2023 Term 3, Week 9

According to the ex-Google Head of Research, “we have created our next master.” ChatGPT 4 has an IQ of 155, almost Einstein. At the current rate of development AI will surpass human intelligence within the next month or so, and then a thousand-fold within a few years.

Humanoid robots also featured in the documentary. The interactions with those robots were somewhat disconcerting. The movement of their faces when they spoke and interacted with the reporter was incredibly realistic, but then not.

And this is just the beginning of the AI and robotic age. If you apply Moore’s Law, the development in AI is just going to accelerate from here.

So, will humanity be extinct in the next few decades, or be slaves to a new, higher existence?

As we all know, the media loves to play on our fears. When something new comes along the reptilian part of our brain sends us into protection mode. You might recall how you felt when COVID-19 first began. You might have thought you’d lose everything, including your very life. Sadly, some have, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as we first feared.

There are other voices speaking into the AI space, voices of reason and common sense. Yes, life as we know it, work, and even education will change as a result of advances in technology, but there are a good number of scientists saying that AI will not be the end of us.

One of those scientists is Professor Nigel Crook, the Director of Ethic AI at Brookes Oxford University. Nigel is not just an AI scientist, but also a man of faith.

Crook’s book, “Rise of the Moral Machine: Exploring Virtue Through a Robot’s Eyes”, presents a compelling argument for a positive future.

Crook states, “Despite their overall size and complexity, the deep neural network models [AI, e.g. ChatGPT] do not come anywhere near close to the structural and operational complexity of the human brain… [To perform similar tasks] the brain consumes only 20 Watts of power, in contrast, lower bound power consumption estimates of GPT-3 are in the order of 500MWh.

Crook reminds us that there is far more to being a human than intellectual capacity, traits that can never be programmed. But even “cognitive autonomy is a gap that will never be filled by intelligent machines… we seem to have lost sight of how ‘fearfully and wonderfully’ we are in fact made.”

You might be keen to know that we have invited Professor Nigel Crook out to Australia next year to speak at a conference we are running, “Creativity and Character: Educating for the AI Era.” Watch out for more details of this event.

Apply now for the Ray Geise Bursary 2024

Only current St Paul’s students are eligible to apply for the Ray Geise Bursary.

Bursary Details:

The Ray Geise Bursary for Service will be offered to one current St Paul’s School student, who will be in Year 7, 8, 9, 10 or 11 in 2024.

This Bursary is to assist a family in financial need.

The total value of the Bursary is $1,000 (as a reduction in School fees) for 2024 only.

Criteria:

Students should submit a covering letter detailing their performance in pursing the Aims and Goals of the School and must show evidence of consistently caring for others and helping them to live worthwhile and meaningful lives; students must have pride in their School and demonstrate this in their dealings with their peers and indeed the whole School community.

In addition to the covering letter, students should submit a 1000 word essay on “Building a Christian Caring Community in the 21st Century.”

In awarding the Ray Geise Bursary, particular attention will be paid to the performance of the applicants in pursuing the Aims and Goals of the School, and to any financial need which exists in the family.

Preparing an Application:

All Bursary applications and offers are to be treated as private and confidential and are not for public discussion or announcement.  Applications must include:

1. A completed Bursary Application Form
2. A Covering Letter
3. An Essay

A separate application should be submitted for each child within a family.

Bursary Application Forms are available upon request by emailing the Headmaster’s Executive Assistant, Ms Sam Beeney:  [email protected]

Submitting an application:

Bursary applications (including the completed Bursary Application Form, Covering Letter and Essay) should be submitted as follows:

• via email to the Headmaster, via Ms Sam Beeney: [email protected]
• OR as a printed copy, enclosed in a sealed confidential envelope, addressed to Dr Browning, Headmaster; and handed in to Ms Sam Beeney, Headmaster’s EA (in Tooth Admin Building).

Closing Date:

Bursary applications are due in by Friday 13 October 2023.

Dr Paul Browning
Headmaster

British psychologist, Emeritus Professor Felicia Huppert has developed a useful scale for describing psychological wellbeing (see below). You will note that she uses the word ‘flourishing’ to describe optimal mental health, and that is what we aim for. However, most of us experience fluctuations in our mental health. Much of the time we might more accurately describe our mental wellbeing as ‘moderate’ and, from time to time, we have probably all experienced a sense of ‘languishing’ (or even a mental disorder).

We know that mental health is a major concern among Australian young people. According to the Black Dog Institute, suicide is the leading cause of death for people aged 5-17 years old, and more than 40% of Year 12 students report worrying levels of anxiety and depression. In a recent edition of the Medical Journal of Australia, well-know psychiatrist (and former Australian of the Year) Professor Patrick McGorry said “The mental health of young Australians is rapidly declining. The evidence for this is increasingly solid and reflects a worldwide trend. This steady erosion of our collective mental wealth is not only a human tragedy but an economic one.”

As parents and teachers, we need to be alert for any changes in the mood or behaviour of the children we care for. If a problem is developing, early intervention and treatment are the key to successful recovery of mental health.

Peers can also play a role in looking out for their friends. That is why we are acknowledging that next Thursday (14 October) is RUOK Day. We will be speaking with the students on Assembly and in Tutor Groups, about the importance of starting a conversation with a friend who seems to be struggling. It can be as simple as –

1. Ask R U OK?
2. Listen (and encourage them to explain) / show you care.
3. Encourage action. Of course, in the case of children, this should involve speaking with a trusted adult (parent, counsellor, teacher, House Leader, doctor)
4. Check in, to see how they are doing in a few days’ time.

Kind Regards,
Nigel Grant

Watch here

We also welcomed a visiting artist to the department this week to work with Year 10 and Year 11 students.  Dylan Jones is an established painter from Brisbane, whose work explores the beauty and simplicity of the everyday. Dylan’s artworks vary in subject matter and medium but regardless of what he chooses to depict there always remains an interest in colour, composition and the simplification of form. The imagery Dylan creates has a relationship to the history of art but more so to everyday life.https://www.dylanjonesart.com/about-1

Dylan spoke to students about being an artist and how his work and career have developed over time.  He shared his perspectives on how to establish an art practice, providing our senior students with valuable insight about their engagement with the senior Visual Art program.  Dylan conducted a painting workshop with Year 10 students who are developing their skills in representing place and space through painting places of personal significance.

It is vital that all contact details remain up to date so that we can contact you as necessary and continue providing your family with relevant information via email, phone and post.

Visit Parent Lounge

Parents/guardians can report their child’s absence from school via parent lounge.  An email detailing the process will be sent to you in the coming days.

If you have forgotten your Parent Lounge password, you can reset this yourself via the Parent Lounge login screen. If you have forgotten your Parent Lounge username, please contact the School’s reception.

This change is another improvement in the School’s approach towards child protection as it adds a level of security and authentication to child absences from school.  If you have any questions please contact the Risk and Compliance Officer, Mark Barratt ([email protected]).

Please note, if your child will be absent for three days or longer email your child’s House Leader.

The first step in this situation would be to discover what has happened. The next step is to explore the strongest thoughts and then the strongest feelings or emotions the person feels. This is responding in a way that indicates that the person who is showing the emotion matters. The receiving of such empathy indicates that the responder also matters in the interaction due to the acceptance of the gift of responding by the receiver.

So mattering is a balancing act where connection is a “both and” approach and not a single self-centred approach where one of the people assumes more control or takes over the responsibility for solving the problem by giving solutions without first seeking understanding from the person with the presenting issue.

Kind Regards,
Ross Adams – School Counsellor

Did you know that we have a SPS Careers Website?  You can find it on the School Portal or at https://www.stpaulscareers.com.au/.  Check out the Important Info section that has a Calendar of Events from Universities, Defence, TAFE, Expo’s etc!

To see the latest Career Tools Newsletter click here. You can also click here to view SPS Career Tools Weekly on the SPS Careers Website.

Notice of AGM – Tuesday 10 October

The Tennis Supporters’ Group will hold its Annual General Meeting on Tuesday 10 October 2023 at 7.00pm in the Sutton Building, Ground Floor.

All supporters are welcome to attend and are eligible to nominate for committee positions.

We have Executive positions becoming vacant and need to fill these roles to be able to continue operating, so please consider a role.  We’re a small, friendly group with only 4-6 meetings per year so it’s not a huge amount of work.  Check out TSG Roles and Responsibilities for an overview of each role.

Nominations can be made in writing using this form and emailed to [email protected] by Monday 9 October 2023 or brought along to the meeting.

The AGM will be followed by a General Meeting.