Like it or not, learn AI now

By: Eli Amdur
Vantage Point
NorthJersey.com
09/24/2023

..... Will Rogers, one of America's most original and insightful wits, observed: "There are three kinds of men. the ones who learn by readin'. the few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves."
..... We've seen in our lifetimes major changes - the PC, the Internet, social media, vaccines - that changed everything we do. and we've seen resistance at every step. in no case did the resisters stand a chance, but in some cases, it took awhile before they got to the electric fence.
..... Now there's AI.
..... As an independent career coach, nothing frustrates me more than a client who refuses to accept change. It's one thing not to see a new phenomenon, like AI. Once you're made aware and you adjust your sails, you're OK. At least you recognized good advice and acted on it.
..... But it's another thing to be made aware of change and then resist the inevitable. now you're a Luddite, for all the good that'll do you. We all know the story of the Luddites, and we see a new generation of them every generation.
..... But here's a quick course: Luddite 101. The original Luddities, members of a 19thcentury movement of English textile workers who opposed the sue of certain types of cost-saving machinery, were followers of Ned Ludd, a legendary weaver whose nae was used as a pseudonym in threatening letters to mill owners and government officials, demanding a stop to :damaging" progressive trends in the industry. The only damage they did was to themselves. The world wouldn't wait for them to get over their persistent stupidity.
..... Today's Luddites are those who refuse to accept AI. same story, different century. Resistance to AI is more prevalent among lay people Thant it is within the techie community - obviously, you may think - but it's there in a more passive, covert resistance among techies also. It tales the form of inertia and a hope that the storm will blow over.
..... Sorry, but this is not a storm that will ultimately pass; it is a new and powerful wind. For perspective, let's refer to a couple of historical examples of the same phenomenon.
..... By the time Licolaus Copernicus died in 1543, he had proven - mathematically and beyond doubt - that the sun, not Earth, was the center of our solar system. Initially, resistance was fierce, but it's the point that historians place as the beginning of the scientific revolution. sixty-one years, earlier, Columbus had done his thing, and the world was no longer flat. In both cases, those who got it, got it. The others were left behind to their detriment.
..... Now there's AI.
..... In light of the unassailable truth that AI will changer the world - and the world of work - faster and more broadly than anything else ever did, it would make stunningly simple sense to get with the program without another beat of your heart. if you're on the technical end, you'd better start taking courses like there's no tomorrow. if you're on the user end, you'd better figure out how you're going to learn to use this tool.
..... Easier said than done on both counts, I agree., but not a choice, ether.
..... People who build AI must have - at the fundamental least - understanding of programming. AI frameworks, neural networks, machine learning, deep learning, mathematics, data science, natural language processing (NLP), cloud computing, AI ethic and bias, problem soloing and critical thinking.
..... People who will use AI must have a different AI skillset: digital literacy, data literacy, linguistic literacy, critical thinking, common sense, AI-enhanced creativity ethics, collaboration, and an AI here-now awareness.
..... In other words, people who cerate and develop AI must know hot to make it so that it is easy to sue, complementary to users' experience, reliable, and trustworthy, as up to 70% of AI output is considered by experts as BS. People who use AI must understand its systems, how to refine their won query systems, and their responsibility to use AI ethically and in unbiased ways. These fundamentals are not up for debate; there's no choice, and that makes it tantalizing to some but ominous to many, this aeration's Luddites, in fact. But that should be no big deal, as we've done this before.
..... Now there's AI

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