Natasha Vita-More on transhumanism and brain health, avoiding botshit, AI for diverse perspectives, and more

January 05, 2024

“AI is a tool, like a telescope that extends our thinking.” - Garry Kasparov

Happy New Year!

I believe amplifying our cognition, using both digital and human technologies, is the most important thing we can do.

My 2023 was one of laying the foundations of this work, including the Humans + AI Learning Community, the ThoughtWeaver AI interface app, my cohort course on better thinking with AI, my work with boards and institutional investors on AI for decision-making, and of course rebranding the podcast and newsletter as Amplifying Cognition.

2024 will undoubtedly be a wild, wonderful, weighty, and wondrous year in which I will focus completely on building on those foundations.

Wishing you an exciting and prosperous year in which you massively amplify who you can be.

Ross.

📖In this issue

  • Using AI to generate diverse perspectives

  • How to avoid “botshit” - the AI equivalent of bullshit

  • Natasha Vita-More on transhumanism, brain health, increasing neuroplasticity, and beneficial AGI

  • Scenario planning in practice in an accelerating world

🤸🏽In practice

Using AI to generate diverse perspectives

One of the most powerful ways to improve our thinking is to bring in different and diverse perspectives. Ideally we can get that input from a range of people with varying demographic, experiential, and cognitive viewpoints. However that is not always possible. While not a full substitute, we can very usefully use AI to generate diverse perspectives on the situation, problem, or decision you are facing. See the link for an optimized prompt.

👩🤖What you need to know in Humans + AI

How to avoid “botshit” - the AI equivalent of bullshit

A recent paper, Beware of Botshit: How to Manage the Epistemic Risks of Generative Chatbots, provides a useful typology of “botshit”. Prof. Marek Kowalkiewicz has distilled the key points in the paper and provided five steps to avoid botshit.

AI is helping advance science but there can be downsides

The annual Nature’s 10 compiles the major individuals and events driving science, this year including ChatGPT. The editors write that it had a “profound and wide-ranging effect” on science, changing how scientists work, acting as research assistants, brainstorming ideas, identifying research gaps and more. Yet downsides including enabling cheating, bias, and hall

GPTs on 2-dimensional space

GPTs2D provides an interesting approach by combining GPT-4 with 2-dimensional concept mapping to create novel interaction styles. Models include “Contrary Sage” and “Socrates” or you can create your own model.

🎙️Latest podcast episode

Natasha Vita-More on transhumanism, brain health, increasing neuroplasticity, and beneficial AGI (AC Ep25)

🧑‍🎓What you will learn

  • Transhumanism, using technology for human betterment (03:08)

  • Advancing humanity beyond innovation to emotional and psychological growth (06:07)

  • Addressing cognitive biases through neuroplasticity for societal and self-awareness (08:22)

  • Fostering brain health by creating new habits and pathways for better well-being (12:19)

  • Adult Neurogenesis: New neuron growth in adults, shaped by lifestyle and social factors (16:32)

  • Advancing depression treatment with neuroscience and brain stimulation techniques (21:27)

  • Investigating novel dementia therapies and the early stages of brain uploading and AI memory integration (23:18)

  • Utilizing Beneficial AGI and overcoming fear to embrace AI as a positive tool in human progress (29:34)

Scenario planning in action for better thinking in uncertain times

“Scenarios are primarily a cognitive tool, to enable and frame structured thinking and decision-making by boards and leaders amid extreme uncertainty.

This simple explainer diagram provides a brief overview of what scenario planning is, why to use it, the success factors, and a generic scenario planning process.”

Thank you for reading!

Please do let us know any feedback and what you’d like to see in the newsletter. We’ll be continuing to develop the content to be better and more useful for you in coming weeks and months.