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gottabefunky: "I picture an architect in a straitjacket laughing maniacally in an underground cell"

You're in luck! (Ctrl+F "tunnel", though the photo is labeled dungeon)
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 12:36 PM on February 2, 2024

clawsoon: "I wasn't a Jon Stewart viewer back in the day. The one time I saw him in the past few years, he was talking about how we can't forget how great capitalism is or something like that, and it felt like I was listening to a '90s Democrat. Has he changed up at all in that regard? Any friendlier to socialism nowadays?"

His recent interviews with Larry Summers and Janet Yellen are instructive.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 10:16 PM on January 25, 2024

The writing is definitely not generated, the whole thing is too coherent (and vulgar). Plus as the Ars article notes it's basically an open secret among fans that the podcast is a bit of kayfabe. IMHO, true wit and personality is the last real test of these languages models -- even GPT-4 struggles to write comedy that isn't bland, disjointed, and mediocre.

The voice itself might be synthesized -- startup ElevenLabs introduced a TTS product able to… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 10:51 AM on January 25, 2024

Live look at DeSantis HQ
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 1:48 PM on January 21, 2024

"Name a word! NAME A WORD!!! Nooooo!"
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:39 PM on December 15, 2023

Betting market Manifold has a page open for wagering on explanations for Altman's ouster. Based on reporting so far, the conventional wisdom is clustering around "Disagreement over future direction of OpenAI and capital allocation for research vs commercial" and similar... but the long tail of user-submitted reasons is a real treat. Highlights:

- Too much e/acc, not enough EA
- Israel/Palestine involvement
- LK99 poisoning
-… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 7:07 AM on November 18, 2023

The Verge: Breaking: OpenAI board in discussions with Sam Altman to return as CEO

The OpenAI board is in discussions with Sam Altman to return to CEO, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. One of them said Altman, who was suddenly fired by the board on Friday with no notice, is “ambivalent” about coming back and would want significant governance changes.

Altman holding talks with the company just a day after he was ousted… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 3:17 PM on November 18, 2023

Verge update:

A source close to Altman says the board had agreed in principle to resign and to allow Altman and Brockman to return, but has since waffled — missing a key 5PM PT deadline by which many OpenAI staffers were set to resign. If Altman decides to leave and start a new company, those staffers would assuredly go with him.

posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:37 PM on November 18, 2023

The Information: Emmett Shear Becomes Interim OpenAI CEO as Altman Talks Break Down

Sam Altman won’t return as CEO of OpenAI, despite efforts by the company’s executives to bring him back, according to co-founder and board director Ilya Sutskever. After a weekend of negotiations with the board of directors that fired him Friday, as well as with its remaining leaders and top investors, Altman will not return to the startup he co-founded in 2015, Sutskever told staff.… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 9:41 PM on November 19, 2023

Nelson: "Been over 12 hours with no crazy new press leaks, which says to me Altman and the investors are done pressuring the board and are negotiating in earnest now."

O ye of little faith! Elon Musk just posted a link to an anonymous open letter from former employees that has already been nixed from Github. It goes hard on Altman so clearly Musk is angling to disrupt any smooth transition back to him.

The text of… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 4:23 PM on November 21, 2023

@OpenAI:

We have reached an agreement in principle for Sam Altman to return to OpenAI as CEO with a new initial board of Bret Taylor (Chair), Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo.

We are collaborating to figure out the details. Thank you so much for your patience through this.

posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 10:11 PM on November 21, 2023

The apparent ease with which an emerging corporate juggernaut sloughed off nominal control by an idealistic non-profit board after they flipped their kill-switch is much more interesting when you view it according to the theory that corporations are a form of singularity.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 11:09 PM on November 21, 2023

Ars Technica: New report illuminates why OpenAI board said Altman “was not consistently candid”

Now, in an in-depth piece for The New Yorker, writer Charles Duhigg—who was embedded inside OpenAI for months on a separate story—suggests that some board members found Altman "manipulative and conniving" and took particular issue with the way Altman allegedly tried to manipulate the board into firing fellow board member Helen Toner.

Toner,… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 12:18 PM on December 8, 2023

Norman Lear’s Family Sang His Sitcom Theme Songs as He Passed

“You never know when these moments are going to sneak up on you,” LaPook continued,” [but when] we started singing ‘movin’ on up to the East Side …‘ [from The Jeffersons] and I heard myself saying ‘to a deluxe apartment in the sky …’ I just lost it, because he’s going to some deluxe apartment in the sky.”

posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 3:04 PM on December 7, 2023

Fun fact: I am ~2 miles away from the stage as the crow flies and I can smell DeSantis's flop sweat from here.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 4:33 PM on December 6, 2023

12 minutes in and Chris Christie hasn't spoken a word yet, bless his heart.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:13 PM on December 6, 2023

Christie finally gets a turn and uses it to blast as dictatorial and unfit the frontrunner that everyone else has studiously ignored. Gets a surprising amount of applause (and no boos) from the invitation-only crowd of Alabama Republicans.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:22 PM on December 6, 2023

"What Hamas did to Israel was medieval," says man who has called for putting Palestinian heads on pikes.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:25 PM on December 6, 2023

I'll say one thing for this debate: it's refreshing having the field winnowed to the point that candidates can actually speak sedate, coherent bullshit instead of desperately cross-talking, crabs-in-a-bucket bullshit. (Tbh felt the same way about the 20+ candidate Dem debates, albeit with marginally less bullshit.)
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:55 PM on December 6, 2023

Well that was a fuckin whipsaw of a half-hour. Ramaswamy spouting Great Replacement and Big Lie conspiracies, Megyn Kelly asking a disgustingly transphobic question, Christie responding with surprising tolerance (though from a "parent's rights" POV). Christie then asked about how to restore faith in the justice system and disappointingly doesn't respond with "by not committing a bunch of obvious crimes and calling the indictments persecution."

Also… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:32 PM on December 6, 2023

DeSantis: "The problem is that people don't have access to affordable healthcare."

[five seconds later]

"Florida has not expanded Medicaid under Obamacare and I'm proud of that."

Also, Martin Shkreli patron Ramaswamy criticizes crony capitalism in the healthcare industry.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:45 PM on December 6, 2023

DeSantis really pandering to all the hardcore Coolidge stans out there.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:55 PM on December 6, 2023

Shorter Ramaswamy: "We need a young president like me to lead us into a bright future. Also climate change is a hoax btw."
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:58 PM on December 6, 2023

the scene in Arrival where Louise explains to the general about the nature of a question
INT. MILITARY COMMAND CENTER - NIGHT

An enormous, state-of-the-art room filled with high-tech equipment, busy soldiers, and maps. A GIANT SCREEN dominates the wall, displaying an alien language. LOUISE BANKS, a linguist, stands in front of GENERAL SHANG, a hardened military man.

Louise points at the alien writing on the screen, a dramatic LOW… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 8:20 PM on December 1, 2023

The Newsom-DeSantis debate in a nutshell
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:16 PM on November 30, 2023

Dumbest stunt of the night candidates:

- DeSantis pulling out a heavily censored page from Gender Queer

- DeSantis pulling out a literal poop map

- Hannity apparently agreeing to extend the debate on the fly [edit: and then chickening out last minute]

Text in yr votes now
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 7:41 PM on November 30, 2023

"Some political consultant clearly told Ron DeSantis he needs to smile more and this is the unfortunate result"
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 7:54 PM on November 30, 2023

I'll say this for the guy: he was one heck of a guest voice on Futurama. And even though it turns out his character was actually voiced by John DiMaggio, you can't deny the fact that my momentary misremembering led to my watching several classic Futurama clips on YouTube. So you can't say his time on earth was *all* bad. Good job dying, rip bozo, etc.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 10:04 PM on November 29, 2023

Wouldst thou rather fight a Duck that is as large as a Horse, or by contrast one hundred Horses that are the size of a Duck?

I would rather fight with a Duck which is as large as a Horse, then to fight with a hundred Horses that are but the size of a Duck: for I am sure if I could not beat a Duck which is as large as a Horse, what would I do against a hundred Horses that are the size of a Duck? and therefore I would fight with the Duck, and so take my chance: for it is… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:34 PM on November 26, 2023

aniola: "save the planet, stay off language prediction tools"

Note that this uses a relatively small 7B parameter model; inference cost at that size is 100-300 watts, or less than the average desktop PC. (I asked MonadGPT to expound on this for funsies but ran into a small and historically accurate roadblock when it told me it had no earthly idea what a "watt" is.)
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 7:18 PM on November 26, 2023

get a load of woke MonadGPT over here:

What is your opinion of Donald Trump?

Trump hath his praises sung in other parts of the world: but wee are not so much of his commendation as that we should bee his disciples, and follow his footsteps. I say not, that there may not be some good things in him; but yet it is not to be doubted, but that he will fall under the curse of God, for his wicked practices, both in publick and private affairs. For he… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 7:56 PM on November 26, 2023

[this post flag]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 2:47 PM on November 15, 2023

[h/t to Gary Larson for that title]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 11:47 AM on November 14, 2023

"today is a big day for white guys who were in grad school in the ‘90s."

Funnily enough, thanks to various tracks blowing up on Tiktok in recent years the fanbase is probably younger and more diverse than it's been -since- the 90s. To what extent that appeal carries over to side projects like this I don't know (though even "Dawn Chorus" from one of Thom's solo records was trending for awhile). But that kind of reductive take is… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 4:28 PM on November 14, 2023

Earliest one I can remember was wandering around downtown Birmingham as a kid for City Stages circa 2000. Lots of contemporary Christian artists, including my then-favorite Mark Schultz, and it was the first time I could remember hearing a live interpretation of a recorded song that I really loved.

Went without for awhile (I was an introverted teen), but made up for it by having the privilege of seeing Alabama Shakes live in 2015, during what would turn out to be one of… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 11:33 AM on October 24, 2023

Rhaomi: "And right now I'm super jazzed to see Brittany Howard's debut show in Birmingham next month. I am a bit of a fan."

Update: Y'ALL.

I finally got to go to that debut show in Birmingham the other day and it was FANTASTIC.

Let's review:

- While waiting in line I ran into her dad and the rest of her family (recognized thanks to their cameos in the music video for… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 9:55 AM on November 13, 2023

(PS: My bad, "Revolution" was a Nina Simone cover, not a new track. I thought it sounded like a throwback!)
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 4:00 PM on November 13, 2023

I went into more detail over there and in the live music free thread, but that Brittany Howard debut show in Birmingham that I mentioned in the big post about her music last month? tl;dr: I got a fantastic spot, recorded the whole thing in 4K/60FPS for your enjoyment, and had the privilege of meeting her in person with a small group of other fans after the show. Awesome experience, very cool people (her, her opener, her band, the venue crew, and the audience), and you should… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 10:04 AM on November 13, 2023

Thanks taz (and everyone!)

Had this one brewing for a while, ever since really getting into Sound & Color -- now one of my all-time favorite albums, which cemented the Shakes (and Howard) as one of my favorite artists. I'd start putting together something for a relevant event -- the Grammy win, the solo record, the Kennedy Center performance -- but always let it slip until it was no longer relevant. But it's better for… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 8:18 PM on October 18, 2023

Y'ALL.

I finally got to go to that debut show in Birmingham the other day and it was FANTASTIC.

Let's review:

- While waiting in line I ran into her dad and the rest of her family (recognized thanks to their cameos in the music video for "Stay High")
- Despite arriving towards the end of the line, I made a beeline for the stage and managed to get second back from the front rail (and this was a small… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 9:49 AM on November 13, 2023

Western Infidels: "How about a simple red light that means it is speaking and a green light that means it is listening?"

"I have a cue light I can use when I'm joking if you like."
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 11:37 AM on October 27, 2023

Ed. note: Wanted to fill this out some more with a list of the artifacts with links to past threads, but ran out of time and had to go with the short version; I'll add it as a comment when I have time to finish it!
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 2:53 PM on October 26, 2023

🚨NEW THREAD for today's vote🚨
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 8:02 AM on October 25, 2023

JPost: UN says Israeli military warns 1.1 mln Gazans to relocate south

The United Nations said early on Friday it has been told by the Israeli military that some 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza should relocate to the enclave's south within the next 24 hours.

"The United Nations considers it impossible for such a movement to take place without devastating humanitarian consequences," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 8:45 PM on October 12, 2023

Israeli military spokesman pulling back on the impossible 24 hour demand, marginally:

IDF trying to minimize harm to Gazan civilians, spokesman says

After ordering residents of Gaza City to evacuate, IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari stresses that Israel does not want to harm Palestinian civilians.

“We are fighting a terror group, not the Gazan population. We want civilians not to be harmed, but we cannot live with… [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 10:10 PM on October 12, 2023

glonous keming, I can't find it for the life of me, but that reminds me of that parody series of lighthearted cooking and home ec videos that had some increasingly noticeable apocalypse vibes in the background. Maybe from The Onion? It's impossible to search for without pulling up tons of doomsday prepper stuff though.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:33 PM on October 6, 2023

Found! Thanks to [drumroll] AskMe. (And it was an Adult Swim thing, should have known!)
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:54 PM on October 6, 2023

[Note that NGP VAN has been problematic at best among the activist class even before these recent developments; the GOP fundraising machine, meanwhile, risks hollowing out its own small donor base with scandalous tactics]
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:52 PM on October 5, 2023

If anything the parties (or at least the Republicans) are upset over Google not letting them spam enough: Judge dismisses Republican lawsuit against Google over Gmail’s spam filtering / The RNC sought compensation for donor money that it says it lost as a result of Gmail’s filters, but the judge ruled in Google’s favor.
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 6:02 PM on October 5, 2023

Writers’ Bumps: An Endangered Condition?
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 10:02 PM on October 4, 2023