Category: Semester

Fall 2024 Featured Weekly News Profile

Fighting Hurricane Misinformation: Meteorologists Make the Climate Connection Amidst Storm of Lies

Rachel Pak October 21, 2024

The warnings preceding Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Martin were more accurate than ever before due to advances in forecasting methodology and technology. However, meteorologists have never faced such intense skepticism, hatred, and conspiracy-minded pushback. Many have been accused of steering the hurricanes, and others have faced threats of violence online. These false claims have been viewed more than 160 million times in the days following the hurricanes, and have even been pushed by government officials. However, in an effort to fight these false narratives, government authorities, civil society organizations, and meteorologists are now pushing back on disaster-related misinformation.

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Fall 2024 Weekly News Profile

A Long Way From Home: Starliner Crew’s Extended Stay in Space 

Janessi Diaz October 12, 2024

On June 5, the spacecraft Starliner, docked at the ISS. Starliner transported Suni Williams and Butch Willmore who were originally scheduled for an eight day mission. However, the duo did not return with Starliner as planned. Instead, they will stay on the ISS for an extra eight months, joining NASA’s Crew 9 to complete Expedition 72. Their last minute addition to the team is fortunate, but is ultimately a result of irresponsible engineering.

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Fall 2024 Weekly News Profile

The U.N.’s Saving Grace: Addressing Agenda 2030 with Technology

Mary Karapetyan October 3, 2024

This article dives into the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda, which consists of 17 Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved by 2030. Technology is considered to be a possible avenue in attaining these goals; however, limited internet infrastructure access are potential roadblocks to be faced along the way.

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Fall 2024 Weekly News Profile

Training AI with AI: Danger of Model Collapse on Internet Information Integrity

Mo Jiang September 24, 2024

The spread of AI-generated content on the internet poses a significant threat to the integrity of online information. As AI models are trained on the data they generate, a phenomenon known as “model collapse” can produce inaccurate content. This article examines the potential consequences of model collapse, such as creating echo chambers and degrading internet information. Researchers have proposed a solution to combat the model collapse, which involves blending AI-generated and human-authored data in training processes. By striking a balance between AI’s efficiency and human content’s reliability, we can harness AI’s potential while preserving the digital landscape’s authenticity.

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A person holding a cellphone with ChatGPT open
Fall 2024 Weekly News Profile

How ChatGPT Can Combat Conspiracy Theories

Rachel Pak September 15, 2024

Convincing a conspiracy theorist that they are wrong is usually a futile effort, but ChatGPT might have better luck. New research suggests that debating with a sympathetic chatbot may help pluck people who believe in conspiracy theories out of the rabbit hole. The study “Durably Reducing Conspiracy Beliefs Through Dialogues With AI,” published on September 13 in the journal Science, shows that conversing with a chatbot can weaken people’s beliefs in a given conspiracy theory. This study demonstrates that, although there exists the potential for generative AI to supercharge disinformation, it can also be part of the solution.

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