We live in the age of Polysis, “the jockeys of the Apocalypse must deal with them together.” June issue of Vikerkaar Look at the crisis that ranges from AI-based education turmoil to national security unrest in the wartime Estonia.
Future research experts Eric Telk and Johanna Valistu are responsible for the issue of the theoretical exploration of the crisis.
We are often warned about “Black Swans.” The risks are so unlikely that they are worth thinking, but when they actually come true, it has the consequences of crushing the earth. However, Terk and Vallistu urge us to take note of the “gray rhinoceros” instead. These are obvious and seemingly enormous risks, but they can still be ignored by society.
For example, the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution may emerge as a Black Swan. Who could have predicted in early 1917 that a marginal group of left revolutionaries would begin the process that ultimately led to the Cold War? But we may argue that a kind of proletarian revolution is very likely in the war-bearing, unstable Russian empire. The predictability of a crisis is often in the eyes of the viewer.
Polykry is particularly dangerous. I will write about the Witch and the Valis tribe. Because the logic of crisis of their members can be pulled in different directions. Estonia may now experience people whose economic, national security and ecological orders interact in conflicting ways.
Securing a nation
Covering the 30 years of the 20th century, hent Karmo argues that the fears of a Russian-backed communist coup in the 1930s motivated an authoritarian shift in Estonia. The early Republic of Estonia protested Estonia’s new interim government in 1918, and survived several attempts to change government in 1924, when a communist coup was narrowly averted. The country could not allow a third attempt, either from the left or right, so when the ghost of fascist acquisitions appeared in 1934, leadership responded with a quick and heavy hand.
The fight against communism in interwar Europe was sometimes presented as a delusional fear that had little in common with reality. The excessive and almost unfounded fear of revolution led to right-wing mobilization as a counterrevolutionary response, authoritarian police actions, and a state of exception. However, in Estonia, it was clear that the threat to national sovereignty was not merely a delusion. The Bolshevik innovative methods have been experienced firsthand since 1917. The events of December 1, 1924 were engraved in my memory.
AI transforms education
The Estonian government has announced the “Great AI Turn” of Education. This is a plan to make advanced language learning models available to Estonian high school students in the near future. Meanwhile, university lecturers find it increasingly difficult for students to motivate them to submit their work. Vikerkaar A panel of university educators in art, sociology, history and biostatistics was convened to discuss the challenges and opportunities that AI brings to education.
True to Estonia’s history of ICT enthusiasm, the panelists said there was little critical debate about the ethics and political economy of AI use, and encouraged university leaders to accept both academics and students as “tools.” Meanwhile, problems ranging from algorithm bias to cognitive offloading have not been extended. Before loosening the population of Estonia’s secondary schools to ChatGpt, the panel proposes courses on AI ethics and social contexts, helping students understand the applications and limitations of chatbots in an increasingly crowded attention economy.
Review by Aro Velmet
Source: Eurozine – www.eurozine.com
