So much of this is true outside Australian academia as well. I've worked in both Oz and the US, and can attest. In both places, we've been underfunding universities at the state level so much that they have no choice but to become businesses, to survive. I would like to note, though, that AI "detectors" have no validity whatsoever, and I wish the author hadn't used them as though they did.
Academia has been having a crisis of identity for at least my whole life. The ideal of teaching "how to think," with plenty of money and time to do so, crashed against the reality that most people need to have a job that earns money. AI is just the latest battle line.
Yeah I mark 3rd year computer science undergrad coursework and it feels pointless now, an AI can do the full thing in a few mins. You can tell the people that have and haven’t used it but we can’t do anything as we don’t have solid proof.
It’s a shame as it is a subject that needs coursework but now the only distinguishing mark is exams, so it’s effectively scored by only exams now.
The way that this article talks about "representation" is so good. It's like Bo Burnham's "funny feeling." Like enshittification, but much more broad. I think that really hits the nail on the head for what's going on in society right now. (edit: the term "security theater" also comes to mind. But for everything.)
It was interesting to speculate with the author about how AI might be applied in a more benevolent world. I wish that we lived in that world. I'd really like to read that Financial Times article about a planned economy, but I'm not subscribing for one article and I can't get past the paywall. That seems fitting.
What AI does is to concentrate wealth. By removing the chafe and doing the work the chafe was doing for 0, it leaves the wages to be collected by those that remain -- hence, you get Musk, Cook, and Bezos being worth whatever they are, and everyone else being worth less.
AmnesiaZebra | 20 hours ago
So much of this is true outside Australian academia as well. I've worked in both Oz and the US, and can attest. In both places, we've been underfunding universities at the state level so much that they have no choice but to become businesses, to survive. I would like to note, though, that AI "detectors" have no validity whatsoever, and I wish the author hadn't used them as though they did.
your_mom_is_availabl | 19 hours ago
Academia has been having a crisis of identity for at least my whole life. The ideal of teaching "how to think," with plenty of money and time to do so, crashed against the reality that most people need to have a job that earns money. AI is just the latest battle line.
hypatiaspasia | 18 hours ago
Great article. I have a lot of friends and family in academia who have been talking about these issues for years now.
Sea_Till6471 | 21 hours ago
This was excellent
Nfjz26 | 16 hours ago
Yeah I mark 3rd year computer science undergrad coursework and it feels pointless now, an AI can do the full thing in a few mins. You can tell the people that have and haven’t used it but we can’t do anything as we don’t have solid proof.
It’s a shame as it is a subject that needs coursework but now the only distinguishing mark is exams, so it’s effectively scored by only exams now.
fishWeddin | 15 hours ago
The way that this article talks about "representation" is so good. It's like Bo Burnham's "funny feeling." Like enshittification, but much more broad. I think that really hits the nail on the head for what's going on in society right now. (edit: the term "security theater" also comes to mind. But for everything.)
It was interesting to speculate with the author about how AI might be applied in a more benevolent world. I wish that we lived in that world. I'd really like to read that Financial Times article about a planned economy, but I'm not subscribing for one article and I can't get past the paywall. That seems fitting.
TheGreatRandomio | 13 hours ago
What AI does is to concentrate wealth. By removing the chafe and doing the work the chafe was doing for 0, it leaves the wages to be collected by those that remain -- hence, you get Musk, Cook, and Bezos being worth whatever they are, and everyone else being worth less.
Underworld-Dreams | 2 hours ago
Average is So Over
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/not-afraid-of-tyler-cowen-you-will-be-a-review-of-average-is-over-powering-america-beyond-the-age-of-the-great-stagnation/