This is the latest edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter delivering your daily update on what’s happening in the realm of technology.
Why it’s challenging to dispel the weather control conspiracy theory
It was October 2024, and Hurricane Helene had recently ravaged the Southeastern United States. Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene found an abstract scapegoat to blame: “Yes, they can manipulate the weather,” she shared on X. “It’s absurd for someone to claim it’s impossible.”
She was echoing a now well-known and widespread conspiracy theory: that clandestine entities are out there, utilizing technology to manipulate weather and create chaos for their adversaries. This outlandish assertion has become increasingly pronounced in recent years, particularly after instances of severe weather.
However, here’s the reality: While Greene and other proponents are mistaken, this conspiracy theory—like many—contains a kernel of a far more modest truth. Read the complete story.
—Dave Levitan
This article is part of MIT Technology Review’s series “The New Conspiracy Age,” which explores how the current surge in conspiracy theories is transforming science and technology. Discover the rest of the series here.
AI might forecast who will experience a heart attack
With all the contemporary advancements in cardiology, we fail to accurately predict who might suffer a heart attack. Numerous individuals never undergo screening at all. Now, startups are leveraging AI algorithms to examine millions of CT scans for early indicators of heart disease.
This innovation has the potential to revolutionize public health, utilizing an existing tool to identify patients whose elevated risk for a heart attack remains unnoticed. Nevertheless, it is yet to be validated at scale, raising complex concerns about its application and even our definitions of disease. Read the full story.
—Vishal Khetpal
This piece is from the latest print edition of MIT Technology Review magazine, featuring captivating stories about the human body. If you haven’t already, subscribe now to get future editions as they are released.
The essential reads
I’ve scoured the web to bring you the day’s most enjoyable/important/scary/intriguing stories regarding technology.
1 Spending on AI might be responsible for all those tech layoffs
AI isn’t inherently taking jobs, but investment in it is consuming entire budgets. (Fast Company $)
+ Entry-level positions are likely to be the first to go. (FT $)
+ Are the substantial amounts businesses are pouring into AI sustainable? (WP $)
+ People are concerned AI will take over jobs. This has happened before. (MIT Technology Review)
2 Anti-vaccine campaigners convened in Austin over the weekend
They marked RFK Jr’s ascendance and laid out their objectives—including the abolition of school vaccine requirements. (WP $)
+ We’re on the brink of averting the next pandemic. But will we succeed? (Vox)
+ How conspiracy theories have permeated the doctor’s office. (MIT Technology Review)
3 Individuals who have encountered AI-induced delusions are forming a movement
They’re advocating for legal measures against chatbot developers. (Bloomberg $)
+ The impending crackdown on AI companionship. (MIT Technology Review)
4 AI-created videos of women being choked are flooding social media
Many appear to have been produced using OpenAI’s Sora 2. (404 Media)
5 Tech magnates are fixated on bioengineering infants
They’re not permitted to, but they’re disregarding a small detail like ethics. (WSJ $)
+ The pursuit of an ideal baby is causing an ethical quagmire. (MIT Technology Review)
6 Apple has eliminated two popular gay dating applications in China
The government mandated its removal of Blued and Finka from its platform. (Wired $)
7 The UK government is concerned China could remotely disable its buses
It fears that hundreds of Chinese-manufactured electric buses operating in Britain may be compromised. (FT $)
8 The impact of AI on global newsrooms 📰
It excels in analyzing expansive data sets—but shouldn’t be utilized to compose articles. (NYT $)
9 Methods to manage an invasive species
Experts claim that excessive bureaucracy is hindering progress. (Undark)
+ The weeds are prevailing. (MIT Technology Review)
10 The world’s largest electric vessel is recharging 🚢
Once operational, it will function as a ferry in 90-minute intervals. (IEEE Spectrum)
Quote of the day
“We would move heaven and Earth, pun intended, to try to expedite our journey to the Moon.”
—Dave Limp, CEO of Blue Origin, states that the company is eager to collaborate with NASA to return humans to the Moon, Ars Technica reports.
One additional note
Design thinking was intended to enhance the world. Where did it falter?
In the 1990s, a six-step approach to innovation called design thinking began to gain traction. Central to its proliferation was its easily replicable aesthetic, embodied by the Post-it note: a simple square that anyone can manipulate in countless ways.
Yet in recent times, for various reasons, the appeal of design thinking has diminished. Critics have contended that its short-term focus on novel and simplistic ideas leads to impractical and unrealistic suggestions.
Today, certain groups are striving to reform both the principles and methodologies of design thinking. These new initiatives aim to develop a suite of design tools that can fairly address diverse communities’ needs and solve a wide range of problems well into the future. It is a significantly more formidable—and essential—challenge than the original intent of design thinking. Read the complete story.
—Rebecca Ackermann
We can still enjoy nice things
A space for comfort, entertainment, and distraction to brighten your day. (Have any suggestions? Contact me or send them my way.)
+ These tree-dwelling toads give birth to live offspring—who would have thought?!
+ Now is the ideal opportunity to refine your baking skills before Thanksgiving.
+ Younguk Yi’s glitch art is incredibly amusing.
+ Place your bets! This entertaining game follows three balls in a downwards race, but who will come out victorious?
