork-orange-again/">mental states</a>.</p>
<p>In time, these separate applications might start to make connections with each other in service of enhanced efficiency, commercial expediency, and social control. Neurotech could emerge as an essential infrastructure that becomes the key interface of human relationships with technological systems.</p>
<p>What emerges from all of this? There has some been some thinking and action in relation to <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/cambridge-quarterly-of-healthcare-ethics/article/minding-rights-mapping-ethical-and-legal-foundations-of-neurorights/2F3BD282956047E1E67AA9049A2A0B68">the human rights</a> and broader <a href="https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/research/how-will-brain-monitoring-technology-influence-the-practice-of-law">legal implications of neurotechnology</a>. But much of the debate is rather individualistic in orientation and neglects the wider societal implications of changing human relationships with technological systems. </p>
<p>Consequently, we need a discussion about the larger purpose of neurotechnology, its use and implications. This needs input from a variety of groups, such as infrastructure specialists, designers, architects, human computer interaction specialists and community groups.</p>
<p>Neurotechnology is likely to have diverse impacts across society: in the home, the workplace, the criminal justice system and networks of infrastructure.</p>
<p>Teasing out the emerging issues across these different sectors should enable us to anticipate the harms and benefits of neurotechnology. This will allow us to shape its development to support humans and the environment. </p>
<p>To paraphrase the Borg: resistance may not be futile after all.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225382/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Allan McCay is a member of Standards Australia's Brain-computer interface committee.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simon Marvin does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Could the technology move beyond medical applications and into wide use?Simon Marvin, Director, Urban Institute, University of SheffieldAllan McCay, Academic Fellow, University of Sydney Law School, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2254092024-03-15T17:34:37Z2024-03-15T17:34:37ZElephant calves have been found buried – what does that mean?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581912/original/file-20240314-30-qjw8cc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A recent study by Indian scientists outlined cases of elephant burials. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/asian-baby-not-african-elephant-under-93598702">worradirek/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/mammals/elephant-graveyards">myth of elephant graveyards</a> has pervaded popular culture, and recent observations of buried Asian elephant calves may finally give that legend some credence. </p>
<p>In the research published in the <a href="https://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/article/view/8826">Journal of Threatened Taxa</a>, two scientists describe five instances where elephant calves have been found buried in a legs-upright position within irrigation trenches of tea plantations in northern Bengal, India. The authors argue that the unusual positioning, the surrounding ground being compacted by the feet of several elephants and injuries suggestive of dragging after death, all point to intentional burial practices. </p>
<p>If this conclusion is accurate, these observations could indicate an understanding of death and grief potentially unlike anything else we’ve seen in the animal kingdom, revealing yet another way in which <a href="https://theconversation.com/would-we-still-see-ourselves-as-human-if-other-hominin-species-hadnt-gone-extinct-166759">humans are not as unique</a> as previously thought. </p>
<p>Archaeological evidence suggests our hominid ancestors have been burying their dead for at least 100,000 years – <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2023/06/05/homo-naledi-burial/#">potentially much longer</a>. Burials are intriguing because of what they suggest about the minds of those doing the burying. For us – and presumably for our ancestors who started this practice – burial is not just about disposing of bodies, but an <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2018.0212">expression of grief</a> and an honouring of the life that has passed. </p>
<p>Across cultures, people put time and effort into the rituals of burial as a way of commemorating life. Burials are a clear indication of our sentience and empathy. Indeed, it is <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-the-point-of-grief-137665#:%7E:text=We%20grieve%20for%20the%20loss,which%20they%20were%20a%20part.">commonly believed</a> that our reactions to death signify humanity. To date, evidence of similar mental representations of death are scarce in other animal species, and despite a few anecdotes, no animal species has been found to systematically bury their dead in the ritualised way that we do. </p>
<h2>Are elephant burials intentional?</h2>
<p>It may be too early to cross burials off the uniquely human list. While the recent reports of calf burials are intriguing, these five burials were not directly observed, so questions remain. It is possible, for example, that dead or weak calves fell into the trenches as they were being carried, before the ensuing panic of the family caused the trench to collapse around the body. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1762664999728902598"}"></div></p>
<p>However, reports of burial are at least consistent with what we know about elephants’ acute reactions to death. Elephants have been observed carrying corpses of dead infants. They frequently show a <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsbl.2005.0400">change in behaviour as they approach a carcass of a family member or another individual</a>. </p>
<p>This response can involve silent investigating, sniffing and touching body parts with their head held low, perhaps trying to move or rouse the carcass, and on rare occasions, <a href="https://www.elephantvoices.org/elephant-sense-a-sociality-4/elephants-are-intelligent.html">placing mud or large palm fronds</a> over the bodies of dead relatives. This all likely amounts to what, in humans, we would recognise as grief or mourning. </p>
<h2>Understanding death</h2>
<p>Of course, elephants are not the only animals to show interesting reactions to dead associates. <a href="https://www.sciencefocus.com/nature/raven-crow-funerals-intelligence">Crows often gather around</a> and mob the carcass of another dead crow, in what has sometimes been called a funeral. This social gathering appears to provide the crows with an opportunity to learn about a danger to be avoided, lest they end up in the same state (as opposed to offering the chance to say goodbye in the traditional sense of funerals). </p>
<p>Even some social insects, such as ants, will clear away their dead. When ants detect certain chemicals released by dying or dead individuals in their colony, it induces them to <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2017.0258">remove the bodies</a> – and in a few species even to bury them – in order to limit the possibility of disease transfer. </p>
<p>However, as researchers that study animal behaviour and, more specifically, grief, we have no reason to assume this extraordinary “corpse management” behaviour means that the ants have any understanding of life or death. </p>
<p>In the 1950s, <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2009/04/01/102601823/hey-im-dead-the-story-of-the-very-lively-ant">biologist and entomologist E.O. Wilson</a> applied the critical chemical to live ants, causing nest mates to respond as they would to a dead animal. They tried to drag the unfortunate individual out of the nest and dumped them a safe distance away. </p>
<p>Similar responses to the chemicals of decay have been noted in rats, who bury others that have been dead for long enough to turn putrid. Like Wilson’s ants, they also try to bury anaesthetised – but still living – rats sprinkled with the signature scent of decomposition. They even try to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0031938481900482">bury wooden sticks</a> that have the same scent. Some social living animals are hard-wired to remove decaying items from their nest area. </p>
<p>These examples in rats and ants are clearly different to human burial, and to the mourning behaviour we see in elephants and several other species <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-the-grieving-mother-orca-tells-us-about-how-animals-experience-death-101230">including orcas</a>. </p>
<p>While the jury may still be out on whether or not elephants really choose to bury their dead, their emotional reactions to the death of family members or associates are undeniably extraordinary and deeply moving to observe. These reactions remain difficult to explain adequately without suggesting that elephants do have some kind of concept of death. </p>
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<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Recent reports of burials of elephant calves are intriguing but it’s impossible to confirm that this was intentional.Lucy A. Bates, Senior Lecturer in Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, University of PortsmouthLeanne Proops, Associate Professor in Animal Behaviour and Welfare, University of PortsmouthLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2250342024-03-15T13:31:59Z2024-03-15T13:31:59ZThe mystery of consciousness shows there may be a limit to what science alone can achieve<p>The progress of science in the last 400 years is mind-blowing. Who would have thought we’d be able to trace the history of our universe to its origins 14 billion years ago? Science has increased the length and the quality of our lives, and the technology that is commonplace in the modern world would have seemed like magic to our ancestors.</p>
<p>For all of these reasons and more, science is rightly celebrated and revered. However, a healthy pro-science attitude is not the same thing as <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780203703809-18/accept-scientism-rik-peels">“scientism”</a>, which is the view that the scientific method is the only way to establish truth. As the problem of consciousness <a href="https://theconversation.com/science-as-we-know-it-cant-explain-consciousness-but-a-revolution-is-coming-126143">is revealing</a>, there may be a limit to what we can learn through science alone.</p>
<p>Perhaps the most worked out form of scientism was the early 20th century movement knows as <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/logical-empiricism/">logical positivism</a>. The logical positivists signed up to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/verifiability-principle">“verification principle”</a>, according to which a sentence whose truth can’t be tested through observation and experiments was either logically trivial or meaningless gibberish. With this weapon, they hoped to dismiss all metaphysical questions as not merely false but nonsense. </p>
<p>These days, logical positivism is almost <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/vienna-circle/">universally rejected</a> by philosophers. For one thing, logical positivism is self-defeating, as the verification principle itself cannot be scientifically tested, and so can be true only if it’s meaningless. Indeed, something like this problem haunts all unqualified forms of scientism. There is no scientific experiment we could do to prove that scientism is true; and hence if scientism is true, then its truth cannot be established. </p>
<p>In spite of all of these deep problems, much of society assumes scientism to be true. Most people in the UK are totally unaware that “metaphysics” goes on in almost every philosophy department in the country. By metaphysics, philosophers don’t mean anything spooky or supernatural; this is just the technical term for philosophical, as opposed to scientific, enquiry into the nature of reality. </p>
<h2>Truth without science</h2>
<p>How is it possible to find out about reality without doing science? The distinguishing feature of philosophical theories is that they are “empirically equivalent”, which means you can’t decide between them with an experiment. </p>
<p>Take the example of my area of research: the philosophy of consciousness. Some philosophers think that consciousness emerges from physical processes in the brain – this is the “physicalist” position. Others think it’s the other way around: consciousness is primary, and the physical world emerges from consciousness. A version of this is the “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/dec/28/why-the-purpose-of-the-universe-by-philip-goff-review-a-real-poser#:%7E:text=In%20Why%3F%2C%20Philip%20Goff%2C,and%20the%20existence%20of%20value.">panpsychist</a>” view that consciousness goes all the way down to the fundamental building blocks of reality, with the word deriving from the two Greek words pan (all) and psyche (soul or mind).</p>
<p>Still others think that both consciousness and the physical world are fundamental but radically different – this is the view of the “dualist”. Crucially, you can’t distinguish between these views with an experiment, because, for any scientific data, each of the views will interpret that data in their own terms. </p>
<p>For example, suppose we discover scientifically that a certain form of brain activity is correlated with the conscious experience of an organism. The physicalist will interpret this as the form of organisation which turns non-conscious physical processes – such as electrical signals between brain cells – into conscious experience, whereas the panpsychist will interpret it as the form of organisation which unifies individual conscious particles into one larger conscious system. Thus we find two very different philosophical interpretations of the same scientific data.</p>
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<img alt="Image of the Large Hadron Collider at Cern." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581965/original/file-20240314-22-2a4unr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581965/original/file-20240314-22-2a4unr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=286&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581965/original/file-20240314-22-2a4unr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=286&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581965/original/file-20240314-22-2a4unr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=286&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581965/original/file-20240314-22-2a4unr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581965/original/file-20240314-22-2a4unr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581965/original/file-20240314-22-2a4unr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Are particles concious?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cern-european-organization-nuclear-research-where-1287557641">D-VISIONS/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>If we can’t work out which view is right with an experiment, how can we choose between them? In fact, the selection process is not so dissimilar from what we find in science. As well as appealing to experimental data, scientists also appeal to the theoretical virtues of a theory, for example how simple, elegant and unified it is.</p>
<p>Philosophers too can appeal to theoretical virtues in justifying their favoured position. For example, considerations of simplicity seems to count against the dualist theory of consciousness, which is less simple than its rivals in so far as it posits two kinds of fundamental stuff – physical stuff and consciousness – whereas physicalism and panpsychism are equally simple in positing just one kind of fundamental stuff (either physical stuff or consciousness). </p>
<p>It could also be that some theories are incoherent, but in subtle ways that require careful analysis to uncover. For example, I have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/dec/27/galileos-error-by-philip-goff-review">argued</a> that physicalist views of consciousness are incoherent (although – like much in philosophy – this is controversial). </p>
<p>There is no guarantee that these methods will yield a clear a winner. It could be that on certain philosophical issues, there are multiple, coherent, and equally simple rival theories, in which case we should be agnostic about which is correct. This would in itself be a significant philosophical finding concerning the limits of human knowledge. </p>
<p>Philosophy can be frustrating because there is so much disagreement. However, this is also true in many areas of science, such as history or economics. And there are some questions on which there is a <a href="https://survey2020.philpeople.org/">modest consensus</a>, for example, on the topic of free will.</p>
<p>A tendency to mix up philosophy with a growing anti-science movement undermines the united front against the real and harmful opposition to science we find in climate change denial and anti-vax conspiracies. </p>
<p>Like it or not, we can’t avoid philosophy. When we try to do so, all that happens is we end up with bad philosophy. The first line of Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow’s book <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/393369/the-grand-design-by-stephen-hawking-with-leonard-mlodinow/9780553819229">The Grand Design</a> boldly declared: “Philosophy is dead.” The book then went on to indulge in some incredibly crude philosophical discussions of free will and objectivity.</p>
<p>If I wrote a book making controversial pronouncements on particle physics, it’d be rightly ridiculed, as I haven’t been trained in the relevant skills, haven’t read the literature, and haven’t had my views in this area subject to peer scrutiny. And yet there are many examples of scientists lacking any philosophical training publishing very poor books on philosophical topics without it impacting their credibility. </p>
<p>This might be sounding bitter. But I genuinely believe society would be deeply enriched by becoming more informed about philosophy. I have hope that we will one day move on from this “scientistic” period of history, and understand the crucial role both science and philosophy have to play in the noble project of finding out what reality is like.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225034/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Philip Goff has received funding from the Templeton Foundation.</span></em></p>What if there’s no experiment to work out which theory of consciousness is correct?Philip Goff, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Durham UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2250362024-03-14T17:19:11Z2024-03-14T17:19:11ZIs it ethical to watch AI pornography?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580230/original/file-20240306-30-un3efx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=79%2C88%2C5811%2C3850&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/mobile-addict-man-using-smartphone-browsing-2391001945">Lysenko Andrii/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you’re in your 20s and 30s, you probably watch pornography. Millennials and gen Z are <a href="https://www.lelo.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/UK-Sex-Census-2023.pdf">watching more</a> pornography than any other age group and are also <a href="https://www.lelo.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/UK-Sex-Census-2023.pdf">more likely</a> than any other demographic to experiment with AI pornography. </p>
<p>As technology advances, AI-generated tools and techniques are becoming increasingly sophisticated and accessible. This can lead to unethical content, including deepfakes – videos in which a person’s face is replaced with someone
else’s likeness, without their consent. Social media platform X (formerly Twitter) recently faced a scandal when it became awash with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/jan/31/inside-the-taylor-swift-deepfake-scandal-its-men-telling-a-powerful-woman-to-get-back-in-her-box">deepfakes of Taylor Swift</a>.</p>
<p>But what about other kinds of AI pornographic content? How can consuming it affect you, and how can you make sure that you’re consuming it ethically? I’m a sex and relationship therapist, so I’m interested in helping clients with various sexual issues, including porn consumption problems. I am also curious about the ways AI could be used positively to create pornography that is not only ethical, but educational and sexy at the same time.</p>
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<img alt="Quarter life, a series by The Conversation" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em><strong><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/quarter-life-117947?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">This article is part of Quarter Life</a></strong>, a series about issues affecting those of us in our 20s and 30s. From the challenges of beginning a career and taking care of our mental health, to the excitement of starting a family, adopting a pet or just making friends as an adult. The articles in this series explore the questions and bring answers as we navigate this turbulent period of life.</em></p>
<p><em>You may be interested in:</em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/what-you-should-know-about-coming-out-as-lgbtq-in-your-20s-and-30s-223910?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">What you should know about coming out as LGBTQ+ in your 20s and 30s</a></em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/the-problems-with-dating-apps-and-how-they-could-be-fixed-two-relationship-experts-discuss-218401?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">The problems with dating apps and how they could be fixed – two relationship experts discuss</a></em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/why-you-might-start-to-hate-the-influencers-you-once-loved-222659?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">Why you might start to hate the influencers you once loved</a></em></p>
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<h2>The impact of watching AI porn</h2>
<p>While it’s perfectly normal to be curious about sex, watching a lot of pornography can affect your <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/8/7/914">sexual satisfaction</a> – and AI porn is no different. You might, for example, start comparing your partner to the hyper-realistic, but impossibly perfect, digitally generated actors of AI porn. </p>
<p>Already, <a href="https://akjournals.com/view/journals/2006/5/2/article-p179.xml">research</a> suggests that men who frequently watch online porn may experience erectile dysfunction. This could be due to the idealised unrealistic portrayals in pornography compared to real-life sexual encounters. AI pornography would likely only exacerbate this, with AI porn avatars able to participate in sex acts that wouldn’t be possible, or as accessible, for real people. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Young asian woman lying in bed lit by glow of her phone" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581005/original/file-20240311-20-jwbnkx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581005/original/file-20240311-20-jwbnkx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581005/original/file-20240311-20-jwbnkx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581005/original/file-20240311-20-jwbnkx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581005/original/file-20240311-20-jwbnkx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581005/original/file-20240311-20-jwbnkx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581005/original/file-20240311-20-jwbnkx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Research has found that watching porn can help some women to overcome shame.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/search/woman-phone-bed">TORWAISTUDIO/Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Among women who watch porn, opinions vary. Some women have <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0092623X.2021.1885532">noted</a> positive changes, including a reduction in the shame associated with sexual pleasure. But others have expressed reservations about the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/328265584_Is_Women%27s_Problematic_Pornography_Viewing_Related_to_Body_Image_or_Relationship_Satisfaction">beauty standards</a> in pornography, finding them unattainable. </p>
<p>This stance is very much shared by <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277539500000777?via=ihub#BIB30">anti-porn campaigners</a>, who claim that porn degrades and objectifies women. They believe it feeds into ideas of male supremacy, potentially leading to <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/342907785_A_Descriptive_Analysis_of_the_Types_Targets_and_Relative_Frequency_of_Aggression_in_Mainstream_Pornography/link/5f21c47b299bf134049257f8/download">violence against women</a>. </p>
<h2>Regulating AI pornography</h2>
<p>The roles women are given within mainstream pornography often portray a different power imbalance than, for example, gay male porn. For this article, I spoke to porn actor John Thomas. He argued that gay male porn was somewhat more ethical than mainstream straight porn which is [made for men to consume]. “Both roles in a gay scene might be appreciated by the viewer, rather than the pure objectification of the woman in a straight scene.”</p>
<p>One of the many concerns with unregulated AI-generated pornography is that it can distort a viewer’s sense of reality, leading to misinformation, unrealistic expectations around sex and potential harm. However, since the moral landscape surrounding ethical AI porn is a grey area, we are pushed into uncharted territory. As new technology emerges, new challenges arise.</p>
<p>To ensure <a href="https://www.redalyc.org/pdf/3230/323047487009.pdf">responsible</a> innovation within the adult entertainment industry, it’s essential to be aware of AI’s ongoing <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7296407/">integration</a> into our daily lives. For example, risks could be mitigated by training AI systems to recognise deepfakes, violence or child pornography. </p>
<p>For actors in the adult entertainment industry working pre-AI, consent has always been key. I asked John Thomas about best practice in the industry: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>When working for a porn studio [as a freelance worker], I sign a contract which typically includes clauses relating to rights to my image – usually I am signing to give the studio the right to use, and alter, my image [from the photos or video created] and distribute it. AI is not specified in any contract I’ve signed.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But since AI porn is expected to become more mainstream, the topic of consent becomes more ambiguous. As John Thomas adds: “I think one could interpret the contract to include AI … the contracts are written in such an expansive way that, having signed away the rights to your image, and consent to your image being altered, it could [hypothetically be used in AI].”</p>
<h2>How to be an ethical porn consumer</h2>
<p>Just as there are fair trade brands known for their ethical practices in producing coffee and clothing, there should be a safe space for consumers to explore their sexuality and fantasies. </p>
<p>As a porn viewer, you can be more ethical in your consumption by becoming <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00224499.2018.1556238">porn literate</a>, improving your understanding of realistic sexual expectations, gender identities, sexual orientations, relationship styles, kinks and ethical BDSM practices. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A gay couple in bed together, looking happily at a phone" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581293/original/file-20240312-16-wqqfqo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581293/original/file-20240312-16-wqqfqo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581293/original/file-20240312-16-wqqfqo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581293/original/file-20240312-16-wqqfqo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581293/original/file-20240312-16-wqqfqo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581293/original/file-20240312-16-wqqfqo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581293/original/file-20240312-16-wqqfqo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">It’s good to talk about your porn preferences with your partner.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/affectionate-gay-couple-watching-content-online-2233406561">Lomb/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>And if you decide you want to watch AI porn and want to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1363460720936475">minimise</a> the risk of consuming unethical content, here are some tips to help enhance your porn literacy skills: </p>
<p>• consider joining online communities where discussions about <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1363460720936475?icid=int.sj-full-text.citing-articles.43">“feminist porn”</a> and sexualised content are open and encouraged</p>
<p>• if you are a fan of a particular porn actor, consider following them on social media. This will provide you with some insights into their performance activities and their preferred ways for you to access their content </p>
<p>• when coming across porn sites, take a moment to assess if they are recognised for ethical production practices. Some <a href="https://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/handle/2123/30093">established sites</a> are known for their commitment to ethical pornography. Typically, the ethical emphasis will revolve around aspects such as production standards, consent, representation of diverse body types, genders and races, portrayal of safe sexual practices and prioritising the enjoyment of all involved</p>
<p>• keep in mind the difference between fantasies and real sexual encounters when watching porn. Remember that what you see online may not translate to real life</p>
<p>• keep a close eye on your porn consumption. If you sense it’s becoming overwhelming, or impacting your daily life or sexual experiences, don’t be ashamed. Seek support from a professional, such as a sex therapist.</p>
<hr>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225036/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chantal Gautier does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>People in their 20s and 30s are more likely than any other age group to experiment with AI pornography.Chantal Gautier, Lecturer, Sex and Relationship Therapist, University of WestminsterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2249842024-03-14T13:28:28Z2024-03-14T13:28:28ZGhostbots: AI versions of deceased loved ones could be a serious threat to mental health<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580740/original/file-20240308-29-sis8wp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=5%2C26%2C3565%2C2350&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/female-face-matrix-digital-numbers-artifical-2268966863">Alena Ivochkina/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>We all experience loss and grief. Imagine, though, that you don’t need to say goodbye to your loved ones. That you can recreate them virtually so you can have conversations and find out how they’re feeling. </p>
<p>For Kim Kardashian’s fortieth birthday, her then husband, Kanye West, gave her a hologram of her <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-54731382">dead father</a>, Robert Kardashian. Reportedly, Kim Kardashian reacted with disbelief and joy to the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/oct/30/robert-kardashian-resurrected-as-a-hologram-for-kim-kardashian-wests-birthday">virtual appearance</a> of her father at her birthday party. Being able to see a long-dead, much missed loved one, moving and talking again might offer comfort to those left behind. </p>
<p>After all, resurrecting a deceased loved one might seem miraculous – and possibly more than a little creepy – but what’s the impact on our health? Are AI ghosts a help or hindrance to the grieving process? </p>
<p>As a psychotherapist researching how AI technology can be used to enhance therapeutic interventions, I’m intrigued by the advent of ghostbots. But I’m also more than a little concerned about the potential effects of this technology on the mental health of those using it, especially those who are grieving. Resurrecting dead people as avatars has the potential to cause more harm than good, perpetuating even more confusion, stress, depression, paranoia and, in some cases, psychosis.</p>
<p>Recent developments in artificial intelligence (AI) have led to the creation of ChatGPT and other chatbots that can allow users to have sophisticated human like conversations.</p>
<p>Using deep fake technology, AI software can create an <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0267364924000104">interactive virtual representation</a> of a deceased person by using their <a href="https://wired.me/technology/artificial-intelligence/why-scientists-are-building-ai-powered-digital-imprints-of-the-dead/">digital content</a> such as photographs, emails, and videos. </p>
<p>Some of these creations were just themes in science fiction fantasy only a few years ago but now they are a scientific reality. </p>
<h2>Help or hindrance?</h2>
<p><a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12124-022-09679-3">Digital ghosts</a> could <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/10/18/1061320/digital-clones-of-dead-people/">be a comfort</a> to the bereaved by helping them to reconnect with lost loved ones. They could provide an opportunity for the user to say some things or ask questions they never got a chance to when the now deceased person was alive. </p>
<p>But the ghostbots’ uncanny resemblance to a lost loved one <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2416079-resurrecting-loved-ones-as-ai-ghosts-could-harm-your-mental-health/">may not be</a> as positive as it sounds. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10676-024-09744-y">Research suggests</a> that deathbots should be used only as a temporary <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12124-022-09679-3">aid to mourning</a> to avoid potentially harmful emotional dependence on the technology.</p>
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<p>AI ghosts could be harmful for people’s mental health by interfering with the <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg26034650-700-how-ai-avatars-of-the-deceased-could-transform-the-way-we-grieve/">grief process</a>. </p>
<p>Grief takes time and there are many <a href="https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/grieving-process#:%7E:text=They%20include%20shock%2C%20denial%2C%20anger,them%20cope%20in%20various%20ways.">different stages</a> that can take place over many years. When newly bereaved, those experiencing grief might think of their deceased loved one frequently. They might freshly recall old memories and it is quite common for a grieving person <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23449603/">to dream</a> more intensely about their lost loved one. </p>
<p>The psychoanalyst <a href="https://tidsskriftet.no/en/2020/03/essay/dynamics-grief-and-melancholia">Sigmund Freud</a> was concerned with how human beings respond to the experience of loss. He pointed out potential added difficulties for those grieving if there’s negativity surrounding a death. </p>
<p>For example, if a person had ambivalent feelings towards someone and they died, the person could be left with a sense of guilt. Or if a person died in <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00749/full">horrific circumstances</a> such as a murder, a grieving person might find it more difficult to accept it this. </p>
<p>Freud referred to this as “melancholia”, but it can also be referred to as <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15524256.2020.1745726">“complicated grief”</a>. In some extreme cases, a person may experience apparitions <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1363461520962887">and hallucinate</a> that they see the dead person and begin to believe they are alive. AI ghostbots could further traumatise someone experiencing complicated grief and may exacerbate associated problems such as hallucinations.</p>
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<h2>Chatbot horror</h2>
<p>There are also risks that these ghost-bots could say harmful things or give bad advice to someone in mourning. Similar generative software such as ChatGPT chatbots are already widely criticised for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/08/technology/ai-chatbots-disinformation.html">giving misinformation</a> to users. </p>
<p>Imagine if the AI technology went rogue and started to make <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/16/technology/bing-chatbot-microsoft-chatgpt.html">inappropriate remarks</a> to the user – a situation experienced by journalist <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/16/technology/bing-chatbot-transcript.html">Kevin Roose</a> in 2023 when a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/17/insider/ai-chatbots-humans-hallucinate.html#:%7E:text=On%20Valentine's%20Day%20this%20year,him%20to%20leave%20his%20wife.">Bing chatbot</a> tried to get him to leave his wife. It would be very hurtful if a deceased father was conjured up as an AI ghost by a son or daughter to hear comments that they weren’t loved or liked or weren’t their father’s favourite. </p>
<p>Or, in a more extreme scenario, if the ghostbot suggested the user join them in death or they should kill or harm someone. This may sound like a plot from a horror film but it’s not so far fetched. In 2023, the UK’s <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-66224052">Labour party</a> outlined a law to prevent the training of AI to incite violence. </p>
<p>This was a response to the attempted assassination of the Queen earlier in the year by a man who was encouraged by his chatbot girlfriend, with whom he had an “<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-66123122">emotional and sexual</a>” relationship.</p>
<p>The creators of ChatGPT currently acknowledge that the software makes errors and is still <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ai-platforms-like-chatgpt-are-easy-to-use-but-also-potentially-dangerous/">not fully reliable</a> because it fabricates information. Who knows how a person’s texts, emails or videos will be interpreted and what content will be generated by this AI technology? </p>
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<p>In any event, it appears that no matter how far this technology advances, there will be a need for considerable oversight and human supervision.</p>
<h2>Forgetting is healthy</h2>
<p>This latest tech says a lot about our digital culture of infinite possibilities with no limits.</p>
<p>Data can be stored on the cloud indefinitely and everything is retrievable and nothing truly deleted or destroyed. Forgetting is an important element of healthy grief but in order to forget, people will need to find new and meaningful ways of remembering the deceased person.</p>
<p>Anniversaries play a key role in helping those who are mourning to not only remember lost loved ones, but they are also opportunities to <a href="https://scholarlypublishingcollective.org/psup/speculative-philosophy/article-abstract/34/3/284/196788/Grief-Phantoms-and-Re-membering-Loss">represent the loss</a> in new ways. Rituals and symbols can mark the end of something that can allow humans to properly remember in order to properly forget.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224984/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nigel Mulligan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>AI ghosts, the recreation of digital versions of the dead, may sound like a wonderful idea to those dealing with the pain of loss but this technology could seriously disrupt the grieving processNigel Mulligan, Assistant Professor in Psychotherapy, School of Nursing, Psychotherapy and Community Health, Dublin City UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2255962024-03-13T15:03:15Z2024-03-13T15:03:15ZIt’s a myth that male animals are usually larger than females – new study<p>Males are bigger than females, right? Generally, this is true of humans – imagine the extremes of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and singer Kylie Minogue. It is also true of other familiar mammals including pets, such as cats and dogs, and livestock such as sheep and cows.</p>
<p>But <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-45739-5">a new study</a> by US scientist Kaia Tombak and colleagues found that, in many mammal species, males are not larger than females. In fact, in a comparison of 429 species in the wild, 50% of species including rodents and some bats – which make up <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/04/of-rats-and-bats-hundreds-of-mammal-species-still-unidentified-study-says/">a large proportion</a> of all mammal species – showed no difference in body size between the sexes. Male-biased size dimorphism (where males are larger than females) was found in only 28% of mammal species.</p>
<p>So, why do a lot of people have a misconception that males are normally larger than females? </p>
<p><a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/students-page/160/">Anisogamy</a> is the term used to describe the difference in sex cells – small, numerous, sperm, compared to relatively large eggs. Males can produce sperm throughout most of their lifespan, whereas females are born with a finite number of eggs. Therefore, females (or rather, their eggs), are a scare resource for which males compete for access. Generally, in species where females are a limited resource that males need to fight over, males are larger than females.</p>
<p>In terms of evolution, most males have been shaped to be larger, bolder, heavier, more adorned and have more weaponry than females. This is due to males fighting to acquire females – a larger stag with bigger antlers would do much better in a fight, <a href="https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-%20facts/mammals/understand-the-british-deer-rut">known as a rut</a>, than a small stag with tiny antlers. So, bigger usually wins.</p>
<p>This includes species such as lions and baboons, where size is an advantage when competing physically for mates. Male northern elephant seals, who fight for access to harems of females, show the largest male-biased size dimorphism, being over 3.2 times heavier than females. These are the animals that tend to attract research</p>
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<h2>The strange world of fish</h2>
<p>But, what happens in species where males don’t fight for access to females? Generally, females are larger than males. This is because larger females usually produce more offspring. Indeed, Tombak’s study noted that larger female rabbits usually have multiple litters each mating season. Being a larger female is much more advantageous in terms of reproductive success. But more so when offspring do not need extended parental care and when gestation periods are short.</p>
<p>The most extreme sexual size dimorphism is found outside of mammals. Cichlid fish (<em>Lamprologus callipterus</em>) males are up to 60 times larger than females. The males protect empty snail shells for the females to breed in. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12038-010-0030-6">Larger females</a> can produce more offspring but they need larger shells and therefore a larger male to defend those shells.</p>
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<p>In mammals, the largest female-biased size dimorphism is found in peninsular tube-nosed bats, where females are 1.4 times the size of males. However, more dimorphism in body size is seen in fish, reptiles and insects. For example, the female orb-weaving spider (<em>Nephila plumipes</em>) has a much larger body size than the male, reaching up to ten times his size. Size dimorphism also shows a correlation with cannibalism, where larger females are more likely to eat their male partner.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Large spider and small one in a web" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/581306/original/file-20240312-22-e1nldo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A female golden orb weaving spider and the smaller male.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-photograph-female-golden-orb-weaving-1692871246">Cassandra Madsen/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Anglerfish that typically live at the bottom of oceans, are an example of extreme sexual dimorphism in body size. While the females look like typical fish, the males are tiny, basic organisms. In order to survive, the male needs to fuse with a female, tapping into her nutrients to produce enough sperm to fertilise her. Female deep-sea anglerfish (<em>Ceratias
holboelli</em>) are <a href="https://www.livescience.com/49330-animal-sex-anglerfish.html">60 times longer</a> and half a million times heavier than males.</p>
<p>But, the most extreme sexual size dimorphism is found in rhizocephala, types of barnacle where the male looks like a larvae. Once a male finds a mate, he <a href="https://www.wired.com/2015/07/absurd-creature-of-the-week-rhizocephalan/">inserts himself into the females</a>, transforming into nothing more than a mass of cells.</p>
<h2>What about mammals?</h2>
<p>So, why isn’t sexual size dimorphism seen in more mammals? Mammals tend to have fewer offspring than other species such as fish or spiders. They only have a few offspring at a time, and often have long gestation periods or extended periods of parental care. In addition, the majority of mammals are monogamous, so there is less need for males to fight over females. That’s why species such as lemurs, golden moles, horses, zebra and tenrecs, usually have similar sized males and females.</p>
<p>It is thought that biases in the scientific literature may have led to the misconception that males are normally bigger as research historically focused on <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/discover/our_focus/wildlife_practice/flagship_keystone_indicator_definition/">species considered “charismatic”</a>, such as primates and carnivores, that attract funding. These are some of the few mammalian species where males compete for mates, and so gain an evolutionary advantage if they are larger. </p>
<p>There was also a bias of <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/science-and-technology/2019/10/once-most-famous-scientists-were-men-thats-changing">male scientists</a> conducting research. And, although a study in 1977 <a href="https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/epdf/10.1086/283223">by a female scientist</a> found that species with little sexual size dimorphism were frequent in mammals, the research was drowned out by studies on charismatic species with a bias towards large males. Perhaps if there had been more female scientists at the time, we might have had a different preconception about body size in the animal kingdom.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225596/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Louise Gentle works for Nottingham Trent University. </span></em></p>Does size matter? In the animal kingdom, yes.Louise Gentle, Principal Lecturer in Wildlife Conservation, Nottingham Trent UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2249122024-03-13T12:28:23Z2024-03-13T12:28:23ZWhy Biden is investing in influencers to help with this year’s election<p>Move over Taylor Swift. You’re not the only one with crowds of worshipping fans who can <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bill-maher-taylor-swift-biden-trump-presidential-election-super-bowl-2024-2">tip the 2024 election</a>. </p>
<p>Mega-celebrities like singers, athletes and Hollywood stars get the <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jleo/article-abstract/29/2/355/914869">bulk of the attention</a> when it comes to their coveted political endorsements. But this year, it’s the online influencers who candidates, including President Joe Biden, are increasingly looking to court. </p>
<p>Social media personalities on platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram boast hundreds of thousands, and sometimes millions, of followers. These content creators <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8872418/">bankroll their curated lifestyles</a> by marketing everything from lipstick to watches. </p>
<p>The appeal of these influencers in the political sphere is obvious. Many have built up <a href="http://www.promotionalcommunications.org/index.php/pc/article/view/136">vast, admiring audiences</a>. They’ve developed close, intimate relationships that can be leveraged. Their word means something to their followers, whether that’s promoting a L'Oreal eyeliner, or a presidential ticket. </p>
<p>If <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2019/04/youre-about-spend-so-much-money-instagram/588373/#:%7E:text=The%20platform%20is%20allowing%20influencers,users%20directly%20through%20their%20posts.&text=Ever%20since%20Instagram%20first%20allowed,are%20getting%20their%20product%20recommendations.">“Instagram is the new mall”</a>, it might soon also be the new epicentre of political campaigning, particularly because influencers have a lot of credibility with young people. And, Biden needs young voters to turn out for him, particularly as polling suggests that <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/articles/for-biden-youth-vote-polling-is-a-warning-not-the-apocalypse/">young Republicans</a> may be more enthusiastic about Trump than young Democrats about Biden. </p>
<p>Biden recently <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/7fb6177c-30b7-4f30-b7ac-de89398ea350">rolled out the red carpet</a> at the White House for hundreds of influencers including actor Kalen Allen and artist Devon Rodriguez, hoping to persuade them to join his cadre of digital assets. Rodriguez has 9 million Instagram followers and Allen 2 million. Trump, too, has been cosy with conservative influencers <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-hosts-conservative-influencers-libs-tik-tok-babylon-bee-dinner-rcna67396">such as the head of “Libs of Tik Tok”</a> and Seth Dillon of Babylon Bee, a Christian news satire website.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee has constructed an online organising hub that reporter Makena Kelly <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2022/8/9/23298040/dnc-democrats-midterms-elections-tiktok-instagram-influencers">has described as</a> a “destination for influencers, surrogates, and supporters to receive party-sponsored talking points, messaging, and a wide variety of digital content to post on their own social media feeds”.</p>
<p>There are reports that the influential <a href="https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2024/01/biden-campaign-social-media-influencers-00136389">Democrat political action committee (Pac) Priorities USA</a> is paying US$1 million (£782,000) to around 150 influencers to encourage the publishing of pro-Biden posts. Pacs raise money for candidates independent of official campaigns and then spend cash to bolster their preferred candidates. </p>
<p>The rise of influencers in American politics marks the latest evolution in a stream of technological innovations adapted by candidates, from Barack Obama’s early embrace of the internet <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2008/nov/07/barackobama-uselections2008">and Facebook</a> in 2008 to Trump’s unvarished, shoot-from-the-hip <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/06/us/politics/donald-trump-twitter-use-campaign-2016.html">communication on Twitter</a> in 2016.</p>
<p>Influencers, however, largely promise to be more subtle, more discreet, and more subliminal than conventional actors involved in electioneering. In fact, trend forecasters have suggested that not being in-your-face and overtly partisan can be the key to perceived <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2021/aug/12/being-too-aspirational-is-repellent-now-the-rise-of-the-genuinfluencers">“genuineness”</a>. </p>
<p>A Biden-Harris bumper sticker that “just happens” to find its way into the backdrop of a YouTube clip touting the health benefits of kale smoothies. An “off the cuff” reference to Trump’s plans to strip abortion rights amid a product review for the latest Chanel handbag. It’s not just about parroting back formal campaign slogans. </p>
<h2>Issues with influencers</h2>
<p>The use of influencers in politics raises big legal, ethical and policy quandaries. </p>
<p>Influencers are generally <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/plain-language/1001a-influencer-guide-508_1.pdf">required</a> by the US Federal Trade Commission to disclose any sponsorships and financial gain from sales. Yet the legal landscape surrounding political influencers is still inchoate, and many critics say that politicians and Pacs exploit influencers to circumvent campaign finance laws. </p>
<p>The US Federal Election Commission has <a href="https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/3881167-will-the-fec-finally-rein-in-political-influencers-on-social-media/">failed to offer regulatory clarity</a> regarding the rules that apply to influencers in campaigns. Additionally, while some social media companies like Facebook actually <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-socialmedia-sponsored/from-facebook-to-tiktok-u-s-political-influencers-are-paid-for-posts-idUSKBN27E1T9/">paused political ads</a> in the days immediately preceding the 2020 election, influencers were left untouched. </p>
<p>The possible problems don’t stop there. </p>
<p>Communications researchers Katie Joseff and Samuel C. Woolley, for example, have <a href="https://mediaengagement.org/research/social-media-influencers-and-the-2020-election/">argued</a> that the hiring of influencers in politics “amounts to a new and growing form of ‘inorganic’ information operations — elite-dictated propaganda through trusted social media spokespersons”.</p>
<p>Even worse, they say, top-down “propaganda from influencers are better able to evade detection systems built to detect political bots and sockpuppets and to defy regulators concerned with digital free speech”. </p>
<p>There’s <a href="https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/jep.31.2.211">no shortage of consternation</a> about foreign nations and organisations, especially the Kremlin, wielding disinformation to meddle in US elections. While domestic influencers may not have nefarious aims, social media followers may be impressionable in thinking political endorsements are authentic. </p>
<p>The desire to court influencers might even distort public policy. As writer Katie Harbath has <a href="https://anchorchange.substack.com/p/will-2024-be-the-influencer-election">observed</a>, when it comes to debates like whether to ban TikTok over privacy or national security concerns: “Democrats are in a tricky spot because they want access to the younger user base that the app has but also recognise the challenges with the app.”</p>
<h2>Can influencers swing elections?</h2>
<p>If the name “influencer” implies anything, the answer is yes — at least on the margins. While rigorous, experimental evidence <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/20563051231177938">is hard to come by</a>, and the trend in politics is relatively new, it’s clear that Americans who increasingly <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/11/15/news-trends-social/">get much of their news from digital sources</a> are <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-social-media-makes-us-more-polarized-and-how-to-fix-it/">shaped by online content</a>. </p>
<p>People First, a firm that specialises in influencer partnerships, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/02/us/elections/influencers-political-ads-tiktok-instagram.html">has found</a>, for example, that more than 40% of people surveyed “trusted influencers more than political campaigns themselves”. </p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, influencers are likely to disproportionately sway <a href="https://academic.oup.com/poq/article-abstract/85/2/725/6294224?redirectedFrom=fulltext">youth voters, who tend to lean Democrat</a>. Gen-Z and young millenial voters could turn out at higher rates as a result. </p>
<p>In a 2024 election that’s likely to be decided by razor-thin margins in a handful of swing states, influencers could be influential. Biden, especially, can’t afford to lose the youth vote that supported <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/articles/for-biden-youth-vote-polling-is-a-warning-not-the-apocalypse/">Democrats at high rates in the 2022 midterms</a>. </p>
<p>Conspiracy theorists who think that Taylor Swift is a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/02/02/taylor-swift-kelce-conspiracy-tariffs-immigration/">CIA asset aiming to upend American politics</a> are looking in the wrong place. For evidence of a more disruptive (and, potentially corruptible) form of politics, they need only fire up social media.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224912/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thomas Gift does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Polling suggests young Republicans may be more enthusiastic about Trump, than young Democrats are about Biden.Thomas Gift, Associate Professor and Director of the Centre on US Politics, UCLLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.