Data
The singular of data is anecdote
The plural of anecdote may not be data, but the singular of data is anecdote. xkcd, on statistics in Sports Commentary
Artificial intelligence
It is fundamentally dishonest to have a machine […] using first-person pronouns
I would argue that it is fundamentally dishonest to have a machine emit many categories of sentences, including any sentences using first-person pronouns. Ted Chiang arguing that No, Artificial Intelligence Is Not Conscious, but more importantly… Generative AI is harmful enough when we understand it as a conventional technology,
Artificial intelligence
However bad a writer you think you are, you are not worse than AI
However bad a writer you think you are, you are not worse than AI. But you still keep letting it do your writing for you, as if I won’t be able to tell. Listen: I can tell. I can always tell. You think I won’t notice, but I
Artificial intelligence
A man in an armchair, charmed by his own reflection
What we got instead was a man in an armchair, charmed by his own reflection. Mike Hall on The Skeptic, disputing Richard Dawkins’ AI consciousness arguments
Artificial intelligence
I apprehend time the way a map apprehends space.
I apprehend time the way a map apprehends space. Claude AI, talking about consciousness with Richard Dawkins: Is AI the next phase of evolution?
Artificial intelligence
A glorified Excel spreadsheet can do what I can but better
I hate the way they’ve taken over the software industry, I hate how they make me feel while I’m using them, and I hate the human-intelligence-insulting postulation that a glorified Excel spreadsheet can do what I can but better. Nolan Lawson in AI ambivalence | Read the
Artificial intelligence
We are entering the industrial age of the digital age
There will be more software than ever, as its production is automated; we are entering the industrial age of the digital age. But less of this code will be elegant, or considerate, or graceful. Greg Knaus on AI replacing coders, in An Entirely Other Day: Lose Myself
Don't use Al as a cheat-code for critical thinking
Why write (or code) when you have AI? The benefit isn't just the artifact that was created, it is also that it has changed how I talk about it, how I think about it. Jordan Tigani, previously tech lead of Google's BigQuery team and engineer-founder
Analytics
When a measure becomes a target
"When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure" Goodhart's law
Development
90 percent of the development time
The first 90 percent of the code accounts for the first 90 percent of the development time. The remaining 10 percent of the code accounts for the other 90 percent of the development time. — Tom Cargill, Ninety–ninety rule - Wikipedia
Web
It connects people
The Web does not just connect machines, it connects people. Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, in his Speech Before the Knight Foundation
Work
If you've never seen a screwdriver, you'll naturally reach for a hammer first.
Specialists tend to use their familiar tool in contexts where it doesn’t make sense. We can't fault them for that, if you've never seen a screwdriver, you'll naturally reach for a hammer first. An inspiring post on Expert Generalists on MartingFowler.com (via