
Ask YC:  Why not prevent suicides by automatically spying on people's emails? - amichail
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.<p>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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s_baar
Why not have televisions that watch back and make sure we're not making bombs?
Why not have random searches and seizures if there's a chance we could save a
life? Why not put GPS tracking into every car, every person, so we could find
out where they are if they go missing?

Slippery slopes.

And don't call me Shirley.

~~~
gscott
> Why not put GPS tracking into every car

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.

~~~
dcurtis
OnStar is designed specifically only to work in two instances: 1. Someone
presses the blue button in the car manually, or 2. the car detects an accident
and automatically calls OnStar and the police.

It doesn't "hear what you're saying while in your car" just randomly.

~~~
gojomo
You probably think your phone only listens when you take it off the hook, too.

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mechanical_fish
"AIish" is my new favorite word. Let's apply this principle to some other
words.

"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?

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DanielBMarkham
Amichail you have missed your calling -- you shouldda been a hacker version of
Jerry Springer. "Live! This afternoon! Gay Midget Nun LISP programmers and the
System Administrators they love"

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?

~~~
gscott
And what if by analyzing your email Google aided in your suicide by bringing
up advertisements that lead you to what you used to commit suicide with.
Google might bring up an advertisement "Search eBay for 'commit suicide' now!"
or "Find books on amazon on "commit suicide"!"

~~~
DanielBMarkham
It could be worse. It could be Microsoft, and that little animated paperclip
pops out. "Hey! Looks like someone is wanting to commit suicide today! Have
you written your suicide note yet? Studies show that suicide notes written
using AllIsLost letter creating software are 22% more poignant! Thought about
creating an online will? How about some overseas prescriptions at really low
prices? Did you know that the nearest gun store is 7 miles NE of your
location. Like directions? There's a Taco Bell on your way in case you're
hungry. I'll just keep chatting down here until you finally off yourself."

~~~
gojomo
Turns out many people have associated Clippy with suicide notes [+]. Something
about Microsoft's 'help' just brings out those feelings!

[+] <http://www.visar.com/AssistedSuicide.html>

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utnick
I have a feeling that the person receiving the email will be a lot better than
your AI is at knowing if the person is depressed or suicidal.

~~~
amichail
But maybe he/she would not be willing to contact mental health professionals
without your permission?

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dcurtis
Maybe we should put cameras in your bathroom that monitor your bowel movement
habits. When you're severely constipated with a bowel obstruction, should it
call the ambulance for you?

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german
Every time I see a post like this I'm sure amichail wrote it, does it happens
to you?

I'm sure google ads will show some health club publicity with that kind of
content on an email.

~~~
corentin
> Every time I see a post like this I'm sure amichail wrote it, does it
> happens to you?

Yes. I guess he has a severe case of collectivism, which is quite strange for
someone hanging out here.

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tlrobinson
Why not? Have you read "1984"?

~~~
krs
Double plus goodthinkful, comrade.

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pius
"Surely the lives saved would be worth any loss of privacy?"

Very scary mindset you've got there.

~~~
DanielBMarkham
Hey this is the modern world. We don't expect to take personal risk for
anything. If there is any death at all from doing something, there's somebody
out there who wants to take away our freedoms to do it in the name of
"safety". This is just the logical continuation of that trend (which has been
going on for many decades, I might add)

------
henning
_Clippy pops up_

It looks like you're going to commit suicide.

Would you like to:

\- Buy some pills.

\- Buy some ammo. ...

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mwerty
The estate tax is a better monetization plan.

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voidstar
what's wrong with suicide? all of us die at some point. i'd rather die at a
point of my own choosing. so suicide is the best death option (for me!), and
since i'm going to die, it's best if i (eventually) commit suicide. Now
there's this problem of committing suicide "too early"...presumably the right
cutoff point would be the point when life stops being worth living. which then
raises the problem of knowing when that is (i.e. teenagers getting dumped and
assuming, erroneously, that life is no longer worth living). thus, having a
web app for calculating that point would be REALLY convenient (hint hint!)

~~~
mrtron
You are the first hit in my suicide filter, and I didn't even need access to
your mail client. Please pay up.

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.

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inklesspen
No, you can't create AIish algorithms to detect depression. Not with the
current state of the art in AI.

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joeguilmette
heh, this is kind of a bad idea for a lot of reasons.

but rest assured, the nsa already monitors all domestic internet traffic.

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downer
You sure have a lot of faith in "the authorities". Should they be able to
forcibly medicate you into a vegetative state for life so that you never kill
yourself?

A better use of technology is to make people's lives _better_ so they don't
feel suicidal.

