Ask YC: Why not prevent suicides by automatically spying on people's emails?
One can create AIish algorithms to see how depressed someone is likely to be by analyzing their emails. Something like that could be done with gmail for example.
If some depression threshold is passed, mental health authorities would be contacted automatically and immediately. Surely the lives saved would be worth any loss of privacy?
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Slippery slopes.
And don't call me Shirley.
This is already here... GM offers use of it's OnStar system to law enforcement so they can hear what you are saying while in your car, OnStar also has GPS tracking.
> every person
Your cellular phone already does, even when it is turned off.
It doesn't "hear what you're saying while in your car" just randomly.
OnStar intially helped the FBI in a case by letting them listen into a conversation inside a vehicle, then decided to sue the FBI over it. That doesn't mean OnStar won't change it's mind later...
"I'm sorry that your father died, but we aren't really a hospital... we're hospitalish."
"I'm not a plumber, but I am plumberish."
"If I just came right out and said that strong AI is a joke, and that I wouldn't necessarily trust an AI to sort my socks, let alone recommend to government authorities that I be committed to a mental institution, it would not be subtle. But it might be subtleish."
Also, you do realize that your plan would permit anyone who can forge a FROM header to conduct a denial-of-service attack on your entire life, don't you?
Here's a better follow-up question: if Google currently analyzes emails to determine what advertisements to place, and it can be shown that similar email processing could prevent suicides, is Google liable for not either providing the service or notifying people that the service is not included?
[+] http://www.visar.com/AssistedSuicide.html
I'm sure google ads will show some health club publicity with that kind of content on an email.
Yes. I guess he has a severe case of collectivism, which is quite strange for someone hanging out here.
Very scary mindset you've got there.
It looks like you're going to commit suicide.
Would you like to:
- Buy some pills.
- Buy some ammo. ...
If you were being remotely serious about suicide, here is what I decided at a young age when I first thought about the subject when trying to decide whether a religion was true or not: If this whole existence is worthless and meaningless, make the best of it while you are here. If this whole existence is part of something bigger, make the best of it while you are here. There really is really no problem or ailment that makes suicide a viable option.
but rest assured, the nsa already monitors all domestic internet traffic.
A better use of technology is to make people's lives better so they don't feel suicidal.