Need to let loose a primal scream without collecting footnotes first? Have a sneer percolating in your system but not enough time/energy to make a whole post about it? Go forth and be mid: Welcome to the Stubsack, your first port of call for learning fresh Awful you’ll near-instantly regret.
Any awful.systems sub may be subsneered in this subthread, techtakes or no.
If your sneer seems higher quality than you thought, feel free to cut’n’paste it into its own post — there’s no quota for posting and the bar really isn’t that high.
The post Xitter web has spawned soo many “esoteric” right wing freaks, but there’s no appropriate sneer-space for them. I’m talking redscare-ish, reality challenged “culture critics” who write about everything but understand nothing. I’m talking about reply-guys who make the same 6 tweets about the same 3 subjects. They’re inescapable at this point, yet I don’t see them mocked (as much as they should be)
Like, there was one dude a while back who insisted that women couldn’t be surgeons because they didn’t believe in the moon or in stars? I think each and every one of these guys is uniquely fucked up and if I can’t escape them, I would love to sneer at them.
(Semi-obligatory thanks to @dgerard for starting this)
@bitofhope @BlueMonday1984 Maybe he’s going to rewrite AI in a weekend to make it good!
It’s also incredibly misleading, maybe it was possible to “completely” re-write the UI back in 2005—never mind that most of the value would come from, the underlying geographic data being mostly correct and mostly correctly labeled—there is no way in hell that the same would achievable in 2024. (Also the notion it would take any coder
2 * 1000 / (365 * 5/7) =7 years to achieve a comparable result is proposterous)Apparently the 1x engineer is taking weekends instead of working 24/7.
I don’t blame Saltman for this one, since it’s just a more specific version of the general pathology that assumes the markets are basically Gods.
"In our top story today, the rapture has drawn the souls of the faithful into heaven and we have entered what experts are calling a “final tribulation”. We’re also receiving reports that Dread Cthulhu has awoken from his deathly slumber in his house at R’lyeh, and environmental groups are claiming that increased sightings of wolves and frost giants could herald the arrival of Fimbulwinter and through it Ragnarök.
The stock market, however, seems to be taking the literal end times in stride, with strong performances from Raytheon and other manufacturers countering a downturn in other sectors."
you see, air defense is very useful against supernatural horrors beyond human comprehension
(also they recently changed name to RTX after merger. surely no fucked up managerial cancer would spread from there, like with Boeing-McDonnel Douglas merger. not like they make anything of absolutely critical importance for Ukrainians)
-
Just wanted to say thanks again to the admins and community for maintaining this oasis of sanity.
-
How do you all suppose the Great Bullshit Implosion is going to interact with our incoming US government? When it becomes clear that the money is running out, will OpenAI be able to talk the Trump government into bailing them out, or will the fash kick them when they’re down, since tech will be a nice fat scapegoat for the economy hitting the shitter?
I don’t think Trump’s presence changes much regarding the AI bubble. It’s still massive capital and operational expenditure, with ??? revenue to show for it. Trump very likely faces a big stock market correction in 2025 or no later than 2026, just as surely as Harris or Biden would have.
and they just added Nvidia to the indexes, replacing Intel in at least one
nvidia will be fine - they know damn well this is a bubble - but number is going to take a beating
Doesn’t hurt them to strike while the silicon is hot.
it looks like they’re trying to delay either of those in most ghoulish way possible https://arstechnica.com/ai/2024/11/safe-ai-champ-anthropic-teams-up-with-defense-giant-palantir-in-new-deal/
OpenAI you stand accused of the crime of being woke. To make the case, we call in the expert on everything woke: James A. Lindsay.
Which is my way of saying, it will be very dumb and very paranoid, and not even wrong.
How do you all suppose the Great Bullshit Implosion is going to interact with our incoming US government? When it becomes clear that the money is running out, will OpenAI be able to talk the Trump government into bailing them out, or will the fash kick them when they’re down, since tech will be a nice fat scapegoat for the economy hitting the shitter?
Kicking them whilst they’re down would be an easy win when “the cruelty is the point” is your unofficial motto, and there’s plenty of anti-tech sentiment for Trump to work with. And, of course, they’re a piss-easy scapegoat - AFAIK tech’s managed to piss off both political wings here.
He’s probably gonna kick them whilst they’re down.
the ones ending up being kicked down in this scenario have more money than god and ear of trump, not to mention that some of these were likely donors to his campaign. maybe sutskever or even saltman might be ceremonially burned at stake for posterity, but thiel and musk are gonna be safe
I’m 100% down for a “Let them fight” moment
-
I know this shouldn’t be surprising, but I still cannot believe people really bounce questions off LLMs like they’re talking to a real person. https://ai.stackexchange.com/questions/47183/are-llms-unlikely-to-be-useful-to-generate-any-scientific-discovery
I have just read this paper: Ziwei Xu, Sanjay Jain, Mohan Kankanhalli, “Hallucination is Inevitable: An Innate Limitation of Large Language Models”, submitted on 22 Jan 2024.
It says there is a ground truth ideal function that gives every possible true output/fact to any given input/question, and no matter how you train your model, there is always space for misapproximations coming from missing data to formulate, and the more complex the data, the larger the space for the model to hallucinate.
Then he immediately follows up with:
Then I started to discuss with o1. [ . . . ] It says yes.
Then I asked o1 [ . . . ], to which o1 says yes [ . . . ]. Then it says [ . . . ].
Then I asked o1 [ . . . ], to which it says yes too.
I’m not a teacher but I feel like my brain would explode if a student asked me to answer a question they arrived at after an LLM misled them on like 10 of their previous questions.
I’m not a teacher but I feel like my brain would explode if a student asked me to answer a question they arrived at after an LLM misled them on like 10 of their previous questions.
When I was a lab demonstrator in university, one of the lab exercises was somewhat hard to get right, and our team noticed a huge raft of plagiarism. Not only were multiple students using the exact same code, but it was code that didn’t even work! The course had a policy of instant failure with evidence of plagiarism, which was made clear at the start of the course, and yet this just kept happening. To top it all off, the lab exercises didn’t change from year to year, so the same code kept showing up! This plus a number of other incidents broke me and made me realise I didn’t have it in me to be this kind of educator.
It would be great if this was all a big psyop by big tech to gaslight educators into ending their careers for some kind of mass brainwashing conspiracy, because at least there would be some intention behind it. Instead, we’re poisoning collective consciousness with cyberslop because we think one day the virtual dumbass will reach enlightenment. We don’t actually have a way for that to happen, so we’re just going to metaphorically bash our own heads against rocks in hopes we glitch ourselves into the singularity.
So yeah in short my head would explode too.
the writer’s room is [open]
that’s dasha the laptop, she used to work in a corporation but is sick of that and retired to be a writer
why do neurotypical people love to do this. why can’t you say sam harris sucks in a normal way
For a palette cleanser, you might appreciate that If Books Could Kill just released a solid dunk on Sam Harris
ha, the screen cap is from the ibck subreddit. one of my favorite podcasts
that adds a whole nother layer of lol
People enjoy making amateur diagnoses of public figures, and people enjoy feeling like they’re superior to neurodivergent people.
actual diagnosis, inexplicably not in the DSM-5
Seeing a worrying trend of people wanting to cosplay as La Resistance, going dark, hiding from the cops. “Fun” fact, the Gestapo was extremely good at finding, torturing and killing people in the resistance. If people only know you via encrypted messaging, who is gonna raise a ruckus when you’re sent to a camp?
unrelated but we’re all gonna get so many of trumpist brown-nosed sleazes as ambassadors now
it looks likely that we out there in poland might get georgette mosbacher as next ambassador. she was more of an lobbyist going hard against eu digital tax, but there’s much more
I am left thinking that many people here in the US are going to have a hard time accepting that having this person, at this stage in his life, as the national figurehead will do permanent damage to the US’ prestige and global standing. Doesn’t matter if Reagan was sundowning, media was more controlled then and his handlers were there to support the institution of the presidency at least as much as they were there to support a narcissist. In 2016, other countries could look at Trump as a temporary aberration and wait him out. This time, it’s clear that the US is no longer a reliable partner.
An intentional sacrifice of the US’ role as head manager of the global economy is not nearly as well thought out as the people pushing it think it is.
plenty of them will just shrug it off as “commie propaganda” and will ignore reality as long as they can receive coast to coast am, then blame dems for the bits they cannot ignore anymore
bonus points to former hilary’s consultants (or so i hear) running current campaign deciding that going to the right (who the fuck likes cheney?) was a good idea
At least their shirts will accessorize nicely
Questions To Which the Answer is No, an ongoing series:
Generative AI - Can it actually help with the day-to-day technical work of a practising engineer?
The upcoming Autumn Panel Discussion hosted by the UCD Engineering Graduates Association (EGA) will take place on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, at ESB’s Headquarters. This event will explore several pressing topics at the intersection of engineering and artificial intelligence. Attendees will gain insights into current trends in AI, particularly the latest advancements in generative AI tools and platforms. The discussion will feature case studies that highlight the successful integration of AI into real-world engineering processes, offering practical examples of its applications. Additionally, the panel will address the essential skills that engineers need to effectively incorporate AI into their workflows, providing guidance on upskilling for the future. The event will conclude with a Q&A session, allowing participants to engage directly with the panelists and delve deeper into the ethical considerations surrounding AI in engineering.
No, not software engineers, engineer engineers. Yikes!
hackernews having a normal one (EDIT: Then things got worse)
HN Title: The evolution of nepotism in academia, 1088-1800
In the top comments:
dash2 55 minutes ago | next [–]
Here’s an interesting extract:
We find evidence of nepotism for 5–6.6% of scholars’ sons in Protestant and for 29.4% in Catholic universities and academies. Catholic institutions relied more heavily on intra-family human capital transfers. We show that these differences partly explain the divergent path of Catholic and Protestant universities after the Reformation.
This relates to an important paper providing evidence that indeed Protestantism was associated with scientific progress: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4389708
red016 3 minutes ago | parent | next [–]
i’d be more interested in jewish numbers than protestant or catholic
Ah yes, the famous European Jewish run universities. You don’t have to be an idiot to be anti-Semitic, but it certainly helps.
Audibly rolling my eyes
Atlantic writer: “better dubble down on Twitter huhuhuhhuh”
Calls to disengage from X, now that Elon Musk has turned it into a white-supremacist haven, certainly have a moral appeal. But if this election showed how difficult it is to meaningfully “deplatform” speakers you disagree with, it also demonstrated the danger of ignoring the platforms where they speak. Unfortunately, the only way to change what’s happening in an echo chamber may be to add your own noise.
This is your periodic reminder that Steve Jobs’ widow owns that toilet-paper factory. And that they still pump out hot new singles from hitmakers like David Frum and, occasionally, my personal favorite, Eliot “GW Bush Did Nothing Wrong” Cohen.
what in the absolute fuck
“you shouldn’t do anything that works to resist fascism” is going to be the neoliberal siren call for 4+ years, isn’t it
It doesn’t even fit with the axioms of market logic! If the platform in question has terrible content moderation, primarily generates revenue from profoundly repulsive people, and was intentionally bought out to be used as the central propaganda organ for a destructive political movement… why wouldn’t you leave?! Dude just doesn’t want to admit he’s too lazy to redo his follows elsewhere
It makes sense if you consider that Twitter’s users are essentially creating the product that is sold to advertisers rather than actually buying a product. Leaving Twitter en masse to try and force a policy change isn’t a boycott, it’s a strike. And we know how neoliberalism feels about organized labor.
Unfortunately, the only way to change what’s happening in an echo chamber may be to add your own noise.
imagine writing something like this and considering yourself to be the adult in the room. just a big ol politics understander, writing and writing and none of it means a fucking thing. you get up every morning and somehow the dread doesn’t make you collapse back into bed.
I feel like we could solve a lot of the left’s problems in the US by building a time machine and giving 13 year old Aaron Sorkin about 10 lbs of 2024 weed.
Always has been.
Liberals: vote for us, we are diet fascism, we are the lesser evil! We reduce harm!
It’s been the siren call for the last 400 years.
My radicalisation just continues and deepens.
What deplatforming actually happened that this writer is referring to? “We didn’t deplatform anyone. Therefore deplatforming bad” ???
“we’ve tried nothing, and nothing is working!” this is going to be such a common refrain
God and thinking about it even a little bit:
Of course deplatforming works, you fuckface! Why did Elon buy twitter if not to secure a platform? It is surprising you managed to write anything at all, you stupid goblin.
In fact it was quite the blow for them, it cost him at least 44 billion, and massive amounts of attention. (Not as much as diablo 4 however).
Counterpoint: I have never seen anyone that invested into Diablo who wasn’t deeply depressed and hiding from it. The attempt to turn into whatever kind of influencer he is now must have also cost him functional coping mechanisms in addition to the money, reputation, and good will.
Exactly!
Mass media try not to cozy up to fascists challenge: impossible!
Story from .nl, after Wilders “won” (he got the biggest share of the votes, and quite a lot more than before) the election last year, instantly the amount of horrible posts towards visible muslim people massively intensified (other groups, women, leftwingers and lgbt people (and the various intersections) also got worse replies (which on Dutch twitter always was bad already)). So this advice is so dumb, yes expose your people to more risk and potential burnout. And guess what, as we are a year in and most of Dutch twitter is still on twitter. It doesnt help. (And I cant tell, as switching to bsky has made me realize just how much of a breath of fresh air it is, but to me it feels twitter has gotten worse, but that is more likely explained by me getting better).
E: there is also the ‘they need us more than we need them’ factor. I have not seen rightwing Dutch trolls on bksy yet, Catturd however made the jump (and was promptly banned by everybody).
Lawns are functional though, they aren’t just a status symbol.
I grew up with a mossy front yard, and I have clover and ferns in my current yards to compete with grasses; there are better options, my dude.
We’re anti-grass lawns now? Fuck yes. I knew this place had potential.
I’m no landscaper so don’t quiz me on the options, but grass is in the lowest tier option for things to fill outdoor space with.
lawns in addition to other things are fine, but also all the stuff self said applies pretty hard
we’re lucky in ZA that we’re pretty good with getting a lot of this stuff out, which I’m often pretty happy about, but that’s an incident of geography (and personal location)
They can be, but they can also be a social and recreational space.
Your mum’s a social and recreational space, but I don’t see you going to bat for her despite being more useful
I was going to call them friendless losers who never had company over to play cornhole, have a bonfire, or lounge around on a hot summer day getting doused by a sprinkler while drinking beers because they are repugnant socially awkward cave trolls who are bitter and jealous of people who use their picturesque lawns.
But I would never do that because that is neither civil nor polite.
dang hates this one weird trick you can use to be an asshole in spite of the orange site’s civility rules
also what is that list of activities? did ChatGPT generate this? grass is required to play beep boop normal human games like cornhole now? you’re “having a bonfire” on grass and not in something normal like a firepit that’s safer on rocks or concrete? you’re just laying down on the grass, where the dog shits, slowly getting drunk and incredibly itchy from the grass as a sprinkler douses you?
picturesque lawns
oh maybe that’s it, the only people I’ve ever met with picturesque lawns are wealthy and wealthy people ain’t fucking normal
Or you could just not water it, not fertilize it, not pesticide it and simply run the mower over it whenever the assorted vegetation (which will be mostly grass) exceeds a certain height.
It won’t look “nice neighborhood” nice but it’ll still be fine.
i love when my yard is a giant mud patch rimmed by yellow with an occasional glimmer of green when the crabgrass blooms
the orange site is absolutely populated by the type of shithead who’s proud to be on their HOA’s board
having a lawn is so easy first just hire a gardener to come every week, second live in a place where tap water’s inexpensive
motherfuckers
Ah, copilot is so extremely popular that MS has decided to bundle it into O365 for
freea moderate “depends by region” price increaseI’m sure that’ll totally make people want it even more! hordes at the gate!
what a terrible fate https://archive.ph/X2s3z
today’s a fucking trip and a half
in a mall I saw some Honor laptop[0] ads with “AI” pitch sauce slathered all over it
later walking between art galleries I saw a roadsign ad for a property sales company promising “more effective strategies using AI” (more effective strategies for… selling… houses…? I guess…? (x up for doubt))
and now I get this shit in my mailbox from someone who absolutely purchased a dataset with this address in it:
From: Ai Everything GLOBAL <newsletter@event.aieverythingglobal.com> Subject: Join the AI Elite—G42, TII, DIEZ, Dell & More![0] - I didn’t even know they were in ZA, but nope, 2-floor hanging banners and ads allllll over elevator doors and shit
