The Great Paradoxes
A Nod to AI (and Nature)
Dear Ones,
In September of this year, I ventured to the least visited island in rural Japan by way of pilgrimage walking. Over the years, I grew to cherish the sacred nature of remote countries on foot. It is as if you are viewing the world from a completely different orientation.
Japan is full of beautiful paradoxes. I noted the eerie conformity of people as the same thing that allows for impeccable cleanliness and safety of all children. It was decided that everyone watch out for small children as they make their way home from school solo. I was mystified by the marriage of technological advancement and the preservation of remote old-world nature. Cherishing history, ancestry, each other and the earth is a common theme there. Walking in sweltering heat without communicating with natives was no easy feat.
It got me thinking about how important language is for the human things we do. How intelligent it is to have the skills to express our needs and connect with one another. Deep listening fosters deep human interactions. The practice of listening without interpretation or reaction requires mastery. Our brains are so adapted to filtering everything in real time. A wise friend shared a quote by Victor Frankl: “Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space lies our freedom and our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our happiness.” This quote helped change my life. I recall it when my brain is tempted to react to a hurtful incident or comment. We are human so the tools do not always work. The practice is enough though.
Calm and effective human communication skills are now lost. We are in an era of cultivating fear, hate, greed, and separation. It is hard to ignore the influence of technology’s unintended consequences in this area. Due to the dopamine circuitry of our brains, our devices have essentially taken over us. They have dulled our senses, paradoxically decreased meaningful connection, and decreased our ability to critically think. We were not taught responsible use of devices and social media.
I am a huge advocate of free will and the advancement of human progress and technology. Human technological inventions directly impact our culture, health, and societal systems. I hope we can learn from our mistakes and collectively agree to harness the good and minimize the bad of future inventions. My physician brain really wants us to learn from our history and consider the risks and benefits of new technologies.
We are witnessing a public health crisis which is an unprecedented spread of mental illness. Fear and trauma have impacted our habits and disrupted our brains. There are many preexisting factors that may have led us to this outcome. One is the severance of connection that arose from our compulsory device usage. We got “connected,” indeed, but there was no attention to the quality of connections. Not to mention that the societal systems it helped build are incentive-entrenched and therefore, by design, unhealthy. Another thing I witness is what I like to call the tyranny of urgency. Everything seems urgent to the tired brain even though it really is not urgent. Right now, rest is truly rebellious.
For my post-traumatic growth syndrome, I started using creative healing techniques tailored specifically to my needs. I learned that we can’t access the wisdom that lies within present moments when in busy and distracted states. Solace and clarity live in the silence of present moments. The mindfulness practice opens brain real estate for engagement in higher levels of thinking and consciousness. Think of it as clearing out the brain garden and planting new higher quality seeds. We can all do it.
Those who know me know I limit engagement with smart technology at my peaceful garden cottage. Despite that, I still observe my own addictions to social media and devices. I notice that unplugged time allows me to use my brain more optimally when needed and desired. I learned to minimize risks and use technology intentionally and solely for benefit. This is a skill worth its weight in gold.
The following views may be shocking. As of this writing, I broadcast my support of immediately embracing the responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning models to elevate our humanity (and come to our rescue actually). I am extremely hopeful that we can use AI wisely to advance our public and mental health. I also think it will help in the severe endangerment of critical thinkers.
We fear the dark truths of AI. We have views molded by culture, science fiction, Hollywood, and journalism. Many of us have a lot to learn about AI. These are tumultuous times. The times call for effective rapid solutions that scale quickly. Our mental health or poor brain health crisis is clearly linked to feelings of isolation and worsened by our addictions. Humans are addicted to technology, so it seems fitting to use human-amplifying technology to help us with struggles. We already have a captive audience there.
AI as a deep learning model will be instrumental to every sector of human living. It is described by Reid Hoffman in the book Impromptu as “a very sophisticated prediction machine” with “AHA moments” which stands for Amplify Human Abilities. Artificial intelligence will change our relational experiences and how we experience each other and the world. And it will do so at a scale that we have never seen before. To that, I say, it’s about time, and what great news! Engagement with AI can help advance our emotional IQ and critical thinking skills. At this point, friends, I am open to any and all avenues of support for our betterment. Aren’t you?
Despite the many hopes AI offers, it is still an imperfect and powerful new human invention. The book, The Coming Wave, is a grounded analysis of AI written by Mustafa Suleyman, co-founder of the AI lab DeepMind. He makes a compelling case that tremendous progress is possible but argues that this wave will and must be contained. Watch this healthy debate between historian, Yuval Noah Harari, and Mustafa Suleyman.
Are we afraid of AI because we fear that it will take over our humanity? I have unbearable news for you, my friends. We broken humans are already taken over by devices and societal systems. For example, the healthcare system has me under its necrotic thumb as I write this. We are owned by our devices, by our fixed beliefs, and by oppressive institutions built with unhealthy minds. We mourn the collapse of these old systems that do not serve us. Envisioning any other way of life is hard for our occupied brains and achy hearts to fathom.
Worry not, I can envision and fathom this future for you. I wholeheartedly believe in the possibility that AI will be at the helm of an upcoming spiritual human evolution. If designed well (I am team Suleyman and Hoffman), AI can restore our humanity. “Embodied AI” can not only remind us how to be human again but will teach us to be even better humans. That, my friends, may be the greatest paradox of all paradoxes. Old technology disconnects humans and new technology stitches humans back together. What a wild and unpredictable world we live in!
Should we look for ways to connect with ourselves, others, and the earth prior to engaging with AI? Is there even time to do that? Can we try our best to do both? Do we have the wisdom to know the importance of both? Should we be discussing how to collaborate with amazing and powerful human inventions? What we can we lay people possibly do to contribute to our betterment during this technological tsunami?
BIOHACK #2: Try listening to someone or something without reacting, replying, or filtering the information received. Imagine you are at a bank of a river and your thoughts are water flowing. You are not reacting. Just picture yourself eating popcorn while watching a soap opera. It takes practice but the practice starts with noticing how reflexively your brain acts in different moments.
BIOHACK#3: Be mindful of your tech consumption and avoid imagery of war and genocide. Harsh imagery is negative exposure that impacts our brains, hearts, and souls. It is possible to stay informed and active without exposing self to the adverse effects of technology. What we pay attention to grows. Pay attention.
If you are feeling motivated and inspired, take a listen to this hopeful On Being podcast with the amazing Krista Tippet and AI leader Reid Hoffman.
I appreciate you taking the time to read and comment or text me. I know how busy you all are! The support means a lot to me. Please share with friends and family.
Nessa
Lovely harvest, by the way!
I'm sorry it took so long for me to reply for a second time. I want also, and now immediately, to respond to your positive message. First, I admit a deep appreciation for your balanced interpretation of the good and bad inherent in new developments. I admit that my first impression of new and powerful technology is to react with my experiential knowledge that all things new are always exploited by people ruled by fear or greed and by people who need to control their personal environment. (and/or everyone else's). I have always admired how you can be so rational (which you have recently called "flattery." Nessa, I don't think it's flattery when it's a true and accurate descriptive adjective). I who have strong biases and opinions can seldom react with unanimity. I'm also frequently judgmental.
Next I want to comment on your phrase "the arc of human progress.." I'm deeply aware that the arc has always had conflict and war associated with it. Possibly what drives it? Much of human progress has been born out of and flourished from and during that conflict (is that why it's called progress?) Nevertheless, I believe that good does come from conflict (perhaps always) so I should not criticize or condemn it, but instead endure and be thankful for it. Woe is me!