Weekly Quiz: Safety Culture, Constitutional Power, and AI Authorship

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const title = "Weekly Quiz: Safety Culture, Constitutional Power, and AI Authorship"; const date = "January 31, 2026"; const data = [ { image: "https://walrus-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/img/Web_Bill1QuebecsConstitutionAct_Jan26_01.jpg", title: "Quebec’s Bill 1 Will Be Secession by Other Means", url: "https://thewalrus.ca/quebec-bill-1/", question: "Quebec’s Bill 1 is framed as an act of provincial affirmation, but the bill has drawn controversy for the way it attempts to reorder legal authority inside the province. What is the political and legal significance of Bill 1?", options: [ "It establishes a symbolic constitution for Quebec that codifies its identity and values without changing the legal hierarchy of laws.", "It claims constitutional primacy for Quebec’s Constitution inside the province, giving it precedence over any inconsistent law, including federal law as applied in Quebec.", "It establishes a symbolic constitution for Quebec that codifies its identity and values without changing the legal hierarchy of laws.", "It grants the Quebec government discretionary power to suspend constitutional protections during provincial emergencies.", ], answer: "It claims constitutional primacy for Quebec’s Constitution inside the province, giving it precedence over any inconsistent law, including federal law as applied in Quebec.", correct: "Bill 1 does not merely restate Quebec’s place within Canada’s constitutional framework. It asserts something far more ambitious. By declaring the Constitution of Quebec to be “the law of laws,” and by giving it precedence over any inconsistent rule of law, the statute claims constitutional primacy within Quebec itself—including over federal law as it applies in the province. This is an explicit assertion of supreme legal authority, exercised internally by Quebec.", incorrect: "Bill 1 does not merely restate Quebec’s place within Canada’s constitutional framework. It asserts something far more ambitious. By declaring the Constitution of Quebec to be “the law of laws,” and by giving it precedence over any inconsistent rule of law, the statute claims constitutional primacy within Quebec itself—including over federal law as it applies in the province. This is an explicit assertion of supreme legal authority, exercised internally by Quebec.", }, { title: "Is It Dangerous to Let Kids Be Free?", url: "https://thewalrus.ca/is-it-dangerous-to-let-kids-be-free/", question: "Modern safety culture has reshaped childhood, with today’s kids experiencing more supervision and less unstructured play. While these restrictions are meant to protect youth, they can also hinder essential parts of their development. What is one reason why safety culture may harm children?", options: [ "It suppresses spontaneity.", "It weakens physical coordination.", "It shortens attention spans.", "It damages academic performance.", ], answer: "It suppresses spontaneity.", correct: "Safety culture came into vogue in the 1990s and 2000s. Why might it harm young people? One answer is that it suppresses spontaneity. Chaperoned kids are less likely to do things they probably should be doing. Research from University College London reveals that children allowed to wander alone play longer, burn more energy, and build richer social lives than “sedentary, house-bound peers.” Researchers at the University of Bristol found that ten- and eleven-year-olds trusted with wider roaming rights were vastly more active, especially on school days, than those kept close to home.", incorrect: "Safety culture came into vogue in the 1990s and 2000s. Why might it harm young people? One answer is that it suppresses spontaneity. Chaperoned kids are less likely to do things they probably should be doing. Research from University College London reveals that children allowed to wander alone play longer, burn more energy, and build richer social lives than “sedentary, house-bound peers.” Researchers at the University of Bristol found that ten- and eleven-year-olds trusted with wider roaming rights were vastly more active, especially on school days, than those kept close to home.", }, { image: "https://walrus-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/img/Xun-Hypnocacy-1800-1200x800.jpg", title: "Trump Is the Greatest Hypnotist of Our Time", url: "https://thewalrus.ca/trump-is-the-greatest-hypnotist-of-our-time/", question: "At first glance, the story “Trump Is the Greatest Hypnotist of Our Time\" reads like a philosophical analysis of how digital culture reshapes truth and political power. But its postscript reveals something that reframes everything readers have just absorbed. What did the postscript disclose about Jianwei Xun, one of the credited authors of the piece?", options: [ "Xun is a philosopher whose work was mistranslated, prompting writer Andrea Colamedici to reproduce key sections of his work using generative AI.", "Xun is a fictional character created as part of a collaborative writing experiment involving philosopher Andrea Colamedici and generative AI.", "Xun is a pseudonym for Marcus Heidemann, the researcher who led the Berlin narrative experiment described in the story.", "Xun is the academic who wrote The Digital Twilight State, excerpted in the story by philosopher Andrea Colamedici.", ], answer: "Xun is a fictional character created as part of a collaborative writing experiment involving co-author Andrea Colamedici and generative AI.", correct: "The article’s postscript reveals that Jianwei Xun “does not exist” and was intentionally invented by Italian philosopher and publisher Andrea Colamedici, who collaborated with generative AI (including ChatGPT and Claude) to create the work. This fabrication wasn’t a gimmick—it was designed as a live demonstration of the story’s central argument: in the digital age, truth can be socially constructed through circulation, credibility, and networked validation, even when the source itself is fictional.", incorrect: "The article’s postscript reveals that Jianwei Xun “does not exist” and was intentionally invented by Italian philosopher and publisher Andrea Colamedici, who collaborated with generative AI (including ChatGPT and Claude) to create the work. This fabrication wasn’t a gimmick—it was designed as a live demonstration of the story’s central argument: in the digital age, truth can be socially constructed through circulation, credibility, and networked validation, even when the source itself is fictional.", }, { title: "Why Has Canada Still Not Outlawed Corporal Punishment Against Children?", url: "https://thewalrus.ca/the-criminal-code-lets-parents-and-teachers-get-away-with-assaulting-kids/", question: "Despite repeated calls for reform, Canada has legally allowed parents and other adults to use physical force against children without facing assault charges for decades. Which section of the Criminal Code would need to be repealed in order to ensure children are no longer subject to corporal punishment?", options: [ "Section 7", "Section 26", "Section 43", "Section 218", ], answer: "Section 43", correct: "A significant step in ensuring that children are no longer subject to physical punishment is to get rid of the defence in the Criminal Code that exempts parents and others from charges of assault when they use force on children. This requires the federal government to repeal section 43 of the Criminal Code. Attempts at repealing section 43 have spanned decades and involved at least nineteen Private Members Bills (PMBs) and numerous legislative reports. More recently, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) Report documented the history and impact of residential schools on the lives of Indigenous and Metis children and called on the government to repeal section 43.", incorrect: "A significant step in ensuring that children are no longer subject to physical punishment is to get rid of the defence in the Criminal Code that exempts parents and others from charges of assault when they use force on children. This requires the federal government to repeal section 43 of the Criminal Code. Attempts at repealing section 43 have spanned decades and involved at least nineteen Private Members Bills (PMBs) and numerous legislative reports. More recently, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) Report documented the history and impact of residential schools on the lives of Indigenous and Metis children and called on the government to repeal section 43.", }, ];