Pretending Not To Panic @pretendingnottopanic - Tumblr Blog

(via Kung Fu Robot)

"What would you do at a parade or demonstration if you saw a squad of robots approaching up your street?"

#PNTP

Welcome back to reporting on news that is: significant, factual, and apolitical. And welcome back to a familiar theme. “Climbing US Inequality”, PNTP, January 2025 (Does that mean wealt…

"Wealth inequality (as measured by the Gini Coefficient) was declining through the 60s and 70s. As of circa 1980, wealth inequality rebounded from under 35 to a new record of 42."

This blog’s most recent post (Increasingly Persuasive AI) has a sad confirmation of the effect. “A 14-year-old boy’s suicide following a romantic relationship with an AI companion&#8230…

"With no physical limit, this trend should be expected to continue and grow. Sadly, that is already including suicides."

#PNTP

Much of the AI news is about its progress towards and possibly surpassing human intelligence. A different worry is not about AI’s intelligence but its persuasiveness. What can it convince you…

And now is when AI can get really spooky, not when it is the smartest, but when it convinces those who aren't as smart as it is. Do any specific public humans come to mind?

#PNTP #ars technica

“Collectively, they’ll account for roughly 17 percent of the US’s energy production, while coal will only provide about 15 percent.” – Ars Technica That’s the ne…

“Thanks to solar energy generation seeing a 30% increase in 2024 alone, wind power and solar power generated more energy than coal in the US in 2024“

#PNTP #renewable energy

This isn’t news, and yet it is. Both the globe’s land and ocean temperatures reached new records. (globally: 2.9F, 1.6C) They are both heating up. That’s news. Sadly, there’…

"Both the globe's land and ocean temperatures reached new records. (globally: 2.9F, 1.6C) They are both heating up. That's news. Sadly, there's no newness to that news..." - The Conversation

#PNTP

By at least one measure, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has: “…just achieved human-level results on a test designed to measure “general intelligence” – Ars Technica On December 20, …

"This new intelligence is developing faster than us, is not stopping, and we don't know how it does it, how far it can go, and whether it will care about us. Stay tuned."

#PNTP

The US upper class was 11% in 1971, and jumped to 19% by 2023. Mostly that is from a shrinking middle class falling to 51% from 61% in the same time. Lower income population rose a bit from 27% to …

"The rising tide is not lifting all boats. ... Less of the nation's money is going to those who need it most."

#PNTP

Coping and hoping? Doesn’t that describe what every character is doing in a novel? Fire Race, the second book in my science fiction series (Exodus/Genesis), obviously describes how a bunch of…

Fire Race, the book and the ebook, is done in time for the holidays. Whew.

"Writing (and reading) books can be a mechanism for coping and hoping. Especially in times like late 2024, this can be a good time to reach out and connect with other writers. Everyday life has enough drama for inspiration. Currently, there's a surplus of drama, so there should be a surplus of inspiration."

#sciencefiction #scifi #coping

The world is in turmoil – and has been. Today’s answer has been to hand out ears and hugs. Don’t take that literally. Ears were for listening. Hugs were for sharing. For those with the capaci…

Change is the only constant, and yet; "At some point, I remember to breathe, feel, watch, smile, listen, hug, and definitely dance. ... Those are things that we pesky humans have been doing throughout all of our history, no philosophizing or planning required."

Let’s keep this simple. “In the North Atlantic, the number of storms that quickly intensified from Category 1 (or weaker) into a major hurricane has more than doubled in 2001-…

"...all most of us can do is wish those people good luck and a safe evacuation - and the hope that they have a home to return to."

#PNTP #Climate Central

If it seems as if homelessness in the US has become an issue, it is because it has. It isn’t a case of perception of an eternal situation. “As recently as the 1970s, when rents as a sha…

"While some prefer to blame homelessness as a failing of a person's character, the data shows otherwise."

#PNTP #Pew Trusts #Homelessness

Sigh. An international report lists our recent bad climate records. Here’s the list. Sadly, none of this is truly new news. Record temperatures notable across the globe. The annual global sur…

"We're hotter, more polluted, flooding, on fire, and melting. And too many people think nothing is going on. Too many people think there's no reason to act, or that we can act later. Later is now. Wow."

#PNTP #NOAA

August 1, 2024, Earth Overshoot Day. Last year it was August 2, 2023. We’re trending the wrong way. It is one measure of the unsustainability of our civilization. It is the day by which we&#8…

Earth Overshoot Day - August 1, 2024 If our civilization was sustainable, that date would be after December 31. By that measure, our civilization is not sustainable.

#PNTP

July 22, 2024 was the hottest day ever. OK. Maybe there were hotter days before humans evolved (and are we evolved) but July 22, 2024 was the hottest day for the planet since the beginning of the I…

“July 22, 2024 was the hottest day for the planet since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. So far.“

#PNTP #NASA

Pardon me as I groan. Inventory. Inventory is also known as books that haven’t sold. Inventory is also known as potential sales. Inventory can also be heavy, bulky, and fragile. It is also ne…

“Someone stole one of the display copies. That's a loss and a crime, but also a compliment. Of all the books to steal, they stole one of mine.“

That caught me by surprise. I forgot how to play my lottery game. For years, I’ve played this game with myself. What would I do if I won the lottery? I’d imagine a range of answers from…

We're not all playing the same game, despite how it looks.

Winning means different things to different folks.

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Pretending Not To Panic