Fiction

No Ghost in the Machine

Original date: June 16th 2020 I’d originally considered the concept of uploading someone’s mind into a computer as creepy, then pointless, then, when I got ill, intriguing. I’d been a sceptic for such a long time, though, that it was hard for me to admit I’d changed my mind. By the time I was wondering […]

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Living & Working

I just did a nothing

I just deleted a whole post when I realised it wasn’t really going anywhere. And now I’m off to read a book instead. This feels good. If you seek tranquility, do less. Or (more accurately) do what’s essential – what the reason of a social being requires, and in the requisite way. Which brings a […]

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Fiction

The Gazette

Original date: June 10th 2020 The Gazette was an unexpected offshoot of the development of Artificial Intelligence. The implications of its contents went far beyond the events it described. The Gazette was inspired by similar periodicals published in Great Britain in the 19th century: dull catalogues of everything that happened in a town, from births, marriages […]

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Technology

Generative AI and infinite possibilities

LLMs are models of patterns. They are accurate to the extent that they embody the statistics and likelihoods that they measure. Chatbots, on the other hand, are less accurate. That’s a lot to do with the fact that they come out with one version, one outcome, based on the statistics embodied in the LLM. The […]

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Science

To Believe, or not to Believe…

A question I find difficult to answer (and what puts me off the old Uncanny-likes of the world) is: do you believe? Do you believe in aliens? Do you believe in ghosts? Are you #TeamBeliever or #TeamSkeptic? I don’t know what I believe So many questions first: what is a ghost? What do you mean […]

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Technology

Why AI can’t grasp a nettle

Now that we’re all a little more familiar with AI, we might find ourselves getting a ‘feel’ for what AI will be good at, and not so good at. A while back we might have thought that AI wasn’t good at writing (or AI’s version of writing). A few years ago doing a backflip was […]

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Linux/FOSS

Linux: approaches to a Guide

I’m thinking more about Linux again: how it’s becoming more usable, and a more essential option now that Windows is becoming more and more adware, and Mac OS is losing some of its magic (but none of its expense). I’m a tinkerer by heart, and so Linux has always been attractive to the likes of […]

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Miniatures (painting)

Dark Apostle and Dark Disciples

I often repaint old models these days, but occaionally I buy (or am bought) something new. I haven’t played Warhammer or 40k in years so I don’t know the ins and outs of these characters, but suffice to say they were just the right level of detail for my liking. They were great fun to […]

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Miniatures (painting)

Eldrad Ulthran

Another 1990s miniature that I’ve repainted. Eldrad is one of those classic named characters that seemed to multiply in the world of Warhammer 40,000 around this time. I’m thinking of collecting as many as I can. I’ve certainly got a good few (mostly Dark Angels) already. Looking him up online today, I see he still […]

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Miniatures (painting)

Dark Angels Terminator Captain

Like many of my recent painting projects, I’ve had the model for years. I can’t remember where I got it from, but I’ve a feeling that a friend who no longer was into the hobby gave it to me. I painted it first back in about 1996, and have recently stripped it and done another […]

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