DynamoSunshirt's recent activity
-
Comment on AI was eroding trust in my classroom — so I got rid of typed papers and bought my students notebooks instead in ~life
-
Comment on US government announces pilot program for eVTOLS and ultralight aerial vehicles even without FAA certification in ~transport
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentI guess I'm a bit too optimistic -- I figure that even if ubiquitous cheap fusion (or similar)-generated power is inevitable. But it could happen hundreds of years from today. But maybe truly free...I guess I'm a bit too optimistic -- I figure that even if ubiquitous cheap fusion (or similar)-generated power is inevitable. But it could happen hundreds of years from today.
But maybe truly free power is too much to expect. Right now in my town in New England, clean drinking water is so cheap that I simply don't think about the $10-20 a month it costs me to use as much as I could (reasonably) want. I imagine that a sufficiently motivated government could bring residential electricity down to that level with far less money than we currently pump into, say, maintaining highways (a truly ungodly sum). Hell, my town has municipal electric and we're already in the right order of magnitude, just have to cut the costs by another 50% to reach the point where most residents don't think about it.
-
Comment on US government announces pilot program for eVTOLS and ultralight aerial vehicles even without FAA certification in ~transport
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentIf we brought electricity prices down to near-zero and automated a lot of flying to improve safety, it could become safer, cheaper, and faster than today's car transportation (a low bar for sure)....If we brought electricity prices down to near-zero and automated a lot of flying to improve safety, it could become safer, cheaper, and faster than today's car transportation (a low bar for sure).
With today's electricity price trends, though, I strongly agree with you. Simply not viable unless you have "fuck you" money.
-
Comment on What are people using instead of VS Code? in ~comp
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentYeah i still use the CLI for everything git. But quite a few friends seem to love Sublime Merge, so I always recommend it to anyone who wants a git GUI. IMO you're just better off using the CLI...Yeah i still use the CLI for everything git. But quite a few friends seem to love Sublime Merge, so I always recommend it to anyone who wants a git GUI. IMO you're just better off using the CLI with a decent mental model, though.
-
Comment on New York Times quiz: Who’s a better writer: AI or humans? in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentLLMs do not have intent. Please stop the aggressive proselytizing and anthropomorphizing.- Exemplary
LLMs do not have intent. Please stop the aggressive proselytizing and anthropomorphizing.
-
Comment on New York Times quiz: Who’s a better writer: AI or humans? in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentNope.Nope.
-
Comment on New York Times quiz: Who’s a better writer: AI or humans? in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentPrecisely. A paragraph can never be "AI-written" because an LLM is incapable of writing. It merely generates output based on input. And that generation is built upon a foundation of human creation.Precisely. A paragraph can never be "AI-written" because an LLM is incapable of writing. It merely generates output based on input. And that generation is built upon a foundation of human creation.
-
Comment on What are people using instead of VS Code? in ~comp
DynamoSunshirt LinkSublime Text has been super performant and rock solid for me for over a decade now. I use vim and emacs sometimes, but Sublime might just be my daily driver for life.Sublime Text has been super performant and rock solid for me for over a decade now. I use vim and emacs sometimes, but Sublime might just be my daily driver for life.
-
Comment on Documents reveal a web of financial ties between Donald Trump officials and the US industries they help regulate in ~society
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentMaybe there's a silver lining to all of this: because anyone associated with trump is a corrupt, likely incompetent goon, you can safely distrust and disregard anything they say. Makes it pretty...Maybe there's a silver lining to all of this: because anyone associated with trump is a corrupt, likely incompetent goon, you can safely distrust and disregard anything they say. Makes it pretty easy to write off candidates and ideas in the future that stem from this cloud of corruption.
-
Comment on A day in the life of an ensh*ttificator in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentThis is precisely what derailleur hangers do for bicycles! In the unlikely event that your bottom bracket or rear wheel bearing seizes, or something gums up the chain, the hanger is actually...This is precisely what derailleur hangers do for bicycles! In the unlikely event that your bottom bracket or rear wheel bearing seizes, or something gums up the chain, the hanger is actually designed to break off so that your frame doesn't break.
Having snapped a derailleur hanger, I'm awfully glad it broke before my frame did. Much nicer to replace a $20 part than a thousand+ dollar frame!
Much like the KitchenAid sacrificial plastic gears mentioned in this thread, derailleur hangers are often misunderstood. Many in the bike industry hate them because they break so much. SRAM even created the UDH (universal derailleur hanger) standard recently, a confusing name which ditches the hanger in favor of a direct mount between the frame and wheel. It's hard to say its impact on bike longevity, but I have personally bought up older bikes with broken derailleur hangers on the cheap, and I can definitely say that won't be happening any more with UDH!
-
Comment on Any thoughts on Bridgerton Season 4? in ~tv
DynamoSunshirt LinkFunnily enough I'm 6/8 episodes in and quite unimpressed. I think the writing is better this season than last, but the major romance having a significant class divide feels like too much of a...Funnily enough I'm 6/8 episodes in and quite unimpressed. I think the writing is better this season than last, but the major romance having a significant class divide feels like too much of a power imbalance for my liking.
In the same vein, the mid-season gap inspired me to finally watch Queen Charlotte, which was significantly better than any season of Bridgerton, IMO. Romance still afoot, of course, but George's mental illness was handled much better than I ever expected. And Lady Danforth's plotline was honestly quite compelling. While it wrapped up a little too nicely, it felt much more "earned" than Bridgerton seasons, which always conclude neatly no matter the obstacle.
-
Comment on Legacy sequels and remakes you think were actually good and worth making? in ~movies
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentAs a Toto, Sting, and Dale Cooper fan, I begrudgingly accept this truth. Though the original credits song is better than the credits song for the remake. And honestly I could do with fewer Hans...As a Toto, Sting, and Dale Cooper fan, I begrudgingly accept this truth.
Though the original credits song is better than the credits song for the remake. And honestly I could do with fewer Hans Zimmer BWOAAAHAHMNMMMMPs at this point.
-
Comment on ‘A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms’ just made ‘Breaking Bad’ lose its IMDB score record in ~tv
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentIMO it's underwhelming if you did read the book. But that's how I feel about most adaptations, with veeeery few exceptions.IMO it's underwhelming if you did read the book. But that's how I feel about most adaptations, with veeeery few exceptions.
-
Comment on The AI disruption has arrived, and it sure is fun (gifted link) in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentMost people IRL use Facebook despite their pretty awful user experience and addictive/inflammatory algorithms. Most people IRL in 2001 didn't care that Windows XP and Internet Explorer were...Most people IRL use Facebook despite their pretty awful user experience and addictive/inflammatory algorithms. Most people IRL in 2001 didn't care that Windows XP and Internet Explorer were insecure, vulnerability-riddled incompetent messes that made web browsing far more dangerous than it needed to be.
Most people IRL don't care about their phone's OS (or the monopolistic abuses associated with that OSes dominance) or if their bank supports non-SMS 2FA. Most people IRL don't care if their eggs come from tortured chickens, or if their carrots come from a field contaminated with PFAS because the farmer used cheap fertilizer derived from urban human waste. Most people IRL don't care about ICE's human rights violations, or Israel's latest human rights violation.
In the 1800s, only bankrupted farmers deeply cared about railroad monopolies. Today, only a small subset of micromobility enthusiasts advocate for better public transit, bike lanes, and safer walkability.
Just because the lowest common denominator person doesn't give a shit doesn't mean that the thing doesn't matter.
And by the way: right now the American government basically ONLY legislates based on giant corporation interests, thanks to Citizen's United. God forbid they listen to some redditors who might be informed about the subject! Maybe not listening to experts has some connection with the fact that American legislators can barely comprehend computers, the internet, smartphones, and software, let alone LLMs?
-
Comment on Babylon 5 is now free to watch on YouTube in ~tv
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentGod I wish more shows actually planned out even a rough plot multiple seasons in advance. I recently watched through Stranger Things since it finally concluded with Season 5, and it's so sad to...God I wish more shows actually planned out even a rough plot multiple seasons in advance. I recently watched through Stranger Things since it finally concluded with Season 5, and it's so sad to see how many opportunities they had to set up stories and plotlines way back in Season 1, and how much meandering and vague retconning they did to get to a conclusion. Reminds me of the third Star Wars trilogy, where they somehow managed to make the first two movies of the trilogy without mapping out a conclusion! So much respect for JMS actually planning things in advance.
-
Comment on The "AI god" narrative is actually a corporate power grab in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentDo the rest of us really have to thoroughly disprove wild claims like this? These claims all read a bit like timecube fever dreams; it would take enormous amounts of time and effort to disprove...Do the rest of us really have to thoroughly disprove wild claims like this?
US Ambassador to NATO says AI "can find new physics laws that we didn't know existed, it can extend human intelligence beyond what we can even fathom"
the world you knew is pretty much over... we crossed a one way bridge as a species & most people on earth haven’t realized that fact yet... there are now non trivial odds the economy gets drastically disrupted
Humanity has advanced more in the past 3 weeks than the previous 100 years combined:
• OpenClaw: greatest AI application ever
• Opus 4.6: smartest AI model ever
• Codex 5.3 Spark: greatest coding model ever
• MiniMax 2.5: greatest super intelligence on your deskYou are no longer the smartest type of thing on Earth; We will be well-cared-for pets.
These claims all read a bit like timecube fever dreams; it would take enormous amounts of time and effort to disprove each of them, so it is effectively impossible to do so. Simply calling out these statements for the FUD that they are seems adequate to me.
I can tell you only read 2/3 of the article, since you missed the core idea: how AI is being used to further centralize power and information into the hands of a small number of people. In fact this article doesn't talk about Ponzi schemes at all, and in some way suggests that AI is indeed useful for quite a few tasks. Do we really need to link mistruths and propaganda today to historical propaganda just to prove that it is, indeed, propaganda?
-
Comment on The "AI god" narrative is actually a corporate power grab in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentThanks. Unfortunately it has proven difficult to disprove optimistic marketing and propaganda with any amount of facts and anecdotes. With the AI booster crowd, I always hear "skill issue" or...Thanks. Unfortunately it has proven difficult to disprove optimistic marketing and propaganda with any amount of facts and anecdotes. With the AI booster crowd, I always hear "skill issue" or "well of course THAT model will get it wrong, you need to use GPZ 5.X Opus Dei available for $200/month". With the less technical, they nod, pretend to understand, and then go right back to trusting the Google AI Summary that shows up at the top of their search results. I keep hoping they'll grow distrustful if they get burned too many times with half-truths and inaccuracies, but it hasn't happened yet.
-
Comment on The "AI god" narrative is actually a corporate power grab in ~tech
DynamoSunshirt Link ParentYou didn't read the article, so it's not surprising that you missed the central thesis: On the subject of the rest of your post, I'll quote the article here: We're not saying LLMs are useless....You didn't read the article, so it's not surprising that you missed the central thesis:
AI is leading to significant changes in search, email, social networking, app stores, advertising, and so forth, Google will have the data and context to create a chokepoint that is even more dominant than the one it has today.
That is, unless we act. One obvious solution is to make sure that all agents have a clear fiduciary obligation to the person who deploys them. To force that, we would have to ban all advertising and all payments to finance agents except fees from the ultimate client. This policy would kill many of the bad incentives that Google has to manipulate pricing and the flow of commerce across the economy
On the subject of the rest of your post, I'll quote the article here:
There’s also a full-on bullying effort towards anyone who doesn’t buy these extraordinary claims.
We're not saying LLMs are useless. They clearly can produce code and lots of text. But when bigwigs are spouting incredible claims about godlike AI destroying all white collar work, those claims require incredible evidence. I have not seem this evidence, except perhaps in the realm of plumbing/boilerplate code generation.
Matt, and myself, object to Anthropic's posturing about not using their AI research for war because it's obvious propaganda meant to trick people into presupposing that their technology IS incredibly dangerous and therefore valuable. I don't object to the words being said, I loathe the way that Anthropic and Amodei are twisting those words to suit themselves and trump up their valuation. Journalists take these CEOs and powerful people at their word, worsening the issue.
I'm having a harder and harder time talking to my family about this technology because the media narrative has completely jumped the tracks; most of my family think that ChatGPT is an oracle whose output can simply be trusted as truth. Who should they believe: the news, or me?
-
The "AI god" narrative is actually a corporate power grab
43 votes -
Comment on Air to bread in ~science
DynamoSunshirt LinkWarning: final paragraph plot-twists this historical tale into a lesson about AI. But the tale is interesting nonetheless!Warning: final paragraph plot-twists this historical tale into a lesson about AI. But the tale is interesting nonetheless!
Some sort of cyberdeck that's basically a typewriter would work well for this. I think tracking edit history is a bit of a garden path; better to stick with simple systems that inherently discourage cheating instead of invading everyone's privacy or building some brittle Rube Goldberg machine.