Earlier this week, Blake Lemoine, an engineer who works for Google’s Responsible AI department, went public with his belief that Google’s LaMDA chatbot is sentient. LaMDA, or Language Model for Dialogue Applications, is an artificial intelligence program that mimics speech and tries to predict which words are most related to the prompts it is given. While some experts believe that conscious AI is something that will be possible in the future, many in the field think that Lemoine is mistaken — and that the conversation he has stirred up about sentience takes away from the immediate and pressing ethical questions surrounding Google’s control over this technology and the ease at which people can be fooled by it. Today on Front Burner, cognitive scientist and author of Rebooting AI, Gary Marcus, discusses LaMDA, the trouble with testing for consciousness in AI and what we should really be thinking about when it comes to AI’s ever-expanding role in our day-to-day lives.

On June 5, after six days of deliberation, a jury found former Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard guilty of sexually assaulting an Ottawa woman. The jury also acquitted Hoggard of sexually assaulting a fan who was 16 years old during a separate encounter, and of a sexual interference charge related to accusations he touched her when she was still 15. What happened in the jury room is a secret, but consent and the credibility of the accusers were key points in the proceedings. Today, a summary of what happened at the trial, and a conversation with lawyer Megan Stephens about the tensions that continue to exist between criminal justice and accusations of sexual assault. WARNING: This episode contains graphic allegations and details of sexual assault.

Golf's new breakaway tour, LIV Golf, is throwing the world of golf into chaos. LIV held its first tournament this week and is gunning to eclipse the PGA — golf's premier association and gatekeeper for almost a century. LIV's mantra is "golf but louder." The organization is flashy, more visible on social media, and is promising to be a new way for players and fans to experience the traditionally stuffy sport. The tournament has lured in some big names, including Phil Mickleson, Sergio Garcia and Dustin Johnson, with the promise of way more prize money. But it's also drawing a lot of controversy because it's financed by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund. Today on Front Burner, we're talking to The Athletic's Brendan Quinn about LIV Golf and what it means for golf and the PGA.

If you've been to an airport in Canada recently, there's a good chance you've dealt with more than your average level of chaos. Some of the issues include hours-long security lineups, delayed or cancelled flights, passengers stuck on the tarmac and major congestion at border security. Many say most of the blame falls on two short-staffed government security entities, but some have also pointed fingers at COVID-19 testing rules, airlines and even out-of-practice travellers. Today on Front Burner, we will try to get a better understanding of the mess in Canada's airports right now with the help of two guests. Rosa Saba is a business reporter with the Toronto Star who has been following this story over the past couple of months, and John Gradek is a faculty lecturer and program coordinator for the aviation management program at McGill University.

Unveiling the murders of gay men in Montreal during the 1990s amidst the AIDS crisis, queer activists rise up to demand justice. Explore the pivotal activism at the World AIDS Conference and the LGBTQ+ community's struggles. Discover the safety and significance of Cox village as a haven for acceptance. Learn about Joe Rose's brave advocacy and the tragic consequences of homophobia. Witness the intense activism of Act Up members, driving impactful protests for marginalized voices.

Shortness of breath, fatigue and brain fog. Those are just some of the symptoms that many COVID long-haulers are still facing, even months after they first caught the virus. According to studies on the condition, one-third of people who’ve had COVID-19 could develop long-term problems related to the virus. Today, Dr. Priya Duggal, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, talks about the research she’s doing into the impacts of long COVID, who’s most likely to get it and why some people don’t take it seriously.

On Sept. 22, 2015 in Ontario's Renfrew County, Nathalie Warmerdam, Anastasia Kuzik, and Carol Culleton were all killed by the same man — Basil Borutski. All three women knew Borutski or were intimately involved with him for a period. Their murders became one of the worst cases of intimate-partner violence in Canada's history. Even though Borutski sits behind bars — with likely no chance of getting out — a coroner's inquest into the murders is finally taking place. A panel of experts, community members and advocates are examining what went wrong and trying to come up with ways to keep it from happening again. Renfrew County is a microcosm of a problem often faced by women experiencing intimate partner violence in rural communities. CBC News found one in four cases of intimate partner homicide was in a rural, remote or northern area of the country. Today on Front Burner, we talk to CBC Ottawa reporter Guy Quinneville from inside the hearings and Pam Cross, a lawyer and key witness in the inquest, about the bigger problem of domestic violence in rural communities.

On Monday evening, the U.K. Conservative Party held a vote to determine whether it should oust its leader, Boris Johnson. More than 40 per cent of his own MPs voted against him. This, after a damning report from senior civil servant Sue Gray, which added to a long list of revelations about the so-called ‘partygate’ scandal. The report details several parties with dozens of participants, excess drinking and physical altercations at 10 Downing Street — all during the height of COVID-19 restrictions in Britain. Today, CBC foreign correspondent Chris Brown brings us up to speed on Johnson’s scandals, and what this vote means for his leadership moving forward.

The World Economic Forum, and its annual summit for the rich and powerful in Davos, Switzerland, have long been targeted by criticism from the left. But since the start of the pandemic, the forum has become a huge concern for many people on the right, including those who view the WEF as shadowy puppet masters at the centre of a complex web of conspiracy theories. Today, journalist Justin Ling — host of the CBC podcasts The Flame Throwers and The Village — joins us to unpack many of those conspiracy theories, and examine the potential consequences of mainstream Canadian politicians amplifying suspicions about the organization.

Atlanta rappers Young Thug and Gunna are among 28 people that a U.S. grand jury indictment accuses of being part of a criminal street gang. The alleged members of the Young Slime Life gang are charged under Georgia's racketeering law known as RICO, which is similar to federal laws introduced in the 1970s to combat the mafia. The 56-count indictment includes allegations of murder and attempted armed robbery. Some of the evidence of gang activity cited by prosecutors are lyrics from artists like Young Thug. Today, journalist and commentator Jacques Morel discusses why prosecutors are bringing lyrics into courtrooms, and why the practice seems to target Black men and hip hop artists.