2026-01-14 13:17:54
Everybody who wants to understand Generative AI should read articles like this.
#AI
Everybody who wants to understand Generative AI should read articles like this.
#AI
Long weekend coming and want to avoid it? I’ve got recent posts!
New this month:
• https://adrianroselli.com/2026/02/you-know-what-just-dont-split-words-into-letters.html
•
Apple unveils Apple Creator Studio, a "groundbreaking collection" of creative apps like Final Cut, Logic Pro, and Pixelmator Pro for $12.99/month or $129/year (Chance Miller/9to5Mac)
https://9to5mac.com/2026/01/13/apple-debuts-apple…
Month to Month: What we learned in September https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/month-to-month-what-we-learned-in-september-x6384
Texans-Steelers on Wild Card Weekend Monday: What We Learned from Houston's 30-6 win https://www.nfl.com/news/texans-steelers-on-wild-card-weekend-monday-what-we-learned-from-houston-s-30-6-win
Just wrote this:
"Real American citizens would never encounter such an un-American experience, and rest assured if you do get taken, maimed or killed by ICE, or ICE-like forces, you weren't really an American to start with, were you?"
https://stuff.davidaugust.com/ice-didn
😕 Questions are being raised about microplastics studies—here's what's solid science and what isn't
https://phys.org/news/2026-01-microplastics-solid-science-isnt.html
What They're Saying: Eagles prepping for Maxx Crosby's 'high motor' https://www.raiders.com/news/what-they-re-saying-eagles-prepping-for-maxx-crosby-s-high-motor-nfl-week-15
Trump gave the middle finger to a heckler during a campaign tour at a Ford plant in Michigan Jan. 13,
-- mouthing "F you" in what the White House described as
"an appropriate and unambiguous response."
The ruffian was touring a Ford F-150 assembly facility in Dearborn when a worker on the plant floor shouted what sounded like
“pedophile protector”
as Trump stood on an elevated walkway
Trump turned toward the person and appeared to respond…
Rule of Creative Research:
(1) Never draw what you can copy.
(2) Never copy what you can trace.
(3) Never trace what you can cut out and paste down.
from my link log —
Starlink's high-speed satellite Internet: What's the catch?
https://blog.apnic.net/2021/04/22/starlinks-high-speed-satellite-internet-whats-the-catch/
saved 2021-04-22
Richard Scarry’s What Do People Do All Day in Fascist Busytown? - McSweeney’s Internet Tendency
https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/richard-scarrys-what-do-people-do-all-day-in-fascist-busytown
“EU Revives Plan for Year-Long Data Retention Across Digital Services, Including Encrypted Apps … Officials insist they do not intend to compromise encryption or read private messages. What they want is the so-called metadata: who contacted whom, from where, at what time, and through which service.” – https://
Hi, #Anarchism! 🚩🏴
I want to grow my RSS feed and get more variety in what I read. What sources do you all check out regularly? That could be news outlets, journalists, organizations, unions, blogs, or individual creators.
Please share your favorite anarchist, socialist, or syndicalist-leaning websites in the comments. I’d really like to see what everyone else is reading and may…
Arm Angles in American Sign Language: The Textbook That Teaches What Other Textbooks Ignore
Watch any native signer and then watch an intermediate student. The difference is not in the handshapes. It is not in the facial expressions, though those matter. The difference lives in the arms. The native signer's shoulders engage when emphasis requires it. The elbows extend and contract with meaning. The signing space expands for formal address and contracts for intimacy.…
“So I guess what I’m trying to say is, the new workday should be three to four hours.“
Yup! That's what every worker knows and should have been fighting for with solidarity for decades. Every neurodivergent person knows that we can't do concentrated work for more than 3 hours, and that extended hyperfocus blocks drain our energy for the next day. It's not sustainable.
Steve Yegge writes about how AI Capitalism creates an energy vampire
Series D, Episode 02 - Power
VILA: Not too close. The gap is all connected with the thickness of the door. So what's the difference between Seskas and Hommiks?
PELLA: How do you know how thick it is?
VILA: By the stress pattern.
https://blake.torpidity.net/m/402/132 B7B4
A rogue AI enrolls in your online class, then publicly shames you when you remove it. This just happened in a dev forum. Are we ready if it happens to our courses?
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jonippolito_a-rogue…
A useful tidbit that stood out to me in this article:
“Noem [by lying] is training and testing the MAGA base”
Huh − “training and testing”
There’s a dance here: the regime is training its supports in how to think about and talk about current circumstances — but also testing the waters, seeing what sticks, what they’re willing to believe. Recognizing this as a bidirectional dance seems useful. Framing it as “training” instead of “telling” seems useful. Recognizing it as “testing” seems useful.
https://thinkbigpicture.substack.com/p/ice-noem-dangerous-playbook
#Santiago de Chile zeigt, wie eine konsequente #Elektrifizierung des öffentlichen #Nahverkehrs gelingen kann.
Dank klarer politischer Vorgaben, stabiler Rahmenbedingungen und innovat…
First guest post on my website by the expert on German folk tales @… ☺️
Jürgen explains the Wild Hunt phenomenon, what the tales have in common, introduces the leaders of the hunt, and reveals why the spirits are on the move at all:
"Offshore wind had a terrible 2025. What can be learned?"
#WindTurbines #Energy #Renewables
Whimpering here. I am going through a large envelope of negatives with a few prints. From what I see they go back to the early 60s. Almost no information about when, where or who. For some of them I can make an educated guess based on clothing styles and cars.
A few rants (and a lot of whimpering)
- NEVER CUT NEGATIVES INTO INDIVIDUAL IMAGES
- don't dump multiple rolls of negatives into one sleeve.
- when there is writing they used pen and that fades over the d…
I don't really have words for what to say about what happened at Bondi Beach earlier, except to applaud the incredible bravery of those who intervened, to offer condolences to those who are grieving, and to shake my head in disbelief at anyone who thinks killing Jews could ever be the answer to anything. #BondiBeach #Bondi
We always talk about things that get worse with #Aging - but what about the things that get better? For example I feel that people become more confident and able to make faster decisions, especially about what they like or want to do. Can you think of anything else that improves with aging?
Trying to get ideas for a research fellowship proposal :)
Today's example of media and analysts actively disbelieving what's plain:
Why is the Trump regime so interested in Greenland? It doesn't make sense! There's no economic, military, or geopolitical explanation!
But what if there were? And what if it was territorial expansion for its own sake? What if it was, in a word, imperialism? Those on the radio this morning entertained all sorts of increasingly odd theories but, somehow, empire-building was a bridge too far.
Just a few months ago, AI coding was described as an overblown “auto-complete”, auto-complete has been around for functions and classes and what not since…I don’t know, years ? imagine if PR were rejected because the developed had used auto-complete to help him/her write a piece of code, or worst, a bug fix? I fully understand that no humans should be tasked to review spam PR & spam automated “contributions” but if a contribution is “generated” by Cla…
This is the face of the dog who inherited the postie bike. #auspol #libspill https://social.chinwag.org/@abc_bot/11
🇺🇦 Auf radioeins läuft...
The Last Poets:
🎵 Understand What Black Is
#NowPlaying #TheLastPoets
https://thelastpoets.bandcamp.com/album/understand-what-black-is
https://open.spotify.com/track/1GpQEeboj3NTZFX7U5vA8T
A look at Confer, an open-source AI assistant project from Signal creator Moxie Marlinspike that is designed to provide end-to-end encryption for AI chats (Dan Goodin/Ars Technica)
https://arstechnica.com/security/2026/0…
New Gist: What you can do about the Abuse Factory
As a follow-up to yesterday’s Gist, I’ve done a list of four things you can do about X without even having to put down your phone.
https://www.thegist.ie/the-gist-what-you-can-do-about-the-abuse-factory/<…
Month to Month: What we learned in September https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/month-to-month-what-we-learned-in-september-x6384
If you're in #tech and struggling to figure out what your career look like now — this piece is my answer. You've heard "it's here to stay" or "it's better than nothing."
Reject these frames.
Look at the system being built around you. Manufacturing validation for "inevitable" success. Rewriting our roles from human-centered creative to featu…
RE: https://universeodon.com/@georgetakei/116064657955859408
I love the sentiment, but this is actually exactly what law enforcement has always been. It's always been political, always racist, always arbitrary, always genocidal.
ICE is just what happens when they think they can get away with it. The other abuses require a lot more investigation. Abolishing ICE is a good first step.
For all folks who have just now become enraged with the brutality of law enforcement agencies like ICE: I hope we can walk together, and learn from each other, until our ways part... But I do hope you'll walk a little farther with me after we achieve our shared goals.
What They're Saying: Eagles prepping for Maxx Crosby's 'high motor' https://www.raiders.com/news/what-they-re-saying-eagles-prepping-for-maxx-crosby-s-high-motor-nfl-week-15
RE: https://tech.lgbt/@themediumkahuna/116047260251013856
And don't stop with your physical appearance! Maintaining a “professional appearance” often focuses on what you are saying, what you are writing online¹, how you present yourself – your emotio…
Don't know who this guy is, but I would love someone else's take on what he is saying here. I can't decide if this is utterly apocalyptic, or a guy who is just up to his eyeballs in the Kool-Aid.
Context: was sent to me by a financial advisor friend
https://shumer.dev/something-big-is-ha
🔥 A SOLID "GRAY ZONE": What is happening NOW on the ZAPORIZHIA FRONT?: https://benborges.xyz/2026/02/10/a-solid-ampquotgray-zoneampquot-what.html
Love seeing people get excited over silly things: https://www.reddit.com/r/nextfuckinglevel/comments/1ploig7/consistency_is_what_makes_the_difference_and/
Gotta take your moments of joy
So what's a good alternative to Firefox (I'm using it when I'm not on my Mac). I don't want their new "AI Window" stuff and I don't want to support it.
It has to work on Windows and an iOS version as well, and can sync passwords between those.
Please only suggest things you personally use and like.
I'm ruling out Chrome (spyware) and Brave (homophobic owner).
(Wish Apple would still make Safari for Windows.)
I am so, so tired of having to vet every one of my choices around a technology. Which platform? Which settings? What's a privacy risk? What has downstream negative social consequences? How do I compensate for the functionality I lose when I make a conscious choice to limit or refuse?
1/n
#rant
what if ___ (good thing) but instead, ___ (worse thing)
Breaking: Thing everyone expected to happen, happens. Now what? (Charles Gaba/ACA Signups)
https://acasignups.net/25/12/11/breaking-thing-everyone-expected-happen-happens-now-what
http://www.memeorandum.com/251211/p150#a251211p150
What would you do if the federal government wanted you in jail and Jamie Dimon was paying your legal bills?
Here’s what Charlie Javice did:
She spent money on luxury hotel upgrades, extravagant meals and cellulite butter, a personal care product that some people use to treat their skin, as a lawyer for the bank said in a hearing on Friday.
Then, she sent the receipts to the bank.
All told, Ms. Javice has spent more than $60 million — and counting — on her defense, acco…
What's next for Mike Tomlin: Are Browns, Ravens possible landing spots for former Steelers coach?
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/whats-next-for-mike-t…
@… yup. It is ugly where we are, and odd how clearly we have seen what where we are has looked like in other real and imagine contexts.
And yet for many, today is somehow, astoundingly, just another Friday.
There is still not full consensus on that what is happening is in fact happening.
What do the Cowboys need in Week 15 to keep playoff hopes alive? https://insidethestar.com/what-do-the-cowboys-need-in-week-15-to-keep-playoff-hopes-alive
Series A, Episode 12 - Deliverance
SERVALAN: Yes?
VOICE: [V.O.] Space Commander Travis is here.
SERVALAN: Send him in. [Travis enters and stands before Servalan's desk. She ignores him for a moment, concentrating on something else.]
https://blake.torpidity.net/m/112/224 B7B4<…
What A Shocker: ICE Tracking Pregnant Women, Even During Labor | Crooks and Liars
https://crooksandliars.com/2025/12/what-shocker-ice-tracking-pregnant-women
Nuanced and balanced blog about the role AI now plays in Coding, the good, the bad etcetera.
https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/01/developers-say-ai-coding-tools-work-and-thats-precisely-what-worries-them/
About AI disruption:
Have you read Something Big is Happening?
what do you think about it?
One thing I Know: in 3 years the capabilities are incomparable, the disruption WILL happen, no matter what you think about the technology and how/who is creating it.
https://
Google launches Gemini Personal Intelligence, linking to Gmail, Google Photos, Search, and YouTube history to provide context-aware responses, for paid users (Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET)
https://www.zdnet.com/article/google-gemini-personal-intelligence/
Month to Month: What we learned in October https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/month-to-month-what-we-learned-in-october-x7929
Stop calling it the Board of Peace. Call it what it is: Board of Criminals and Autocrats.
Within minutes of federal agents with ICE, the DEA and FBI arriving at the workplace,
a rapid response network mobilized to confront the agents carrying out an immigration raid at the Bro-Tex distribution center.
As community members rallied to halt the raid,
federal agents cordoned off the area and began trying to clear protesters.
Agents used pepper balls, OC canisters and pepper spray on the crowd
as they tried to clear a path for a convoy of their vehicles, s…
Grokkles
What Geno Smith's injury and Kenny Pickett starting mean for the Raiders https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/47286545/las-vegas-raiders-quarterback-geno-smith-shoulder-injury-backup-kenny-pickett
Month to Month: What we learned in October https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/month-to-month-what-we-learned-in-october-x7929
What the Addition of Mike McCoy Means for the Raiders https://www.si.com/nfl/raiders/onsi/las-vegas-what-addition-of-mike-mccoy-means
Politicians have now discovered that people are using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to protect their privacy and bypass invasive laws.
Their solution?
Entirely ban the use of VPNs.
Yes, really.
As of this writing, Wisconsin lawmakers are escalating their war on privacy
by targeting VPNs in the name of “protecting children”
in A.B. 105/S.B. 130.
It’s an age verification bill
that requires all websites distributing material that could conceivabl…
Series D, Episode 13 - Blake
BLAKE: Oh, most of it wasn't on Earth, Tarrant. Not what happened to me. [Arlen enters, Blake turns, Tarrant kicks the gun out of Blake's hand, shoves him into Arlen, and bolts out of the room, strongarming Deva on the way.]
ARLEN: Do you want him killed?!
https://blake.torpidity.net/m/413/…
Philip Rivers' impossible comeback, Joe Burrow's unrest and what sources are saying around the NFL
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/philip-rivers-comeback-joe-…
“Mandatory volunteering”, eh? If only there were a shorter word that described what that is.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/nov/14/uk-charities-condemn-plans-to-force-migrants-to-volunteer
Pretty intense sun dog
What's a sun dog? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_dog
Ukrainian soldiers: "What if we use fishing rod?" Two Russian drones later: It worked - Euromaidan Press
https://euromaidanpress.com/2026/01/12/ukrainian-soldiers-what-if-we-use-fishing-rod-two-russian-drones-later-it-worked/
Why Mark Davis' Attitude Is Just What the Raiders Need https://www.si.com/nfl/raiders/onsi/las-vegas-why-mark-davis-attitude-just-what-need
Q: At the end of this year, those extended Obamacare subsidies expire.
What's your message to those 24m Americans who will see their premiums go up?
TRUMP: Don't make it sound so bad.
Obviously you're a sycophant for Democrats.
You're obviously a provider of bad news for Republicans.
https://
Series D, Episode 03 - Traitor
SOOLIN: Teleport operating. [Teleport sound. Dayna and Tarrant arrive]
VILA: What are you smirking about? Do you realize we've got half the Federation battle fleet looking for us?
https://blake.torpidity.net/m/403/495 B7B3
49ers-Eagles on Wild Card Weekend Sunday: What We Learned from San Francisco's 23-19 win https://www.nfl.com/news/49ers-eagles-on-wild-card-weekend-sunday-what-we-learned-from-san-francisco-s-23-19-win
Columbia faculty received notification from the university that we can submit claim forms asking for part of the $20 million Columbia is paying out to Jewish or Israeli members of the community who have been victims of antisemitism.
Quite a few of my Jewish colleagues are trying to figure out if they qualify
-- because of what happened to them when they expressed opposition to the genocide in Gaza
- Peter Woit (Not Even Wrong)
“In a recent meeting where BBC studio executives again voiced problems, I realised my choices. Obedience and being quieter to remain making Monkey Cage, or resign and have the freedom to speak out against what I believe are injustices. I chose the latter. It broke my heart.”
– @…
Told you folks he’s a good egg :)
Speaking of subscription services, reminder to occasionally pretend to cancel your e.g. Adobe subscription (but it works with many other subscriptions as well) just to see what they offer you to stay, often it's quite substantial savings.
Salesforce makes Slack's new AI-powered Slackbot generally available, helping users answer workflow questions, draft documents, schedule meetings, and more (Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET)
https://www.zdnet.com/article/slackbot-ai-agent-upgrade/
What Has Shocked Pete Carroll About the Raiders' Season https://www.si.com/nfl/raiders/onsi/las-vegas-what-has-shocked-pete-carroll
Series A, Episode 13 - Orac
VILA: Yes, but Zen's only a machine.
AVON: So is Orac. [He removes the activator and throws it across the flight deck.]
VILA: That's all right, that's fixed Orac.
BLAKE: No, it hasn't.
JENNA: What do you mean?
https://blake.torpidity.net/m/113/484
Katie Porter here.
Trump has no problem creating chaos and pain for Americans until he gets his way.
Democrats need to use our power
– just like we did last week on Election Day
– to send a clear message:
𝗪𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘂𝗺𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧.
I’ve spent my career protecting people and taking on Wall Street’s corporate greed.
I know what it takes to fight, and to win
– and as California…
Chargers-Patriots on Wild Card Weekend Sunday: What We Learned from New England's 16-3 win https://www.nfl.com/news/chargers-patriots-on-wild-card-weekend-sunday-what-we-learned-from-new-england-s-16-3-win
Over the past two months the U.S. has blown up at least 20 boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.
“80 people have been killed in what are extrajudicial executions under international law,” says Juan Pappier, Americas deputy director at Human Rights Watch.
The Pentagon claims the boats were carrying drugs but officials have acknowledged they don’t know who has been killed.
The U.S.now has 15,000 military personnel in the region.
Series B, Episode 02 - Shadow
ENFORCER: Before or after he finds out that you are lying.
LARGO: Was I lying?
ENFORCER: It would make me very unhappy to think that you tried to use me, like some fool.
https://blake.torpidity.net/m/202/373 B7B3
What I'm hearing on Joe Burrow's future and the NFL's coaching interest in Marcus Freeman https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6885980/2025/12/13/nfl-rumors-news-joe-burrow-marcus-freeman-giants/
What Raiders HC Requests Say About Organizational Outlook https://www.si.com/nfl/raiders/onsi/las-vegas-hc-requests-say-organizational-outlook
Series B, Episode 01 - Redemption
BLAKE: Zen, identify the hostiles.
CALLY: Forty-two seconds.
BLAKE: Zen! [Zen burbles]
AVON: The information must be bypassing the translator systems.
CALLY: Thirty-five seconds.
https://blake.torpidity.net/m/201/97 B7B3
NFL wild-card round by the numbers: What to know about thrilling weekend of playoff games https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6965133/2026/01/13/nfl-wild-card-round-numbers-interesting-facts/
Mike Tomlin is out as coach; what's next for Steelers? https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/47600022/mike-tomlin-steps-head-coach-jobs-next-pittsburgh-steelers-aaron-rodgers-quarterback
What They're Saying: Media reacts to Raiders hiring Klint Kubiak https://www.raiders.com/news/what-they-re-saying-media-reacts-raiders-hiring-klint-kubiak-head-coach-nfl-2026
What They're Saying: Media reacts to Raiders hiring Klint Kubiak https://www.raiders.com/news/what-they-re-saying-media-reacts-raiders-hiring-klint-kubiak-head-coach-nfl-2026