William Williams

Today we may take for granted the presence of women as world leaders. Such was not so common 50 years ago, this month when Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (no relation to nonviolence advocate Mohandas Gandhi) became India’s Prime Minister—13 years before Margaret Thatcher became the United Kingdom’s first female Prime Minister and 39 years before Angela Merkel earned that distinction in Germany.

You may not have heard, but back in June a hoax went around, warning against earth’s supposed impending doom—which (they said) should have destroyed us all by September! Rumors about a stellar cataclysm were “shared” around social media (and oddly enough, gathered some “likes” along the way). Surely, if it appeared on Facebook, Huffington Post or Before It’s News, it must be true… right? In fact, however, whether by comet or man-made catastrophe, the end of the world is no trivial matter—so why should it be treated like one?

Growing up in the Shenandoah region of the United States, autumn was always a special time for me. Much like the hues of a beautiful sunset, the colors of autumn in western Virginia reliably left their mark on my memory each year. And, just as reliably, each year the “Leaf Peepers” came out by the hundreds to see the hills and mountains “catch fire” when the leaves turned bright and the season “fell.”

Cosmologist Stephen Hawking believes “the development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.” Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and product engineer of Tesla Motors, warns that AI might be one of the greatest threats facing our civilization. Bill Gates, the former CEO and founder of Microsoft Corporation even considers the danger of machines that could out-think humanity. Are these fears justified? Will AI be the doom of the human race?