In this episode, we delve into a pressing issue in today’s technological age: the influence of artificial intelligence on human cognition and society at large. With insights from a groundbreaking study by MIT, we discuss how AI can dull our brain’s connectivity, and explore the broader implications this has on mental health and familial relationships. Are we at risk of losing our creative edge and wisdom muscle as we rely more heavily on AI’s convenience?
The Crawford Stand with the president of Crawford Broadcasting Company, Don Crawford.
SPEAKER 02 :
AI is contributing to the dulling of the human brain. That was a conclusion reached by no less than a study made by the respected and revered Massachusetts Institute of Technology, known as MIT. MIT. This study found that the more internet assistance such as chat GPT and internet search engines that a student uses to help complete an essay, the lower their level of brain connectivity. That kind of mechanical help significantly lessens activity in the brain networks, especially brain functions associated with cognitive processing, attention, and so very important, creativity. Doesn’t sound surprising to me, does it to you? Therefore, the more AI, the less the critical functions of the human brain. That sounds reasonable, doesn’t it? And we the people know that AI is becoming a force, invested in and developed by nations and the largest corporations, and that its potentiality is unlimited. but there it ends for now, at least for most of us. We seem to draw shallow conclusions about this incredible new force. We determine whether we think it is good or bad, or both, and back to life and business as usual. But the day comes, perhaps as soon as the great year 2026, when AI may become the dominant force in our society. That is a scary thought, is it not? Why, so many say today, should we waste brain power and calories solving problems when we can get the answer from chat GPT? Why? The more we do that, say the so-called experts, the more we miss the growth of the wisdom muscle. I like that one, don’t you? Growth of the wisdom muscle. The wisdom muscle. Whether the analogy is to the actual muscle tissue or to the strength and growth of the brain at work developing human wisdom, The analogy is apt, for the human mind must be challenged, required to think, analyze and evaluate, or In time, the ability to do so wanes. The brain becomes used to lazy, to thinking substitutes like chatbots, and the machine begins its triumphant road to supremacy over the human brain and the human being. Such a prospect to many, and to me certainly, is frightening indeed. What do you think? Are you really paying attention to AI? And are you really evaluating its power and its use, whether good or bad? Are you? And here then is another conclusion by the experts regarding the influence of AI chatbots. Minors, children are being goaded into committing suicide. Boy, that’s scary, isn’t it? Again, minors, children, are being goaded by AI into committing suicide. And there is a continual decline in mental health, which is linked to social media, which will only get worse with AI as it grows. The negative effects of AI, whatever the positive, can indeed have disastrous effects upon the human being, as AI continues to reach its full potential. Scary times, are they not? Family relationships will suffer, they already are. Individuals, especially the young, know that AI chatbots can cater to their every need. If AI can do that, why bother with family, with dad or mom, with human beings, when our needs can be met by machines? In addition to whatever may be positive economically as a result of AI, the negative effects can be disastrous. AI will undoubtedly grow at an exponential rate, which will affect the jobs, the livelihoods, and the lives themselves of potentially millions of people. In fact, it already is. Layoffs are now happening by the tens of thousands. Amazon recently laid off 30,000 people. 30,000 people. not replacing them or replacing them with AI. Facebook has done the same. Some predict that in a matter of a few years, the vast majority of so-called white-collar jobs, middle-level executives will no longer exist, fully replaced by AI and its chatbots. Boy, to me, that’s a scary, scary thought. What do you think? Are you thinking about these kinds of things as AI grows and becomes more dominant? Are you? AI will continue to grow and it will always find a way to improve itself. What exists today in the AI world will be old technology in short order. Not only will this new technology serve to eliminate jobs by the millions, but it will prevent the creation of new jobs for new and expanded human employment. The result will produce economic and social chaos never before seen by we, the human beings. It will have an impact far greater than even the most powerful nuclear weapon. and it may be the negative force which produces the end days. The end days. Like it or not, we better begin to know everything possible, everything we can understand about AI, for this incredible force will continue to influence, erode, and replace so much of life as we know it. And every human being in America and the world at large will be affected. Every one of us. Christians say the experts must engage with AI. Why? Well, for one reason, we have no choice, said one expert, because the enemy is going to use it. The enemy is going to use it. So we have to use it. Do we? Do we really have to use it? We the believers must be involved in the critical function of establishing moral and ethical guardrails and guidelines for the use of AI. I guess that makes sense. Do you agree? Otherwise, we will be left powerless and uninvolved as this incredible force grows and matures and takes over. We cannot let that happen. It should be nothing more than a tool. The faith of a Christian is built on a relationship, and that relationship is human, personal, and it is with the God-man Jesus Christ, not an AI chatbot. Nothing AI could ever do, no chatbot could ever replace that warm, loving, trusting, intimate, confidential relationship with the Son of the Living God. Only He can provide that which every human being longs for and wants the very most in their lives, and that is love. Love. The love in Jesus Christ can never be replaced or improved upon by AI. Sooner or later, AI will impact your life if it has not done so already. You and all of us should be ready for that. I hope it doesn’t affect your family. your employment, or you. It is better that, to the extent we can, we be proactive, learn as much as we can about this powerful force, rather than reactive, when it does, in fact, affect our lives for good or ill. And it will. Never let AI be more than a tool, an aid to a better human life, and never let this ever-growing technology take the place of… any human being.
SPEAKER 01 :
The email address again is stand at CrawfordMediaGroup.net. When you want to review what you hear, go to our website, CrawfordMediaGroup.net. The Crawford Stand is a public affairs presentation of Crawford Broadcasting Company and this station. Serving God and country. I’m Bill McCormick.
