Will artificial intelligence (AI) end civilization? Lero researchers seek public's views on AI and software

Irish researchers seek public input on the impact of AI on society

2023-07-18

(Press-News.org) Will artificial intelligence (AI) end civilisation? Researchers at Lero, the Science Foundation Ireland Research Centre for Software and University College Cork, are seeking help determining what the public believes and knows about AI and software more generally.

Psychologist Dr Sarah Robinson, a senior postdoctoral researcher with Lero, is asking members of the public to take part in a ten-minute anonymised online survey to establish what peoples’ hopes and fears are for AI and software in general.

“As the experts debate, little attention is given to what the public thinks – and the debate is raging. Some AI experts express concern that others prioritise imagined apocalyptic scenarios over immediate concerns – such as racist and sexist biases being programmed into machines. As software impacts all our lives, the public is a key stakeholder in deciding what being responsible for software should mean. So, that’s why we want to find out what the public is thinking,” added the UCC-based researcher.

Dr Robinson said that, for example, human rights abuses are happening through AI and facial recognition software.

“Research by my Lero colleague Dr Abeba Birhane and others found that data used to train some AI is contaminated with racist and misogynist language. As AI becomes widespread, the use of biased data may lead to harm and further marginalisation for already marginalised groups.

“While there is a lot in the media about AI, especially ChatGPT, and what kind of world it is creating, there is less information about how the public perceives the software all around us, from social media to streaming services and beyond. We are interested in understanding the public’s point of view – what concerns the public have, what are their priorities in terms of making software responsible and ethical, and the thoughts and ideas they have to make this a reality?” outlined Dr Robinson.

Participants in the survey will be asked for their views and possible concerns on a range of issues and topics, with the hope of clarifying their views on critical issues. Lero is asking members of the public to donate 10 minutes of their time for this short survey.

END

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

NIH grant backs Rice U. lab’s sickle cell disease research

2023-07-18

HOUSTON – (July 18, 2023) – Rice University bioengineer Gang Bao and his team have won a 4-year, $2.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to address critical questions surrounding the safety and efficacy of using gene editing to treat sickle cell disease. Because it is caused by a mutation in a single gene, sickle cell disease is a prime candidate for gene editing treatments using tools such as CRISPR-Cas9. “Sickle cell disease affects over five million people worldwide, and ...

EMBARGOED: Women less likely to be routed to comprehensive stroke centers for large vessel acute ischemic stroke, according to UTHealth Houston research

2023-07-18

Despite having worse stroke symptoms and living within comparable distances to comprehensive stroke centers, women with large vessel occlusion acute ischemic stroke are less likely to be routed to the centers compared to men, according to a new study from UTHealth Houston. Led by corresponding author Sunil Sheth, MD, associate professor of neurology and director of the vascular neurology program with McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, and senior author Youngran Kim, PhD, assistant professor of management, policy, and community health with UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, the study was published today in the Journal of the American ...

IOP Publishing’s latest Environmental Research series journals now open for submissions

2023-07-18

IOP Publishing’s (IOPP) new environmental research journals are now open for submissions. Announced earlier this year, the two new open access (OA) journals: Environmental Research: Energy and Environmental Research: Food Systems are the latest additions to IOPP’s expanding Environmental Research Series which now includes eight open access titles. IOPP’s Environmental Research series builds on the established reputation of the journal Environmental Research Letters (ERL) and shares the same outstanding levels of author service, inclusive editorial policies, strict quality assurance and has open science principles at its core. IOP ...

This sugar kills honeybees—it could also help fight cancer

2023-07-18

LA JOLLA, CALIF. – July 18, 2023 –Research from Sanford Burnham Prebys and the Osaka International Cancer Institute has shed new light on the anti-cancer properties of mannose, a sugar that is crucial to many physiological processes in humans and is also known to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. The findings, published in the journal eLife, suggest that mannose could be a helpful secondary treatment for cancer. “This sugar could give cancer an extra punch alongside other treatments,” says study co-author Hudson Freeze, Ph.D., director of the Human Genetics ...

Smiles all round: clinical trial shows that a toothpaste containing synthetic tooth minerals can prevent cavities as effectively as fluoride

2023-07-18

Brushing twice a day keeps the dentist away – but can we improve on the toothpaste we use to maintain clean teeth, preventing medical issues that spiral from poor dental health? Most toothpastes use fluoride, a powerful tool for oral hygiene. However, fluoride can pose health problems in some cases, especially for children who consume too much fluoride by swallowing most of their toothpaste: children normally use only a tiny dose of toothpaste to avoid these problems, but that reduces toothbrushing efficacy. In the search for alternatives, a team of international scientists and Polish clinicians have identified a hydroxyapatite toothpaste that works just as well as fluoride toothpaste ...

A new way to browse interlinked biodiversity data: The Biodiversity Knowledge Hub is now online!

2023-07-18

The Horizon 2020 BiCIKL Project is proud to announce that the Biodiversity Knowledge Hub (BKH) is now online. BKH is a one-stop portal that allows users to access FAIR and interlinked biodiversity data and services in a few clicks. BKH was designed to support a new emerging community of users over time and across the entire biodiversity research cycle providing its services to anybody, anywhere and anytime. “The Knowledge Hub is the main product from our BiCIKL consortium, and we are delighted with the result! BKH can easily be seen as the beginning of the major shift in the way we search interlinked biodiversity information,” says Prof. Lyubomir ...

The double face of RNase as a treatment for systemic autoimmune diseases

2023-07-18

Osaka, Japan – Systemic autoimmune diseases are characterized by inflammation of multiple organs and can have devastating consequences for patients. There is a dire need for treatments against these diseases. RNase treatments seem promising in some clinical trials but not all. Researchers from Japan have uncovered the reasons for this variability. In a study recently published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation Insight (JCI Insight), researchers from Osaka University have provided new insights into the opposite effects of RNase ...

Unveiling synchronization preferences of quantum thermal machines

2023-07-18

Researchers from the Center of Theoretical Physics of Complex Systems within the Institute for Basic Science (PCS-IBS) made an important discovery that describes the relationship between synchronization and thermodynamics in quantum systems. The question of how order arises from disorder has captivated humanity for centuries. One fascinating example of such emergence is synchronization, where multiple oscillators initialized randomly could end up oscillating in harmony. Synchronization exists in our everyday lives, e.g. the sound of clapping hands or the simultaneous flashing of fireflies. Remarkably, scientists have discovered ...

Prof. Chilai Chen’s team developed the first deep-sea mass spectrometer of China and successfully tested at deep sea

2023-07-18

The study is led by Prof. Chilai Chen (Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences). The detection of dissolved gases in the deep sea is of great significance in exploring the origin and early evolution of life, understanding the interaction between the Earth's spheres, studying the geological profile of the Earth, searching for underwater oil, gas, and mineral resources, and researching global climate change. Changes in the concentrations of dissolved oxygen and nitrogen can indirectly or directly reflect the activity patterns ...

Unlocking human-level capabilities: GPT-4 empowers data mining for building energy management

2023-07-18

The building sector is a significant contributor to global energy consumption, accounting for approximately 33% of the world's final energy usage. Recently, data mining technologies have showed powerful capacities for revealing energy waste and providing energy-saving tips to building owners. These technologies have the ability to save approximately 15%-30% of the energy consumed in buildings. However, the practical application of data mining technologies has been limited due to its labor-intensive nature, resulting in a scarcity of real-world use cases. In a study published in the KeAi journal Energy and Built Environment, ...

RODIN project, funded by the European Research Council through a Synergy grant (ERC-Syn), will invest 10 M€ to explore cells as the architects of future biomaterials

Will artificial intelligence (AI) end civilization? Lero researchers seek public's views on AI and software

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: