It's "what’s known as the default mode network, a collection of seemingly unrelated areas of the brain that activate when you’re not doing much at all. Its discovery has offered insights into how the brain functions outside of well-defined tasks and has also prompted research into the role of brain networks. - Quanta
They ‘must not be far-fetched, or they will be difficult to grasp, nor obvious, or they will have no effect’, as Aristotle already noted nearly 2,500 years ago. For this reason, artists – those skilled enhancers of experience – are generally thought to be the expert users of metaphors, poets and writers in particular. - Aeon
Whether you want to write a book, run a marathon, or play a Beethoven sonata, here are three rules that can supercharge your effort—inspired by the 19th-century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer and backed up by modern social science. - The Atlantic (MSN)
Researchers "wanted to find out whether having certain personality traits was related to how people perceived their friendships and to how they were perceived as friends. The researchers also wanted to explore whether the chemistry between two friends’ traits made a difference." - Psyche
Trained on human-generated data, large language models are very adept at noticing patterns in that data. But learning from existing written material – even massive quantities of it – might not be enough for AI to come up with solutions to problems that they’ve never encountered before, something that children can do. - Psyche
The accusation of plagiarism can feel formidable. Denying intent allows one to try to sidestep the accusation. ‘Perhaps I’m guilty in some technical sense, but I’m not dishonest!’ But does a lack of intent matter? - Psyche
Is art for one thing only? Do we need—why do I feel the need?—to formulate a Grand Unified Theory of art, one that would reconcile its various and sometimes contradictory purposes, that would proclaim, finally, that art may be for this or that, but this is what it’s really for? - Salmagundi
“The malaise that has begun to suffuse TikTok feels systemic, market-driven and also potentially existential, suggesting the end of a flourishing era and the precipice of a wasteland period.” - The New York Times
“Think about how much of your life you live online, how much of your identity resides there. . . . Whom do you want in control of that world?” - The New Yorker
“For a long time, creativity research has focused on how do you generate new ideas? What’s the secret sauce? I think that that’s not really the problem. There are so many ideas. It’s the acceptance of those ideas, getting people to support them, that is the hurdle.” - Nautilus
Is it possible, then, that we so fiercely police the distinction between what Large Language Models can do and human creativity because we’re… touchy about it? - Unherd
History can be a powerful tool for manipulation and malfeasance. The same generative A.I. that can fake current events can also fake past ones. - The New York Times
"It took so much more than U.S. battlefield heroism to win this war. Indeed, only an estimated 16% of the U.S. Army ever saw ground combat. ... Their efforts were deeply intertwined with, and dependent upon, the work and resources of others around the globe." - Time
Can a board game be anti-colonial? Hm. "There is something dramatic about a board game. ... They’re theater exercises where the players are writing and performing for each other. That’s so intimate." - Slate
