Insightful, funny list. (This guy is a good writer.) Let’s be fair: technology has improved my life in ways that still surprise and delight me on a daily basis. My phone is also a torch! My TV remembers how far I got in last night’s episode, even if I don’t! The bus stop knows when…
Rewatching ST:DS9 On an assignment to write a profile on Bashir, budding writer Jake tags along to a medical conference, and nothing really surprising happens. Their casual, character-based banter is not interrupted by a distress call from a colony in desperate need of medical assistance, and no side-quest, custom-tailored to appeal to the people who…
In my lit classes, I’m definitely teaching more short stories and fewer novels that I used to. I’ve expanded the time I spend on note-taking, synthesizing quotes from different sources, and why at the college level it’s not a good paragraph if it simply introduces “One quote that supports my position,” repeats three or four…
For years I used ScreenFlow, which offers a paid upgrade every couple of years, and doesn’t update the old versions when OS upgrades break them. There was a time when I was making promotional videos almost every week for a nonprofit, and at the time I thought some of the specific features of ScrenFlow were…
Starting with the robot and basic locomotion that comes with Unity3D’s “Starter Assets.” I’ve added a system that lets you tag an object with a custom translation/rotation, and a custom help text message (such as “[E] Activate Door”). Similar:No, this Jeopardy! contestant was not making a white supremacist hand gestureConspiracy theories, knee-jerk tribal th…Current_EventsChildren of…
Persuasion: Logos, Pathos, Ethos and Kairos Similar:Fox lawyers Convince Judge that Fox's Tucker Carlson is "not stating actual facts" and "an…To defend Fox personality Tucker Carlson…CultureA big day for our first year writing students! So much energy in the room! AcademiaTwo stunning hugs end Amber Guyger's murder trial on a merciful note Chants of…
Teaching myself the #Unity3D game engine. Each step requires a lot of focused attention. I lost 2 hours today trying to decide the right typeface for text overlays for a steampunk game. Similar:The joy of text – the fall and rise of interactive fictionAlthough the IF community first formed a…CybercultureNASA has flown a drone on…
Rewatching ST:DS9 Outside the O’Briens’ quarters, Quark catches Bashir eavesdropping on raised voices. (It’s actually Miles and Kira fighting.) Dax and Worf are happily bickering over opera when he is smitten by the sight of a “glorious” Klingon woman. “She’s okay,” says Dax. It’s Grilka, Quark’s ex-wife. Quark realizes she needs his financial advice, but…
TThe automatic doors on my fantasy steampunk cruiser do work… kinda. My PC got trapped. Similar:I spent Thanksgiving break building a #trimsheet for steampunk control panels, because why…AestheticsIt’s something to do.PersonalVibing to a park saxophonist as I code for an upcoming conference presentation, and wait t…Vibing to a park saxophonist as I code f…PersonalYou can…
Interesting. I don’t particularly care for the title of this YouTube clip, which seems very self-centered and not at all in tune with the message the speaker (Connor Neill) gives. He focuses on that moment when we realize there’s a difference between what we feel we need to say, and what we know the other…
No names in this single-source anecdote out of Hong Kong, credited to “Senior Superintendent Baron Chan Shun-ching.” The employee joined a video call with who he thought was the business’s chief financial officer. He was initially suspicious after a message from the CFO mentioned a ‘secret transaction’, suggesting it was a phishing scam…. However, after other…
The organ composition is called “As Slow As Possible.” It’s currently being performed in a church in Germany. The first chord proper whooshed through the pipes in February 2003, prompting complaints from neighbours that it was too noisy. In 2011, a way was found to reduce the air pressure. “We haven’t had any complaints since…
Ok, never mind Dusgcxms2… buddy, you can keep your first place as far as I’m concerned. Similar:New Graphic for MLA Style Paper HandoutThe other day, I noticed that if you Goo…AcademiaWhat's wrong with the way I talk?Wife & daughter competing w each oth…AestheticsMore glorious #steampunk control panels, created for no practical purpose. #blender3d #ble…AestheticsAnnie 2012…
Researchers had programmed the various large language models (LLMs) to act in what they termed malicious ways, and the point of the study was to see if this behaviour could be removed through the safety techniques. The paper, charmingly titled Sleeper Agents: Training Deceptive LLMs that Persist Through Safety Training, suggests “adversarial training can teach models…
The amazing daughter is featured in the ads for this commercial dance event. Similar:Proud of My JournosI saw several heads that I recognized, b…AcademiaI just installed the "Old Layout for Facebook" plugin for Chrome.I just installed the “Old Layout for Fac…CybercultureMore #steampunk control panel bits for a #neovictorian #blender3D project. I have a master…AestheticsThe Toulmin…
When the kids were little, my wife and I managed their media consumption with the help of reviews from sites like Common Sense Media. (Or maybe a competitor. It was a long time ago… I emailed the webmaster to correct a detail they got wrong in a VeggieTales review.) I’m impressed by the level of…
Attending Religious Perspectives on the War in Gaza. Similar:At Computers and Writing #cwcon for the weekend.Am I wise now? At an event for encouragi…AcademiaGil Gerard (1943-2025) I built a model of the two-pronged Sta…CultureHow are you holding up? What difficult choices have you made? How can we all help each oth…Carolyn and were recently cast…
For confessionals or tapdance routines vertical video is fine. When my students do multimedia projects I remind them that the video screen in our classroom is horizontal, so if they do use a vertical video there’s plenty of room for them to add infographics and annotations. Or they can actually edit a vertical video. If…
Far from being “stochastic parrots,” the biggest large language models seem to learn enough skills to understand the words they’re processing. […] A trained and tested LLM, when presented with a new text prompt, will generate the most likely next word, append it to the prompt, generate another next word, and continue in this manner,…
Look what I found on my shelf in a closet. #history #archaeology #media Similar:After lights out, the girl is knitting.PersonalEnjoying a visit to the Carnegie Science Center with my son. Mars exhibit is immersive an…PersonalI am a dog and I am a good boy and I am prepping my Spring courses.AcademiaAnother section of a #steampunk…