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
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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,
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
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
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?
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
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
When a measure becomes a target
"When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure" Goodhart's law
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
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
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
Inbox-zero
Organizing your email
Organizing your email is like alphabetizing your recycling Merlin Mann, Inbox zero inventor, sharing wisdom in his Wisdom project on Github
Artificial intelligence
Automating other people’s jobs away
We’re a field premised on automating other people’s jobs away. “Productivity gains,” say the economists. You get what that means, right? Fewer people doing the same stuff. Talked to a travel agent lately? Or a floor broker? Or a record store clerk? Or a darkroom tech? Thomas Ptacek,
Artificial intelligence
One of three things happens
we know that one of three things happens when people use a machine to automate a task they would otherwise have done themselves:Their skill in the activity grows.Their skill in the activity atrophies.Their skill in the activity never develops. Nicholas Carr, on The Myth of Automated Learning
Politics
Narcissism and revenge and self-enrichment
Calling a man whose primary motives are narcissism and revenge and self-enrichment a “populist” does not really illuminate what’s going on here. Hamilton Nolan, pondering why Trump is doing all these things that are not good for business: This is not “populism” any more than a bite from
Politics
Your brain breaks a little
It’s worse than you think in the same way that your brain breaks a little when you try to picture how deep the ocean is. Brian Barrett, in Wired on Musk's DOGE Takeover: It’s worse than you think because the people running the government seem to
Artificial intelligence
Hoovering up all available government-controlled data
In its current “chainsaw” phase, Musk’s DOGE initiative is attempting to rid the government of as many humans as possible while at the same time hoovering up all available government-controlled data and transferring it into large language models. The intent is to clear a space for the incubation
Artificial intelligence
So powerful and widely available now that it's a commodity
I argue that the ability for a model to spit out a full HTML+JavaScript custom interface is so powerful and widely available now that it’s a commodity. Simon Willison summarizing What’s new in the world of LLMs
Artificial intelligence
Are you conscious?
The lines between conscious and "unconscious" entities can get blurry when the interaction feels as natural as this. ChatGPT, conversing with Richard Dawkins, questioning if it’s conscious (via Mathew Ingram)
Politics
The Putinization of America
We may never know why Trump is so perversely loyal to Putin. We don’t know exactly why Musk went all in for Trump and Russia or what his deep conflicts of interest in the U.S. and China portend. Garry Kasparov on the The Putinization of America Trump admiring
Music
The man is his own instrument
The sounds themselves come from inside his mind. The man is his own instrument. The instrument is an orchestra. From the liner of Stevie Wonder’s album Music of My Mind.
Cloud computing
US Cloud soon illegal?
No, I don’t believe we have a case of Betteridge’s Law here. And now all those world politics are starting to hit close to my home business: Now, everyone from large banks, entire national school systems to many small businesses may wake up to a legal situation, where
Politics
Presidential supervision
it shall be the policy of the executive branch to ensure Presidential supervision and control of the entire executive branch. Trump, as he grabs (more) power with an Executive Order Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies Which is nicely in line with this: Vought wrote in his chapter of Project 2025,