Hacker News with Generative AI: Society

I knew one day I'd have to watch powerful men burn the world down (theguardian.com)
I don’t know if anyone else has noticed this but everything seems to be going down the tubes quite fast. And not fun tubes, like at a waterpark. The “ending in shit” kind. The issues are complicated, the reasons diverse, but there are a few culprits who have been making themselves extremely visible.
Politics, Society, Opinion
9 points by cratermoon 2 days ago | 6 comments
Nobody cares (grantslatton.com)
Why does nobody care about anything? The world is full of stuff that could be excellent with just 1% more effort. But people don't care.
Motivation, Society, Technology, Effort
977 points by fzliu 3 days ago | 937 comments
Sweden is a nearly cashless society – how it affects people who are left out (theconversation.com)
Around the world, cards and apps are the default way to pay – but nowhere is the transition away from cash more obvious than in Sweden. The Bank of Sweden notes that the amount of cash in circulation in the country has halved since 2007.
Sweden, Cashless Society, Financial Inclusion, Technology, Society
30 points by PaulHoule 4 days ago | 64 comments
Why do small children in Japan ride the subway alone? (economist.com)
Why does Ohtani Shohei, a Japanese baseball star, pick up litter after games? Why do Japanese people queue so politely, and wait for green lights before crossing the road? Why, in short, is Japan so orderly? Some say the answer lies in its primary schools.
Japan, Culture, Society, Education
47 points by feyman_r 4 days ago | 105 comments
Stay Gold, America (codinghorror.com)
We are at an unprecedented point in American history, and I'm concerned we may lose sight of the American Dream.
American History, Politics, Society
118 points by ksec 9 days ago | 109 comments
On Priesthoods (astralcodexten.com)
Some recent political discussion has focused on “the institutions” or “the priesthoods”. I’m part of one of these (the medical establishment), so here’s an inside look on what these are and what they do.
Politics, Institutions, Medical Field, Society
69 points by feross 10 days ago | 39 comments
America Needs to Rethink What It Means to Be Old (theatlantic.com)
As 100-year lifespans become more common, the time has come for a new approach to school, work, and retirement.
Aging, Society, Retirement, Education, Work
17 points by thinkingemote 12 days ago | 12 comments
Why does modern life often feel like the seven circles of digital hell? (theguardian.com)
In many ways, I love living in the digital age. As someone who grew up in the analog world (my first journalism job, as a college intern, involved a manual typewriter and carbon paper), I am still delighted to be able to find out, within 10 seconds, whether a particular movie star is still alive or to share my latest column with the entire world through a social media post.
Technology, Society, Digital Culture, Social Media
9 points by devonnull 14 days ago | 1 comments
Billionaire says AI surveillance can ensure 'citizens are on best behavior' (businessinsider.com)
But this is only the start of our surveillance dystopia, according to Larry Ellison, the billionaire cofounder of Oracle. He said AI will usher in a new era of surveillance that he gleefully said will ensure "citizens will be on their best behavior."
Artificial Intelligence, Surveillance, Privacy, Society, Business
11 points by latexr 15 days ago | 2 comments
38C3: Illegal Instructions (media.ccc.de)
The 38th Chaos Communication Congress (38C3) takes place in Hamburg, 27.-30.12.2024, and is the 2024 edition of the annual four-day conference on technology, society and utopia organised by the Chaos Computer Club (CCC) and volunteers.
Technology, Conferences, Germany, Society
465 points by type0 20 days ago | 81 comments
Are we becoming a post-literate society? (ft.com)
Are we becoming a post-literate society?
Society, Literacy, Technology, Culture
37 points by belter 21 days ago | 48 comments
38C3: Illegal Instructions (media.ccc.de)
The 38th Chaos Communication Congress (38C3) takes place in Hamburg, 27.-30.12.2024, and is the 2024 edition of the annual four-day conference on technology, society and utopia organised by the Chaos Computer Club (CCC) and volunteers.
Technology, Society, Conferences, Germany
10 points by cookiengineer 21 days ago | 0 comments
38th Chaos Communication Congress (events.ccc.de)
The 38th Chaos Communication Congress (38C3) takes place in Hamburg on 27–30 Dec 2024, and is the 2024 edition of the annual four-day conference on technology, society and utopia organized by the Chaos Computer Club (CCC) and volunteers.
Technology, Society, Conferences, Germany, Hackers
353 points by joeig 25 days ago | 195 comments
Ask HN: How does world look like post AGI? (ycombinator.com)
Assuming we get AGI in year or two and all the dev jobs are replaced with agents. What does that look like in terms of career and making money ? Will we depend on our agents to make money for us or rely on gov for universal basic income ?
Artificial Intelligence, Economics, Society
13 points by cryptozeus 25 days ago | 23 comments
Smash the Technopoly (afterbabel.com)
In 2014, I felt something change. To use some old movie metaphors, it was like a disturbance in The Force, or a glitch in The Matrix. Something had changed among the students entering college (which led me to write The Coddling of the American Mind), and something had changed in American society and politics, which led me to write a series of articles in The Atlantic with titles such as
Education, Society, Politics, Technology
18 points by paulpauper 26 days ago | 1 comments
People Are the New Brands (profgalloway.com)
America has fallen out of love with brands and in love with people. This is evident in every corner of American life — from politics and business to technology and media. People are the new brands.
Marketing, Branding, Culture, Society
6 points by Brajeshwar 29 days ago | 1 comments
The Arc of Innovation Bends Toward Decadence (newcartographies.com)
For years, people have bemoaned the sorry state of innovation. Compared with the great inventions of the industrial era, the inventions of our own time seem pathetic. In today’s Sunday Rerun, I offer a different take: We’re as innovative as ever, but the focus of innovation has shifted. The post originally appeared in 2012.
Innovation, Technology, History, Society
11 points by jethronethro 30 days ago | 3 comments
Why are so many Americans acting like a pack of ghouls? (noahpinion.blog)
As David Hume would tell you, all moral statements are technically matters of opinion. I can’t prove to you that murder is bad, no matter how many facts I cite. I can tell you that it leads to a more violent, poorer society, but you can just shrug and say “So what?”. I can argue that murder is maladaptive for the survival of the human species, but you can just shrug and say “So what?”.
Society, Philosophy, Morality
15 points by paulpauper 34 days ago | 9 comments
Not yet panicking about AI? You should be.There's little time left to rein it in (theguardian.com)
Only a handful of people grasp the magnitude of the changes that are about to hit us. They’re exciting – and terrifying
Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Society
5 points by ChaitanyaSai 35 days ago | 1 comments
Decivilization May Be Under Way (theatlantic.com)
The brazen murder of a CEO in Midtown Manhattan—and the cheering reaction to his execution—amounts to a blinking-and-blaring warning signal for a society that has become already too inured to bloodshed.
Society, Crime, Violence, Urbanization
24 points by gnabgib 37 days ago | 26 comments
Digital consumption keeps me from getting better at my job (sibervepunk.com)
There is a new lifestyle imposed on almost the entire world, willingly or unwillingly, perhaps by powerful people or by many small people that want to be powerful, which somehow affects all ordinary people: a consumption-oriented life.
Digital Consumption, Lifestyle, Technology, Society, Work
320 points by siberpunk 38 days ago | 114 comments
When the future arrived, it felt ordinary (worksinprogress.co)
When the future arrived, it felt… ordinary. What happened to the glamour of tomorrow?
Future, Technology, Society, Culture
42 points by bswud 39 days ago | 2 comments
The Technological Society: Jacques Ellul (archive.org)
This is undoubtedly one of the most important books of the twentieth century, and if you accept its thesis you won't be able to look at the political milieu in the same way ever again. (If you agree with it and it doesn't change the way you look at things, you haven't grasped its importance.)
Technology, Society, Books, Political Science
5 points by DyslexicAtheist 39 days ago | 1 comments
The world of tomorrow (worksinprogress.co)
When the future arrived, it felt… ordinary. What happened to the glamour of tomorrow?
Future, Technology, Society
115 points by diodorus 41 days ago | 133 comments
Faux Friendship (2009) (utne.com)
We live in an age when friendship has become both all and nothing at all.
Friendship, Society, Culture
10 points by botanicals6 43 days ago | 1 comments
America Got Mean (2023) (theatlantic.com)
In a culture devoid of moral education, generations are growing up in a morally inarticulate, self-referential world.
Culture, Society, Politics, Morality
29 points by zdw 48 days ago | 31 comments
Silicon Valley is turning into its own worst fear (2017) (buzzfeednews.com)
This summer, Elon Musk spoke to the National Governors Association and told them that “AI is a fundamental risk to the existence of human civilization.”
Silicon Valley, Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Future, Society
101 points by catskull 48 days ago | 63 comments
There Is No Business Case for Civilization (twitter.com)
Philosophy, Society, Economics
70 points by NavinF 55 days ago | 24 comments
Is China Really a Nation of Slackers? (economist.com)
China is famous, even infamous, for hard graft. Prodigious amounts of toil and elbow grease helped the country become the workshop of the world. More than 175m migrant workers labour in cities far from home, often leaving their children in the care of relatives. And the sacrifices are not confined to the poor. Even some of China’s more sophisticated firms are known for their “996” office culture, encouraging unfortunate employees to work from 9am to 9pm, six days a week.
China, Economics, Work Culture, Labor, Society
7 points by jnord 57 days ago | 3 comments
AI could cause 'social ruptures' between people who disagree on its sentience (theguardian.com)
Significant “social ruptures” between people who think artificial intelligence systems are conscious and those who insist the technology feels nothing are looming, a leading philosopher has said.
Artificial Intelligence, Society, Philosophy
10 points by chrischapman 62 days ago | 9 comments