Roundup: May 9, 2023
AI is not making my life easier
Like so many writers, I am terrified of artificial intelligence, especially because it threatens to destroy the core of my income. And, like so many writers, I am intrigued by artificial intelligence because it may simplify my life.
I’ve been wading in. I downloaded HyperWrite, which offers predictive text for emails and word processing. The suggestions are good about a third of the time, so: not quite there.
I’ve tried using Chat GPT to help with research. I am working on a project about day trading, and I asked for a list of 10 current topics on the subject. Six of the responses were good, giving me a nice head start on brainstorming.
When I wrote last week’s newsletter issue about psychosis in the elderly, I asked Chat GPT for a list of academic articles with links. The list was decent. Many of the links were broken, but when I did a little Googling, I was able to find a paper with a similar title. Given that academic papers often change title between the working paper and publication stage, that didn’t surprise me. It was so much easier than doing a literature search on JSTOR that I thought I had discovered an amazing new resource.
Then, I asked Chat GPT for a list of academic articles with links on corporate philanthropy and shareholder returns for another project. The items it came back with are so perfect. I couldn’t believe that I didn’t know about them already!
For example:
1. "Corporate Philanthropy: How Giving Back Can Benefit Your Business." Entrepreneur, 25 Mar. 2021, https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/368409.
2. "Why Corporate Social Responsibility Matters." Forbes, 18 Feb. 2021, https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleystahl/2021/02/18/why-corporate-social-responsibility-matters/?sh=3e91e1c8d0a8.
3. "The Benefits of Corporate Social Responsibility." Harvard Business Review, 19 Nov. 2019, https://hbr.org/2019/11/the-business-case-for-corporate-philanthropy.
4. "Corporate Giving: Why It Matters and What Works." Stanford Social Innovation Review, 25 Feb. 2021, https://ssir.org/articles/entry/corporate_giving_why_it_matters_and_what_works.
5. "The Business Case for Corporate Philanthropy." McKinsey & Company, 25 Feb. 2019, https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/the-business-case-for-corporate-philanthropy.
Here’s the thing: NONE of these articles exist. They are all fake. Fake titles, fake links. Chat GPT couldn’t find actual articles, so it made up ones that seemed close.
I’m still experimenting. Meanwhile, I learned about the concept of the new dark age (affiliate link), a concept by author James Brindle. He argues that technology will make it so hard to tell reality from fantasy that humans will lose trust in basically everything, causing society to deteriorate. Terrifying, huh?
The links below all work.
Things to Read
Gen X and Retirement: Apparently, Generation X isn’t rushing to retire, thanks to debt burdens and the need to care for multiple generations of relatives. (BBC News)
Life with Bangs: I’m bored and actually considered getting bangs last week. Someone stop me. (The New Yorker)
No Cars: Want to get out of driving? Here’s a list of communities in the US where cars are not allowed. Of course, you have to find a way to get to these towns. (DailyPassport.com)
Things to Do
Pushups: They are good exercise! This is a workout plan with the goal of getting you up to 100 pushups. I’ve done it a few times. I’ve never made it to 100, but I can do more pushups that you might think. (HundredPushups.com)
Things to Watch
Finding Your Why: Ted Talker extraordinaire Simon Sinek discusses how to have purpose and mission in difficult times. (Ted.com)
Margaret: As if you had any doubt? SEE THIS MOVIE.