PUBLISHER'S NOTE - A, E, I, O, U AND SOMETIMES WHY
Many of us will recall that alphabet memorization technique from grade school. It was the origin of how we started putting letters and words together.
Recently, A and I have been two vowels that have invaded the public consciousness like never before. AI this and AI that. WHY?
About a month ago, out of the blue, a colleague asked if I would read a college admissions essay. I did and told him it was pretty good. But why was I reviewing it? He told me it was generated by an Artificial Intelligence app. It caught me off guard that AI could construct a fairly well-written essay.I subsequently mentioned this to a few other people, and they seemed to be more aware of this than I was. A couple of writers were dismayed, but I assured them I would never replace our flesh-and-blood writers with Artificial Intelligence—even though I suspect some scribes out there may be bots.
Artificial Intelligence has been around since the 1950s. The first relatively successful program was written in 1951 by Christopher Strachey, and was subsequently developed and refined by others for decades thereafter. A few examples of how AI has enhanced our world are the development of tools for people with disabilities, cancer screening techniques and advancing methodologies to predict potential viruses with pandemic potential.
Recently, there’s been a good amount of legitimate AI reporting in the media, but less credible media organizations and the usual social media misuse have counteracted those reliable news sources with scary scenarios where AI takes over the world. That’s not to say there isn’t potential that AI could one day diminish our personal and professional choices somewhat. Thankfully, diverse and learned people like Elon Musk, Bill Gates and others in our culture have stepped up to alert us of these possibilities, and they’ve also shared we can override potential devastation with science and education.
Fears related to AI are understandable given the recent global events and challenges we’ve experienced the past five or six years. Most of us try to keep positive thoughts that we’re not entering a dystopian period, and our collective perseverance will carry us through. That notion has been hard to stay with at times these past years, but our faith in our humanness helps us rise above it.
Artificial Intelligence or not, people will never be replaced in the universal sense. We are flesh and blood; we have hearts and souls; we embrace our flaws believing we have the potential to become better than what we’ve been so far. I’m not ready to live in a Mad Max world, and I bet most others feel the same way.The tenet that drives most of us is that acceptance, forgiveness and our ability to love will supersede whatever adversities we face. That our connection and humanness humbles and propels us to higher ground.What does AI or anything else here really have to do with Cigar & Spirits Magazine? Probably not so much other than I might one day become more dispensable as an editor and publisher.AI will likely never depreciate our enjoyment of travel, fashion, entertainment and the cigars and spirits we relish. One of my goals with our publication is to remind us of the fun and finer things we can experience and expand on the humanness we desire to share with one another.
I hope you take some time out to decompress and enjoy the breezy content in this issue.
Sincerely,
Randy Mastronicola
Editor & Publisher