Nicola Jones

In the new Netflix action / sci-fi movie ‘Atlas’, we get a revisiting of a now-familiar tale: AI decides, in its infinite wisdom, that the single biggest threat to humanity is, well, humans. So, the AI decides to kill off vast swaths of humanity for humanity’s sake. Queue drama. The set-up to the movie’s action amusingly includes a clip from a real television interview with Geoffrey Hinton, sometimes called the ‘godfather of AI’, a now-76-years-old retired researcher whose work at the University of Toronto (and later Google) really broke open the current AI revolution, by pioneering the idea that ‘neural networks’ could enact ‘deep learning’ algorithms, leveraging graphical processing units (computer chips called GPUs) and the vast stores of data on the internet (see my 2016 feature, The Learning Machines ). That philosophy is what has led us to large language models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The clip in the movie shows Hinton saying: “If we produce things that are more intelligent th...

Answer: not really. Someone can clone your voice without violating any copyright or other laws (though if they use it to scam someone, the scamming part is illegal; and if you're famous, it might violate your publicity rights). Is that good enough? See my story in Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01578-4

I had the great pleasure of meeting Kiri Wagstaff at the AAAI conference in Vancouver this year, and she immediately impressed me with her knowledge of both the techy side of AI and US policy surrounding AI regulation. Turns out she's doing a 1-year AAAS congressional fellowship and has moved to DC to help inform AI policy. There's a fascinating story behind it all. You can read my Q&A with her here: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01354-4 PS - interestingly, Kiri declined to have our interview transcribed using OtterAI, out of concern about how they might use the uploaded data for training their AI. I have added a "data disclosure" line to my email signature now, saying "I correspond on Gmail, do most interviews on Zoom, record with permission, and transcribe using OtterAI."

My story for Nature https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01117-1 122 million tonnes of mismanaged plastic waste 6.78 gigatonnes of greenhouse gases 4,200 chemicals deemed hazardous  

Stanford University's Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence produces this great, very useful report annually about the state of AI. It makes for fascinating reading. I recommend the full report if you have time for 400 pages :) If not, here's my news story! https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01087-4

Imogen Napper is a high-profile plastics investigator: her research prompted the ban on microbeads of plastic in beauty products, and has spurred a new rule requiring a plastics filter in washing machines in France. Read all about her very cool work here, https://knowablemagazine.org/content/article/food-environment/2024/imogen-napper-interview-global-treaty-plastic-pollution   This article was republished in a few places, as per Knowable's repub guidelines. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/plastic-pollution-is-drowning-earth-a-global-treaty-could-help/ https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/inching-toward-a-global-treaty-on-plastic-pollution/  https://www.yahoo.com/news/inching-toward-global-treaty-plastic-000000926.html

The notion of sucking carbon dioxide straight out of the air and tucking it away is seriously ramping up, with a 1 megatonne project underway in Texas (125 times bigger than the current largest effort in Iceland).  Read all about it in Yale Environment 360 https://e360.yale.edu/features/direct-air-capture