macleod's recent activity
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Comment on The tantalizing possibility of locating consciousness in the brain in ~science
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Comment on The tantalizing possibility of locating consciousness in the brain in ~science
macleod Link ParentIn a philisophical/quantum definition to me, consciousness is reliant on a concept of a 'self', a near ominopotent dictator or orchestrator that has complete power and ability to pick and choose...In a philisophical/quantum definition to me, consciousness is reliant on a concept of a 'self', a near ominopotent dictator or orchestrator that has complete power and ability to pick and choose directives based on pure willpower on it's own merits, without care or reason for previous knowledge. This just can't exist in my view, we are bound by the laws of physics and a general consensus model of reality.
In a medical sense, it means to be able to actively consume patterns (including the pattern that is the collection of patterns that is defined as 'you').
Might be important to read this reply I just left.
Day to day though? Doesn't really matter either way, we're all just vibrations, philosophy is a drag existentially but it's cool to ruminate on from time to time. I do think if people thought more about their apparent patterns then lives would be made better as it seperates the failures and success of others and the self down to indivudalized, yet aggregated, patterns of data.
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Comment on The tantalizing possibility of locating consciousness in the brain in ~science
macleod Link ParentThe senses themselves accumulate the world around us through biderectional feedback, and by using previously perceived patterns we create aggregated patterns as larger more monolithic patterns,...The senses themselves accumulate the world around us through biderectional feedback, and by using previously perceived patterns we create aggregated patterns as larger more monolithic patterns, which may be further combined or segmented or used in other stored patterns. Sounds, smells, touch, sight, are all patterns that are an accumulation of thousands of patterns that are defined by their relation to different data points.
The 'self' in itself is just a bottom-up collection of previously perceived patterns that are variously built on one another accumulating independently of each pattern to aide in other pattern generalizations. A decent example would be that "memories" are not a monolith, but instead a "memory" of an event is just a collection of known patterns that were independently developed, then grouped as a new pattern based on a build-up of hundreds of other modular patterns.
Nothing really 'perceives' these patterns, they are just patterns on patterns grouped by associated senses and historical data. There is nothing that "perceives" them because nothing is really an orchestrator. You can think of it as a hivemind of the body if that helps.
Muscles, brains, cells, they all store individual datum that work together to generate patterns, various muscles in the body, or in the brain, have the ability to store larger patterns for recreation (the ability to bend an elbow, requires the usage of the collective muscle tissues, which in turn know how to control the cells, which in turn is powered by energy reserves, is all one pattern that is stored centrally in the brain, that delegates the pattern action and knowledge of the downstream patterns).
If it helps, the brain is centrally a database or jumptable for the patterns "owned" or known by the other modifiers on the system (arms, muscles, cells). The all just act on patterns that were developed and defined in a workflow.
The same way there is no prime orchestrator for the universe, there is no prime orchestrator for the self, ie no consciousness.
Think of it this way: You have a coin, you flip it, you place a cloth on top of it. You have no idea what it is, but collectively the universe has determined it's orientation, even if there was no direct orchestrator. The various laws of physics (patterns of physics), all of history leading up to it (the patterns of time), the air pressure, the fabrication of the coin, the movements that moved it, they all have worked in consensus to define the 'decision' of what the present point of the coins, being heads up or down, is defined by a consensus model of reality built on patterns that were perceived by all items in the known universe. This is my modified version of the wine glass thought experiment (the name escapes me, will update once it comes to me) that I find helps define what I mean.
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Comment on The tantalizing possibility of locating consciousness in the brain in ~science
macleod Link ParentPattern matching. That's it. We are just rather excellent pattern matching machines that ascribe a label to patterns. That's not consciousness or a soul, that's just an accumulation of perceived...Pattern matching. That's it. We are just rather excellent pattern matching machines that ascribe a label to patterns. That's not consciousness or a soul, that's just an accumulation of perceived and expected patterns.
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Comment on Any significant changes to Tildes are extremely unlikely in ~tildes.official
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Comment on The tantalizing possibility of locating consciousness in the brain in ~science
macleod LinkI've said it before, but my stance has always been that consciousness does not exist. In my view it's just a rationalist, or secular, continuance of the concept of a "soul" and in general it just...I've said it before, but my stance has always been that consciousness does not exist.
In my view it's just a rationalist, or secular, continuance of the concept of a "soul" and in general it just does not exist.
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Comment on Offpunk manifesto in ~humanities
macleod Link ParentI think there are two senses of "punk" being conflated here, and it's not your fault, they've basically been welded together for decades and it's become problematic for cohesion and planning in...Its a combination of themes and aesthetic and a collection of worldbuilding tropes that all fit together and synergize.
I think there are two senses of "punk" being conflated here, and it's not your fault, they've basically been welded together for decades and it's become problematic for cohesion and planning in some circles, like solarpunk.
The first is "punk" as an aesthetic genre such as: cyberpunk, steampunk, dieselpunk. The second is "punk" as a stance or an ideological philosophy such as cypherpunk, biopunks, and now offpunk.
The "manifesto" isn't describing punk as an aesthetic, it's attempting to describe a subculture of punk that is offline in response to a now digital-native world. See, you can be an aesthetic cyberpunk, a philosophical cyberpunk, or both. And you can be an offpunk without subscribing to any of the aesthetic values of things like 'cyberpunk'. You can even be a proponent of cyberpunk (both aesthetic and concepts), cypherpunks, solarpunk, and offpunk all at the same time.
One of the problems with the conflation of ideology and style is seen in the solarpunk community where the community is continuanlly fighting within themselves for their ideology because it's 'members' are constantly fighting between overall real-world narratives and the futuristic-cottagecore aesthetics that some people only care about.
Overall though, I would say that that offpunk is a subculture of cypherpunks. Cypherpunks have no inherent style, even if Hackers later glued a costume/stereotype onto the idea of "hackers" in the public zeitgeist. Cypherpunks (something I describe myself as) historically believes in the right to privacy, to encrypt one's data from prying eyes, to 'fight the system' through encryption, obfuscation, and ownership of their machines through "Right to Repair" campaigns. (a 'cypherpunk' organization that I love is hackingisnotacrime.org) . This subculture was really created from, unionized, and extended beyond when they released things like the Cryptonomicon (which was basically a manifesto akin to the above), and even the original designs for things like Tor.
tl;dr: There is a difference between aesthetic 'punk' and ideological 'punk'. Offpunk exists as the later, not the former.
But hey, Offpunk could end up with its own aesthetic too, just needs some time, similar to Cypherpunks in a way.
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Comment on BasicSync and Synctrain: solid apps for bringing Syncthing to phones in ~tech
macleod LinkI use Syncthing-Fork fairly often, but the problem is that they tried to do to much that Syncthing does already, and BasicSync, appears to have basically fixed my grips by just focusing on basic...I use Syncthing-Fork fairly often, but the problem is that they tried to do to much that Syncthing does already, and BasicSync, appears to have basically fixed my grips by just focusing on basic sync.
Has anyone used BasicSync and can talk to how it affects battery? One of the biggest problems with STF was just how much background usage it used.
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Comment on Offpunk manifesto in ~humanities
macleod Link ParentGoing to totally honest, zillenial here, I forgot that was ever an option. That seems so ridiculously obvious and now I am sitting here trying to remember if I have ever walked into a store or a...I want to able to ask a person that knows stuff about the things I'm buying!
Going to totally honest, zillenial here, I forgot that was ever an option. That seems so ridiculously obvious and now I am sitting here trying to remember if I have ever walked into a store or a trader and expected them to know what they are selling beyond what their sales brochures call for. I shop at a lot of hardware and engineering/supply shops and even then I never go in to look for, or even find someone that knows, anything. Just a totally foreign concept that I am now yearning for.
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Offpunk manifesto
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Don't take the black pill (text adaptation)
16 votes -
Comment on Polish ex-PM Mateusz Morawiecki launches "Rozwój Plus" parliamentary group following a split from Poland's Law and Justice party in ~society
macleod Linkparliamentary, not a paramilitary group, for everyone who misread it.parliamentary, not a paramilitary group, for everyone who misread it.
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Comment on TV streaming sticks rent out the user's Internet connection and engage in ad fraud in ~tech
macleod (edited )LinkI hate that I have personal ethical standards high enough to not even consider this. Such a loss of possible wealth. My old 1337 h4xx0r days are too far behind me to even consider something as...I hate that I have personal ethical standards high enough to not even consider this. Such a loss of possible wealth.
My old 1337 h4xx0r days are too far behind me to even consider something as obvious as this.
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Comment on ReFrame - the DIY e-ink camera in ~tech
macleod LinkPretty cool, limited, artsy, limitation. Powered just by a Raspberry Pi Zero, Pi Camera 3, and a 4" eInk Spectra 6 color display and a battery. Edit: E-Ink displays have just been getting better...With ePaper, the photo on screen stays there even after powering off.
The only way to clear the screen is to take a new photo.Pretty cool, limited, artsy, limitation.
Powered just by a Raspberry Pi Zero, Pi Camera 3, and a 4" eInk Spectra 6 color display and a battery.
Edit: E-Ink displays have just been getting better and better, and cheaper and cheaper. Insane that you can get a 400x600px colored eink screen (with driver/control board!) for less than $50 these days.
Q: do the photos get saved?
yes! the photos you take with reFrame are saved digitally. While the ePaper display remains the primary way to experience each shot, you can also download both the original and dithered versions of each photo using a web dashboard.Love that you also get the dithered output as well, neat.
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ReFrame - the DIY e-ink camera
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Comment on Once you hear it, the 'Gen Alpha melody' is everywhere in ~music
macleod Link ParentI do not listen to kpop, but according to her, yes.I do not listen to kpop, but according to her, yes.
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Comment on GOG confirm they are working towards GOG Galaxy on Linux in ~games
macleod Link ParentHeroic is first case, since I 'know' things will work out of the box most of the time, and if it fails on the first attempt, then I install through Lutris. Lutris would be my default, but I tend...Heroic is first case, since I 'know' things will work out of the box most of the time, and if it fails on the first attempt, then I install through Lutris. Lutris would be my default, but I tend to have first-time install issues on it, but Lutris allows you to more deeply modify and debug issues.
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Comment on Ennaria - CUTE (2026) in ~music
macleod LinkThe entire album (that just released) has this very hyperpop poppy (hyperpoppy?) with massive imogen heap and lily allen inspiration throughout vibe I think I posted her first track Monstarr when...The entire album (that just released) has this very hyperpop poppy (hyperpoppy?) with massive imogen heap and lily allen inspiration throughout vibe
I think I posted her first track Monstarr when it only had a few thousand views, and if she wasn't a friend of a friend I would think she was some weird industry plant (not that I ever care) just from how quickly she's grown in the past two years
She's basically who grimes wish she had become after art angels.
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Ennaria - CUTE (2026)
7 votes -
Comment on Once you hear it, the 'Gen Alpha melody' is everywhere in ~music
macleod LinkYep, it's just Feliz Navidad. I brought this up to my sister who listens to a lot of K-Pop a few years ago and she told me that it ruined a lot of music for her.Yep, it's just Feliz Navidad. I brought this up to my sister who listens to a lot of K-Pop a few years ago and she told me that it ruined a lot of music for her.
I answered most of this in other replies, sorry! Check out the parent comment of mine and see there, I love talking about this because it's such an interesting conversation and I have yet to found anyone who agrees with me, which is fine, people tend to get defensive when I discuss how 'you' don't exist and that the idea of a 'consciousness' is just an easy "pattern" yor the mind to fall back to in the face of existence.