Posts in category 'technology'
I kinda feel like we’re just too inured to the modern miracle that is SQLite. That a fully featured relational database supporting much of the SQL standard can be packaged up in less than 1MB of portable code is incredible. And they guarantee to support the current (open, portable) file format until 2050, which is why it is specifically supported by the Library of Congress!
A Fictional Me By ChatGPT #3
Fake biography #3 about me, written by ChatGPT. Or: What is ‘real’? How do you define ‘real’?.
Yup, I’m still at it, post fake biographies about myself as written by ChatGPT.
Today’s biography is based on the following prompt:
Write an approximately 500 word biography for Brett Kosinski in the first person perspective that includes a brief work history as well as unusual or outlandish personal details. In case you are not aware, Brett Kosinski had a career as a Software Developer before transitioning to Product Management 10 years ago. He is based out of Edmonton Alberta, Canada. He is known as the person who reverse engineered the compression algorithm used to encode assets in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and as a result, the scheme has been dubbed “Kosinski Compression”.
(By the way, that last part is also true, much to my chagrin).
Continue reading...A Fictional Me By ChatGPT #2
Fake biography #2 about me, written by ChatGPT. Or: How anything can be real now.
If you recall from my previous post, I’m amusing myself by posting fake biographies of myself as written by ChatGPT.
Today’s biography is based on the following prompt:
Write an approximately 500 word biography for Brett Kosinski in the first person perspective that includes a brief work history as well as some tall tales of his fantastic exploits. In case you are not aware, Brett Kosinski had a career as a Software Developer before transitioning to Product Management 10 years ago. He is based out of Edmonton Alberta, Canada. He is also known for his well-regarded port of NetHack to the Nintendo DS.
(By the way, that last part is true).
Continue reading...A Fictional Me By ChatGPT #1
Fake biography #1 about me, written by ChatGPT. Or: How nothing is real anymore.
So out of sheer amusement, I’ve decided to periodically post fake biographies about myself written by ChatGPT.
This biography was written based on the following prompt:
Write an approximately 500 word biography for Brett Kosinski in the first person perspective that includes a brief work history as well as interesting personal details. In case you are not aware, Brett Kosinski had a career as a Software Developer before transitioning to Product Management 10 years ago. He is based out of Edmonton Alberta, Canada.
I’ve attempted to use the metaphor of compression to explain LLMs for a while now, but this piece does a really nice job of articulating the idea.
Privacy Inequality
The idea of privacy as a modern form of inequality has been rattling around in my head for a while, now, and I wanted to jot down some thoughts, particularly in light of the recent rise of Mastodon.
Typically, when people talk about inequality, they are focused on the obvious forms of socioeconomic inequality that result in advantages being conferred to some groups and withheld from others. The most obvious example is economic inequality–the recognition that economic benefits accrue primarily to the wealthy. But there’s a wide range of other forms of inequality out there, most of which are incredibly old and are structural in nature. For example, zoning laws frequently allow polluting industries to be built up next to minority communities, resulting in increasing environmental inequality. Jobs occupied by those lower on the economic ladder are more likely to be subject to unsafe workplaces, resulting in health inequality. And these same communities are the least likely to have the political and economic power to change these circumstances, an example of political inequality.
In the world of software and technology, we’ve seen the rise of surveillance capitalism, defined as the “widespread collection and commodification of personal data by corporations.” In this new world, individuals are, either unknowingly or voluntarily, subject to vast data collection operations which scoop up, collect, and connect these datasets. These datasets are then fed into systems designed to derive additional data about individuals–data about their economical and political interests, personal relationships, consumption patterns, and so forth.
Today, these massive apparatus are then used to deliver hyper-targeted messages intended to influence purchasing decisions, voting decisions, and so forth (though just how effective these techniques are is the subject of significant debate).
However, the uses of these data are vast, and they’ll soon be used (and in some cases are already being used) to influence things like hiring decisions, insurances rates, loan approvals, and so forth. The result is that one poor choice, one incorrectly interpreted data point, one broken or biased algorithm, could result in individuals being denied access to critical social and economic infrastructure.
Until and unless governments catch up, these trends will only continue. That means individuals have to protect themselves.
Unfortunately, protecting ones privacy requires knowledge, skills, and resources that are often the domain of a select few. As a result, privacy itself is increasingly becoming a mark of privilege.
Continue reading...