The threat of deepfake scenes

+ lessons from affirmative action in Brazil US Edition - Today's top story: Events that never happened could influence the 2024 presidential election – a cybersecurity researcher explains situation deepfakes [View in browser]( US Edition | 17 July 2023 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Top headlines - [Feminist philosopher comes to terms with Barbie]( - [Religion and vaccine hesitancy – research reveals much nuance]( - [What fuels periodic buzz around UFOs]( Lead story When spotting deepfakes – AI-generated photos and videos – it’s one thing to see a video of a famous person and notice that something looks wrong. But how about a battlefield scene or street protest or newscast? Situations like these can be faked, too, and, with fewer reference points, telltale subtle anomalies can be harder to detect. With the 2024 presidential election looming, the stakes are high. Rochester Institute of Technology cybersecurity and AI researcher Christopher Schwartz [explains the threat]( of “situation deepfakes” and what you can do to guard against them. [ [Understand what’s going on in Washington and around the world. Get our Politics Weekly newsletter.]( ] Eric Smalley Science + Technology Editor The volatile mix of deepfakes and political campaigns is a good reason to be on guard. Sean Anthony Eddy Creative/E+ via Getty Images [Events that never happened could influence the 2024 presidential election – a cybersecurity researcher explains situation deepfakes]( Christopher Schwartz, Rochester Institute of Technology AI can manipulate a real event or invent one from thin air to create a ‘situation deepfake.’ These deepfakes threaten to influence upcoming elections, but you can still protect your vote. Education - [What the US can learn from affirmative action at universities in Brazil]( Neil Lewis Jr., Cornell University; Inácio Bó, University of Macau; Rodrigo Zeidan, NYU Shanghai Research has found that race-neutral policies were not enough to achieve diversity in Brazil’s higher education system. Three scholars probe what that means for the United States. Science + Technology - [What do astronomers say about Moon landing deniers? Batting down the conspiracy theory with an assist from the 1969 Miracle Mets]( Michael Richmond, Rochester Institute of Technology Some people incorrectly say the Moon landings didn’t happen. But the evidence – and logic – isn’t on their side. - [Why people tend to believe UFOs are extraterrestrial]( Barry Markovsky, University of South Carolina While UFO videos might seem compelling, they’re rarely backed up with evidence. A sociologist explains why claims of alien life gain traction through both social and mass media every few years. Politics + Society - [International African American Museum in Charleston, S.C., pays new respect to the enslaved Africans who landed on its docks]( Bernard Powers, College of Charleston Opened in June 2023, the museum comes at a time when the teaching of Black history is under attack by conservative politicians. - [Democrats revive the Equal Rights Amendment from a long legal limbo – facing an unlikely uphill battle to get it enshrined into law]( Deana Rohlinger, Florida State University Women’s rights groups and politicians have pushed, ultimately unsuccessfully, for the Equal Rights Amendment to become part of the Constitution for the past several decades. - [Impunity over Wagner mutiny signals further degradation of rule of law in Russia]( Maxim Krupskiy, Tufts University Russian authorities have given no legitimate justification for dropping criminal cases against rebel troops – undermining both President Vladimir Putin and the legal system. Ethics + Religion - [Religion shapes vaccine views – but how exactly? Our analysis looks at ideas about God and beliefs about the Bible]( Christopher P. Scheitle, West Virginia University; Bernard DiGregorio, West Virginia University; Katie Corcoran, West Virginia University Specific beliefs may have more to do with people’s vaccine views than their religious affiliation – but it depends on which vaccine you’re talking about. Arts + Culture - [How I learned to stop worrying and love the doll – a feminist philosopher’s journey back to Barbie]( Carol Hay, UMass Lowell Barbie has long functioned as a proxy onto which cultural aspirations and anxieties about womanhood are projected. - [Hollywood on the picket line – 5 unsung films that put America’s union history on the silver screen]( Peter Dreier, Occidental College As actors join screenwriters in a strike that has shut down movie productions, a labor historian looks back at union action on the silver screen. Health + Medicine - [As a summer heat wave pummels the US, an expert warns about the dangers of humidity – particularly for toddlers, young athletes and older adults]( W. Larry Kenney, Penn State As temperatures rise in the US, so does the incidence of heat-related deaths, including heatstroke. Trending on site - [A new, thin-lensed telescope design could far surpass James Webb – goodbye mirrors, hello diffractive lenses]( - [Puerto Rico has been part of the US for 125 years, but its future remains contested]( - [Not all repellents are equal – here’s how to avoid mosquito bites this summer]( Reader Comments 💬 “The problem related to legacy admission is unfortunately only the tip of the iceberg. Applied across generations, attendance led to degrees, to better jobs, to higher earnings, disposable income, the ability to accumulate more wealth, the ability to self select in to more affluent communities, with better funded public schools that can provide better education, more access to better private schools with even better education, more access to outside activities, travel, tutors, and on and on and on. So one group can more easily access colleges of all kinds and is better prepared to perform when they get to college.” – Reader Chuck Hunt on the story [Support for legacy admissions is rooted in racial hierarchy]( - - More of The Conversation Like this newsletter? You might be interested in our weekly and biweekly emails: • [Weekly Highlights]( • [Science Editors' Picks]( • [This Week in Religion]( • [Politics Weekly]( • [Global Perspectives]( • [Global Economy & Business]( Trying out new social media? 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