Digital Citizen

Join us on a journey to learn more about the intersection of linguistics and AI with special guest Emily M. Bender. Come with us as we learn how linguistics functions in modern language models like ChatGPT.

Episode Notes

Discover the origins of language models, the negative implications of sourcing data to train these technologies, and the value of authenticity.

▶️ Guest Interview - Emily M. Bender

• Learn more about Emily M. Bender
• Read On the Danger of Stochastic Parrots(2021) by Emily M. Bender, Timnit Gebru, Angelina McMillan-Major, and Margaret Mitchell.
• Check out the publications by cognitive scientist Abeba Birhane.
• See work from AI research scientist Meg Mitchell.

• Emily M. Bender is a Professor of Linguistics at the University of Washington. Her work focuses on grammar, engineering, and the societal impacts of language technology. She's spoken and written about what it means to make informed decisions about AI and large language models such as ChatGPT.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a marketing term developed in the 1950s by John McCarthy. It refers to an area of computer science. AI is a technology built using natural language processing and linguistics, the science of how language works. Understanding how language works is necessary to comprehend large language models' potential misuse and limitations.
• Language model is the term for a type of technology designed to model the distribution of word forms in text. While early language models simply determined the relative frequency of words in a text, today’s language models are bigger in terms of the data they store and the language they are trained on. As a society, we must continue reminding ourselves that synthetic text is not a credible information source. Before sharing information, it’s smart to verify that something was written by a human rather than a machine. Valuing authenticity and citations are some of the most important things we can do.
• Distributional biases are generated in the data output used for large language models. The less care we put into curating training data, the more various patterns and systems of oppression will be reproduced, regardless of whether they are presented as fact or fiction in the end result. 
• Being a good digital citizen means avoiding using products built on data theft and labor exploitation. On an individual level, we should insist on transparency regarding synthetic media. Part of the problem is that there is currently no watermarking at the source. There is a major need for regulation and accountability around synthetic text nationally. We can also continue to increase the value of authenticity.

• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us @Fastmail.
• Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected].

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

With Frank Lee, Shawn Pierre, and Jessica Creane, we discuss the future of the video game landscape and the transition from game player to game maker. We explore what draws people into the gaming space, what video games mean to the people who play and create them, and what gaming organizations are doing to push the narrative.

Episode Notes

Discover the real-world applications of gaming, how to get into the game making community, video game conferences that you need to know, events that test game makers’ skills, and suggestions from coaches in the video game world.

▶️ Guest Interview

• Learn more about Frank Lee and his work at Drexel.
• Read about Shawn Pierre’s work at New York University.
• Take a look at Jessica Creane’s work at iKantKoan Games.
• Check out the Independent Games Festival (IGF).
• Explore Games for Change and Everything Immersive.
• Learn more about TechGirlz and Philly Game Mechanics.

🗣️ Discussion Points

• Special guests Frank Lee, Shawn Pierre, and Jessica Creane are three video game makers and educators from the Philadelphia area.
• Generally, a video game is a game played on a computer device. Many people play video games to connect with others. Video games provide an outlet for creativity, power, and control in a very curated way that we often don’t get in daily life.
• The barriers to creating games have significantly decreased in the last five years. Sometimes, creators have an easier time getting their work out there and placing it into a storefront for free. However, this also means that there is more competition in the field than ever before.
• If you want to make games, try to mod games that already exist rather than creating something new from scratch. This will allow you to experiment without having to build tools yourself. If you enjoy that, then you may start creating entire levels. If you’re not comfortable with this creative software yet, start with board games and think about how systems are used to engage people.
• Shawn says by educating people on video games, you teach them to think critically and solve problems for themselves in a coaching role.
• In discussing coaching work, Jessica talks about how she supports people with the execution of becoming game makers. She helps them find buoyancy in transformation and reminds them that even in fictional games, everything is real– the team and the people who will play the game are real.
• Frank also suggests being proactive in the types of games that kids play and what can be a positive and negative experience for them.

🔵 Find Us

Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.

Check out our blog.

Tweet us: @Fastmail.

Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected].

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

We explore Philadelphia's thriving tech scene and share expert advice on how to succeed in the city. From attracting and retaining tech talent to building a sense of community, we're joined by two special guests who are passionate about helping individuals and companies thrive.

Episode Notes

In this special LIVE recording of Fastmail’s Philly Tech Week event “You Can Thrive Here: Local Leaders on Philly’s Move Into Ethical Tech”, listen to the Co-Host and Senior Producer of Digital Citizen Haley Hnatuk in conversation with Senzwa Ntshepe and Tempest Carter, two people on the cutting edge of building Philadelphia technology scene.

▶️ Guest Interview - Tempest Carter and Senzwa Ntshepe

• Learn more about Tempest Carter and Senzwa Ntshepe.
• Look into the Commerce and the City of Philadelphia.
• Check out The Connect on their website, Linkedin, and Instagram.
• Explore other Philadelphia organizations 1Philadelphia, Hopeworks, Launchpad, Per Scholas, and Tribaja.

• Tempest Carter's work is centered around building an ecosystem in Philadelphia that allows tech companies to thrive. She is also responsible for creating a series of events called Tech Talks, which aim to bring people together and foster connections.
• As President of The Connect, Senzwa Ntshepe is dedicated to solving the problem of black and brown professionals leaving Philadelphia by fostering a sense of community and validation among its members. With a community of over 20,000 professionals nationwide, they focus on community needs and how people can thrive in Philadelphia.
• Philadelphia is a great place for tech, with over 100,000 tech positions and over 9,000 tech companies in the region. Additionally, the city is home to universities, robotics, and other innovative fields that offer unique career paths. Philadelphia has something for everyone whether you're looking for a lively atmosphere or a more laid-back space.
• If you are breaking or transitioning into tech, do a personal audit and determine what you love to do. Be aware of what skills you need to work on, and don’t be afraid to upscale and seek education. Rather than chasing a job, focus on finding a mission that aligns with your values.
• Balance is so important. Your mind works better when it’s not plugged in all the time.

• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us @Fastmail.
• Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected].

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

We dive into the Right to Repair with Aaron Perzanowski. Hear about the benefits of fixing our own devices rather than replacing them and the reasons why some companies create roadblocks to prevent the average consumer from doing so.

Episode Notes

Discover the social and intellectual function of repair, why our Right to Repair as consumers is so important, the ways companies are making this right difficult for the average person, and the environmental implications of buying new products rather than fixing the ones we already have.

▶️ Guest Interview - Aaron Perzanowski

• Learn more about Aaron Perzanowski.
• Read The End of Ownership by Aaron Perzanowski and Jason Schultz.
• Check out The Right to Repair: Reclaiming the Things We Own by Aaron Perzanowski.
• Get to know The Repair Association.
• Explore the free repair manual iFixIt.

• As a law professor at the University of Michigan, Aaron teaches courses primarily focusing on intellectual property law, copyright, and trademarks. His research focuses on the intersection of intellectual and personal property and how our intellectual property shapes our relationship with the devices and products we use daily.
• We consumers have certain rights regarding the things we buy. One of those rights is the Right to Repair them should something go wrong. This could mean fixing them ourselves or having the choice of which professional will fix them for you.
• The act of repairing teaches us valuable skills, such as how to analyze and address problems in the world and how to be self-sufficient. Repair is often also a community effort, as it may require asking neighbors for help and learning from others who share your interests.
• Companies have strong incentives to steer consumers towards replacement rather than repair. Undetectable software is all around us in the things we use every day. As soon as software is introduced into a product, the manufacturer can exert control over how the product is used after the sale.
• As consumers, we must be mindful about our purchases by considering the longevity of the products. If you have a functioning device, keep it. On the other hand, if a device does break, don’t be afraid to explore repair options before immediately purchasing something new. However, the repair will cost just as much as a brand-new item in some cases.
• Understanding how your technology works is important in the problems we hope our government will address. If we don’t understand it ourselves, we don’t have enough ground to weigh in on the topics. Repair helps people understand their technology even better, and engaging in repair can make us better digital citizens.

• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us @Fastmail.
• Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected].

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

We delve further into the world of productivity with our special guest, David Tedaldi, CEO and Co-Founder of Morgen. Hear about Morgen’s mission and values, what makes its product stand out among other productivity tools, and the customizable workflows that are now available for Fastmail customers through our new integration with Morgen Assist.

Episode Notes

Discover insights into the significance of purposeful productivity, how to best manage your calendar in order to prioritize the most important things, and as always, how to be the best possible digital citizen.

▶️ Guest Interview - David Tedaldi

• Learn more about David Tedaldi.
• Follow Morgen on X.
• Learn more about the integration.
• Read more from Morgen.

🗣️ Discussion Points

• Morgen integrates with your time management tools. It allows you to actively manage all of your calendars for tasks, projects, and scheduling in one place, solving the issue of staying on top of your timeline.
• One of the benefits of a tool like Morgen, is that it helps you stay on top of your tasks, making your productivity intentional. As a Morgen Power user, David follows the model that if something isn’t on his calendar, it’s probably not going to happen. He believes that “since life is so short, we should only work on important things.”
• Fastmail has partnered with Morgen, so you can start automating your calendar and adding customizable workflows. Connect Fastmail with Morgen Assist to set up these and other smart automations in your calendar.
• Fastmail customers who use Morgen vocalized their desire for this feature, which inspired us to collaborate on an integration for our shared customer base.
• The most important aspect of being a good digital citizen is respect. This includes respecting the people you talk to online and respecting the privacy of users as a developer.

🔵  Find Us

• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us @Fastmail.
• Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected].

💙  Review Us

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

Abha Chiyedan wants to help anyone who struggles with productivity. If you have ever wondered how to stay productive and maintain a healthy work-life balance, you won’t want to miss this week’s episode of Digital Citizen.

Episode Notes

Abha Chiyedan found the transition to adulthood to be difficult and shared her personal experiences in a blog in 2016. This passion project transformed into a full-time job when she founded The Werk Life, a productivity and wellness brand with digital planners designed to bring peace and calm to your busy life.

• Learn more about Abha Chiyedan.
• Shop The Werk Life planners.
• Follow The Werk Life on tiktok.

• Some of us would rather enjoy the moment and put off whatever can be done until tomorrow. If you find yourself getting stuck in a procrastination rut, try practicing self-awareness and deciding what you can do as an alternative.
• We often don’t realize how long we have actually been doing something. Abha suggests trying timers, time blocks, and rewards to help. For example, you might reward yourself with five minutes of scrolling on your phone after thirty minutes of work.
• There is no one-size-fits-all approach to productivity. If the tool you are trying isn’t working, be honest with yourself and try something else. The Werk Life offers many free resources in addition to planners. Check out their website if you need inspiration on where to start.
• Don’t get bogged down in the planning stage. Sometimes you have to say this plan is good enough and move on to executing it.
• Not everything is always what it seems on the internet, and if the content you consume makes you feel bad, give yourself the room to step away.

• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us: @Fastmail.
• Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected].

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

We delve into the intricate balance between productivity, technology, and digital culture with our special guest, Adam Conover. Explore how modern tech influences our work habits, the impact of personal knowledge management apps, and the complexities of email management in our daily lives.

Episode Notes

Discover insights into the profound effects of internet usage on social life, the challenges of maintaining productivity amidst technological advancements, and the evolving dynamics of fan engagement across different media platforms. Join us as we navigate the nuances of digital habits and their implications on personal and professional spheres.

• Learn more about Adam Conover.
• Subscribe to Adam Conover’s Patreon.
• Listen to Factually! with Adam Conover.

• Productivity apps and technological tools aim to streamline our workflows and enhance efficiency. However, there's an underlying risk of becoming overly reliant on these tools, potentially leading to a counterproductive cycle of planning without execution. This segment challenges listeners to consider how their tech use affects their actual output.
• The digital age has fundamentally altered our social habits and cultural dynamics. This discussion delves into the impact of digital habits on personal relationships and mental health, questioning whether our online personas and activities are enriching our lives or detracting from genuine human interaction.
• Personal knowledge management apps like Obsidian and Roam Research have gained popularity as tools for organizing thoughts and enhancing productivity. However, this segment probes into whether these apps truly contribute to productivity or merely serve as sophisticated distractions. The conversation sheds light on the broader question of what productivity really means in the context of information overload.
• Email is a part of everyday life, but it can be difficult to manage. This part of the episode explores various strategies for email management and discusses the broader implications of these practices, such as whether our quest for a clean inbox actually advances our productivity or merely feeds into a cycle of constant task management.
• The platform chosen to engage with an audience significantly shapes the nature of that interaction. Different mediums, from Twitter to Patreon, influence the dynamics between creators and their followers. By examining the phrase "the medium is the message," this segment invites listeners to reflect on how the constraints of each platform impact communication and, by extension, the creator-audience relationship.
• Internet culture reflects and amplifies broader societal issues, including inequality, racism, and online violence. Explore how digital spaces both mirror and exacerbate real-world social dynamics, prompting a critical examination of our collective online behavior and the responsibilities of digital platforms in shaping public discourse.

• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us: @Fastmail.
• Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected].

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

Listen to a snapshot of Digital Citizen, a Fastmail Podcast. Hear clips from our guests and their perspectives on how we can all become better digital citizens.

Episode Notes

The 'Digital Citizen' podcast, hosted by Ricardo Signes and co-host Haley Hnatuk, aims to guide listeners in using the internet more thoughtfully. The show features discussions with leading technology experts focusing on the changing dynamics of cybersecurity, social media, and the overall digital environment. It emphasizes the importance of remembering the human element behind technology, offering practical advice on becoming a better digital citizen. The podcast encourages listeners to adapt to the ever-changing digital world and promotes positive technological change and innovation.

• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us @Fastmail.

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

Comedian and labor organizer Adam Conover talks to Fastmail CTO Ricardo Signes about Adam’s ongoing work as part of the WGA strike and the impact of AI on creative industries.

Episode Notes

Hear why the Writers Guild of America is currently on strike and the role Adam has played in the overall process as a member of the board and the 2023 Negotiating Committee.

• Learn more about Adam Conover.
• Check out Entertainment Community Fund.
• Subscribe to Adam Conover’s Patreon.
• Learn more about Writers Guild of America - West and Writers Guild of America - East.
• Listen to Factually! with Adam Conover.

• Adam is a comedian, writer, television host, and the host of the podcast Factually! with Adam Conover.
• The Writers Guild of America is a labor union that represents about 11,000 writers specifically in film and television. They have a contract with the film and TV production companies, who have spent the last 10-15 years figuring out ways to make the work of writers more precarious and pay them less. The Writers Guild is now on strike to try to fix that and put contractual protections in place so that writers will be able to make a sustainable living in their industry.
• Although AI text can be useful in some contexts, it can also be considered a plagiarizing machine. The only reason it can produce the output in screen and script writing is because it has been trained on the real work of writers. These large language models, however, can not actually do the work of a writer because writing is so much more than just outputting text.
• The biggest fear of writers today is that companies will ask them to modify the scripts written by AI. But, since the script would be written by AI, the company would feel justified in paying the screenwriters even less despite putting in the same amount of work to modify the script. Although Adam is worried about what AI may be able to do over the course of the next 5 years, he is not worried that AI will end up writing movies or make art.
• Another big issue right now is around streaming residuals, which are less than they have been in the past. Though this is a really important cause, it has gotten more attention compared to some of the Guild’s other equally valuable demands. This includes the fact that companies are trying to eliminate the writers’ room and operate with a freelance model. If this happened, television writing would cease to become a career.
• WGA is not asking that everyone cancel their Netflix subscriptions. Rather, they just ask that people boost them on social media and publicly support them. Supporters are also encouraged to donate to the Entertainment Community Fund, which gives grants to people within the industry who have fallen on hard times.

• Take our survey: digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.
• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen.
• Check out our blog.
• Tweet us @Fastmail.

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Take our survey to tell us what you think at digitalcitizenshow.com/survey.

On this special Philly Tech Week episode of the Digital Citizen podcast, Fastmail COO Helen Horstmann-Allen speaks with Alex Hillman, Will Toms, and Michelle Freeman, three of the savviest digital citizens in Philadelphia about community building offline and online.

Michelle is the Founder of Witty Gritty, a civic-focused marketing events engagement company based in Philadelphia, and Amplify Philly, an initiative co-run with REC Philly aiming to amplify the intersection of business, tech, art, and more. Will is the Co-Founder of REC, a company that works to get independent creatives paid for doing what they love. Alex co-founded Indy Hall, Philadelphia’s first coworking community, which has been gathering people since 2006

▶️ Guest Interview - Alex Hillman, Will Toms, and Michelle Freeman

• Follow Alex on Mastodon: @[email protected]
• Follow Will on Instagram: @thewilltoms
• Follow Witty Gritty on Instagram: @wittygrittyphl
• Learn more about Indy Hall.
• Learn more about Amplify Philly.
• Learn more about Witty Gritty.
• Dive into 10K Independents' mission.
• Get involved with RECPhilly.
• Explore Philly Tech Week.
• Read articles about PTW 2023 on Technical.ly Philly.

🗣️ Discussion Points

• Alex explains that the difference between community building on and offline is that offline community building gives you many things for free, such as serendipity. Natural and organic conversation is one of the things that makes a community so special, which is very difficult to build online. Online, you have to be specific and intentional in building community.
• In our hybrid world, being online serves as an enhancement for in-person experiences. It allows people to keep in touch between meetings through tools like email and Slack and make connections with people they can later connect with in-person.
• Our guests are all three extremely proud of their home city of Philadelphia. What makes the city so special is that the city has more creative talent than any other city per capita, even though they don’t have the entertainment infrastructure of New York or LA. REC Philly highlights the resources Philadelphia has to leverage to entice creatives to stay rather than relocate to another city.
• The first thing people can do to become better digital citizens is shift their identity online from building an audience to building a community. As a community builder, your role is to create a space for people to connect with others. 

⭐️ Takeaways

• It is important to add value to the spaces you inhabit, whether they are on or offline.
• Simplicity makes participation accessible. Something as easy as encouraging people to participate in thematic name tags (or screen names on Zoom) can spark meaningful conversations.
• When it comes to community building, “Onboarding is forever.” Be intentional about the type of community you want to build and start laying that groundwork early on to help foster its growth.

🔵  Find Us

• Take our end-of-season survey: digitalcitizenshow.com/survey
• Digital Citizen Website: fastmail.com/digitalcitizen
• Check out our blog
• Tweet us @Fastmail
• Follow us on Mastodon: @[email protected]

💙  Review Us

If you love this show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.