Iterate Weekly - Issue 104

This week we're talking about keeping kids off social media in Utah, Jobs being impacted by AI, a scary graphic about climate change, Metallica is pressing their own vinyl, and the Wheel-e podcast!

Mar 28, 2023

Welcome to issue 104 of Iterate Weekly!

Hope you’re all doing well. This is just a friendly reminder that you can always reply directly to these messages or leave a comment on the Substack post. Feedback is highly encouraged and I’m happy to answer any and all questions that come up.

Let’s jump into this week’s stories.

🤖 Tech

Utah wants kids off social media

I don’t think we have too many readers under the age of 18 who live in Utah. But this group will be seeing some changes to their social media habits soon.

Utah is the first state in the U.S. to enact a law that requires children to get permission from their parents to use social media.

Yep, I can hear the cries of outrage from the teens right now. All jokes aside, this is a pretty big deal. The law also imposes a ban on social media between the hours of 10:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m.

I’m not really sure how to feel about this. On one hand, I do think it’s wise for children under 18 to be getting much needed rest during those hours rather than scrolling social media. But social media can also be an important outlet for teens to express themselves and grow in healthy ways.

This also puts more pressure on parents to weigh the pros and cons of social media for their children. As a dad, I’d probably still let my daughter access these services. We all know the risks associated with excessive social media use, but an all out ban is likely to just lead to other workarounds. If you tell teenagers that they can’t do something, they’ll likely come up with some creative solutions.

And let’s also consider what this would mean for social media companies. We often don’t have sympathy for big companies like Tik Tok or Instagram/Meta but if they’re in jeopardy of losing a chunk of the under 18 audience, it could really change their plans.

Will other state’s follow Utah’s lead? My gut says no, but we shall see. My home state of California has put forth an alternative approach that requires tech companies to “stop profiling children or using personal information in ways that could harm them physically or mentally”. This is a bit more vague but it also feels more adaptable and sensible than an all out ban pending parental approval.

How would you feel if you were robbed of your social media privileges as a teen? What route would you take as a parent?

🎓 Education/Productivity/Work

Most jobs will be impacted by AI

A new study shows that there may be no avoiding the changes that AI will bring to the workforce in coming years.

According to research from ChatGPT parent company OpenAI, 80% of US jobs will be impacted by ChatGPT.

Full results of the study can be found here. What’s maybe most fascinating is that nearly all sectors seemingly will be impacted by the new technology, but high-paying knowledge worker jobs could be the most at risk.

A quote from the study that emphasizes this point:

“Our findings indicate that the importance of science and critical thinking skills are strongly negatively associated with exposure, suggesting that occupations requiring these skills are less likely to be impacted by current language models,” the researchers wrote. “Conversely, programming and writing skills show a strong positive association with exposure, implying that occupations involving these skills are more susceptible to being influenced by language models.”

They’re essentially saying that jobs that require critical thinking or scientific research skills will be less likely to be impacted by AI. That makes sense. But jobs that involve programming that can easily be replicated or writing that can be predicted and improved upon algorithmically are more at risk.

Hmm, I better start brushing up on my STEM skills….

♻️ Health & Environment

A scary climate graphic

The graphic above may be the most easy way of explaining the real risks of our current climate crisis.

It comes from a report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

This latest report gives an easy to understand matrix to show the impacts of climate change on people born in the year 2020, 1980, and 1950 respectively. You can then extrapolate what are climate will be like when each of these groups hit their 70s.

It paints a pretty bleak picture for our children when they’re hitting retirement age (if that will still be a thing in 2090). If we remain on our current trajectory or if things get worse, we could be looking at “very high” future emissions scenarios.

Yes, we can take all of these projections with a grain of salt. But I appreciate the simplicity of the graphic above.

I also want to give a shout out to David Bauer over at Weekly Filet for sharing this image and giving it a brief write up. If you’re not already a follower of his writing. It’s worth checking out.

🛍 Grab Bag

Metallica presses their own vinyl

Metallica has had a pretty prolific career, there really is no denying that.

You may still be bitter about their stance on the whole Napster scandal back in the day. And I think that most would say that their best music is more than three decades past. But still, they’ve managed to stay extremely relevant for a long time and I respect the hell out of them.

That’s why I thought it was particularly smart that they recently acquired a company called Furnace. It’s one of America’s largest producer of vinyl records. And it’s a wise move financially for a band to control another aspect of the production of their music.

Also, it’s a sign that vinyl records aren’t going anywhere. Sales of vinyl have continued to surge in recent years. And bands like Metallica who have a vast catalog of music are well-positioned to crank out special box sets and limited pressings to keep fans purchasing records for years to come.

It’s shrewd business move that I respect. Plus, I’ve managed to build a solid collection of vinyl myself over the years and I’m hoping that Metallica can get other bands to take notice and see the potential in resurrecting vinyl. As much as I love technology and streaming audio, there is just something incredibly satisfying about intentionally choosing and flipping a record that plays while eating a good meal or visiting with friends.

Who else still enjoys listening to music on vinyl?

💬 Quote of the Week

"Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!'"

-Robin Williams

🎧 Content Recommendation

Wheel-e Podcast

Here’s another podcast recommendation for those looking to slim down their carbon footprint.

The Wheel-e podcast from the folks at electrek is a fantastic resource to learn about the latest developments in e-bikes, electric cars, motorcycles, and scooters. Basically anything with wheels and a battery may get featured.

Electrek has become a very well respected name in the EV review space and they’re worth checking out if you’re in the market for a new car or bike that skips the internal combustion engine.

POLL

Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!

Hey! Could you use some help establishing healthy habits? Do you have a big project or new business that you want to get off the ground but could use some advice? Maybe you could benefit from hiring me as your coach. If you’re interested, read more about my coaching services here, or go ahead and book some time on my calendar to discuss further.

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