Wang Guangze

In the digital age, the rise of content creators has democratized the sharing of information. However, this freedom has also given rise to a flood of unverified content, carrying potentially harmful consequences.

Take, for instance, the safety debates surrounding the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The LHC has the ability to accelerate particles close to the speed of light and collide them with antiquarks, simulating conditions akin to the Big Bang.

The capabilities of the LHC have sparked safety concerns. While the recreation of cosmic rays by the LHC initially instilled fears of cancer, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) has reassured that Earth has withstood similar occurrences for billions of years without harm, indicating no cause for alarm.

There have been apprehensions regarding potential black hole creation by the LHC as well. CERN has rebutted these anxieties by emphasizing that the energy produced by LHC collisions is minimal and any theoretical microscopic black holes would promptly dissipate.

According to CERN, “all these theories predict that these particles would disintegrate immediately. Therefore, black holes would not have time to start accreting matter or produce any macroscopic effects,” indicating no danger.

Despite CERN’s extensive research-backed reassurances, a vocal minority on the internet persists in spreading groundless fears. This underscores the necessity for enhanced oversight of online content.

On platforms like Douyin, comments such as “Curiosity killed the cat, crazy people!” or “The collision created a wormhole” are rampant, disseminating misinformation and inducing panic within their audience. Regrettably, well-researched content often receives less attention than sensationalist videos, leading to public misinformation.

For example, a Douyin content creator leveraging AI for voiceovers to propagate false information may amass 5.6 million followers, whereas another creator showcasing chemistry experiments for viewers to replicate step by step may have less than 10,000 followers.

Thus, it is imperative to verify the authenticity of online content, particularly on social media sites. Rigorous content review processes and enhancements to video recommendation algorithms are essential to uphold information accuracy.

(The author is a student from dreamers Education.)