ravenspoint.bsky.social

Listened to Geoffrey Hinton's interview on CBC Ideas. www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/... 🧵1/4

Last night's moonset over the Ottawa River was like an inverted exclamation point and so bright it woke me at 4am.

Corvids are widely considered some of the smartest animals on Earth, with cognitive abilities that rival those of great apes and young human children. Their problem-solving skills, use of tools, make them standout subjects in animal intelligence research. Original post

The word from Glasga'

"Canada is becoming a kind of law-abiding underdog badass outlaw nation" - says Guy Lawson in Rolling Stone. Or, as we used to say, not America.

"It's personally scary to be a scientist in America" biomedical scientist Professor Philip Zamore explains why he is leaving University of Massachusetts for a job in Canada. He's not alone. www.theglobeandmail.com/gift/d7abbef...

If you could see inside a LLM, it would look like this. The neural net that implements a LLM is actually a digital simulation of a 1960s analog computer of incredible size.

AI cannot be trusted for ANY task. It is especially unreliable for maps. I asked for a map of Morocco and Casablanca ended up in the middle of the Atlantic. Here is an even worse example generated by OpenAI. No one who hopes to keep their job should be using or investing in AI. It is sloppy.

One of the world's most majestic granite spires, Mount Cerro Torre in Patagonia, Argentina, is clothed in intense alpen glow, its reflection broken by thin ice which formed during the cold, windless night. #photography #nature #bluesky #landscape #mountains #landscapephotography #naturephotography

Waiting for the 'walk' light at Sussex & Rideau, I was hit from behind by a cyclist. I thought it was illegal to ride your bike on a sidewalk crowded with pedestrians? Why isn't that enforced? Bloody dangerous!

I am exasperated with people accusing programmers of "gatekeeping" programming. We were practically dragging people through the gate. Do you know why a mindless LLM can tell you so much great programming information? It's because we've been sharing that information for free online for decades.

Good recipe: fewer yahoos, more grownups. www.theglobeandmail.com/gift/d7abbef...

It is creepy when google, microsoft, etc, etc try to ram AI down out throats. Now the government wants us to meekly accept this flawed and expensive brain substitute.

Transformations and metamorphizations at M. C. Escher exhibition in Montreal.

Handwriting Boosts Brain Activity and Memory. Studies demonstrate handwriting enhances spelling, memory recall, strengthens letter recognition, and promotes understanding of complex concepts. Handwriting is a valuable tool for learning. thecsrjournal.in/study-finds-...

This. Allllllll of this.

In 2017, Criselda Vasquez painted this portrait of her parents and titled it "The New American Gothic." Last month, her father, the man in this portrait, was abducted by ICE after being in the US for 30+ years. The family is now struggling with bills. A GoFundMe has been started: gofund.me/456d8a193

It’s a weird way to spend significant chunks of time during the first half of a mandate that’s supposed to be all about moving speedily. And I wonder what we’d all be saying if the previous prime minister were doing it.

AI 'hallucinations' are bugs. These bugs are not a typing error in a line of code. They are intrinsic flaws in the large language model ( LLM ) design. Using a flawed design is utterly stupid. It is insanity to spend billions on a flawed design.

Dr. Maryam Mirzakhani was the first female winner of the Fields Medal, the most prestigious award in #mathematics. Today, May 12, is International Women in Mathematics Day--the day chosen specifically to honor Mirzakhani's legacy. She was born #OTD in 1977. #WomenInSTEM

"Why are we continuing to embed erratic AI systems in workplaces, classrooms, hospitals and public services as though the harms are acceptable?"

"Citizenship without politics isn't neutrality - it's obedience."

237 days! Also nights! Look at all those spare oars. But just two arms.

Soon, they will be here ( Eastern Ontario )

Given the abundance of neurodivergent people in science, it is far more likely that autism causes vaccines - Cristopher Penn

The irony of the Attorney General of the United States being fired by a convicted felon Imagine that 😆

"Mr. Trump does not do geopolitics; he does ego-politics. Wounded ego-politics"

Another new visitor today. Red shouldered hawk, I think.

A pair of swans paddled past, graceful and lordly. They did not appreciate me dashing around looking for the camera and paddled away huffily. Tundra swans I think.

Newton's 1st Law comes to life with stunning visuals! See how inertia keeps objects in motion until a force intervenes. Physics has never been so captivating.

As millions protest at No Kings this weekend, the Trump regime is violently cracking down on people exercising our 1A rights. As a human rights lawyer, I share 13 things you can do to better protect yourself and your community from Trump's goons. No paywall. Please share.

by Shari Vincent

Sunset Ireland - (March 15th), [Timelapse] Sunset over West Field tonight, Co. Galway, Ireland #Sunset #Ireland #Scape #Galway #Ireland #Landscape #Sky #Clouds #SkyScape #Photography #TimeLapse

Remembering Dr. Maryam Mirzakhani on #PiDay π First female winner of the Fields Medal, the most prestigious award in #mathematics. Dr. Mirzakhani died in 2017 from #breastcancer at age 40. #WomenInSTEM #WomensHistoryMonth

Crocuses.

Today is shaping up to be a real peach! Whatever you’re up to, wherever you are, I hope your day blossoms beautifully!

Eisenhower

In 1927, Vera Menchik became the first Women's World Chess Champion at age 21 & is the longest-reigning women's champion in #chess history. She defended the title 7 times, held it undisputed until her tragic death in 1944 at age 38 in a V-1 rocket bombing during #WWII. She was born #OTD in 1906.

On grey & dank days, with rain stottin' off pavements and steam gatherin rivulets down cafe windaes, Edinburgh streets entice me to their glowing embrace #WestEnd #Edinburgh stot: bounce or cause to bounce against a surface (Scots)