Monthly Archives: November 2024

Federal judge rules that Louisiana shalt not require public schools to post the Ten Commandments

Federal judge rules that Louisiana shalt not require public schools to post the Ten Commandments

Do the Ten Commandments have a valid place in U.S. classrooms? Louisiana’s Legislature and governor insist the answer is “yes.” But on Nov. 12, 2024, a federal judge said “no.” U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles blocked the state’s controversial House Bill 71, which Gov. Jeff Landry had signed into law on June 19, 2024. The measure would have required […] … learn more→

Researchers have invented a new system of logic that could boost critical thinking and AI

Researchers have invented a new system of logic that could boost critical thinking and AI

The rigid structures of language we once clung to with certainty are cracking. Take gender, nationality or religion: these concepts no longer sit comfortably in the stiff linguistic boxes of the last century. Simultaneously, the rise of AI presses upon us the need to understand how words relate to meaning and reasoning. A global group […] … learn more→

Is it possible to work without Google?

Is it possible to work without Google?

Search engines are inseparable from the way most users use the Internet today. Google, the most popular in the world, has even given rise to a verb to refer to the action of searching for information on the Internet. Google was founded in 1998 with $100,000. In mid-1999, it received a $25 million capital injection from two venture […] … learn more→

Friends on WhatsApp: How do they influence adolescence?

Friends on WhatsApp: How do they influence adolescence?

Brands are after them, users are chasing them, everyone wants them, and for some teens, it can become an obsession or a risk: they are the “likes” on Instagram, or the followers, subscribers, and friends on YouTube and TikTok. In other words, approvals and comments help teens of the “Alpha” generation (aged 12 to 17) […] … learn more→

Asking ChatGPT vs Googling: Can AI chatbots boost human creativity?

Asking ChatGPT vs Googling: Can AI chatbots boost human creativity?

Think back to a time when you needed a quick answer, maybe for a recipe or a DIY project. A few years ago, most people’s first instinct was to “Google it.” Today, however, many people are more likely to reach for ChatGPT, OpenAI’s conversational AI, which is changing the way people look for information. Rather than […] … learn more→

Dyslexia can actually be an advantage for university researchers

Dyslexia can actually be an advantage for university researchers

Many people may think of dyslexia as a reading difficulty, or the occasional embarrassing mix-up of letters. For years, I thought that too. But as a dyslexic academic who has spent much of my life wrangling with academic norms, I’ve realised that dyslexia isn’t just a barrier. It’s also a unique and undervalued cognitive strength. Yes, you read […] … learn more→

Racism is such a touchy topic that many US educators avoid it – we are college professors who tackled that challenge head on

Racism is such a touchy topic that many US educators avoid it – we are college professors who tackled that challenge head on

It is not easy to teach about race in today’s political and social climate. One hundred and sixty years after the United States abolished slavery, racial differences continue to spark pervasive misunderstanding, engender social separation and drive political and economic disparities. American educators are naturally intimidated and, at times, discouraged by the huge task before them. Yet race […] … learn more→

Perils of Peer Review

Perils of Peer Review

Peer review, like many things, sounds great in theory. When you submit a paper for publication, qualified experts objectively review your paper, comment on its suitability for publication and give you feedback that you can use to improve it. However, in reality, the problems with peer review go far beyond getting a reviewer who just doesn’t get your […] … learn more→

Meta now allows military agencies to access its AI software. It poses a moral dilemma for everybody who uses it

Meta now allows military agencies to access its AI software. It poses a moral dilemma for everybody who uses it

Meta will make its generative artificial intelligence (AI) models available to the United States’ government, the tech giant has announced, in a controversial move that raises a moral dilemma for everyone who uses the software. Meta last week revealed it would make the models, known as Llama, available to government agencies, “including those that are working on […] … learn more→

Can you sleep your way to better decision making? Here’s what the science says

Can you sleep your way to better decision making? Here’s what the science says

The author John Steinbeck said: “It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it.” Many others have claimed they formulated breakthroughs and innovations in dreams. Recent studies on the science of sleep suggest these claims are supported by modern science. A 2024 study suggests […] … learn more→