Society Archives

How Are You Helping Others Grow in Your Community?

How are you helping others grow? Should there be room for advancement in communities? Although you should prioritize relationships over status, Charles Vogl says it’s natural to want to continue growing as a person and advancing within a community. In The Art of Community, he makes a few recommendations that can help community members make healthy progress. Continue reading for his recommendations that apply to both offline and online communities.

Induction of New Members: How to Expand Your Community

Is your community ready for new members? How can you help new members feel like they belong? In The Art of Community, Charles Vogl explains that when communities truly believe in their moral code, they’ll want to open their group to all who could benefit from joining it. However, communities should have barriers to admittance that separate people by moral codes. Let’s take a closer look at how to successfully complete the induction of new members, based on how much their beliefs overlap with your community’s.

Abraham Lincoln’s Stance on Slavery & Its Historical Context

What’s the difference between abolition and emancipation? Why didn’t Abraham Lincoln support a federal mandate to free slaves? In And There Was Light, historian and biographer Jon Meacham discusses Abraham Lincoln’s stance on slavery. He explains where Lincoln’s beliefs came from and the actions he took in an effort to end the practice in the United States. Read more to learn about the Great Emancipator’s views and actions in relation to slavery.

Nick Bostrom’s Superintelligence: Overview & Takeaways

What’s Nick Bostrom’s Superintelligence about? Could artificial intelligence ever surpass human intelligence? According to Oxford philosopher Nick Bostrom’s book Superintelligence, there’s a very real possibility that AI could one day rival, and then vastly exceed, human intelligence. When and if this happens, the future of humankind will depend more on AI-generated decisions than human decisions. Read below for a brief overview of Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom.

4 Economic Narratives We Can’t Shake (+ How They Work)

What are the consequences of the “American dream” narrative? What’s the truth about the gold standard? Economist Robert J. Shiller writes that narratives are extraordinarily powerful because they help us make sense of the world. By organizing random events and observations into stories with clear narrative arcs, we come to understand our world, how it came to be, and our place within it. Keep reading to understand how narratives work and to learn about four recurring economic narratives.

The United Auto Workers Union Strike: Background & Views

Does the public support the United Auto Workers union strike? Who does the strike affect the most? More than 34,000 members of the United Auto Workers union have been on strike for over a month, halting production at key plants. Polls show strong public support for the striking workers, which suggests sentiment may be shifting toward unions in the US. Continue reading for a background on the UAW strike and the opinions surrounding it.

Lost Cause Ideology: A Romanticized History of the Civil War?

How did some Confederates view the Union’s victory? How did they hope to keep their cause alive and secure some victory after all? According to historian Jon Meacham, after the Civil War, some of the vanquished Confederates developed an idealized view of their cause. Meacham argues that at least some aspects of this “Lost Cause” ideology persist even today. Continue reading to learn about this perspective on Civil War history.

The Negative Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Society

What’s the negative impact of artificial intelligence on society? How much will a superintelligent AI change the world? According to Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom, sooner or later, a superintelligent AI will be created. Depending on the superintelligent AI’s behavior, these changes could be very detrimental to humanity. Let’s look at a more in-depth explanation of how a superintelligent AI will affect society.

Amazon and Jeff Bezos: Philanthropy & Charitable Efforts

How do Jeff Bezos and Amazon give back to the community? How can billionaires use their fortune for good? Amazon’s success has made Bezos one of the richest people on the planet, but his ambitions don’t end there. Bezos wants to use his wealth to be a positive force for change in the world. Take a look at Jeff Bezos’s philanthropy and charitable efforts.

What Will AI Do in the Future? Hacking, Manipulating, & More

What will AI do in the future? What kind of abilities would a superintelligent AI have? Once a superintelligent AI exists, the fate of humanity will suddenly depend more on what the superintelligent AI does than on what humans do. Further, Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom says that AI could wield power in the world, even just as a computer program. Keep reading to learn what a superintelligent AI could do.