This article is adapted from an article published by NetEase News College.
On August 22nd, NetEase News held a "Zhong Xueshe Salon" event with the theme of "How Artificial Intelligence Can Reshape Journalism." Experts and scholars from Peking University, Sun Yat-sen University, Reuters, and Xinhua News Agency participated in discussions regarding the impact of emerging technologies on the reshaping of media. Below is a summary of Professor Hu Yong's keynote speech delivered at the School of Journalism and Communication at Peking University.
1 Any Automation Can Be Automated
In 2013, I wrote two sentences: "Anything that can be digitized will eventually be digitized," such as classrooms and consultation rooms, which were once difficult to digitize but are now increasingly becoming digitized. The second sentence was that "Everything that can be intelligent will be intelligent." A growing number of things can now be equipped with chips, making them smart and connected to the internet, including smartphones, sensors, drones, self-driving cars, and more. Today, I would like to add that the third wave of automation is arriving, and anything that can be automated will be automated.
Which professions might be replaced by automation? Workers are highly likely to be replaced, followed by the service industry. The advent of service robots will cause significant challenges for service industry personnel. For instance, the restaurant you dine at one day may become an unmanned restaurant, and your home may be cleaned by a robotic vacuum cleaner. Many people once believed that "We are safe because we are all high-end professionals with high intelligence." However, now you're worried because it's rumored that lawyers, journalists, and even investors could be replaced by artificial intelligence. But I think the most dangerous aspect here isn't the ordinary professional but the middle manager. Middle managers typically earn relatively high wages, and their jobs aren't entirely irreplaceable. If I were the boss, I'd let them go first.
2 After the Arrival of Automation, Where Is the Value of Humans?
The Essence of Humanity Makes Us Different from Machines
Borrowing from a biblical statement, "Dust and dust, earth and earth," I believe the ultimate outcome will be: the return of humans, the return of computers to computers. Therefore, we need to analyze what makes humans irreplaceable by computers.
One of the most important characteristics of human nature is its ambiguity, its uncertainty, and its many vague aspects. Computers, on the other hand, require precision and standardization in everything. Humanity may be the last line of defense against robots.
The hardest thing for a machine to replace is "human touch."
There is a term in English called "human touch," which is very difficult to translate. In news writing, we translate it as "human touch." For example, writing a report is about being humane. We can't compete with machines in physical fitness, so we must compete with robots on an emotional level. If you think like a machine, you will be 100% destroyed by the machine, because you won't be able to surpass it in logic, pure reason, or the speed of its development. Therefore, it's better to prevent yourself from being replaced by a machine. The solution is to develop your human touch.
In this sense, the work that is truly suitable for humans in the future may be the tasks left behind by automation. You don't need to think about any automated job because it must be automated. Eventually, the job you're considering must be what remains after automation is complete. The core of these remaining job opportunities is human touch.
3 Will Using Data to Create Content Make You Invincible?
I divide work in society into three categories: dealing with data, dealing with objects, and dealing with people. You can understand them as the three elements of work. The more complex the nature of the work, the more intertwined these three elements are, and the lower the substitutability of the work is. If you wash dishes in a restaurant, you're only dealing with dirty dishes, then you'll be replaced. If you're a patent lawyer, you need to delve into all three issues—studying data, studying people, and studying objects—the possibility of such replacement is relatively small.
Specifically, in the news industry, traditional reporters are typical examples of professions dealing with people. But now, if you only deal with people and don't deal with data, then your job will carry some risk.
Therefore, those who are truly invincible at the moment are those who know how to use data to create content. For example, a trained computer scientist is such a person because they can interpret raw data as meaningful insights. As a marketer, if you know how to convert consumer data into sales strategies, you won't be easily replaced.
The same applies to the news industry. Today's reporters must learn to handle data and be able to translate raw data into meaningful results. So my conclusion is that some reporters may be very vulnerable. However, if he can combine the three factors of data, people, and objects perfectly, I think he is less likely to lose his job. For example, Google gave the British Press Association 700,000 euros to develop artificial intelligence for automatic news writing. The project is named RADAR, which stands for Reporters and Data and Robots, representing the relationship between journalists, data, and robots.
Therefore, reporters should fully utilize the human advantages of humanity while learning the means of data. Ultimately, we need to make robots serve us rather than defeat us.
4 Always Thinking of Competing with the Machine is No Way Out
People who can interact with the outside world in a relatively high-level manner will not be easily replaced by machines in the future. Therefore, if you are particularly skilled in handling objects, you may need to learn how to add people's experiences to those objects; if you are particularly good at dealing with people, then you may need to enhance your data processing capabilities. What I mean is that stable work and the highest income must belong to those who can perfectly integrate the three elements of data, people, and objects.
Everyone's career is really insecure unless you are part of the top group in this society. So I predict that in the future, artificial intelligence will certainly cause greater divisions in this society. In the past, the possible causes of division were often due to other factors, but now artificial intelligence will create new dividing lines. But on the other hand, not all things that do not progress must have no value. For example, modern navigation uses all sorts of tools to navigate precisely, but there are still people who are reviving ancient navigation methods, using canoes, relying on astronomical guides, and judging ocean current trends through experience. These are done in a special traditional way in the past. These things are still valued because many people find them fascinating. So, this isn't absolute. If big data really helps you predict your favorite movie plot or gives you a precise match for your romantic partner, you might feel disinterested and prefer not to be swayed by data and robots.
After all, I think that as long as you promote the positive aspects of human nature, you have a chance to survive. If you always think about how to compete with the machine, then I think you have no way out.
Leakage protector, also known as leakage switch, is a new type of electrical safety device, mainly used for:
(1) Prevent electric shock accidents caused by electrical equipment and electrical circuit leakage;
(2) Preventing single-phase electric shock accidents during electricity use
(3) Timely cut off single-phase grounding faults in the operation of electrical equipment to prevent fire accidents caused by leakage
(4) With the improvement of people's living standards and the continuous increase of household appliances, personal electric shock and fire accidents caused by defects, improper use, and inadequate safety measures of electrical equipment in the process of using electricity have brought undue damage to people's lives and property. The emergence of leakage protectors provides reliable and effective technical means for preventing various accidents, timely cutting off power, and protecting equipment and personal safety.
The leakage protector should meet the following technical requirements
(1) The sensitivity of electric shock protection should be correct and reasonable, and the starting current should generally be within the range of 15-30 milliamperes
(2) The action time of electric shock protection should generally not exceed 0.1 seconds
(3) The protector should be equipped with necessary monitoring equipment to prevent it from losing its protective effect when the operating state changes. For example, for voltage type electric shock protectors, a neutral grounding device should be installed.
ZHEJIANG QIANNA ELECTRIC CO.,LTD , https://www.traner-elec.com