Australis13

I guess I’ll be avoiding those models when I’m next in the market for a TV, or work out how to disable it/block it at my router if I am forced to connect the TV to the Internet for firmware updates, etc.

Interesting. I can imagine a scenario where the resolution of CCTV is low enough that a mask would impede recognition in that instance. It’s definitely not something I would want to rely on, though.

Sorry, but facial recognition software has basically caught up. I would not rely on a mask to prevent me being recognised today:

https://privacyinternational.org/news-analysis/4511/can-covid-19-face-mask-protect-you-facial-recognition-technology-too https://www.ft.com/content/42415608-340c-4c0a-8c93-f22cdd4cc2d6 https://www.techtimes.com/articles/304431/20240508/new-software-shows-promise-facial-recognition-underneath-mask.htm

This is one of those frustrating social conventions that’s partly a greeting and partly a way to find out if you’re busy (particularly if they are asking if you’re in the middle of doing something or are speaking to the other person on the phone/via message where they can’t see what you’re doing).

A good response, as mentioned in another reply here, is “Not much. You?” or “Not much - how about yourself?” if you haven’t done anything out of the ordinary or aren’t really busy.

If you have done something that you think the other person might find interesting, though, give them a brief answer, e.g. “Oh, just had lunch at a new restaurant. The food was great.” Keeping it short then allows the other person to either ask a follow-up question if they are actually interested, or to move the conversation along to the actual topic they wanted to discuss with you.

If you are actually busy and in the middle of a task, then a short and polite response and suggestion to reschedule works, e.g. “Sorry, just in the middle of painting the spare room… can I get back to you tonight?”

Some parts of the paper are available here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0896627324008080?via=ihub

It doesn’t look like these “bits” are binary, but “pieces of information” (which I find a bit misleading):

“Quick, think of a thing… Now I’ll guess that thing by asking you yes/no questions.” The game “Twenty Questions” has been popular for centuries as a thinking challenge. If the questions are properly designed, each will reveal 1 bit of information about the mystery thing. If the guesser wins routinely, this suggests that the thinker can access about million possible items in the few seconds allotted. Therefore, the speed of thinking—with no constraints imposed—corresponds to 20 bits of information over a few seconds: a rate of 10 bits/s or less.

The authors do draw a distinction between the sensory processing and cognition/decision-making, at least:

To reiterate: human behaviors, including motor function, perception, and cognition, operate at a speed limit of 10 bit/s. At the same time, single neurons can transmit information at that same rate or faster. Furthermore, some portions of our brain, such as the peripheral sensory regions, clearly process information dramatically faster.

Ugh. I hope they clearly flag AI content and allow users to filter it.

At least it’s a phone call. No eye contact required!