[ExI] Study of social media behavior must be 'crisis discipline'

[Daniel Azulay]

I strongly urge you all to listen to the latest Lex Fridman podcast where
he talks with Bret Weinstein about exactly this topic (Truth, science and
censorship in the time of a Pandemic).

Weinstein argues that to change the way social media influences society,
the system itself must first change, and well, he has a rather pessimistic
outlook.

On Sun, Jun 27, 2021, 11:40 BillK via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

> Our ability to confront global crises, from pandemics to climate
> change, depends on how we interact and share information.
>
> <https://phys.org/news/2021-06-technology-behavior-crisis-discipline.html>
> Quotes:
> Social media and other forms of communication technology restructure
> these interactions in ways that have consequences. Unfortunately, we
> have little insight into whether these changes will bring about a
> healthy, sustainable and equitable world. As a result, researchers now
> say that the study of collective behavior must rise to a "crisis
> discipline," just like medicine, conservation and climate science have
> done, according to a new paper published June 14 in the Proceedings of
> the National Academy of Sciences.
>
> Social media and other technological developments have radically
> reshaped the way that information flows on a global scale. These
> platforms are driven to maximize engagement and profitability, not to
> ensure sustainability or accurate information—and the vulnerability of
> these systems to misinformation and disinformation poses a dire threat
> to health, peace, global climate and more.
> --------------
>
> Also -
> <
> https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/6/26/22550981/carl-bergstrom-joe-bak-coleman-biologists-ecologists-social-media-risk-humanity-research-academics
> >
> Quotes:
> The paper argues that our lack of understanding about the collective
> behavioral effects of new technology is a danger to democracy and
> scientific progress. For example, the paper says that tech companies
> have “fumbled their way through the ongoing coronavirus pandemic,
> unable to stem the ‘infodemic’ of misinformation” that has hindered
> widespread acceptance of masks and vaccines.
> ----------
>
> Ohh,  Somebody's noticed that social media might just be destroying
> society..........
>
> BillK
>
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>
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