Robots and AI do not ‘learn’. There is no individual and independent movement in a computer that senses its own ‘body’. Indeed, robots and AI have no body, no nerve endings, no consciousness or feelings necessary to ‘know’ and ‘understand’ the emotions of another. Yet, this is what is projected by … [Read more...] about Spot the Spin and the Myths of AI
Safety Under Stress
Safety Under Stress Stress is a part of living, the pressure of being a fallible being in a complex world is stressful, but is stress bad? In what ways are humans stressed and how does this affect the discerning of risk and safety? There are four kinds of stress and each affects humans socially, … [Read more...] about Safety Under Stress
Is There a Place for Atonement in Safety?
The idea of atonement is a deeply theological idea and is linked to the practice of forgiveness. There are many theologies of atonement in a number of religions. There is not one view. Similarly, with theories of forgiveness and learning. Yet, we see recently, Dekker drifting into the theological … [Read more...] about Is There a Place for Atonement in Safety?
KamiKaze Safety and The Breath of God
I was chatting with a young person the other day and they brought a drink with them. I normally don’t read the text on cans of drink but was struck by what I read on this can. You can see the can in Figure 1. Breath of God Figure 1. Breath of God Wow, so I drink this energy drink that is … [Read more...] about KamiKaze Safety and The Breath of God
The Folly of Zero
There’s nothing like contradiction and hypocrisy to demolish credibility. Talk is cheap and spin is easy. This is the way of zero ideology (https://www.humandymensions.com/product/zero-the-great-safety-delusion/). Folly is the foolishness of a façade compared to the substance of reality. Any … [Read more...] about The Folly of Zero
Zero is NOT Noble, Moral or Sense-able
It is simply laughable to observe the gobbledygook written about zero by Safety. The latest I read was from here: New SA mine health and safety targets can be reached, but zero harm will remain elusive When will Safety get it into their silly thinking that zero is impossible? When will Safety … [Read more...] about Zero is NOT Noble, Moral or Sense-able
Injury Response
Injury Response I’ve had several conversations with safety people about response to events and incidents on site. One mate on a tier 1 site explains the Safety Advisor role as simply ‘demoralising’. So I thought I would try to mimic the typical safety spud head response to an … [Read more...] about Injury Response
Trying to Rationalise the Non-Rational in Risk
There is no such thing as a neutral or objective worldview when discussing risk. The way we understand and approach risk is through the lens of our worldview. It’s just that in Safety this is rarely forthcoming or articulated. Often a view is given as a ‘principle’ when it’s just a slogan or assumed … [Read more...] about Trying to Rationalise the Non-Rational in Risk
Where Does Forgiveness Fit in Safety?
I read an academic paper the other day about the need for forgiveness in safety. It was laced with theological concepts and metaphors about what to do with ‘wrongdoers’. The paper also used extensive theological language (from a non-theologian) about: atonement, grace, justice, morality, repentance … [Read more...] about Where Does Forgiveness Fit in Safety?
Safety as a Blessing Scam
It’s so easy to fall victim to a scam. We generally want to believe the best in people or find ourselves in a situation where things make sense but mask a hidden reality. I fell victim to the Netflix scam myself, quite easily. When scammers know enough about you, human psychology and common … [Read more...] about Safety as a Blessing Scam
