Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, July 15, 2024
Posted: 15th July 2024
Three key misconceptions in the debate about AI and existential risk
A survey identified the most common reasons why people think mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should not be a global priority. Here’s why they’re wrong. Read more.
PEYMAN ASADZADE
Iraq once devasted Iran with chemical weapons as the world stood by. Governments still struggle to respond to chemical warfare
The Iran-Iraq War complicates the conventional wisdom that chemical warfare is strategically ineffective. In that conflict, chemical weapons were arguably decisive in allowing Iraq to reclaim the upper hand, a resolution also made possible by a weak international response. Read more.
JOHN MECKLIN
An attempted assassination and the conspiratorial disinformation that followed
The attempted assassination of Donald Trump has already softened rhetoric from the Trump and Biden presidential campaigns, with Biden taking down anti-Trump campaign advertising and Trump campaign managers telling staff not to comment publicly. All the same, as with previous attacks on US presidents, conspiracy theories quickly blossomed, and they were anything but gentile. Read more.
Water, ice, snow, and the next phase of the climate crisis
From water’s role in war to strategies for saving the last remaining glaciers in the Alps, this magazine issue illuminates how the climate crisis is having lasting impacts on one of the world’s most important resources: water.
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DAN DROLLETTE JR
Figuring out the most realistic projections for sea-level rise: Interview with glaciologist Rob DeConto
A glaciologist explains why there is “deep uncertainty” about the predictions for sea-level rise by the end of this century—which may be much higher than commonly accepted. Read more.
JAKE BITTLE
In a nod to resiliency, FEMA will take climate change into account when rebuilding
To end a neverending cycle of rebuilding in unsafe areas, the federal agency is overhauling its rules. Read more.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“We have an existential crisis right now. It’s called climate change, and AI is palpably making it worse.”
— Alex Hanna, director of research at the Distributed AI Research Institute, “AI brings soaring emissions for Google and Microsoft, a major contributor to climate change,” NPR
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