Worried psychologists are urgently looking at the effects that AI is having on human brains and they believe bots like ChatGPT are having ominious impacts
21:38, 11 Dec 2024Updated 21:38, 11 Dec 2024
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Humans are becoming forgetful zombies thanks to AI, boffins have warned (stock image)(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
AI is turning us into forgetful zombies who struggle to recall information and can’t make decisions for ourselves, brain boffs fear.
Psychologists are urgently studying the worrying effects that bots like ChatGPT are having on our minds.
Over-relying on AI-assisted search engines and voice-driven devices such as Amazon’s Alexa stops people from using their “own memory or analytic capabilities”.
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It “can also lead to diminished memory retention over time” says Jessica Koehler of Arizona University’s psychology dept.
She added: “As we navigate these challenges, one thing is clear. AI’s impact on cognition is profound and multifaceted.
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Don't worry, there are some positives to it, as explained below (stock image)(Image: Getty Images)
“The goal should be to ensure that AI serves as a tool for cognitive empowerment rather than a force that diminishes our mental capacities.”
But there could also be some benefits to using it for so-called “cognitive offloading” where humans get the bots to do the grunt work so we can focus on more interesting mental tasks.
Ms Koehler added: “On the positive side, cognitive offloading through AI can be strategic.
“If individuals use AI to handle routine or mundane tasks, they can potentially allocate their cognitive effort toward more meaningful, creative, or strategic thinking.”
AI is rapidly entangling itself into people’s daily lives but academics fear the tech is moving too fast and could change our grey matter make-up entirely.
The UN recently recommended urgently setting up a scientific panel of world experts to “serve as a global authority” on “AI risks and uncertainties”.
We are now at a tipping point in the development of generative AI” according to Cambridge University researchers.
They warned it “heralds a new battleground between humans and computers in the shaping of reality” as our real and fabricated history gets muddled up online.
They fear mankind may eventually no longer be able to fathom what actually happened in the past.
A sombre paper published by Britain’s top university in September said: “Human agency over remembering and forgetting is increasingly challenged.”
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