Dear reader, we live in strange times. We’ve been told countless times of the evils of sugar, the perils of experimenting with drugs, and the hazards of straying from the Mediterranean diet. But there’s an important warning that’s never a part of these conversations, something that has an even worse impact on mortality than obesity: loneliness and social isolation.(1)
Pokémon GO pandemic stuns rural GPs
KYNETON — The recently released open world, augmented reality smartphone game challenges users to walk around outside to find and catch virtual Pokémon. It has been blamed for the inundation of healthcare providers with patients with trauma from accidents related to inattention. Rural and remote communities have been hit the hardest, with local GPs often having no access to hospitals often being forced to come up with novel ways to deal with emergencies on the fly.
Doctors will be replaced by artificial intelligence (AI).
For the majority of people, reading this sentence triggers a visceral feeling – “surely that will never happen” or “that’s impossible!”. But it’s not a statement that is simply fanciful, nor is it a statement based on blind techno-optimism. Barring the chance of some event that renders humanity extinct, it is safe to say that technology will continue to progress towards human-level intelligence until it is eventually developed. Continue reading
The Auricle 