TL;DR: Employees seduced by corporate jargon are terrible at making decisions, whilst a mind-reading milestone lets scientists watch movies inside a mouse’s brain. Meanwhile, the world’s ship captains are terrified of autonomous vessels, chatbots are forcing humanity to conform, and your AI writing assistant is secretly changing your political opinions. Plus: A medical taboo prompts neurologists to talk about faith, AI warning labels might spread more misinformation, and charities are warned that using AI-generated images undermines public trust.
Employees seduced by corporate jargon are terrible at making decisions
Have you ever rolled your eyes at a coworker praising “synergistic leadership” or “blue-sky thinking”? It turns out there is a good reason.
New research shows that employees seduced by corporate jargon are poor decision-makers. The study found that a reliance on buzzwords often masks a lack of critical understanding, leading to poorer strategic choices and clouded business judgment.
Fighting global fraud with AI evidence chains instead of mass surveillance
Rather than expanding government oversight into our private lives, policymakers must leverage new technologies to combat financial crime.
Jovan Jovanovic argues for fighting global fraud with AI-based evidence chains rather than mass surveillance, offering a privacy-preserving way to track illicit activity without broadly compromising civil liberties.
Why the world’s ship captains are terrified of autonomous vessels
A new wave of autonomous ferries is set to hit the water, but maritime professionals are sounding the alarm.
Reports explore why the world’s ship captains are terrified of autonomous vessels, citing concerns over software reliability, collision avoidance in unpredictable weather, and the loss of human intuition at sea.
https://thefreesheet.com/2026/03/13/why-the-worlds-ship-captains-are-terrified-of-autonomous-vessels
The death of original thought as chatbots force humanity to conform
It’s not just your syntax that artificial intelligence is hacking – it’s your unique perspective.
A new report warns of the death of original thought as chatbots force humanity to conform, revealing that relying on AI tools subtly standardises our writing and homogenises human creativity.
Your AI writing assistant is secretly changing your political opinions
Using autocomplete to finish our sentences has become commonplace for many, but it comes with a hidden cost.
Researchers have found that your AI writing assistant is secretly changing your political opinions by nudging you toward the subtle biases baked into its predictive training data.
Can playing virtual reality games actually hack your brain to be kinder?
We often think of video games as an isolating escape, but a new psychological study poses a fascinating question: can playing virtual reality games actually hack your brain to be kinder?
Early results suggest immersive VR experiences designed to build empathy can create lasting positive changes in real-world social behaviour.
A medical taboo: Why neurologists must start talking to patients about faith
Wading into questions of faith, purpose, and mortality is usually left to hospital chaplains or family members.
However, new medical guidelines argue that addressing this medical taboo is crucial, explaining why neurologists must start talking to patients about faith to provide truly holistic care for degenerative brain diseases.
New $0.10 technique is about to democratise the soft robotics industry
Soft robots are increasingly being used for everything from delicate object handling to medical surgery.
Now, a breakthrough new $0.10 technique is about to democratise the soft robotics industry, drastically reducing manufacturing costs and making flexible, responsive machines widely accessible.
Mind-reading milestone lets scientists watch movies inside a mouse’s brain
It sounds like pure science fiction, but researchers have figured out how to directly visualise thoughts.
In a major mind-reading milestone, scientists can now watch movies inside a mouse’s brain, using advanced imaging and AI to decode neural activity into a continuous video of what the animal is seeing.
Meet the indestructible robots born from artificial intelligence that refuse to die
Engineers have unleashed a new breed of artificial intelligence-designed robots that can withstand extreme damage.
By evolving their physical structures through digital simulations, these indestructible robots refuse to die, finding novel ways to keep moving even after losing limbs or suffering catastrophic hardware failures.
AI warning labels might actually be spreading more misinformation
In an effort to combat digital hallucinations and fake news, many social platforms have introduced warning tags.
However, a counterintuitive study suggests that AI warning labels might actually be spreading more misinformation, as users tend to blindly trust unlabeled fake content, assuming it has automatically been verified.
Charities warned that using AI images destroys public trust and empathy
Tempted by the promise of faster, cheaper campaign materials, many major charities are turning to generative art.
But experts have warned that using AI images destroys public trust and empathy, as donors feel manipulated when they discover that the emotional faces of those in need are entirely synthetic.