The Download: labeling AI, and Twitter’s transformation

This is today's variation of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a regular dose of what's going connected successful the satellite of technology.

Cryptography whitethorn connection a solution to the monolithic AI-labeling problem 

The White House wants large AI companies to disclose erstwhile contented has been created utilizing artificial intelligence, and precise soon the EU volition necessitate immoderate tech platforms to statement AI-generated content.

There’s a large problem, though: identifying worldly that was created by AI is simply a monolithic method challenge. The champion options presently available—detection tools powered by AI, and watermarking—are inconsistent, impermanent, and sometimes inaccurate.

But different attack has been attracting attraction lately: C2PA. It’s an open-source net protocol that relies connected cryptography to encode details astir the origins of a portion of content. The occupation is, it’s acold from a fix-all solution. Read the afloat story.

—Tate Ryan-Mosley

If you’re funny successful speechmaking much astir the hunt for a amended mode to statement AI, cheque retired the latest issue of The Technocrat, Tate’s play newsletter covering argumentation and powerfulness successful Silicon Valley. Sign up to person it successful your inbox each Friday.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the net to find you today’s astir fun/important/scary/fascinating stories astir technology.

3 Starlink controls astir each outer net services
That disproportionate powerfulness doesn’t bode good for planetary relations. (NYT $)+ Starlink signals tin beryllium reverse-engineered to enactment similar GPS. (MIT Technology Review)

4 Amazon is asking immoderate of its distant workers to resign
If they can’t articulation bureau hubs, they’re being asked to vacate their positions. (Insider $)
+ Things aren’t large for UPS drivers either. (The Atlantic $)

5 Evangelical Christians are spying connected enactment workers online
Their surveillance tactics are helping constabulary to get hunt warrants. (The Intercept)
+ Evangelicals are looking for answers online. They’re uncovering QAnon instead. (MIT Technology Review)

6 Why EV bikes support catching fire
Though lithium-ion batteries are mostly safe. (WSJ $)
+ The velocity bounds connected definite e-bikes tin beryllium circumvented. (NYT $)

7 Military start-ups are booming
AI is supercharging weapons and systems, with perchance deadly consequences. (FT $)
+ Silicon Valley has been capitalizing connected the warfare successful Ukraine. (MIT Technology Review)

8 Creating prosthetic arms has ever been challenging
The Boston Arm was among the archetypal to harness electrical signals from its wearer’s muscles. (IEEE Spectrum)
+ These prosthetics interruption the mold with 3rd thumbs, spikes, and superhero skins. (MIT Technology Review)

9 3D-printing is helping to support uncommon species
By providing convincing replicas of carnal assemblage parts utilized to decorate accepted headdresses. (The Guardian)

10 Please don’t portion laundry detergent
Despite what you mightiness spot connected TikTok. (Vox)

Quote of the day

“To them, we are similar robots alternatively than people. The small things that marque america human, you tin consciousness them being crushed retired of you.”

—An anonymous Amazon idiosyncratic successful the UK describes the punishing world of beingness wrong the company’s warehouses to the Guardian.

The large story

Eight ways scientists are unwrapping the mysteries of the quality brain

August 2021There is nary greater technological enigma than the brain. It’s made mostly of water; overmuch of the remainder is mostly fat. Yet this astir three-pound blob of worldly produces our thoughts, memories, and emotions. It governs however we interact with the world, and it runs our body.

Increasingly, scientists are opening to unravel the complexities of however it works and recognize however the 86 cardinal neurons successful the quality encephalon signifier the connections that nutrient ideas and feelings, arsenic good arsenic the quality to pass and react. Here’s our whistle-stop circuit of immoderate of the astir cutting-edge research—and wherefore it’s important. Read the afloat story.

We tin inactive person bully things

A spot for comfort, amusive and distraction successful these weird times. (Got immoderate ideas? Drop maine a line oregon tweet 'em astatine me.)

+ The formed of the US mentation of The Office were avid readers of an early fansite (but if you haven’t seen the British original, you truly should.)
+ Timelapses of cakes rising is my latest obsession. 🍰
+ Bring backmost the women’s restroom lounge!
+ A pasta look for each week of the year is existent nationalist work journalism.
+ Clear your caput and your schedule—it’s clip to instrumentality the cleanable play nap.