policy

A positive and a negative example of the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

On 01/31/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Apple, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), emerging technologies, ethics, Facebook / Meta Platforms, legislatures / government / legal, policy, privacy, UK, United States, by Daniel Christian

Both of the items below are from Sam DeBrule’s Machine Learnings e-newsletter:

AI can predict signs of a heart attack within a year — from a routine eye test — from studyfinds.org
Excerpt:
A team from the University of Leeds believes this AI tool opens the door to a cheap and simple screening program for the world’s number one killer. Their tests find the computer can predict patients at risk of a heart attack in the next 12 months with up to 80 percent accuracy.
Opinion: Facial-recognition technology is one of the biggest threats to our privacy — from marketwatch.com by Jurica Dujmovic
Excerpt:
Companies including Apple and Facebook, and governments worldwide, can misuse our facial images and unwittingly pass them on to hackers and other bad actors

Also see:

It’s Not Just the IRS—the US Government Wants Your Selfies — from wired.com by Tom Simonite
A controversial new program that uses facial recognition is part of a national effort to verify identities and reduce fraud.

Remote School Meltdowns? Research Gives Window Into Student Well-Being During the Pandemic [Young]

On 01/28/2022, in digital learning, education, education technology, health, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, learning preferences, parents/guardians, participation, policy, remote teaching and learning, research, student-related, surviving, teachers, by Daniel Christian

Remote School Meltdowns? Research Gives Window Into Student Well-Being During the Pandemic — from edsurge.com by Jeffrey R. Young

Excerpt:

To understand the stakes of the image, it’s worth looking to a new Harvard University research report that begins: “Although children have largely been spared the direct health consequences of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there is increasing concern about the pandemic’s influence on other aspects of child health and development.”

How should law schools address emerging technologies? [Christian]

On 01/18/2022, in 21st century, Blockchain, business, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, Daniel S. Christian, emerging technologies, internet, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, policy, political science, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
I post the following item because I’ve often wondered how law schools should best handle/address the area of emerging technologies. It’s not just newly-minted lawyers that need to be aware of these technologies’ potential pros and cons — and the developing laws around them. It’s also judges, legislators, politicians, C-Suites, and others who need to keep a pulse check on these things.

Hermès Sues NFT Creator Over ‘MetaBirkin’ Sales — from by Robert Williams
The French leather goods giant alleges trademark infringement and dilutive use of its iconic Birkin name.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

The complaint, which was first reported on The Fashion Law, raises questions about how trademark protections for real-world items will be enforced in the digital realm as commercial activity heats up in the metaverse. Brands including Balenciaga and Nike are experimenting with virtual fashion. Non-fungible tokens, or NFTs (unique digital assets authenticated using blockchain technology), depicting fashion items have sold for millions in recent months.

Should Economics classes be looking at the idea of a digital dollar? [Christian]

On 01/17/2022, in 21st century, colleges, community colleges, economics, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, policy, political science, United States, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
Should Economics classes be looking at the idea of a digital dollar?

The battle for control of the digital dollar — from protocol.com

Excerpt:

After months of delay, the Federal Reserve’s much-awaited report on a digital dollar could be out soon. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday that the white paper on a planned central bank digital currency (CBDC) is “ready to go,” possibly in weeks.

But don’t expect a detailed blueprint for an American CBDC. The white paper will be more of “an exercise in asking questions” about how the digital dollar should work, Powell said.

And there are plenty of questions. Some have already sparked a heated debate: How should consumers gain access to the digital dollar? And how much control should the Fed have?

Will a digital dollar lead to “digital authoritarianism”? That’s one of the biggest fears about a digital currency: a Big Brother future where the Fed has the power to track how people spend their money.

What?!? Is this the kind of world that we want to create for our kids?! [Christian]

On 01/17/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Asia, change, Daniel S. Christian, data related items, emerging technologies, legal reform, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, policy, political science, privacy, society, the downsides of how people use tech, tools, United States, by Daniel Christian

Feds’ spending on facial recognition tech expands, despite privacy concerns — from by Tonya Riley

Excerpt:

The FBI on Dec. 30 signed a deal with Clearview AI for an $18,000 subscription license to the company’s facial recognition technology. While the value of the contract might seem just a drop in the bucket for the agency’s nearly $10 billion budget, the contract was significant in that it cemented the agency’s relationship with the controversial firm. The FBI previously acknowledged using Clearview AI to the Government Accountability Office but did not specify if it had a contract with the company.

From DSC:
What?!? Isn’t this yet another foot in the door for Clearview AI and the like? Is this the kind of world that we want to create for our kids?! Will our kids have any privacy whatsoever? I feel so powerless to effect change here. This technology, like other techs, will have a life of its own. Don’t think it will stop at finding criminals.

AI being used in the hit series called Person of Interest

This is a snapshot from the series entitled, “Person of Interest.“
Will this show prove to be right on the mark?

Addendum on 1/18/22:
As an example, check out this article:

Tencent is scanning kids’ faces to stop them using older relatives’ gaming accounts to get around China’s gaming restrictions — from businessinsider.com by Weilun Soon

Tencent is set to ramp up facial recognition on Chinese children who log into its gaming platform. The increased surveillance comes as the tech giant caps how long kids spend gaming on its platform. In August 2021, China imposed strict limits on how much time children could spend gaming online.

Isaiah 1:17

On 01/17/2022, in Access to Justice (A2J), ethics, faith, law schools, legal reform, legislatures / government / legal, policy, relationships, religion, society, sociology, United States, by Daniel Christian

Isaiah 1:17

Learn to do right; seek justice.
Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
plead the case of the widow.

From DSC:
This verse especially caught my eye as we have severe access to justice issues here in the United States.

Education Has Been Hammering the Wrong Nail. We Have to Focus on the Early Years. [Hau]

On 12/27/2021, in education, ideas, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, legislatures / government / legal, policy, society, United States, vision/possibilities, youth, by Daniel Christian

Education Has Been Hammering the Wrong Nail. We Have to Focus on the Early Years. — from edsurge.com by Isabelle Hau
This article is part of the guide Survival Mode: Educators Reflect on a Tough 2021 and Brace for the Future.

Excerpt:

Moreover, children who are expelled in preschool or early elementary are 10 times more likely to be incarcerated. Those later societal costs might have been avoided if the children are provided the nurturing attention in their early years to regulate their emotions and buffer toxic stress, which often results from exposure to trauma.
…
The value of the human potential unlocked by early education and social and emotional interventions is more difficult to assess: it is arguably limitless.

Three items re: California’s Access-To-Justice (#A2J) Crisis

On 12/21/2021, in 21st century, Access to Justice (A2J), Legal operations, legal reform, legislatures / government / legal, policy, United States, by Daniel Christian

California Lawmakers Ignore Data in Calls to Restrict the Expansion of Legal Services — from iaals.du.edu

Excerpt:

Earlier this week, two California lawmakers spoke up about these issues. Cheryl Miller, writing for Law.com’s The Recorder, reports: “The chairs of California’s two legislative judiciary committees this week accused the state bar of ‘divert[ing] its attention from its core mission of protecting the public’ by pursuing proposals to allow nonlawyers to offer a limited range of legal services.”

California Supreme Court Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye called the criticism “not surprising,” and we would agree. After all, it is the same message we’ve heard time and again from opponents to any real, impactful change within the legal profession. And the assumptions underlying that message have been discredited by our organization and many other scholars, researchers, and even regulators in other countries. So it is frustrating just how widespread and misleading opponent claims can be.

In response to CA Judiciary letter’s concern about encouraging legal innovation, Professor David Engstrom, CLP’s Lucy Ricca, former LSC President Jim Sandman, Prof. Rebecca Sandefur and others: The A2J crisis is “too urgent to put on the back burner.” https://t.co/Uzo6lej0ti

— SLS Legal Profession (@StanfordCLP) December 17, 2021

Professor @DavidEngstrom5, co-director of @StanfordCLP, discusses the urgent access-to-justice crisis currently gripping CA and the CA State Bar’s Closing the Justice Gap working group. https://t.co/zpbPlwBIhO

— StanfordLaw (@StanfordLaw) December 17, 2021

Three items related to how the legal realm needs to be ready to address emerging technologies

On 12/17/2021, in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, career development, emerging technologies, innovation, law schools, legal reform, legislatures / government / legal, policy, by Daniel Christian

AI bots to user data: Is there space for rights in the metaverse? — from news.trust.org by Sonia Elks
In a virtual world populated by digital characters, privacy and property rights face unprecedented challenges, campaigners say

From virtual goods to AI-powered avatars that can be hired out by companies, a fast-growing digital world is pushing ownership and privacy rights into unchartered territory.

NYC Targets Artificial Intelligence Bias in Hiring Under New Law — from news.bloomberglaw.com by Erin Mulvaney

New York City has a new law on the books—one of the boldest measures of its kind in the country—that aims to curb hiring bias that can occur when businesses use artificial intelligence tools to screen out job candidates.

Employers in the city will be banned from using automated employment decision tools to screen job candidates, unless the technology has been subject to a “bias audit” conducted a year before the use of the tool.

‘Innovation Averse’ Law Schools Risk Missing Out on the Legal Industry’s Regulatory Renaissance — from law.com

“If law professors and legal educators and law school administrators aren’t in tune with how the practice of law is changing, not just in terms of how you deliver legal services, but these new areas that are emerging, then we’re doing a great disservice to our students,” said April Dawson, associate dean of Technology and Innovation at North Carolina Central University School of Law, during the “Redesigning Legal” speaker series panel discussion this week.

From DSC:
As I looked at the article below, I couldn’t help but wonder…what is the role of the American Bar Association (ABA) in this type situation? How can the ABA help the United States deal with the impact/place of emerging technologies?

Clearview AI will get a US patent for its facial recognition tech — from engadget.com by J. Fingas
Critics are worried the company is patenting invasive tech.

Excerpt:

Clearview AI is about to get formal acknowledgment for its controversial facial recognition technology. Politico reports Clearview has received a US Patent and Trademark Office “notice of allowance” indicating officials will approve a filing for its system, which scans faces across public internet data to find people from government lists and security camera footage. The company just has to pay administrative fees to secure the patent.

In a Politico interview, Clearview founder Hoan Ton-That claimed this was the first facial recognition patent involving “large-scale internet data.” The firm sells its tool to government clients (including law enforcement) hoping to accelerate searches.

As you might imagine, there’s a concern the USPTO is effectively blessing Clearview’s technology and giving the company a chance to grow despite widespread objections to its technology’s very existence.

Privacy, news, facial recognition, USPTO, internet, patent,
Clearview AI, surveillance, tomorrow, AI, artificial intelligence

Ohio State U. Unveils a Plan for All Students to Graduate Debt-Free [Kelderman]

On 11/26/2021, in experimentation, funding / grants, higher education, ideas, leadership, policy, society, sociology, strategy, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Ohio State U. Unveils a Plan for All Students to Graduate Debt-Free — from chronicle.com by Eric Kelderman

Excerpt:

Nearly half of all undergraduates at Ohio State University take out loans to help pay the costs of attending college, borrowing an average of more than $27,000. Kristina M. Johnson, the new president of the land-grant university, wants to reduce that proportion to zero.

Johnson announced a plan on Friday, at her investiture, to reach that goal within a decade.

Instead of offering students federal direct loans as part of their financial-aid packages, the university will use a combination of grants, internships, and opportunities to assist with research.

“People without family means, which includes many of the country’s minority students, start their adult lives in a financial hole,” Johnson said during her investiture speech. “I want all of our graduates to be free to say yes to every great opportunity that comes their way.”

AI bots to user data: Is there space for rights in the metaverse? [Elks]

On 11/17/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, bots, data related items, Facebook / Meta Platforms, innovation, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, Metaverse, platforms, policy, by Daniel Christian

AI bots to user data: Is there space for rights in the metaverse? — from reuters.com by Sonia Elks

Summary

Facebook’s ‘metaverse’ plans fuel debate on virtual world
Shared digital spaces raise privacy, ownership questions
Rights campaigners urge regulators to widen safeguards

Legal education as a key stakeholder in legal services reform (276) [Rodriguez]

On 11/15/2021, in law schools, legal reform, legislatures / government / legal, policy, society, by Daniel Christian

Legal education as a key stakeholder in legal services reform (276) — from legalevolution.org by Dan Rodriguez
To date, this highly influential stakeholder has had very little to say.

Excerpt:

The fierce and fascinating struggle underway in the American states over legal services reform brings to the table a large collection of interest groups. These groups include law firms, legal aid organizations, entrepreneurs who might benefit financially from the liberalization of entry rules, and of course the gatekeeper entities, including state bar authorities and the state supreme courts, whose decisions are crucial to the evolution and shape of reform. See Posts 239 (beginning of a four-part series on serious challenges of bar federalism).

The identity of these specific groups may differ from state to state, as the legal ecosystem has contours often tailored to a particular state’s history and objectives, but the configuration of stakeholders has some rather common elements.

What remains somewhat opaque in this robust and interconnected battle over the reform of legal services is the voice of legal educators and the law schools. These are, after all, the places in which future lawyers are educated and professional values are instilled. It is had to imagine a more fertile and opportune time to discuss the ambitions and philosophies of this next generation of legal professionals.

Excerpt from “Use of digital technologies in judicial reform and access to justice cooperation — from HiiL (The Hague Institute for Innovation of Law)

Timnit Gebru Says Artificial Intelligence Needs to Slow Down — from wired.com by Max Levy
The AI researcher, who left Google last year, says the incentives around AI research are all wrong.

Excerpt:

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE RESEARCHERS are facing a problem of accountability: How do you try to ensure decisions are responsible when the decision maker is not a responsible person, but rather an algorithm? Right now, only a handful of people and organizations have the power—and resources—to automate decision-making.
…
Since leaving Google, Gebru has been developing an independent research institute to show a new model for responsible and ethical AI research. The institute aims to answer similar questions as her Ethical AI team, without fraught incentives of private, federal, or academic research—and without ties to corporations or the Department of Defense.

“Our goal is not to make Google more money; it’s not to help the Defense Department figure out how to kill more people more efficiently,” she said.

From DSC:
What does our society need to do to respond to this exponential pace of technological change? And where is the legal realm here?

Speaking of the pace of change…the following quote from The Future Direction And Vision For AI (from marktechpost.com by Imtiaz Adam) speaks to massive changes in this decade as well:

The next generation will feature 5G alongside AI and will lead to a new generation of Tech superstars in addition to some of the existing ones.

In future the variety, volume and velocity of data is likely to substantially increase as we move to the era of 5G and devices at the Edge of the network. The author argues that our experience of development with AI and the arrival of 3G followed by 4G networks will be dramatically overshadowed with the arrival of AI meets 5G and the IoT leading to the rise of the AIoT where the Edge of the network will become key for product and service innovation and business growth.

Also related/see:

AI’s Smarts Now Come With a Big Price Tag — from wired.com by Will Knight
As language models get more complex, they also get more expensive to create and run. Some companies are locked out.

Learning Ecosystems

How should law schools address emerging technologies? [Christian]

Should Economics classes be looking at the idea of a digital dollar? [Christian]

Isaiah 1:17

Three items re: California’s Access-To-Justice (#A2J) Crisis

Ohio State U. Unveils a Plan for All Students to Graduate Debt-Free [Kelderman]

Legal education as a key stakeholder in legal services reform (276) [Rodriguez]

Excerpt from “Use of digital technologies in judicial reform and access to justice cooperation — from HiiL

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