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CEO Picks - The best that international journalism has to offer!  S3The Unpredictable Dictators - Foreign Affairs (No paywall)  Until the week before it happened, most people refused to believe that Russia would attack Ukraine. Despite repeated warnings from the Biden administration and widespread evidence that Moscow’s troops were massing on Ukraine’s borders, it was difficult to accept that Russian President Vladimir Putin would try conquering Europe’s largest state. “He won’t be initiating an escalation,” said French President Emmanuel Macron on February 8, just 16 days before the invasion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was also caught off-guard, saying at the end of January that Biden’s claims of a coming invasion were simply “panic.” The German government was so convinced Russia would not attack that its chief intelligence official was in Kyiv on the day the war began and had to be whisked out by German security personnel. The invasion of Ukraine is not the first time that officials incorrectly dismissed warnings that a state would strike its neighbor. In 1973, Israeli policymakers rejected reports that Egyptian President Anwar Sadat planned to attack the Sinai, citing the fact that his air force could not strike deep behind their lines. In 1979, U.S. President Jimmy Carter did not believe Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping’s warning that China might invade Vietnam because Deng’s statement did not comport with Carter’s worldview. And until the 1991 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait actually began, the United States was convinced that President Saddam Hussein would not attack, even though facts on the ground indicated otherwise.
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S1Obesity drugs pose a big challenge for health care equity - STAT (No paywall) Weight loss treatments have the potential to revolutionize health care in rich countries. They are driving a race among drugmakers for a slice of a market that could exceed $100 billion by 2030. But little thought has apparently been given to helping people in low- and middle-income countries, where obesity rates are soaring despite poor nutrition.Without decisive action to develop fair access plans to these drugs for people living in poorer countries, there is a real danger that a significant medical advance will end up increasing inequality in health care. This is especially true if the rush to fund obesity research and development diverts research and development resources from other important unmet medical needs.
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S2Black voices, Black bodies: Life in the age of Ozempic - STAT (No paywall) In the United States, you’d think the greatest achievement in life is fitting into a smaller clothing size. We praise people for their efforts to lose weight, no matter the cost. And the societal obsession with weight loss has only gotten stronger with the arrival of Ozempic and a new wave of anti-obesity drugs. GLP-1 drugs started as treatments for type 2 diabetes and have since been approved for obesity and heart disease — all chronic conditions more likely to affect Black Americans.But to think about taking the expensive drugs means grappling with affordability and access, as well as centuries of oppression, systemic discrimination, and monitoring of Black bodies. It’s not easy being Black and living in a larger body in a world that worships whiteness and thinness. So, we wanted to hear voices from the Black community about living in the age of Ozempic.
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S4The Terrorism Warning Lights Are Blinking Red Again - Foreign Affairs (No paywall) From his confirmation hearing to become Director of Central Intelligence in May 1997 until September 11, 2001, George Tenet was sounding an alarm about Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda. In those four years before al Qaeda operatives attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Tenet testified publicly no fewer than ten times about the threat the group posed to U.S. interests at home and abroad. In February 1999, six months after the group bombed the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, he claimed, “There is not the slightest doubt that Osama bin Laden . . . [is] planning further attacks against us.” In early 2000, he warned Congress again that bin Laden was “foremost among these terrorists, because of the immediacy and seriousness of the threat he poses” and because of his ability to strike “without additional warning.” Al Qaeda’s next attacks, Tenet said, could be “simultaneous” and “spectacular.” In private, Tenet was even more assertive. Breaking with standard protocols, he wrote personal letters to President Bill Clinton expressing his deep conviction about the gravity of the threat. And several times in 2001, he personally discussed his concerns about al Qaeda’s plans with President George W. Bush and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. The CIA and the FBI may not have uncovered the time, place, or method of the 9/11 plot, but Tenet’s warnings were prophetic.Two and a half decades later, Christopher Wray, the director of the FBI, is sounding similar alarms. His discussions within the Biden administration are private, but his testimony to Congress and other public statements could not be more explicit. Testifying in December to members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Wray said, “When I sat here last year, I walked through how we were already in a heightened threat environment.” Yet after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, “we’ve seen the threat from foreign terrorists rise to a whole nother level,” he added. In speaking about those threats, Wray has repeatedly drawn attention to security gaps at the United States’ southern border, where thousands of people each week enter the country undetected.
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S5A Rare Hearing Disorder Can Make Sounds Loud and Uncomfortable - Discover Magazine (No paywall) A condition called hyperacusis, sometimes called sound sensitivity, is a rare hearing disorder in which sounds that typically don’t bother most people seem particularly loud and uncomfortable. Some common sounds that are unbearable to people with hyperacusis are water running in a sink and people having a conversation.While there’s not much reliable data on how many people suffer from hyperacusis, research has shown that the condition is more common in musicians and people in the music industry (particularly rock and pop music that is heavily amplified), people with occupational exposure to loud noise, migraineurs, and people with tinnitus. Hyperacusis is also associated with some neuropsychiatric conditions, such as PTSD and anxiety disorders.
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S6These 5 Ancient Treasures Were Discovered at Sea and in Sunken Shipwrecks - Discover Magazine (No paywall) Part of the draw is that there are purportedly still a plethora of famous lost shipwrecks out there, such as the undiscovered Portuguese Flor do Mar, a treasure ship that was sunk in 1511 off the coast of Indonesia bearing dozens of chests of gold, precious gems and perfumes that might be worth billions today.This ancient device was discovered in 1901 in the remains of a sunken merchant ship dating to the 1st century B.C. off the coast of Antikythera Islands in Greece. And researchers still haven't figured out exactly how the bronze instrument was used, which has been called everything from an ancient computer to the "dial of destiny," most recently in the latest installment of the Indiana Jones series.
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S9S10Netanyahu responds after Benny Gantz resigns On October 7, 2023, Hamas led the deadliest militant attack on Israel in history, killing some 1,200 people and taking roughly 250 hostages. Israel then subsequently launched its heaviest airstrikes and ground offensive against Gaza, displacing nearly 2 million Palestinians and killing over 35,000, according to local health officials. About half of the hostages were freed during a temporary ceasefire in November.Gantz, who has criticized the Israeli government's lack of post-war plans in the eight-month conflict and joined Netanyahu's emergency government following Hamas' attack, issued his resignation on Sunday evening, stating in a televised address, "Netanyahu is preventing us from moving forward to a real victory." He also criticized the prime minister of not putting Israel's needs, including hostage recovery, "above political survival."
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S11S12America's Takeout Food Preferences: A Decade of Change As of March 2024, over half (52.9%) of Chinese payments were settled in RMB while 42.8% were settled in USD. This is double the share from five years previous. According to Goldman Sachs, foreigners’ increased willingness to trade assets denominated in RMB significantly contributed to de-dollarization in favor of China’s currency. Also, early last year, Brazil and Argentina announced that they would begin allowing trade settlements in RMB. However, though the prevalence of RMB in international payments could rise, a complete de-dollarization of the world economy in the near- or medium-term is unlikely. China’s strict capital controls that limit the availability of RMB outside the country, and the nation’s sputtering economic growth, are key reasons contributing to this.
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S13Why the student gap year is more popular than ever - Travel (No paywall) For decades, the gap year recipe remained virtually unchanged: cheap hostels, all-night parties, banana pancakes and months spent ‘finding yourself’. Throw in some bungee jumping, quad biking and moped riding, along with days doing not very much, and you quickly paint the stereotypical picture of the fabled ‘year out’ of old.Once synonymous with those taking a break between A-levels and university, or after a degree, the gap year has evolved into a catch-all that includes anyone seeking an escape before joining the workforce. And according to Student Universe, the world’s largest youth travel agency, the post-pandemic era has seen the biggest shift in students’ desire and motivation to travel in 50 years.
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S14A guide to Scottsdale, Arizona's desert gateway - Travel (No paywall) At first glance, you’d be forgiven for mistaking Scottsdale for a city without depth. Here, in the primordial expanse of the Sonoran Desert in southwestern Arizona, first impressions are of a town adorned with all the hallmarks of generic modernity: luxury spas, high-end fashion outlets, sprinkler-fed golf courses. But you’ll find that Scottsdale’s history stretches further than its immaculate surface implies — further even than the history of the United States. Long before it became known as a haven for the rich and famous — before the first guest ranches sprang up in the 1890s, and the city’s first settlers planted their orchards in the red earth — this land played host to Pueblo Ultimo, one of a string of ancient Indigenous settlements that thrived along the Salt and Gila rivers.It was the home of the Hohokam, or ‘those who have disappeared’, a long-vanished people who irrigated the desert with canals, bringing life to the dust before abandoning such villages in the 14th and 15th centuries. They may be gone, but their reverence for the desert landscape has been taken up by the artists enamoured with Scottsdale’s big skies, and architects who, in the oblivion of the surrounding desert, envisioned new ways of living in harmony with nature.
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S15The British Countryside's Forgotten History of Slavery - Foreign Policy (No paywall) The Irish Sea churns against St. Bees Head. This is northern England’s most westerly tip, in a part of Cumbria once known as Cumberland. Here, giant cliffs face the sea; beyond it lies the Atlantic and North America. Today this is an established heritage coast, its cliffs crowded with seabirds and rare species; the sea below is a marine conservation zone.The Irish Sea churns against St. Bees Head. This is northern England’s most westerly tip, in a part of Cumbria once known as Cumberland. Here, giant cliffs face the sea; beyond it lies the Atlantic and North America. Today this is an established heritage coast, its cliffs crowded with seabirds and rare species; the sea below is a marine conservation zone.
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S16The Forgotten World War III Scare of 1980 - Foreign Policy (No paywall) On Sept. 2, 1980, a U.S. government Special Coordination Committee met to try to determine how to deter a large-scale Soviet invasion of Iran. The committee’s yawn-inducing name belied its grim subject matter and the seniority of its participants—the national security advisor, the secretaries of state and defense, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, among others—as well as the notes of desperation that crept into their conversation.On Sept. 2, 1980, a U.S. government Special Coordination Committee met to try to determine how to deter a large-scale Soviet invasion of Iran. The committee’s yawn-inducing name belied its grim subject matter and the seniority of its participants—the national security advisor, the secretaries of state and defense, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, among others—as well as the notes of desperation that crept into their conversation.
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S17S18S19S20S21Why California Is Swinging Right on Crime - The Atlantic (No paywall) As Gavin Newsom rose from mayor of San Francisco to governor of California, he championed progressive efforts to reclassify various felonies as misdemeanors, to end the death penalty, and to legalize marijuana. After George Floyd’s murder in 2020, he signed laws barring cops from using a controversial chokehold and requiring independent probes in police shootings, bragging that “California has advanced a new conversation about broader criminal justice reform.”But since his second term began last year, he has more often talked like a tough-on-crime conservative, promoting efforts to hire more cops; to surge state police into high-crime cities; to impose harsher penalties on drug dealers, car burglars, and retail thieves; to install more surveillance cameras; and to deploy state prosecutors to Alameda County, where the progressive district attorney is flailing. “An arrest isn’t enough,” Newsom said this year, urging more prosecutions. “Whether it’s ‘bipping’ or carjacking, attempted murder or fentanyl trafficking, individuals must be held accountable for their crimes using the full and appropriate weight of the law.”
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S22Cruise Ships Arenât Ready for Instant Tsunamis - The Atlantic (No paywall) In 2015, 76 million cubic meters of rock crashed from the rugged cliffs above a southeastern Alaska fjord and into the water below. The landslide sparked a nearly 200-meter-tall wave that roared down the narrow Taan Fiord and out into Icy Bay. No one witnessed the collapse, but a year later, the geologist Bretwood Higman was in the area taking detailed measurements of the tsunami’s effects. Looking up from his work, Higman saw a massive cruise ship crossing the fjord’s mouth. He was stunned.Landslide-generated tsunamis are low-probability, high-consequence events. But as rising temperatures cause glaciers to melt, the steep slopes of southeastern Alaska’s numerous fjords are becoming unstable. Once buttressed by ice, many exposed cliffs now stand unsupported and at risk of collapse as the glaciers that once held them up rapidly retreat. Heavy rains and thawing permafrost are further increasing the hazards. And with tourists flocking to Alaska’s rugged coast, “there are now these huge concentrations of people that are going right to the areas of highest risk,” Higman says. We’ve increased our vulnerability to disaster, and we’ve increased the probability, he says. This risk is rising in coastal regions around the world that share Alaska’s conditions, such as Greenland, Chile, Norway, and New Zealand.
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S23The Science of Having a Great Conversation - WIRED (No paywall) If you’ve ever spoken to someone and later felt that you would have better spent your time talking to a brick wall, you’ll surely identify with the observations of Rebecca West. “There is no such thing as conversation,” the novelist and literary critic wrote in her collection of stories, The Harsh Voice. “It is an illusion. There are intersecting monologues, that is all.”Psychological research has identified many habits and biases that impose barriers between ourselves and others—and if we wish to have greater connection with the people around us, we must learn how to overcome them. The good news is that corrections are very easy to put into practice. Tiny tweaks to our conversational style can bring enormous benefits.
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S24Smartphones May Affect Sleepâbut Not Because of Blue Light - WIRED (No paywall) You've likely heard that blue light from smartphone screens may be keeping you awake at night. While the sun is our main source of blue light, the rise of LEDs and screen use exposes us to artificial blue light in the evening. Blue light suppresses melatonin, a hormone we naturally produce to help us drop off at night. Therefore, blue light can make it harder to fall asleep. Right? Well, maybe not.The amount of blue light that smartphone screens emit is relatively tiny, and there is mounting evidence that claims about their impact on sleep are overblown. In a recent review of 11 studies from around the world, published in the journal Sleep Medicine Reviews, as reported by the Times, researchers found no evidence that screen light in the hour before bed makes it tougher to drift off.
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S25S26S27S28Far-right parties make stunning gains in EU election, prompting Macron to call snap vote in France - Fortune (No paywall) Voting has ended to elect the European Union’s regional lawmakers for the next five-year term after the last remaining polls closed in Italy, as surging far-right parties dealt a body blow to two of the bloc’s most important leaders: French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.In France, the National Rally party of Marine Le Pen dominated the polls to such an extent that Macron immediately dissolved the national parliament and called for new elections, a massive political risk since his party could suffer more losses, hobbling the rest of his presidential term that ends in 2027.
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S29Volvo is moving EV production from China to Belgium as the EU eyes tariffs on Beijing - Fortune (No paywall) On top of transferring production of Volvo’s EX30 and EX90 models to Belgium, the carmaker may also move assembly of some Volvo models bound for the UK, the report said, citing unidentified people. Volvo, which is owned by Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., is seen as the most exposed among western automakers to the potential tariffs, the Times said.Trade frictions between the EU and China have led to a barrage of anti-dumping probes against Beijing amid allegations of unfair subsidies. The EU is expected to tell EV makers in China as early as this week on whether it will impose provisional tariffs from July 4 that would boost import duties above the current level of 10%.
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S30Trump Will Sit For Probation Interview Monday After Felony Conviction - Forbes (No paywall) Trump was convicted May 30 in the hush money case and is still one month away from a sentencing hearing that will decide whether or not he spends time in jail—his sentence could range from a fine of up to $5,000 to house arrest to four years in prison for each of his 34 felony convictions (jail time appears unlikely in the case).Trump became the first president to be convicted of a crime when a New York jury found him guilty of falsifying documents to cover up the payments his attorney, Michael Cohen, made to silence porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election. Since the trial, Trump and his allies have called the court process “rigged” and baselessly said his conviction was “all done by Biden and his people. This is done by Washington.” President Joe Biden fired back and called Trump's attacks on the justice system "reckless" and "irresponsible." In an interview with Fox News days after the verdict, Trump said he was "OK" with the possibility of jail time or house arrest, but warned it would be "tough for the public to take” and said it could push supporters to a “breaking point.”
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S31Trump Proposes Eliminating Taxes On Tipped Wages - Forbes (No paywall) Any tips to service workers that total more than $20 in a given month are subject to federal income taxes. Tips through electronic means, like credit card payments, are automatically reported to employers, and employees are also expected to total the amount of their cash tips and report them on individual income tax returns.The tourism-driven city of Las Vegas, where Trump announced his plan, has tens of thousands of service workers who rely on tips to make a living. Leisure and hospitality is the main industry in Las Vegas, according to Nevada's state Office of Workforce innovation, accounting for 26% of total employment as of January 2023. The industry includes hotels, restaurants, bars, entertainment venues and other employers whose employees often rely on tips from customers to flesh out their income. Nevada plans to institute a uniform minimum wage of $12 per hour for all employees, whether or not they are tipped, on July 1, but that standard isn't the same across the country. In other states, like Texas, North Carolina, Utah and beyond, tipped workers are legally allowed to be paid as little as $2.13 per hour, as long as the salary and the tips they make ultimately equal or exceed the minimum wage requirement. If reported tips do not reach the minimum wage, the employer is required to make up the difference.
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S32S33Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot leave Israelâs war cabinet - The Economist (No paywall) BENNY GANTZ spent 37 years of his life climbing the ranks of the Israel Defence Forces to the top. As a politician he still likes to speak in military idioms. One of his favourites is to “go under the stretcher”, which refers to the idea that everyone must share the weight of the national burden. He has often used the term to describe his decisions to join, twice, in times of emergency, governments led by Binyamin Netanyahu.The first was in 2020, when Mr Gantz, as leader of a large centrist alliance, broke an election promise not to serve under Mr Netanyahu and joined him in a unity government during the covid-19 pandemic. That partnership lasted only seven months before relations between the two politicians irrevocably broke down.
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S34How Google's new AI could revolutionize medicine This article is an installment of Freethink’s Future Explored, a weekly guide to world-changing technology. You can get stories like this one straight to your inbox every Thursday morning by subscribing here.It’s 2040. You’re at your doctor’s office, and you just tested positive for that disease that killed your uncle. Just 10 years ago, the news would’ve been devastating, but in this hypothetical future, your doctor is able to prescribe a highly effective treatment — thanks to Google.
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S35S3677 Years Ago, LEGO's Founder Spent 6 Months Profit on a Wild Idea that Changed Everything Most people think of LEGO as the company that makes little plastic bricks that children (and adults) assemble into imaginative creations. Last year, the company released hundreds of different products, almost all of which are centered on those plastic bricks.The bricks didn't come until much later, and they almost didn't happen at all. That turns out to be a pretty consequential decision when you think about it. Those bricks are played with by millions of people, and they have made LEGO Group the world's largest toy company, with more than $9.6 billion in revenue last year. Still, it wasn't until LEGO Group's founder, Ole Kirk Kristiansen, took a trip to Copenhagen in 1946 that he saw a demonstration of an injection mold machine that would eventually change everything.Â
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S37In 21 Seconds, Kansas City Chiefs Tight End--and Taylor Swift Boyfriend--Travis Kelce Taught a Huge Lesson in Resourcefulness What do you do when you've made a mistake and let your team members down? Many of us might give in to disgust or self-recrimination, but in a playoff game this year, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce showed how quick thinking and adaptability can make up for even a bad screwup. If you're founder or other business leader, you should keep it's a great lesson to remember for the inevitable moment when you have a screwup of your own.Kelce, who's perhaps best known for his romantic relationship with Taylor Swift, co-hosts a podcast with his elder brother, former Philadelphia Eagle Jason Kelce. The show often includes a segment called Teach Tape, in which they go over the video of a play in detail, sharing their extensive knowledge about what's going on on the gridiron. In last week's episode, the brothers took a close look at one of Travis's catches from the Chiefs' playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens in January. The unlikely catch has been called "UNREAL" on YouTube--and it helped Kelce set a new record for most off-season catches. It's worth watching the 21-second play to see Kelce leap sideways away from a defender and catch the ball a moment before falling to the ground.
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S38People With High Emotional Intelligence Never Admit 1 Brutal Truth at Work. New Research Backs Them Up If you reach that point, you're probably doing something right. However, leaders with high emotional intelligence understand that there's an advantage to recalling what things were like back then -- namely that it can help you see the world through the eyes of the people you're leading now.Here's an example. Imagine you had a choice between two bosses or leaders. Think about which one you would have preferred to work for. On paper, let's assume they they both seem pretty similar, except:Â
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S39Great Leaders are Everyday Heroes Be an everyday hero. When you really acknowledge someone, when you bring a smile to someone's face, when you empower someone, when you just listen to someone, when you take that extra moment to connect and care-you are being a hero.By focusing on healthy heroism, you create an environment where everyone can thrive and contribute their unique strengths. So, be a hero--not by standing alone on a pedestal, but by lifting others up to stand with you.Â
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S40Let's Talk About the Real Reason for All These Tech Layoffs I mean, let's get this out of the way. The gall on that reasoning offends me. Like, on a deep spiritual level. Because if there's a tenet of business that I truly believe is unflinching, it's that you can't cut your way to growth. Ever.I swear, if I see one more article from some "expert" with a headline that screams about AI taking everyone's job except those of us who are wise enough to learn how to use AI, I will... write a strongly worded letter to the publisher because it's the publisher's fault for letting that garbage through for the clicks.
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S41Two Words Most Likely to Be Your Last, According to Pulitzer Prize-Winning Oncologist As a Beatles fan, I enjoy most of their music. The lyrics to one of their songs, "All You Need Is Love," always made me think: "Really? What about shelter, food, work, and enough money to pay your bills?"This has significant implications for how you live. You should treat loved ones well. If you feel love, you should express it. If you damaged your relationships with loved ones through unloving actions, you should try to restore the love by apologizing, asking for forgiveness, and taking action to restore the relationship -- or move on.
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S427 Key Elements That Will Make You a Successful Thanks to the internet, new leaders can easily access good advice on being a great leader. Some of that advice comes as insightful anecdotes from the world's top leaders, like Sundar Pichai's leadership at Google. Other advice stems from great quotes that distill leadership wisdom into simple, concise tidbits. Looking back over the past 20 years of my leadership journey, I wish I had better visual guides to help me understand the different critical leadership areas and how they relate. So, I built a tool that may be helpful for new leaders.The diagram below shows how these areas build on each other. The items on top of the pyramid have the most considerable upside potential but can be undone without a stable foundation--the bottom three items.
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S43Guardians of Innovation: How Life Sciences Companies Can Safeguard Their Breakthroughs In the fast-paced world of life sciences, innovation is everything. It's what drives companies forward, revolutionizing health care and transforming lives. Safeguarding those game-changing breakthroughs is where robust intellectual property strategies come in. They're crucial for staying ahead of the competition and ensuring long-term success.To dive deeper, I spoke with two IP experts from Caldwell Law: Katherine Rubino, partner and director of the life sciences practice group, and Kasia Zebrowska-Trauben, associate. They shared their insights on the unique IP challenges life sciences companies face and the strategies to overcome them.
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S44The Heavy Toll of the Youth Mental Health Crisis on Businesses In the past decade, rates of youth depression almost doubled, with nearly one out of every three teenagers in the U.S. reporting poor mental health. Suicide ranks as the second-leading cause of death among 15 to 24-year-olds in the United States. These statistics paint a stark reality, with almost one-third of working parents feeling overwhelmed by their child's mental health needs. Mental health has now become the top concern for parents, surpassing worries about substance use, teen pregnancy, and getting in trouble with the police.  Like 43 million other workers in this country, I'm navigating the demands of a full-time career and parenthood, and it's not easy. It's no coincidence that in 2022, at a time when the youth mental health crisis was skyrocketing, women's participation in the workforce was at 57 percent, its lowest since 1988. Research indicates that more mothers carry the mental load of parenting, which refers to the invisible work involved in keeping children functioning and a household running. It's no wonder that more than one in five caregivers have voluntarily quit their jobs or plan to in order to better care for their children's behavioral health needs. Parents are worried about their kids.
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S45S46The EU Is Taking on Big Tech. It May Be Outmatched The latest in a series of duels announced by the European Commission is with Bing, Microsoft's search engine. Brussels suspects that the giant based in Redmond, Washington, has failed to properly moderate content produced by the generative AI systems on Bing, Copilot, and Image Creator, and that as a result, it may have violated the Digital Services Act (DSA), one of Europe's latest digital regulations.On May 17, the EU summit requested company documents to understand how Microsoft handled the spread of hallucinations (inaccurate or nonsensical answers produced by AI), deepfakes, and attempts to improperly influence the upcoming European Parliament elections. At the beginning of June, voters in the 27 states of the European Union will choose their representatives to the European Parliament, in a campaign over which looms the ominous shadow of technology with its potential to manipulate the outcome. The commission has given Microsoft until May 27 to respond, only days before voters go to the polls. If there is a need to correct course, it may likely be too late.
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S47How Game Theory Can Make AI More Reliable Imagine you had a friend who gave different answers to the same question, depending on how you asked it. "What's the capital of Peru?" would get one answer, and "Is Lima the capital of Peru?" would get another. You'd probably be a little worried about your friend's mental faculties, and you'd almost certainly find it hard to trust any answer they gave.That's exactly what's happening with many large language models (LLMs), the ultra-powerful machine learning tools that power ChatGPT and other marvels of artificial intelligence. A generative question, which is open-ended, yields one answer, and a discriminative question, which involves having to choose between options, often yields a different one. "There is a disconnect when the same question is phrased differently," said Athul Paul Jacob, a doctoral student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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