Jake Paul performs the blindfolded ‘Bird Box’ Challenge.
Jake Paul performs the blindfolded ‘Bird Box’ Challenge.
Jake Paul performs the blindfolded ‘Bird Box’ Challenge.
Jake Paul performs the blindfolded ‘Bird Box’ Challenge.

Can YouTube's new ban save ourselves from our own stupidity?


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We all have different attitudes towards risky behaviour, ranging from excessively cautious to wildly reckless, but few of us would ever attempt to drive a car blindfolded. The dangers of such an act, however, were evidently not apparent to the teenager in the US state of Utah who, earlier this month, crashed her car into oncoming traffic while her eyes were covered up.

Why would anyone do such a thing? The short answer: she was copying behaviour she'd seen in Netflix horror movie Bird Box, in which the characters wear blindfolds to avoid seeing an entity that drives unfortunate witnesses insane. The longer answer is more complex, involving issues relating to peer pressure, online prestige, perception of risk and the viral contagion of online memes and challenges. In essence, people are showing off in the hope of becoming briefly notorious. Sometimes it works. But occasionally, things can go wrong.

Sandra Bullock in a scene from ‘Bird Box'. Courtesy Netflix
Sandra Bullock in a scene from ‘Bird Box'. Courtesy Netflix

The official Netflix Twitter account urged the public not to indulge in unwise behaviour while blindfolded. “Please do not hurt yourself with this Bird Box Challenge,” read the tweet. “We don’t know how this started, [but we] have just one wish for 2019 and it is that you not end up in the hospital due to memes.”

People who failed to heed that warning included YouTube personality Jake Paul. A few days later, Paul uploaded a video of himself and an accomplice wandering out into traffic while blindfolded. The video has since been deleted.

A history of stupidity 

YouTube's rules already prohibited content encouraging "dangerous or illegal activities that have an inherent risk of serious physical harm", but the spate of Bird Box copycatting caused them to go a step further and issue a "Dangerous Challenges and Pranks Enforcement Update", warning people that posting such content repeatedly would see them banned from the platform.

It’s not the first time that corporations have had to step in to curb our reckless behaviour. A year ago, it was to advise people not to eat laundry ­detergent tablets known as Tide Pods. What began as a harmless joke about how edible the tablets look became a serious health issue – dozens of teenagers were hospitalised, shops began putting the tablets under lock and key and legislation was proposed to force the product to be redesigned. YouTube and Facebook both announced that they would remove videos of the “Tide Pod Challenge”.

A woman performing the ‘Kiki Challenge’.
A woman performing the ‘Kiki Challenge’.

Then, a few months later, the problem resurfaced with the “Kiki Challenge”, in which drivers jumped out of a moving car and danced alongside it while being filmed from the passenger seat. As the fad gathered pace and people were inevitably hit by their own cars, police across the world issued warnings. Indeed, Egyptian authorities announced a punishment of up to one year in prison for anyone attempting the challenge.

Trying to become famous

Anyone can become a star on the internet, and challenge-based videos – particularly dangerous ones – have a huge potential audience. The worldwide popularity of MTV series Jackass clearly showed that we're very happy to watch people imperil themselves, but every community has its own budding stuntmen and stuntwomen.

Back in 2012, videos of the so-called “Cinnamon Challenge” (in which people film themselves trying to swallow a spoonful of ground cinnamon)  picked up more than 2.4 million hits in a six-month period. Doctors warned of the risks of doing so, but many young people kept on performing the stunt for the camera.

Studies show that teenagers are more likely to take risks than any other age group, resulting in what's known as the paradox of adolescence. "In the period of life during which people are at their healthiest and fittest, there is still mortality caused mostly by accidents that are largely preventable," explains Professor Sarah-Jayne Blakemore in her book Inventing Ourselves.

The ‘Tide Pod Challenge’ in which people eat laundry detergent tablets.
The ‘Tide Pod Challenge’ in which people eat laundry detergent tablets.

She goes on to describe how the brain’s limbic system generates a feeling of reward when risks are taken, and how adolescent brains are particularly sensitive to that feeling. In addition, she notes that emotions such as regret and relief may not have developed fully in teenagers. “When we make a decision we anticipate, and try to avoid, the undesirable feeling of regret based on past experience when we were faced with similar choices,” she says. Teenagers, in other words, are still accumulating wisdom.

Younger people likely to be influenced 

Other studies, however, suggest that younger people may instead have a feeling of invincibility. This was certainly the case with YouTuber Pedro Ruiz III, the self-styled “Crazy Pedro”, who in 2017 persuaded his girlfriend to shoot him in the chest, on film, while he held an encyclopedia in front of him for protection. He died. But such feelings of invincibility are enhanced by repeated viewing of daredevil videos.

"People change their behaviour to fit in with other people," concludes the research paper, Social Influence on Risk Perception During Adolescence, produced at University College London in 2015, "[and] adolescents show a higher susceptibility to social influence than adults do."

Pedro Ruiz III and his girlfriend, Monalisa Perez, who shot him while he held a book to his chest.
Pedro Ruiz III and his girlfriend, Monalisa Perez, who shot him while he held a book to his chest.

In other words, as we get older we become more choosy about the kind of behaviour we seek to imitate, but many teenagers will unquestioningly copy the behaviour of successful, prestigious YouTubers in pursuit of online fame. As Professor Steve Stewart-Williams, author of the book The Ape That Understood the Universe, outlined in a recent article: "When we copy a prestigious person, we don't just copy the things that made them a success. We often copy irrelevant things as well, including clothes, political views and drug habits." And even, he notes, suicide.

Will YouTube's crackdown on dangerous challenge videos make any difference? The speed with which viral memes spread makes it impossible for moderators to eliminate them entirely, and they're up against a community that's desperate to grab our attention, whether it's by throwing boiling water over each other or free-climbing tall structures without safety equipment (both of which have found large online audiences in recent years).

Persuading the global population not to behave recklessly is a challenge in itself, and when you see that the latest Bird Box blindfold challenge has been performed by a tattoo artist while tattooing a client, it makes you wonder if we're simply unable to save ourselves from our own stupidity.

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Read more:

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Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

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The bio:

Favourite film:

Declan: It was The Commitments but now it’s Bohemian Rhapsody.

Heidi: The Long Kiss Goodnight.

Favourite holiday destination:

Declan: Las Vegas but I also love getting home to Ireland and seeing everyone back home.

Heidi: Australia but my dream destination would be to go to Cuba.

Favourite pastime:

Declan: I love brunching and socializing. Just basically having the craic.

Heidi: Paddleboarding and swimming.

Personal motto:

Declan: Take chances.

Heidi: Live, love, laugh and have no regrets.

 

BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES

Friday (All UAE kick-off times)

Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (11.30pm)

Saturday

Union Berlin v Bayer Leverkusen (6.30pm)

FA Augsburg v SC Freiburg (6.30pm)

RB Leipzig v Werder Bremen (6.30pm)

SC Paderborn v Hertha Berlin (6.30pm)

Hoffenheim v Wolfsburg (6.30pm)

Fortuna Dusseldorf v Borussia Monchengladbach (9.30pm)

Sunday

Cologne v Bayern Munich (6.30pm)

Mainz v FC Schalke (9pm)

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Tips to keep your car cool
  • Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
  • Park in shaded or covered areas
  • Add tint to windows
  • Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
  • Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
  • Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Score

Third Test, Day 1

New Zealand 229-7 (90 ov)
Pakistan

New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat

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Electoral College Victory

Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate. 

 

Popular Vote Tally

The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Abu Dhabi GP schedule

Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm

Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm

Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm

BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES

SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities

Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails

Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies

Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments

Results

5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (Turf) 1,400m. Winner: Al Ajeeb W’Rsan, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Jaci Wickham (trainer).

5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,400m racing. Winner: Mujeeb, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel.

6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 90,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Onward, Connor Beasley, Abdallah Al Hammadi.

6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown Prep Rated Conditions (PA) Dh 125,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Somoud, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle.

7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (T) 1,600m. Winner: AF Arrab, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.

7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 90,000 (T) 1,400m. Winner: Irish Freedom, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.

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Gulf rugby

Who’s won what so far in 2018/19

Western Clubs Champions League: Bahrain
Dubai Rugby Sevens: Dubai Hurricanes
West Asia Premiership: Bahrain

What’s left

UAE Conference

March 22, play-offs:
Dubai Hurricanes II v Al Ain Amblers, Jebel Ali Dragons II v Dubai Tigers

March 29, final

UAE Premiership

March 22, play-offs: 
Dubai Exiles v Jebel Ali Dragons, Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Dubai Hurricanes

March 29, final

ARM%20IPO%20DETAILS
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Afghanistan fixtures
  • v Australia, today
  • v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
  • v New Zealand, Saturday,
  • v South Africa, June 15
  • v England, June 18
  • v India, June 22
  • v Bangladesh, June 24
  • v Pakistan, June 29
  • v West Indies, July 4
UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups

Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.

Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.

Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).

Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Results

5.30pm: Maiden Dh165,000 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: Al Battar, Mickael Barzalona (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer).

6.05pm: Maiden Dh165,000 (Dirt) 1,200m; Winner: Good Fighter, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.

6.40pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Way Of Wisdom, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.

7.15pm: Handicap Dh170,000 (D) 2,200m; Winner: Immortalised, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.

7.50pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (T) 2,000m; Winner: Franz Kafka, James Doyle, Simon Crisford.

8.25pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Mayadeen, Connor Beasley, Doug Watson.

9pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Chiefdom, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer

The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Power: 510hp at 9,000rpm
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Price: From Dh801,800
PROFILE OF INVYGO

Started: 2018

Founders: Eslam Hussein and Pulkit Ganjoo

Based: Dubai

Sector: Transport

Size: 9 employees

Investment: $1,275,000

Investors: Class 5 Global, Equitrust, Gulf Islamic Investments, Kairos K50 and William Zeqiri

Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance: the specs

Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 plus rear-mounted electric motor

Power: 843hp at N/A rpm

Torque: 1470Nm N/A rpm

Transmission: 9-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 8.6L/100km

On sale: October to December

Price: From Dh875,000 (estimate)

Jetour T1 specs

Engine: 2-litre turbocharged

Power: 254hp

Torque: 390Nm

Price: From Dh126,000

Available: Now

MATCH INFO

Watford 2 (Sarr 50', Deeney 54' pen)

Manchester United 0