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Deborah Gregory's avatar

Much like the kicked-over mushroom, your beautiful words linger, Maaike. Thank you. Your exploration of harm and empathy in writing is deeply moving, reminding me that honesty, while sharp and sometimes painful, is always the path that leads us quickest towards gentleness and understanding. Yes, I’m also fearful of AI distancing us from our humanness. I worry that people will stop thinking for themselves and that so much original thought and so many unique voices will be lost. Thank you for sharing 'Falling Woman' too. I look forward to more of your 'Walnut Ink' series.

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Veronika Bond's avatar

"AI ~ that we are already so ill-equipped to live with our human sides, and this new technology will make it even less imperative to find the way back." What do I think?

I think, it depends on how you look at it. I like to believe that because as humans we are already so ill-equipped to live with our human sides, this new tech will make it more imperative to find our back (or forward as the case may be) to live and become more fully human.

I believe, a lot of technology has been and is being developed out of a sense of human inferiority. The intention within and beneath and at the root of this development is a desire for superiority. Always a desperate race to the top....

We will not 'win the race' unless we remember our true power as humans, which is far beyond AI or any manmade technology.

I love your work ~ your artwork and writing 💗🙏

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Maaike VanderMeer's avatar

I love hearing these thoughts, Veronika. Thank you for sharing them! I'm curious - do you mean the "desire for superiority" is to be superior over each other, or (more generally) over the natural world? I can see truth in both.

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Veronika Bond's avatar

Both, and a third one: superiority over our own current state of inferiority. AI promises to give us that, more knowledge, more skills, faster accomplishment of tasks etc. Which is great, of course, we all enjoy getting better at things using better tools.

I think the important thing to remember is that as humans we have natural skills and tools and faculties which are far superior to any AI, which is essentially 'fake intelligence'.

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Maaike VanderMeer's avatar

Veronika, I appreciate this answer and it sparks so many thoughts in response. I wonder if another way of saying ‘fake intelligence’ is ‘indiscriminate intelligence’ - removing the human element of wisdom (being able to discern what’s right to a particular situation, instead of just a right/wrong equation).

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Lish Andres's avatar

Loved reading this.

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Maaike VanderMeer's avatar

Thank you, Lish!

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Kendra Fiddler's avatar

That last sentence is aching. I love how vulnerable you are about your own sharp edges.

And how “ill-equipped we are” to handle our human sides… yes, yes. An urgent conversation at the dawn of the AI age.

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Maaike VanderMeer's avatar

That last sentence I interrogated because it felt the most dramatic. :) But I think it serves its purpose.

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Kendra Fiddler's avatar

Drama always serves a purpose 😆 What that purpose is, on the other hand… Teasing, teasing. Here it worked great.

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Sue Ann Gleason's avatar

It’s always such a treat to read your work. :-)

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Maaike VanderMeer's avatar

It’s such a treat to be read by you! :)

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