“Put that phone away!” Most parents have yelled something similar to this at their children, usually resulting in a shocked look on the child’s face.
In recent years, the spread of smartphones and social media has led us to spend more time in front of screens. Children are no exception. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant increase in children’s screen time due to lockdowns and school closures.
There are many frightening claims about excessive screen time for children and teens: that it harms their mental health, leading to depression, eating disorders and even suicide; that it cuts into time they could be spending on socializing and exercise, making them feel lonely and less physically fit; and more. In short, the fear is that spending too much time on digital devices is ruining our children’s lives, with the tech companies who design the apps that keep us hooked being complicit. It’s no wonder that governments around the world are considering restricting screen time for under-18s.
Yet a closer look at the evidence does not support this overwhelmingly negative view. This does not mean that the tech giants are harmless and that further regulation is not needed. But it does mean that we need to think more carefully about what healthy screen time looks like for young people, and how we can make the online world the most accessible to them. So here is your guide to what we actually know about the impact of screens and social media.
One thing is clear in this complex field: children and young people, like the rest of us, spend a lot of time in front of screens.
Analysis of millions of tweets shows the changing meaning of the word “bot”
Svet foto/Shutterstock
Calling someone a bot on social media once meant suspecting they were in fact software, but now the use of the word is evolving into an insult for known human users, researchers say.
Many efforts to detect social media bots use algorithms that attempt to identify behavioral patterns that are more typical of the traditional meaning of a bot: automated accounts controlled by a computer, but their accuracy remains questionable.
“Recent research has focused on detecting social bots, which is a problem in itself because of the ground truthing issues,” he said. Dennis Assenmacher The Leibniz Institute for Social Sciences in Cologne, Germany, said it was unclear whether the findings were accurate.
To investigate, Assenmacher and his colleagues looked at how users perceive bots: They looked at how the word “bot” was used on Twitter between 2007 and December 2022 (the social network was renamed X in 2023 after being acquired by Elon Musk), analyzing the words that appeared next to it in more than 22 million English-language tweets.
The researchers found that before 2017, the term was often used in conjunction with allegations of automated behavior, such as “software,” “scripts,” or “machines,” the kinds of things that traditionally fit the definition of a bot. Since that year, that usage has changed.
“The accusation has now become like an insult, it’s used to dehumanize people, it’s used to denigrate people’s intelligence, it’s used to deny them their right to participate in the conversation,” Assenmacher said.
The cause of this change is unclear, but Assenmacher said it may be political in nature. The researchers looked at the accounts of prominent people, such as politicians and journalists, that each Twitter user followed, and classified users as left- or right-leaning. They found that left-leaning users were more likely to accuse other users of being bots, and that those who were accused were more likely to be right-leaning.
“One possible explanation is that the media has reported that right-wing bot networks [2016] “The US elections,” Assenmacher said, “but this is just speculation and needs to be confirmed.”
If anything symbolizes the end of Twitter, it’s the rise and fall of Oprah Winfrey’s account.
Oprah joined the platform in 2009. First time tweeting Live from her popular TV show “HI TWITTERS. Thank you for the warm welcome. It feels very 21st century.”
Queensland University of Technology Digital Media Research Center Professor Axel Brands said it was a “landmark moment” for the platform.
“That was really the moment when the numbers skyrocketed.”
Oprah still has an account under the renamed X with 41.7 million followers. But since November 2022, a month after Elon Musk’s acquisition of the site was completed, she posted: Just once – In January 2023, she told Chelsea Clinton that she was “still laughing so hard 😂” about Clinton accidentally wearing two different black shoes at an event.
Debate over X reignited last week after the Australian government took the platform to court to force it to remove a video of a Sydney bishop allegedly being stabbed while leading a church service.
Company X says it complied with the order to delete the footage of the stabbing (though, ironically, just below the post announcing its compliance is a comment saying someone had shared the full graphic video) Musk has been harshly critical of Australia’s request to delete the footage. We asked Mr. X for comment.
But as debate intensifies over what responsibility social media platforms have to stop the spread of violent or extremist content, other questions are emerging. “What is Twitter/X anymore?”
What happened to the site, once a staple of the news cycle and political debate, now increasingly abandoned by those who once religiously followed it?
The beginning: “Utopian vision”
A former Twitter Australia employee, who requested anonymity, said Twitter had lofty goals in its early days.
“I think it was definitely a utopian vision at the time. Like many of these founders, they really thought they were disruptors and creating a space for real public debate. “I was thinking about it,” she says. “I think people really enjoyed it at the time. It was a very fast-moving, innovative platform where you could get the latest news and follow and connect with people you really admired. Even in the early days, it always had parts of it as a toxic swamp, but not entirely.”
“It had a social profile,” she says. “Remember when everyone was obsessed with the existence of blue ticks and pretended that people who didn’t have them didn’t care?”
Although the exact number of monthly active users is unknown, Twitter/X has had a significant impact on the world of news and politics over the years, although it has not had the broad mainstream appeal of Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, or TikTok. I did.
“It’s a very specific, limited audience,” Brands says. “But the types of audiences that could be reached on Twitter were journalists, politicians, activists, and various forms of experts. Often people who were influential in other communities online and offline.”
Belinda Barnett, senior lecturer in media and communications at Melbourne’s Swinburne University of Technology, said: In essence, it has become a must-have tool, especially for journalists. ”
This was also because Twitter’s features, especially @mentions and hashtags, are well-suited for breaking news.
For example, Twitter became big in Japan in part because people turned to Twitter as a way to communicate and organize when the country was hit by a devastating tsunami in 2011, said a former Twitter user. Employees speak.
“It became a real lifeline for people and a way for people to be rescued,” she said.
According to a 2021 Pew study, 69% of U.S. Twitter users said they got their news from the site, 46% said the site gave them a better understanding of current events, and 30% said the site made them more interested in politics. They responded that they felt more involved.
The breaking news feature was not without its problems. The immediacy of this platform gave voice to dissidents and citizen journalists, which was crucial for uprisings like those seen in the Arab Spring, but it also allowed politicians to bypass traditional journalistic mediation. Bruns says it’s now possible.
“There are quite a few politicians who have essentially stopped giving interviews to journalists, leaving them exposed to critical questions and basically just posting their announcements on Twitter.”
Barnett said misinformation and trolls have always been a problem, but the company is committed to what she calls the “three pillars”: user blue checkmarks, moderation policies, and trust and safety. team.
“All of these things worked together to give us some credibility during breaking news, so people went there. Twitter in the old days certainly spread misinformation, but it started trending before it spread.” I often ended up crushing it,” she said.
Now: Musk’s Wild West
Barnett said all three pillars were quickly dismantled after Musk acquired the platform at the end of 2022.
The trust and safety teams were among those who were abruptly fired within weeks of Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of the company, showing up to work at headquarters with a ceramic sink on their first day. A video of Mr. Musk’s entrance was posted on the site with the caption, “Let it sink in.”
Many people who were blocked from the site for violating online rules, including Donald Trump, had their accounts reinstated (although Trump’s account was later blocked again).
The verification process has changed dramatically. Instead of being given blue ticks for being a celebrity or working for a popular news site, you can now buy them.
My approach to moderation has also changed. Mr. Musk’s spat with the Australian government reveals something about his vision for X, which he sees as a bastion of free speech.
“They’re very reluctant to engage in any kind of arbitration,” Brands said. “To some extent, this reflects the broader sense that free speech in the United States is an absolute good above all else. On the other hand, in Australia, Europe, and many other regions, the right to free speech and protection from harmful speech are And that would essentially sound like censorship to many otherwise very liberal people in the United States.”
Ironically, in 2022, X suspended the accounts of people who criticized Musk, including those of several prominent journalists from CNN, the New York Times, and the Washington Post. account has been banned Track the whereabouts of your private jet using public data.
“Elon wants it both ways,” Barnett says. “He wants it to be the original Twitter, which was certainly absolutely critical to the news cycle,” but he also wants to “remove the pillars and processes that Twitter has spent years building up and make it more… We also want it to promote community. ”
“I think it’s becoming a toxic mess,” Barnett says.
The future: a place out of control
A Pew study found that 60% of U.S. Twitter users left the platform for more than a few weeks in the first few months after Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. A quarter of those surveyed said they had not used the site at all in the past year.
Even the most prolific tweeters saw their use of the platform decrease, with the number of tweets per month dropping by 25%.
Whether this trend continues is a difficult question to answer, but one reason is that it has become prohibitively expensive for researchers studying social media to continue their work under Musk. That’s what happened.
For many years, Twitter has provided application programming interfaces (APIs) to academic researchers and private sector organizations for a fee. About a year ago, the cost of accessing these APIs skyrocketed.
Aaron Smith, director of Pew’s Data Lab, said the center has developed a “pretty rich body of research” on Twitter over the years, but that access to the API is now limited due to the price increase for accessing Tweets. He said that such annual fees have become expensive. “It’s bigger than our team’s entire research budget for several years” – they couldn’t do any more research on the platform.
Bruns says academics are in the same position. “We cannot conduct particularly exploratory research, such as looking for hate speech bots or misinformation on the platform. [X] Almost priced out of the market. ”
This is unfortunate, as academic research on Twitter has shown that the platform was able to identify and dispel some hate speech and misinformation in the past, but will now go even further unchecked. he says.
“Certainly, it’s already starting to turn into platforms like Gab and Parler and things like that. [Trump’s] In True Social, people on the far right vehemently agree with each other and ferociously hate everyone else. ”
Even former employees have since deactivated their accounts. “I think it’s a really dangerous space right now and it’s out of control,” she says.
“I miss it sometimes. I always thought this was a great newswire for journalists and citizen journalists…I don’t know, but I found myself sitting watching breaking news and wondering where to go. There’s a hole left, and I’m hoping someone will try to fill that gap.”
I I don’t usually believe in life hacks. I’d like to imagine that with one simple adjustment my life would reappear like a cracked tennis court, but as time and experience have shown, positive change usually happens slowly and gradually.
But there is one hack that I truly believe in. It’s fast, free, and will instantly change your life for the better. Just mute the annoying people on social media.
The process varies by platform. Typically, you would go to the offending poster’s profile page or one of her posts and tap “Mute,” “Snooze,” or “Unfollow.” But that’s it. Thanks to this digital dust, social media is cleaner, or at least less dirty than it used to be. They’ll disappear from your timeline, and so will the various little annoyances they caused. Also, unlike unfollowing or blocking someone, the muted party won’t know they’ve been silenced, so there’s no risk of awkwardness or drama. .
Several people are muted. Some of them are people you don’t want to unfollow. I unfollowed some people, but I muted them because others might repost and pollute my pure timeline. One is a semi-celebrity who was rude to me about work many years ago. Another person was rude to my friend. There are also ex-lovers and people who are always humble and boastful and make you want to bang your head against something hard.
These people brought out the worst in me. When I saw their posts, I felt angry, mean, and small. I wondered how much it would cost to buy billboards along major highways with bullet points detailing just how bad it really is.
Luckily, I rarely think about these people anymore because I’ve muted them on all platforms. I usually forget these people exist unless someone brings it up in conversation. They were weeded from the lush garden of my brain.
Bailey Parnell, founder and president of the Center for Digital Wellbeing, said, “Muting accounts that repeatedly make you uncomfortable is setting up digital boundaries to create a healthier digital environment.” I am. This allows you to avoid offensive content without disconnecting. It’s a solution, she says, to the complicated situation where a relationship with someone is important to you despite their annoying online presence.
“This allows you to maintain your social and professional networks while also maintaining your mental health,” she says.
This may seem like obvious advice. Still, it can be difficult to follow. The frustration you feel when you see someone’s bad posts can be accompanied by a sense of satisfaction. It’s like, “Look!” It’s annoying!
“There can be a dopamine rush at the end of a big emotion,” says Monica Amorosi, a certified trauma therapist in New York City. We may begin to crave the adrenaline spike that comes with content that makes us feel shocked, angry, or disgusted.
“If we lead a mundane life, lack stimulation, are bored or overwhelmed, consuming this substance can be a form of entertainment or distraction,” says Amoros. says Mr.
Amorosi emphasizes the importance of not creating a “space of ignorance” in your feed by avoiding different perspectives on current events and alarming news. But this does not mean that social media should only be used to access upsetting information. Our feed can be used for “healthy, positive education, connecting with like-minded people, understanding the nuances and diversity of the world, fact-checking information, and learning new hobbies and ideas,” she says. say.
So muting is probably most effectively applied against people who annoy you in a bland, everyday way, such as an arrogant colleague. Not seeing humble braggarts pretending to be ashamed of their professional successes does not limit my worldview. Instead, I get back the 5-10 minutes I might have wasted taking screenshots of posts and complaining to friends about them.
Frankly, I haven’t done anything with the time I’ve gained by not badmouthing the people I’ve muted. But how nice that at least he has days when he’s comfortable for even five minutes.
So feel free to mute yourself and often. And what if you disagree with me? Please mute. You never know!
“circleWait a minute, wait a minute. You haven’t heard anything yet.” So was the first line of dialogue heard in the 1927 feature film jazz singer. This was the first time that the mass media conveyed the sights and sounds of the scene together, and the audience was mesmerized.
Since then, black and white has given way to color, frame rates and resolutions have increased, and sound quality has improved, but the media we consume still remains overwhelmingly, if not exclusively, our eyes and ears. We are responding to
The average person now spends nearly seven hours a day watching screens, and with most of that time spent indoors, our overreliance on sight and sound is only increasing. But if a human considers that he is a five (or five) animal, probably even more) senses, aren’t we ignoring other abilities? And what is it doing to us?
Many psychologists classify our primary senses as either rational or emotional, and there is evidence to support this. “Odor [and taste are] Charles Spence, professor of experimental psychology at the University of Oxford, says, “Rational senses such as hearing and vision are directly connected to emotional processing areas of the brain.” In fact, Spence says more than half of the neocortex, and therefore more than half of the brain’s volume, is devoted to processing what we see.
There’s no denying that we are highly visual creatures, which is part of the reason why our media is primarily audiovisual. “I think this is largely due to the fact that much of the information we consider important today is conveyed through visual and auditory means,” said Meike Scherer, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Durham University. “But what we think is important isn’t necessarily what we need.”
If you ask people which sense they can’t live without, most people will say sight, but evidence shows that what we really lack is smell. “The rates of suicide and suicidal ideation are much higher among people with anosmia, because anosmia is so tied to our emotions,” Scherer says.
So does ignoring some senses in favor of others affect our emotional lives? Our emotional health is tied to our social health, but… The answer is almost certainly yes. “Smell is a very important cue for social communication, but this is something that is not implemented in any of the technologies we use today,” Scherer says.
For example, it has been found that after shaking someone’s hand, we tend to subconsciously smell their palm. “It gives you hints about all sorts of things, from their health to their age and even their personality,” Spence says. “A lot is lost when we only interact digitally.”
Touch is equally important to our emotional lives, and the finger-focused haptics of digital devices are not enough. C-tactile afferents are a type of nerve receptor that is abundant in the hairy skin of the arms (but not on the pads of the fingers) and has been shown to produce positive emotions when stimulated. “These receptors like slow, warm, tactile strokes,” says Spence.
The cool and smooth touch screen of your smartphone cannot replace other human skin, which is soft, warm and imperceptibly smelly. For adults, this may mean less satisfaction with their social lives, but for a generation of children who are increasingly socialized through technology, the effects can be profound.
Scherer says children learn to interpret their own senses by referring to each other’s senses. We learn to associate subtle smells with the sound of someone yelling or the sight of a smile, and may learn to use these signals to navigate social situations in the future. “Children who grow up with less input basically have less training to be able to categorize what certain things smell like and what certain exposures mean,” Scherer said. To tell. “If you suddenly take away something that has evolved over millions of years, you’re not only removing one sense from her, but it’s affecting how all of her other senses work.”
Marianna Obrist, Professor of Multisensory Interfaces at University College London, said: Everything is multisensory.
For example, it’s easy to think that the experience of eating is primarily about taste, but the shape and color, smell and sizzle, temperature, texture and weight of food are influenced by our senses of sight, smell, hearing and touch. appeal to. “All these senses are already activated before you eat,” says Obrist. Then there’s mouthfeel, the physical sensation of spiciness and sourness, and of course, flavor.
Removing just one of those sensations can affect the entire experience. For example, if you eat ice cream in the dark, It is unlikely that you will enjoy it, or even be sure of what it tastes like. “Each time we receive multisensory stimulation, we are able to develop a better and richer representation of our surroundings,” Scherer says.
So What are we doing to make our technology more multisensory? sense x, an EU-funded project aimed at helping designers come up with new ways to integrate feel, smell and taste into products. The team’s efforts included spraying scents under subjects’ noses to highlight key moments in director Christopher Nolan’s film interstellar, irradiate ultrasound to simulate contact, Powerful acoustics to suspend food It can be attached to the tongue without the need for wires or tubes.
It’s hard to imagine I’ll be watching it any time soon. Colonel Kilgore’s speech by Robert Duvallapocalypse of hellThe most famous line, while the smell of eau na palm hits your nose from your laptop in the morning, the smell-taste interface may be just around the corner. Researchers are already using AI to try to find the primary odor that creates any odor, and Obrist hopes to create a digitally controlled system with applications in research, healthcare, and immersive reality experiences. I’m the chief scientific officer at OWidgets, a company that makes scent delivery systems.
Almost all the input we receive from electronic devices is visual or auditory, so it is processed by the cortex, the rational part of the brain. Photo: Alex Segre/Alamy
Companies like China’s Dexta Robotics are also bringing tactility to virtual reality with gloves called “gloves.” dexmo.
“Dexmo can provide haptic and force feedback simultaneously,” said Aler Gu, CEO of Dexta. “So when you scroll your finger over a virtual brick, you can feel the surface texture. When you grab a brick and move it from one point to another, you can feel its physical shape.”
Media that engage all of our senses will certainly enrich our daily interactions with technology, but it’s not hard to imagine more insidious uses emerging. In 1957, an American market researcher named James Vicary claimed to have created a movie by splicing together the scenes “Eating Popcorn” and “Drinking Coca-Cola.” He reported that sales of popcorn and Coca-Cola increased by 57.5% and 18.1% respectively, and the concept of subliminal advertising was born.
Vicary was later exposed as a fraudster, and the effectiveness of subliminal advertising has gained worldwide attention. discussion issues Since then, has technology that can deliver smells and tastes digitally become a gift to unscrupulous advertisers? Masu. [these senses]. They can be very powerful,” says Scherer. “We’re very emotional decision-makers, so there’s a lot of potential for that to influence our decisions.”
Research has shown that exposure to certain tastes and smells can influence our judgments of other people’s appearance and personality, and even change our behavior.For example, taste bitter foods can make us hostile,and 2005 patent application The scent of pink grapefruit suggests to men that it can make women appear younger than their actual age.
Obrist’s team discovered that: Sour taste makes people more willing to engage in risky behavior. “You might be doing electronic banking or shopping online and drinking a sour lemon drink. That may indirectly influence your decision-making,” she says. say. It’s not hard to imagine how e-commerce and gambling apps will be affected. Devices that can deliver tastes and smells can be exploited.
To some extent, this is already happening.Companies are known for pumping pleasant scents into their stores, and American chain Cinnabon Intentionally place the oven near the store entrancesometimes creating baking trays with just sugar and cinnamon to tempt passing shoppers.
○There’s a brief clip on TikTok where HRH Princess of Wales discloses her cancer diagnosis, while an AI voiceover suggests it’s a “faulty ring.” The video has amassed 1.3 million views. Other videos analyzing and distorting aspects of this clip have also gained millions of views and shares. These videos have surfaced on X (formerly known as Twitter) and have been shared via WhatsApp by friends and family, presented as factual reports without any indication of being internet rumors.
Something has shifted in the way social media content is curated. It’s a significant yet subtle transformation. Platforms that were once distinct in content types now overlap. Instagram Reels now features TikTok videos, and TikTok videos from Instagram Reels also appear on X. The algorithms seem to create a closed loop, steering us away from deliberate choices in who we follow. Every social media app now has a “For you” page displaying content from non-followed users, making it challenging to control our feed.
With increasing loss of control over our feed, social media platforms have turned into competitive attention markets. Content creators often subtly promote products through their recommendations, earning commissions on user purchases. The content that garners high engagement, like conspiracy theories, becomes lucrative. Online conspiracy theories vary in nature and source, from sensational to sober, infiltrating our feeds.
Social media has evolved from a personal platform to a lucrative profession for content creators. Videos and tweets going viral can significantly increase a user’s earning potential, follower count, and attract brand partnerships. However, this monetization model costs users their agency and shifts the focus towards generating revenue for the platform.
Traditional media tends to downplay social media manipulation and avoids hard questions. Tabloids and right-wing media have long spun news stories for clicks and shares, especially concerning celebrities and royals. The dynamic between the palace, media, and public opinion has shifted, as social media now challenges the traditional mediation of who to love and hate among royals.
Social media has become a complex arena where commercial players imitate and challenge legacy media, driving misinformation and chaos. The shifting landscape of social media engagement poses new challenges for understanding and accountability, going beyond simplistic explanations of user morality.
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? Click here if you would like to email your answer of up to 300 words to be considered for publication in our email section.
We explore some of the strangest places in the universe, where “normal” rules don’t apply. From places where you blow bubbles over time, to mysterious spaces, and places where glass falls horizontally.
Digital healthcare: Are those most in need excluded?
Advances in technology, such as the proliferation of smartphone apps, should make it easier for people to access medical services. But what if you don’t have a smartphone? Or do you want to talk to a real person? It’s clear that this technology doesn’t work for everyone.
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There’s a lot of advice out there on what exactly to do to move your spare tire around your waist. But do any of them actually add up? What does the science say?
three body problem
A new film adaptation of the biggest science fiction book of the century is coming to Netflix. This is a thrilling story powered by ideas and breakthroughs from cutting-edge science and technology. We dive deeper into the science behind fiction.
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Google Gemini: Google is working on a model to compete with Open AI. But is giving ChaGPT enough? Our tech expert Alex Hughes takes a closer look at the latest in AI.
Quantum field theory: Quantum field theory is a symphony of vibrations that orchestrates everything from the motion of particles to the birth of stars and even dark matter. This is one of the most elegant and precise concepts in all of science. Professor Stephon Alexander explains the basics and why they’re important to understanding the universe.
Resurrection of infectious diseases: With measles, plague and cholera rearing their heads again, are we seeing a resurgence of disease at unprecedented levels? And what would it take to cause a new pandemic?
Issue 403 Released on March 19, 2024
don’t forget that BBC Science Focus Also available on all major digital platforms.There are versions of android, Kindle Fire and Kindle e-readers,but also, iOS app For iPad and iPhone.
Carers in desperate situations throughout the UK require all the assistance they can receive. However, researchers argue that the AI revolution in social care needs a strong ethical foundation and should not involve the utilization of unregulated AI bots.
A preliminary study conducted by researchers at the University of Oxford revealed that some care providers are utilizing generative AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Bard to develop care plans for their recipients.
Dr. Caroline Green, an early research fellow at Oxford University’s Institute of AI Ethics, highlighted the potential risk to patient confidentiality posed by this practice. She mentioned that personal data fed to generative AI chatbots is used to train language models, raising concerns about data exposure.
Dr. Green further expressed that caregivers acting on inaccurate or biased information from AI-generated care plans could inadvertently cause harm. Despite the risks, AI offers benefits such as streamlining administrative tasks and allowing for more frequent care plan updates.
Technologies based on large-scale language models are already making their way into healthcare and care settings. PainCheck, for instance, utilizes AI-trained facial recognition to identify signs of pain in non-verbal individuals. Other innovations like OxeHealth’s OxeVision assist in monitoring patient well-being.
Various projects are in development, including Sentai, a care monitoring system for individuals without caregivers, and a device from the Bristol Robotics Institute to enhance safety for people with memory loss.
Concerns exist within the creative industries about AI potentially replacing human workers, while the social care sector faces a shortage of workers. The utilization of AI in social care presents challenges that need to be addressed.
Lionel Tarasenko, professor of engineering at Oxford University Leuven, emphasized the importance of upskilling individuals in social care to adapt to AI technologies. He shared a personal experience of caring for a loved one with dementia and highlighted the potential benefits of AI tools in enhancing caregiving.
Co-host Mark Topps expressed concerns from social care workers about unintentionally violating regulations and risking disqualification by using AI technology. Regulators are urged to provide guidance to ensure responsible AI use in social care.
Efforts are underway to develop guidelines for responsible AI use in social care, with collaboration from various organizations in the sector. The aim is to establish enforceable guidelines defining responsible AI use in social care.
Culture refers to behaviors that are socially learned and persist within a group over long periods of time. Growing evidence suggests that animal culture, like human culture, may be cumulative. However, the accumulated culture of humans contains behaviors so complex that they exceed the ability of individuals to discover them independently over a lifetime. New research shows that the buff-tailed bumblebee (Western bumblebee) can learn how to open new two-step puzzle boxes and obtain food from trained conspecifics, even if they fail to open them independently.
Bufftail Bumblebee (Western bumblebee) socially learn behaviors that are too complex to innovate alone. Image credit: Ralphs Fotos.
“This groundbreaking research opens new avenues for understanding the evolution of intelligence and social learning in animals,” said study lead author Lars, a researcher at Queen Mary University of London. Professor Chitka said.
“This challenges long-held assumptions, paves the way to further explore the cognitive wonders hidden in the insect world, and even suggests the exciting possibility of accumulated culture among seemingly simple creatures. Masu.”
Professor Chitka and his colleagues designed a two-step puzzle box that required bumblebees to perform two different actions in sequence to access a sweet reward at the end.
Training bees to do this was no easy task, and we had to help them by adding additional rewards along the way.
This temporary reward was eventually taken away, and the bees were forced to open the entire box before getting the treat.
Surprisingly, while individual bees had difficulty solving the puzzle from the beginning, bees allowed to observe trained demonstration bees completed the entire sequence, including the first step. You just learned quickly and got rewarded at the end.
This study shows that bumblebees have a level of social learning that was previously thought to be unique to humans.
They can share and acquire behaviors that are beyond the cognitive capacity of individuals. This ability is thought to underpin the vast and complex nature of human culture, and was previously thought to be exclusive to us.
“This is a very difficult task for bees,” said study lead author Dr. Alice Bridges, a researcher at Queen Mary University of London and the University of Sheffield.
“They had to learn two steps to get the reward, and the first action in the sequence was not rewarded.”
“Initially, we had to train demonstration bees to include temporary rewards, which highlighted the complexity.”
“But other bees learned the sequence from the social observations of these trained bees, without ever experiencing the reward of the first step.”
“But when we tried to get other bees to open the box without a bee trained to show them the solution, they couldn't open it at all.”
This study opens up exciting possibilities for understanding the emergence of cumulative culture in the animal kingdom, beyond individual learning.
Cumulative culture refers to the gradual accumulation of knowledge and skills over generations, allowing increasingly complex behaviors to develop.
The ability of bees to learn such complex tasks from demonstrators suggests potential pathways for cultural transmission and innovation beyond the bees' individual learning abilities.
“This challenges the traditional view that only humans can learn socially complex behaviors beyond individual learning,” says Professor Chitka.
“Many of the most remarkable achievements of social insects, such as the nesting structures of honey bees and wasps and the agricultural habits of ants that farm aphids and fungi, may have first been spread by imitation by clever innovators, and then spread. , which is increasingly likely.'' They eventually became part of the species-specific behavioral repertoire. ”
Regarding this research, paper Published in the Journal on March 6, 2024 Nature.
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AD bridge other. Bumblebees socially learn behaviors that are too complex to innovate alone. Nature, published online March 6, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07126-4
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Influencers like Andrew Tate have become synonymous with “toxic masculinity,” using a combination of motivational scoldings, fast cars, and demonstrations of sexual prowess to appeal to large audiences of young men and boys. It’s attracting.
But what about the other side of the coin? Are people creating content with healthier messages for the same audience? Or maybe men and boys simply don’t want to hear it? Or?
Jago Sherman, head of strategy at Goat Agency, an influencer subsidiary of marketing giant WPP, says: -Love, self-expression, fighting knife crime, education, but they don’t always make the headlines.
“People like Andrew Tate are using social media to make far-reaching and far-reaching unsubstantiated claims, as if they are providing a ‘quick-fix’ answer to a very complex problem. The problem, of course, is that these statements are most often not true, or are opinions disguised as facts.
In a social environment where creators compete for attention, this ‘shock factor’ content that can be consumed and understood very quickly can sometimes perform better than longer, thought-provoking, neutral content.
Against this backdrop, Labor last week announced plans to promote a more positive vision of masculinity. According to the proposal, schools would develop leaders from their own students who would help counter the misogynistic vision promoted by Tate and others, as well as be more critical of what they see on screen. Students will be supported to explain their analysis skills in class.
Andrew Tate has been described as appearing to provide “off-the-cuff answers to very complex problems”. Photo: Robert Ghement/EPA
Some men who give a more positive vision of masculinity have already broken out and become famous in their own right. Fitness influencers like Joe Wicks, whose career began with his Instagram posts as The Body Coach, may not attract teenage boys with their lewd content. Simple advice delivered in a friendly, almost relentlessly cheerful manner can still garner millions of followers.
Perhaps the biggest symbol of this more assertive approach to masculinity is the philanthropic work of Russ Cook, known to many as Instagram’s biggest geek. If all goes to plan, he will complete his year-long attempt to cross the continent from tip to toe, ending in April. Mr. Cook raised around £200,000. running charity and sand blast and amassed nearly 1 million followers across his various social platforms, conclusively proving the appropriateness of his username in the process.
But there’s an asymmetry in some of the debate around toxic influencers, said Saul Parker, founder of. good side, we work with charities and brands to help them achieve their positive goals. While young women are encouraged to seek out positive role models for their own benefit, young men are often encouraged to seek out positive role models in order to treat women better. It risks ignoring the harm that harmful influencers can cause to boys and young people themselves, and undermines efforts to encourage them to find better people to learn from.
“There’s a generation of men who have been born into very difficult conversations about patriarchy and its impact on women’s lives,” Parker says. “As a result, they’re in a place where they feel like they’re third-class citizens. And accepting that young men are having a bit of a hard time and needing help is difficult, especially on the left. It’s very difficult.”
Because focusing on misogyny rather than the broader message of traditional masculine norms in which the “manosphere” thrives risks overshadowing a second generation of post-Tate pernicious influences, this is important. Through repetition, the boys learn that repeating the casual misogyny of someone like Tate in public is bad, and when asked, they say they don’t like the way he talks about women, but say, “Other things.” often insist that you just listen to him.
“David Goggins is the kind of guy we’re facing right now,” Parker said. “He’s a former Navy SEAL, he’s a huge influence on every social platform, but he and all his… The content is about ‘self-discipline’ and ‘self-motivation.’ He tells me things like ‘wake up in the morning,’ ‘go to the gym,’ ‘take a cold shower,’ and ‘be a man,’ but he never talks about women or sex.”
“Taking women out of the equation doesn’t make it any less of a problem. He just doesn’t have anything nasty to say, so it’s hard to find sharp points.”
In other words, attracting boys to a more positive vision of masculinity does not happen by default. But neither should lose hope. There is nothing inherent in childhood experiences that only stick with toxic messages, and with a little work, better role models can develop.
When considering the most effective way to protect children’s mental health, the idea of banning social media often comes up. Recent events in the UK, such as the tragic murder of Brianna Gee, have reignited discussions on the dangers of social media for children. However, scientific evidence does not strongly support the notion that social media directly causes mental health issues in children.
Social media has been around for quite some time and has brought many positive aspects to the lives of young people. It allows them to connect with others, pursue their interests, and show support in times of tragedy. Studies have shown that increased social media use does not necessarily decrease life satisfaction for most children.
While it may seem that social media is linked to a decrease in life satisfaction for some adolescents, the opposite is not always true. Evidence supporting the idea of social media addiction in children is limited. Without a clear causal relationship between social media use and mental health issues, banning social media for children may not be the solution.
Are most children addicted to social media and smartphones?
Using the term “addiction” in reference to social media and smartphone use may be misleading. While some children may develop bad habits related to their use, it does not necessarily constitute a true addiction. Weaning children off social media is often easier than addressing addictive behaviors related to substances.
Is it possible that a social media ban will actually be enforced?
Enforcing a ban on social media for children poses many challenges, both legally and morally. Children have rights to access and enjoy social media, and restricting their access may infringe on these rights. Past attempts to ban social media use, such as South Korea’s “Cinderella Law,” have shown limited effectiveness in improving children’s well-being.
How can children develop a healthy relationship with screens?
As parents, it is important to guide children in developing a healthy relationship with screens, including social media. Teaching them to self-regulate their behavior and manage their screen time can prepare them for adulthood. Simply banning social media may not address the underlying issues of human behavior and the attention economy.
The members of the WhatsApp group ‘Smartphone Free Childhood’ advocate for banning under-14s from owning smartphones and preventing under-16s from accessing social media to protect them from the dangers of the internet. However, believing this is the solution is unrealistic. Announcement (“Crazy: Thousands of UK parents join in quest for smartphone-free childhood”, February 17).
It is a parent’s responsibility to provide a safe environment for their children and teach them how to safely navigate the internet. Just like roads can be dangerous but we don’t ban cars, teaching children internet safety is crucial. Building open and honest relationships and setting boundaries at home will help young people understand internet dangers better than blanket bans. Making social media “adults only” may backfire and make it more tempting for children. They may also be less likely to seek help if they encounter inappropriate content. stuart harrington Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset
As seen in cases like Brianna Gee’s, giving children smartphones can have negative consequences. However, we should consider the benefits and drawbacks of smartphone access. I personally benefitted from having a smartphone in school for various tasks like using apps for transportation, news, and communication. While parental controls and monitoring are essential, smartphones have many positive uses. It is important to adapt to the changing online threats and promote more parental supervision. oscar acton Merton, County Durham
Claim, a platform that doubles as a rewards app and social network, has raised $4 million in a seed funding round led by Sequoia Capital. The startup is on a mission to make shopping fun, rewarding, and social. The app was released as an invitation-only beta version in January, and is currently being used primarily by college students in Boston.
Claim also allows users and their friends to earn cash back, exchange rewards, and redeem together. The platform is a social network that aims to focus on real-world value and communal experiences, rather than manufactured content and reposts.
The startup was founded in November 2021 by CEO Sam Obretz and CTO Tap Stevenson. The two met when they were roommates at Yale University and came up with the idea for Claim when they met again at Harvard Business School. Obretz and Stevenson originally started by thinking about what it means to own something digital.
“We started Claim because we were really interested in what it meant to own something online,” Stevenson said in an interview with TechCrunch. “We saw this with web3 and the sport is also emerging as a collector’s item. There has always been a place online where you can own something, but there has never been a generalized format. So I We started thinking about what it meant to actually remove all the friction of owning something online, and that led to complaints over time.”
The two started by envisioning a platform that could be used in the real world and where you could earn rewards linked to your credit card. We then decided that we needed to allow users to use and exchange rewards with their friends. When they came up with these ideas, Obretz and Stevenson realized they were tapping into a social mechanism that doesn’t widely exist today.
Claims are similar to the idea of trading cards, but create a new kind of value-based experience for brands for consumers. The company says it has turned consumer rewards into a multiplayer game by allowing users to save money and create new experiences together.
Image credits: Claim/Claim Co-Founders Sam Obletz and Tap Stephenson
If it’s a brand you love and your friend hasn’t checked it out yet, you can give them a special treat like a free acai bowl from their favorite coffee
shop or a t-shirt from their favorite streetwear brand. You can exchange rewards, try new places together, and earn status from spending with brands. Once a week, Claim also does “drops” where users open new offers at the same time. Users can decide whether to redeem, gift, or exchange rewards with friends.
While Claim aims to be beneficial to consumers, the startup also aims to help marketers and brands reach new customers without being bombarded with ads on Google, Instagram, and TikTok. We also place emphasis on On Claim, consumers discover brands through rewards from friends. The startup believes that when reaching new customers, being able to try out a product is more beneficial than advertising.
“We make it super easy for marketers,” Obretz says. “We can find customers based on where they shop and where their friends shop. For users who have never done it before, we offer rewards for trying your brand for the first time. This is very important because it brings in genuine new customers. It also allows you to show how effective that reward was based on their spend. That’s why we created It’s this very simple marketing tool.”
The startup currently works with merchants ranging from Fortune 500 companies like PepsiCo to local restaurants like Boston’s Life Alive.
Claim’s early results are promising, with one partner on the platform achieving 97% of new customer goals in half the time expected, and another partner acquiring customers within 30 days with a 35% return rate. says.
Claim is currently focused on Gen Z as its overall user base. This is because people in this group are interested in authenticity and think they are tired of advertising, especially since it seems like every post on social media these days is sponsored. The startup hopes to continue testing in Boston, where it currently has more than 10,000 users, before eventually expanding nationwide.
As for the new funding, the company plans to use it to hire new talent and grow its team of eight people over the next year. Claim will also use the funding to focus on testing and learning from an engineering perspective before expanding into new markets.
The startup’s seed round follows an unannounced $2 million pre-seed round led by Susa Ventures and Box Group. Claim’s funding round included participation from 6th Man Venture, Reflexive Capital, A* Capital, GSW Ventures, The Kraft Group, and others.
Jagat, a social network designed to help you get out more with friends instead of mindlessly scrolling on your phone, has over 10 million users worldwide. Launched in March earlier this year, this location-based social network wants to help people focus on real-life connections and make friends.
The app is basically a social map that shows you your friends and nearby activities. Jagat features an interactive map interface that lets you stay in touch with friends and discover new people and activities around you in real time. Jagat is a bit similar to Zenly, the social mapping app owned by Snap that went out of service last year.
The startup is based in Singapore and Indonesia and was founded by Jagat president Barry Beagen and CEO Loy Xing Zhe. The two met in December 2021, when Biegen was advising the Indonesian government on digital economy policy and Zee was working on GameFi products focused on Web3, social, and gaming. Biegen said both he and Zee had the idea of building a social network.
“We had the same vision of taking on big tech and really building something that could take on the world from Southeast Asia,” Begen told TechCrunch. “We were also fed up with mainstream social apps that were becoming more passive, and we were also fed up with mainstream social apps that were becoming more passive, and more spontaneous ways to explore the world and places and meet new friends, such as hiking, local concerts, and friend-picking.” We were both really excited about finding ways to do things differently, whether it was playing a basketball game or just going for a long walk.”
The two decided to build a social network where users could create their own spaces and interact virtually with avatars.
The social map is what you see when you open Jagat and shows you the location of your friends in real time. It’s also where you can track where you’ve been and tap your friends’ avatars to send them messages, stickers, and updates. Jagat sees maps as the primary interface for discovering activities and people around you. See your friends’ status updates in real time and know what they’re up to.
Image credits: Jagat
The startup is currently building features aimed at competing with Facebook Groups by allowing users to organize local events and find people with similar interests. We’re also building the ability to explore beyond your local community by enabling you to discover a global community.
“We want to bring social back to social apps, focusing on social networking rather than media,” Biegen said. “We want to care about people, not posts. We want to be close friends, discover new friends, and connect with people in real life instead of scrolling through for entertainment.” It’s built to help you get more. We’re excited to see that other new social apps are also taking on this challenge. Mainstream social media is no longer about making friends and making connections; is passive consumption of entertainment. That’s why we’re focusing on features that allow users to share real-time, unsophisticated updates in a fun way.”
Biegen said most active users check the app three to four times a day, and most people want to know where their closest friends and loved ones are after school or work. . Instead of sending a text message to see if a friend is nearby and wants to grab dinner, the app lets you see where they are.
Approximately 85% of Jagat users are Gen Z. Since its release, the app has topped the charts in Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Spain, France, and Singapore. Biegen said the app’s appeal is universal and the startup will continue to develop it into the next generation.
The company closed a Series A funding round in October with participation from Southeast Asian investors, but declined to disclose the amount raised.
Looking to the future, Biegen said the startup wants to build “the next generation of default apps.” “We believe social apps should create real, authentic connections and deliver on the promise of connecting people in real life. In the meantime, we’re building new and exciting features and are committed to helping our community We’re focused on continuing to build, and that what we’re building – expanding social experiences on maps – is empowering a new generation of creators and businesses around the world. I believe we can do it.”
A ban on social media use for under-16s has been branded “speculative”, but the government must “continue to consider” the need to protect children, the minister said.
Science Minister Andrew Griffiths dismissed “speculative” reports that some young people’s access to social media could be restricted as part of a “potential consultation” into the issue.
Ministers are reportedly discussing the impact of sites such as TikTok and Instagram on young people’s wellbeing, with future plans potentially forcing them to get parental permission before using social networks. It is said that there is a sex.
Asked by Sky News whether such a proposal could be enforceable, Mr Griffiths said: “Well, we’re just talking about speculation.”
He said the government had already passed online safety laws that would “make activities that were illegal offline illegal online.”
Latest politics: Businesses face ‘period of uncertainty’ over Home Office visa changes
But he went on to say that social media has had “real harm” as well as “good”.
“As a parent myself, I understand that parents feel a very strong need to protect their children from the evils of society that have been prevalent on social media in the past,” he said.
“We have already taken action and it is right to continue to consider it. I don’t think we can ever say the job is done.
“That is speculation about the possibility of talks taking place in the new year.”
Asked whether talks were taking place, he said: “I don’t think any of us know what’s going on and I’m not going to comment on any further talks at this point.”
The Online Safety Act was passed in October and aims to make the UK “the safest place online in the world”.
Under this law, regulations are imposed on businesses such as: meta and apple This is to ensure that inappropriate and potentially dangerous content is kept away from young people and vulnerable people.
Examples include content that promotes suicide or self-harm. The coroner handed down the verdict last year. that it contributed to teenagers Molly Russell to take one’s own life.
read more: What is the Online Safety Bill? Who is for it, who is against it, and how will it be enforced? Pornographic websites may require the use of photo ID and credit card checks to protect children
The law would also hold platforms accountable for illegal content such as child sexual abuse images, force adult websites to properly enforce age restrictions, and prevent underage children from creating social media accounts. The purpose is
Media regulator Ofcom will be responsible for enforcing the new rules, and companies that fail to do so will face fines of up to £18m or 10% of their global annual turnover, whichever is greater.
Companies and senior managers could also face criminal charges if it is determined that they are not doing enough to protect children, and in the most extreme cases, the platform’s operations in the UK could be suspended completely. There is also a possibility that it will be blocked.
A new study from Cornell University reveals that the visual system, not just chemoreceptors, has a major influence on the social behavior of male fruit flies. The study found that enhanced visual input can override normal social inhibition, and suggests similar mechanisms in the human brain, particularly related to conditions such as autism and schizophrenia. It has meaning in understanding.
Drosophila males typically exhibit antisocial behavior toward other males and prefer to identify females through chemoreceptors. However, recent research by Cornell University biologists shows that the fruit fly visual system plays an important role in social interactions.
The findings provide new insights into the potential roots of a variety of human social behaviors, including those associated with conditions such as bipolar disorder and autism.
This paper recently current biology.
Visual system and social behavior
many seed Many animals use vision to regulate social behavior, but the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. In Drosophila, vision is thought to be used explicitly to detect and follow movement rather than to regulate social behavior, but researchers have found that this may not be the case. .
“In our study, hyperactivation of the visual system overcomes the inhibition produced by chemical signals emitted by male flies, telling other males, ‘Okay, I know, I’m another male, don’t interfere. ”’ said senior author Nirey Yapisi, assistant professor of neurobiology and behavior. “Surprisingly, visual enhancement in the brain somehow overrides chemosensory inhibition and attracts male flies to other males.”
Researchers found that changing GABARAP/GABA;a Receptor signaling in visual feedback neurons in the male brain influenced social inhibition in flies. When GABARAP is knocked down in the visual system, males unexpectedly exhibit increased courtship behavior towards other males.
Researchers discovered that genes similar to those in the human brain control visual neurons in fruit flies. Decreased GABA signaling in the human brain is associated with traits of social withdrawal in conditions such as autism and schizophrenia.
“Our results provide a promising avenue to investigate how these proteins regulate social behavior in the mammalian brain and their potential contribution to human mental state.” said lead author Dr. Yuta Mabuchi. ’23.
Reference: “Visual feedback neurons fine-tune Drosophila male courtship through GABA-mediated inhibition”, Yuta Mabuchi, Xinyue Cui, Lily Xie, Haein Kim, Tianxing Jiang, Nilay Yapici, September 2023 5 Day, current biology.
Google Maps get some new updates, includes social features designed to help people plan and collaborate with friends. The navigation platform also adds improved transit directions and emoji responses.
New social features are designed to take planning from group chats to Google Maps. The platform is updating its Lists feature to make it easier for people to share locations, make plans with friends, vote on group activities, and more. With this new feature, you can share locations in Maps with your friends, then create collaboration lists and start planning hangouts. Everyone in the group can add locations they want to visit and vote using emojis like hearts and thumbs up.
Image credits: Google
Google says the new feature will allow users to plan outings from start to finish within the Maps app. For example, you can invite your friends, make a list, and decide on all the activities you want to do this winter. Everyone can add activities that interest them, like ice skating at a specific rink or checking out the Holiday Market. Once people start voting, everyone will be able to see which activities are the most popular.
The new update will roll out globally on Android and iOS in the coming weeks.
When it comes to transportation improvements, Google Maps now makes it easy to see the best route to your destination based on factors such as ETA, number of connections, and trip length. We’ve also added the option to customize your route based on the type of transportation you want to use, or choose a route that requires minimal walking.
Plus, you’ll know exactly where the station entrances and exits are, which side of the street they’re on, and a clear walking route to and from the station. These updates will help ensure you’re on the right train in the right direction.
The transportation update will begin rolling out on Android and iOS in the coming weeks.
Google Maps also adds emoji reactions to photos, videos, and reviews. If you can’t find an emoji that sums up your feelings, you can sometimes create a mashup reaction like this: emoji kitchen. Emoji reactions begin rolling out globally today on Android and iOS.
Consumers are seeking new ways of social networking that prioritize trust, safety, and decentralization, rather than being controlled by big tech CEOs. Mozilla, the mission-driven technology company behind the Firefox browser and other apps, is investing in the “Fediverse.” The Fediverse is a network of decentralized social networking applications, like Mastodon, that communicate with each other through the ActivityPub protocol. Mozilla believes that current social networks, dominated by large companies and driven by profit, do not always prioritize consumer needs. This belief has been reinforced by events such as Elon Musk buying his Twitter account and launching alternative apps like Mastodon and Bluesky. As a non-profit subsidiary, Mozilla is not motivated by profit and aims to create a collaborative approach that incorporates diverse opinions. Mozilla’s involvement in the Fediverse, particularly with Mastodon, is driven by their dissatisfaction with the harmful content and profit-focused models of incumbent social media companies. Consumers are also growing more aware of these issues and seeking alternatives. While Mozilla aims to compete in the social networking space, their broader goal is to help the Fediverse gain traction and provide users with choice and agency. Mozilla plans to address obstacles to joining the Fediverse, such as technical hurdles and content discovery, through enhancements and features. They are currently experimenting with a private beta version of the Mozilla.Social Mastodon server and plan to roll out additional features gradually. Mozilla also aims to meet the needs of creators and publishers by creating conversations and experiences around high-quality content and building connections to help them reach their audiences. They want to improve the onboarding process and facilitate the formation of communities within the Fediverse. Trust and security are paramount, and Mozilla has strict content policies in place to ensure a safe environment. Overall, Mozilla’s involvement in the Fediverse is driven by their belief in a better way of social networking that prioritizes consumer needs and fosters trust and safety.
Does Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian have any regrets about his creation? The entrepreneur and founder of venture fund Seven Seven Six spoke at an event at the University of Virginia, where he asserted a rather negative view of the current social media environment and the creator economy. The environment, he says, is one in which everyone is “very trained and now conditioned to just getting likes, retweets and upvotes…More optimistic We want to be, and we see it happening before our eyes. Still, he ultimately described himself as a “techno-optimist.” This is a clear nod to a16z general partner Marc Andreessen’s recent accusation that technology can solve all problems.
“He is guilty as charged,” Ohanian said at the hearing. interview With Kara Swisher. “I think the pendulum will swing back. We’re thinking even faster than we think.” To understand the world, we need better platforms than we have today. He theorized that a war in the Middle East could even be a turning point because it is “so clear” that something is needed.
As you may recall, the founder notably resigned from Reddit’s board in 2020, citing disagreements over moderation and a desire to police the community on violence and hate. It was a moment when he seemed to be thinking about what his platform had brought him. At the time, he called for his board seat to be replaced by a black director. The company agreed and appointed Y Combinator partner Michael Seibel as its first black board member.
Reddit has since also banned several toxic communities, including r/donaldtrup, in the wake of the violence at the U.S. Capitol, but Ohanian said the site has “definitely gotten better” since then, and that the business He also said that he had improved.
But when it comes to social media as a whole, of which Reddit will be a part, Ohanian said social media brings out “the worst parts of human nature in many ways.” Additionally, he is concerned that with any leaderboards the platform has, people have a desire to be first and want to win, which can lead to situations where misinformation can be spread. I announced.
Humans have evolved to trust familiar faces and voices around the campfire. The idea of believing in something from an expert or institution you’ve never met is actually new to our species.
“There’s so much pressure to be number one right now, and UGC (user-generated content) always wins. But that doesn’t mean it’s always true. But it becomes the epicenter of the conversation. And what percentage of our population is going to really seriously take a breath and say, “Let me stop doomscrolling, and people can do the work and integrate it and then help me react.” Do I want to say, “Let’s just wait until it happens?” he continued.
“Also, we are deeply involved in all these storylines, whether they come from traditional media, user-generated ones, or posts on Telegram groups on our phones. We’re overwhelmed, we’re overloaded, and unfortunately that appeals to our worst instincts,” Ohanian added.
Part of the problem with how social media platforms were developed had to do with how companies originally developed them. For example, Ohanian said Reddit grew out of running his site online, a forum in college where he believed the community felt just as real as offline. He said when Reddit became a multibillion-dollar business with hundreds of millions of users, he never imagined the site would one day become so influential. That idea would be “ridiculous,” he says. And he never could have imagined that his startup would be so successful as to influence elections and democracy.
“It takes a level of delusion that even I, as a first-time CEO, can’t think to think, “Oh my god, I’m going to be this successful, that I can have such a huge impact on our democracy,” he said. Stated. . “Was that a blind spot? Of course,” he admitted.
Ohanian noted that another part of the problem is that there are more people online today than early technology founders imagined. While he’s happy to see greater access to technology, it also comes with many complications.
“I don’t like the idea that the Internet, which I’m so nostalgic about, was actually an ivory tower,” he said, but on the other hand, he said, we’re exposed to more people in real time. said. More than we could have imagined. And that can pit people against each other and against their different versions of the truth — even if their version of the truth believes in something as far-fetched as the Earth is flat, he said. He cited one example that has supporters on Reddit.
On the other hand, he said, getting platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Reddit to take on the responsibility of verifying truth and accuracy is a challenge. Ohanian also described TikTok as a “weapon of the Chinese government” that is very good at “giving us what we want, when we want”, meaning it is always a fountain of truth. He also said that there is no limit.
If anything, Ohanian credits Twitter (now called X) with devising the best moderation system ever.
“I personally think community notes are a good thing. It’s the best instrument I’ve ever seen. And frankly, I wish we had thought of it in the first place. I think so,” he said.
Still, he championed the notion that platforms like the X could become town squares.
“The public square is [analogy]…I feel depressed. I mean, if you mean the public square, I mean, what? Is it a town or a city? If you’re in charge, you’re the mayor. But there are no democratic elections,” Ohanian said. “You’re the CEO. So you’re like a king? If you want to lean into the town square, fine. Just own it and say, yeah, this is the town square and I’m Just say that there is an endless dictator, a tyrant.”
Despite the challenges and urgency of social media, Ohanian believes there is still hope in terms of social impact. For example, he noted that the founders his fund 776 invests in are much smarter and more aware of the issues than they were at their age. Perhaps the next platform will still be addictive, but in a way that “doesn’t disrupt democracy further,” he mused.
He also believes that if everything on social media is perfectly curated for us, our brains will start craving things that aren’t. “I think live gatherings and in-person experiences will return. The bright side of this is that I hope we can reconnect with our humanity and the things that no amount of AI can replace.”
“I’m trying to be an optimist about it,” Ohanian added. “And I think we still have a way to go, but we’re fighting a very, very powerful human thing. And if we can solve that, we’ll have a very good outcome. Because we… Because you can see that they have more in common than they don’t have,” he said.
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