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What Type of Templates Do We Use for Visual Processing? Caricatures Might Be the Answer
Podcast: This episode’s conversation reviews how our visual system uses templates and exaggerates the basic features of objects in memory. Visit Page
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Your Cynicism Isn’t Helping Anybody
When I describe “cynics,” you might conjure up a certain type of person: the toxic, smirking misanthrope, oozing contempt. But they are not a fixed category, like New Zealanders or anesthesiologists. Cynicism is a spectrum. We all have cynical moments, or in my case, cynical years. Cynicism—the belief that all people are selfish, greedy, and dishonest—is a natural response to a world reeling from social division, rising sea levels, and countless other problems. But that doesn’t mean it helps us. Cynics suffer at basically every level scientists can measure.
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Chatbots Are Primed to Warp Reality
More and more people are learning about the world through chatbots and the software’s kin, whether they mean to or not. ... Pataranutaporn and his fellow researchers recently sought to understand how chatbots could manipulate our understanding of the world by, in effect, implanting false memories. To do so, the researchers adapted methods used by the UC Irvine psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, who established decades ago that memory is manipulable. ... Loftus, who collaborated on the study, told me that one of the most powerful techniques for memory manipulation—whether by a human or by an AI—is to slip falsehoods into a seemingly unrelated question. ...
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Supplementary Webinar: NSF GRFP Info Session for Applicants
This session offered an overview of NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program, which includes applicant eligibility, application process and components, as well as the review criteria. Visit Page
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Supplementary Webinar: Becoming a Reviewer for the NSF GRFP
This session offered an overview of NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program, the requirements of becoming a reviewer, and the National Science Board’s Merit Review Criteria. Visit Page
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What Makes a Friendship Last Forever?
There are many flavors of friendship. Most U.S. adults say they have pals who fit into specific niches in their lives, like gym friends or work friends. These relationships may come and go as life circumstances change, fading away when someone switches jobs or loses interest in a shared hobby. ...
