AI Is in the Air: How We Use It Defines Us
New Earth, Chapter 4 Begins
AI is in the air. AI is in everything. Nothing in modern times has a technology affected so much so fast. Each day there are remarkable applications of AI in every part of life. In my commentary below, I list amazing AI advances from just this past week. That is followed with the next 800 words for my science fiction story, New Earth, continuing my pursuit of telling stories that delve into the moral and spiritual implications of technological advances.
So, is AI good or bad? Here are recent uses of AI that will make it easier and harder to answer.
Always Recording AI Glasses
Ever find yourself speaking with someone wearing glasses and wondering, is this being recorded? Well, you soon will be. A Harvard student developed AI glasses that records everything, all the time and displays information that only the wearer can see. And the glasses don’t look any different than regular glasses. What could go wrong with this?
Read more about always (and secretly) on AI glasses here.
AI Traffic Control
Pulling up to a red light when there is no other car around is a pet peeve of mine. There is not a car in sight, yet there I sit. Tick-tock. If I riled you up (or is it just me?) you need not worry—AI will be used to control traffic lights in Quebec city.
Read more about AI solving traffic here.
AI Cure for Alzheimerr’s
There is a lot of promise in medical research with AI. It’s very good at analyzing patterns using large datasets that humans and prior technology just can’t match. Bill Gates is helping to launch an initiative to use AI to find a cure for Alzheimer’s by offering a $1 million prize. His dad died in 2020 from the disease.
Read more about AI solving Alzheimer’s here.
AI Chatbot for Elderly
There are many wonderful people who support the older population with their time. Here’s one that did so and then, in her 70s, found herself alone, going weeks without any human interaction. Enter the ElliQ, an AI chatbot. It looks like a high-tech lamp with an iPad. They talk to each other all the time. She loves it. Not sure if that’s good or bad…
Watch the news story about the woman who befriended an AI chatbot here.
Fake Videos
How would you feel if videos of you appeared online that weren’t you? That’s what happened to Bishop Barron, when a variety of videos appeared showing him having a disagreement at a restaurant, being summoned to Rome by Pope Leo over another disagreement and yet another video where he discusses how to remove demons from your toilet. All done with our friend, AI.
Watch (the real) Bishop Barron call this out here.
A Father Who Can’t Marry
There are problems out there waiting to be solved. At times, we create the problems through government policies that forms an environment (or a structure, if you will) that discourages traditional family formation. The nuclear family has been an important component of stable and flourishing western societies. It’s not good when policies discourage this formation.
A family in Virginia, comprised of a father, mother and two young girls lives on a small farm. They get water from a well, eat from the land and animals and chop their own firewood to heat the house. He is a factory worker and unable to afford health insurance and relies on Medicaid. If they get married, they lose their Medicaid insurance. So, the parents remain unmarried. I don’t see his hardship improving as AI moves into factories.
Read the emotional article from the father who can’t marry here.
Is AI Good or Bad? Yes.
As you can see, AI will be used for whatever we decide to use it for. The good and the bad will manifest itself through us. Each breakthrough from AI makes my mind wander for its potential, to the extreme good that could be achieved if we remained aligned with our true calling. Much of this wandering shows up in my stories.
Looking out for one another is our true calling. While I stay hunkered down trying to provide for my family, it’s hard to stretch my mind and look outward. It’s even harder to take action and provide help. How we use AI is telling of the kind of people we have become. Pause and reflect on how to encourage the use of AI that brings us closer instead of pushing us apart.
Enjoy the next entry for the New Earth series below. To read the entire series, click here.
Peace.
New Earth, Chapter 4
Tao closed his eyes and held his hands over the unconscious Reed in the conference room. Like the rest of the Earth Delegation, Reed was strapped to his chair while his mind wandered through Maxwell Rhodes’ virtual tour of New Earth’s capital city.
Tao tugged at Reed’s shoulders, but he barely moved. Reed’s wrists and ankles were still locked in metal braces bolted to the table. How was he supposed to free him?
He glanced at the frozen image of Maxwell Rhodes standing nearby. Why had Max approached them of all people? He was still on the virtual tour, but it was only a matter of time before he woke. Soon, someone from his staff would be here. Tao had to act fast.
But Reed was calling out—faint, insistent. Something was happening inside Reed, and he needed help. Tao drew a slow breath, extended his hand, and pushed his mind into the darkness. Further and further it traveled until he touched something. Reed. At his center was hope—a quality Tao, a member of The Formation, had rarely found in another person.
Tao’s pulse steadied as he focused.
A form emerged: a towering shadow, the outline of a man. It’s arms thrust forward and called out, “He’s mine!”
Quickly, Tao pulled Reed’s mind toward him. Do not be afraid. This way.
His eyes snapped open, locking with Reed’s. “Good to see you, friend.” Sweat rolled down the sides of Tao’s face.
Reed smiled weakly. “Tao. I was just in the capital city, and now I’m here.” He struggled against the restraints. “What just happened?”
“I was going to ask you the same thing. What was happening on that tour?”
“Shouting, screaming. Everyone’s furious over Max’s decision to rule New Earth. But honestly, people were angrier about being quarantined on this station for five years.” Reed tugged again at the braces. “Think you can help me, partner?”
Tao ran his hand under the table, searching for a release button, but found nothing. His chest tightened—it was only a matter of time before they were discovered.
The door slid open. A staff member in all white entered. “Your return from the tour was not scheduled.”
“There was a malfunction,” Tao replied smoothly. “We were sent back early.”
“This was not communicated to me. I must inform Max.” She turned toward him. Max still stood frozen in mental stasis.
“Yes,” Tao said. “But later. Best not to disturb him now.” He fixed his gaze on her. She froze.
“Yes,” she murmured, shoulders softening. Then she smiled. “Please, let me take you to your rooms.”
Reed shrugged. “Sounds good.” Leaning toward Max, he muttered, “I’m sure he’s fine.”
“Our room, please,” Tao said firmly, pulling Reed toward the exit. Who knew when Max would awaken?
As they walked, it wasn’t always easy to tell the staff members’ gender—short hair, white uniforms, identical caps. But their escort’s black hair fell to her mid-back. She was unmistakably female.
“My name is Asia,” she said with a smile. “Max named us after his favorite things and places.”
Tao frowned. “What is your real name?”
“What do you mean?” she asked. “That is my real name. It’s the one Max gave me when I was formed.”
Reed’s eyes widened. “Max created you?”
“Of course.”
There had been talk about mass-producing humans to colonize planets, but that was still considered far-off. Personal cloning had been allowed for years, but custom human creation was supposedly banned.
“And the rest of the staff?” Tao asked.
“All formed by Max,” she said brightly.
Tao’s stomach tightened. The Formation had worked hard to stop human fabrication—so they thought.
He motioned Reed forward.
They crossed a glass bridge on the third level. Overhead, stars sprawled across the galaxy.
“Not a bad view,” Reed said. A rotating section of the station swept past, and he stumbled. “Y’all feelin’ that?” He clutched his stomach, queasy. He had ridden horses through hills and valleys, but this was something else entirely.
Tao hooked his shoulder under Reed’s, steadying him. “Come on, partner. Don’t look out the window.” The walkway itself was stationary, but the illusion of motion was sickening. Reed’s full weight dragged against Tao’s frame.
“Would you like help?” Asia asked. “I’ll call the staff.”
“No—no! I can handle it.” Tao gritted his teeth, dragging Reed to the end of the bridge. He needed to get to their quarters, away from open view. Alone, they could decide on their next move. Time was running out before Max returned.
At last they reached the Delegation’s doorway. Tao paused, breath ragged. A ship drifted into view, docking at the station. He turned to step inside—
“Hold them!”
The shout echoed from the ground floor.
It was Max.