DL 361
Mysteries, Facts, Numbers, and Data
Welcome to Digitally Literate, issue #361. This week, I shared:
- What is your why?
Insights on discovering and sharing your why, especially for those considering careers in education. - Rethinking academic rigor in the higher education classroom
Reflections from a panel discussion on academic rigor in teaching and learning.
🔖 Key Takeaways
- AI’s Accelerating Debate: Calls for a pause to address risks vs. opportunities.
- Tech Accountability: Learning from public health’s failures and successes.
- Data Delusion: Balancing data with other forms of knowledge.
- Youth and Tech: Frameworks for self-directed and community-supported digital experiences.
📚 This Week’s Highlights
1. Emotional Language and Disinformation
The Hit Pause YouTube channel offers short, insightful videos on spotting and curbing misinformation and disinformation online.
Why this matters: Media literacy is essential to navigate today’s complex information ecosystems.
2. Pause Giant AI Experiments
An open letter urges a six-month pause on large-scale AI development to assess its implications. This has sparked significant debate on risks versus hype.
Why this matters: We must address questions around research, regulation, and societal impact of AI technologies.
3. Tech Accountability Through Public Health
Public health’s systematic inequities offer a cautionary tale for tech governance. Covid-19 policies exemplify the disparity in addressing marginalized communities.
Why this matters: Agile, equity-focused approaches are critical as tech shapes society.
4. The Data Delusion
Jill Lepore explores the obsession with data in her analysis of How Data Happened. She argues that data should complement, not replace, mysteries, facts, and numbers.
📖 Read the article
🎧 Listen to the authors discuss it
Why this matters: We need to diversify how we understand and use knowledge in decision-making.
5. Texas Lawmakers and Online Speech
Proposed legislation in Texas seeks to block abortion-related information online, raising questions about freedom of expression and censorship.
Why this matters: These efforts echo authoritarian tactics, threatening digital rights and free speech.
6. Kids, Tech, and Development
Katie Davis proposes that digital experiences are most beneficial when self-directed and community-supported.
Why this matters: Thoughtful approaches to technology can support healthier development for children and adults alike.
🛠️ DO: Overcome Creative Block
The Marginalian explores the power of free play as a remedy for creative and existential stuckness.
🌟 Closing Reflection
“As long as our brain is a mystery, the universe, the reflection of the structure of the brain, will also be a mystery.”
— Santiago Ramón y Cajal
Thank you for reading Digitally Literate. Stay tuned for more insights and discussions. Connect with me at hello@digitallyliterate.net or explore Newsletter Index for all past issues.