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:
Continue reading...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.
- (https://b-ark.ca/0ek8_w)
Finally released version 3.3.7 of the jekyll-webmention_io plugin, which updates some key dependencies, and staged a couple of major new features for the planned version 3.4.0! Progress!
- (https://b-ark.ca/KEkiII)
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.
- (https://b-ark.ca/eGsie4)
A fantastic piece on the epidemic of workaholism and the shifts that have occurred over the past two years. There’s still a long way to go, but maybe it’s a start.
- (https://b-ark.ca/CiYEcS)
How have I only just learned of Hyrum’s Law:
https://www.hyrumslaw.com/
With a sufficient number of users of an API, it does not matter what you promise in the contract: all observable behaviors of your system will be depended on by somebody.
To wit: We had an internal API between two components. At one point, as part of a perf optimization, the ordering of the data changed. Well, the other component was relying on that ordering. Oops!
- (https://b-ark.ca/s_4U2k)
That feeling when you put something off, and put something off, and then finally step up to the task, bear down, and… finish it in twenty minutes.
- (https://b-ark.ca/gGK8IW)
“There’s no way I’m that much more fit,” I thought to myself as Zwift indicated an increase in grade while I seemed to feel nothing. Restart trainer. Reconnect. Start again. “Oh. Oh no…”
- (https://b-ark.ca/_0GmKk)
Gotta say I’m really glad I moved back to buying and hosting my own music. I send more money to artists, and I never have to wonder what might happen to my collection. And Navidrome + Symfonium is a killer combo!
- (https://b-ark.ca/MyuYGA)
It’s been oddly foggy in the last two days and the result is hoar frost like I’ve never seen before!
- (https://b-ark.ca/IOOqk8)
As he stepped out of the elevator, walked across the lobby, and out into the midday sunlight, he found himself truly realizing: this was it. Twenty-two years and this was his #last day.
Approaching the idling car, he leaned down and grinned at his wife through the passenger side window. As he opened the door and sat down she turned to him. “So, you ready?”
He laughed, feeling an unseen weight slipping away. “Oh yeah. I’m ready.”
- (https://b-ark.ca/okks0o)
Approaching the headwall he saw the feature which gave this hike its name: the entrance to a massive crack in the stone.
Entering the #crevice he saw a band of blue sky above, a rill of water trickling past his feet below.
This place was its own world, of cool water and moss and granite. He watched as a dragonfly flitted past. “Hello!” he shouted, listening to his voice echo off the sheer walls.
“Hello!” a voice answered back. A voice not his own.
- (https://b-ark.ca/c8uYya)
He knew that experienced divers moved with #minimal effort, allowing them to burn their air more slowly and extend their dives. But on his first trip down he quickly learned that theory and reality were very different things.
As he added more air to his BCD, trying to arrest his descent, he looked over to see an enormous sea turtle gliding past. Astonished, he watched in wonder, his heart rate and breathing slowing as the world paused around him.
- (https://b-ark.ca/o_CKEY)
As he looked at the confused crowd before him, he knew he’d need to #repeat the instructions. Not that he was surprised. His students rarely got it on the first try.
He restarted the song on his phone.
“Alright,” he began, the first notes of “Fishin’ in the Dark” filling their air, “you tap your right heel twice, then your right toe twice. Then tap your heel, tap to the right, then your toe, and then…”
- (https://b-ark.ca/SsMoiy)
He examined his fingertips, the faint remains of calluses a #vestige of his long love of music. He couldn’t remember making a decision to stop playing. Yet somehow days between practice turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and before long he’d just… stopped.
He lifted his old guitar out of its case, the sweet scent of spruce filling the air. As he played a chord, the bite of the strings both painful and familiar, he couldn’t help but smile.
- (https://b-ark.ca/8Q2EuI)
She opened the book and picked another question. “Alright,” she said, looking up at her husband, “What do I want my life to look like in five years?”
His husband paused. “You know, I really don’t know,” he replied.
“Well,” she said, “I want to create a new technology, become enormously influential, a hero to the people, an #icon, a beacon of the future.”
“Huh,” he replied. “I was gonna say we’d finally gone to Australia.”
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...- (https://b-ark.ca/gqI86_)
“It’s #Christmas, Theo,” Hans replied with his characteristic confidence, “It’s the time of miracles. So be of good cheer and call me when you hit the last lock.”
Theo turned back to the terminal. “This job would be a lot easier if that asshole actually told us the plan,” he said to the glowing screen.
Oh well. He just had to crack this safe. Then, go grab the ambulance they’d use for their escape and they’d be home free.
What could go wrong?
- (https://b-ark.ca/QyISKW)
He always got nervous on the #eve of a launch. Thirty trips to orbit, a dozen to the moon, and still he got nervous. Yet this felt different.
He read the mission brief again, rehearsing each beat. Launch to orbit, boost to the moon, rendezvous with the Ancile, then a nine month trip to Mars.
His phone lit up with a notification. “How you doing?” Jess texted. His mission partner was always checking in.
He hesitated. Then he lied.
- (https://b-ark.ca/KUCY2U)
“‘The comedian’s japes and jests filled the jocular crowd with great #mirth.’” the editor read aloud, pointing at the offending paragraph of the draft review.
“Yes,” the junior reporter replied, a confused look on his face. “I’m sorry sir, I don’t understand the issue.”
“Are you a time traveller from the 1800s?”
The reporter paused, shifting uncomfortably.
Chesterton's Fence
The last few months have me thinking a lot about technology, disruption, and the metaphor Chesterton’s Fence, or why you need to think about systems before reforming them.
Back in 1929, G. K. Chesterton, an English writer and philosopher, described what is now known as Chesterton’s Fence, a metaphor about reforming systems:
In the matter of reforming things, as distinct from deforming them, there is one plain and simple principle; a principle which will probably be called a paradox. There exists in such a case a certain institution or law; let us say, for the sake of simplicity, a fence or gate erected across a road. The more modern type of reformer goes gaily up to it and says, ‘I don’t see the use of this; let us clear it away.’ To which the more intelligent type of reformer will do well to answer: ‘If you don’t see the use of it, I certainly won’t let you clear it away. Go away and think. Then, when you can come back and tell me that you do see the use of it, I may allow you to destroy it.’
In the context of his writings, G. K. Chesterton was using this as an argument in favour of certain socially conservative views (hence the title of the essay “The Drift from Domesticity”). But the core principle–that it’s important to understand systems before you change them–is far more broadly applicable (and apolitical!), and is something that I think the technology industry would be wise to adopt.
Continue reading...
