J. Martin

February 12, 2023

Not Written by Robots

Last week was filled with university tasks, from staff meetings to exam organization to planning next term’s course schedule. True to my new year’s resolution, however, I managed to keep things in perspective and, well, manageable for a change. Another and hopefully final round of editing concluded last week for my book contribution, and my own book Ludotronics is now in production at CRC-Press. Next step: companion website with online resources! I’m fixing to convert the current site—an interim version with stripped-down content from the 2019 edition—to WordPress, but I haven’t found a theme yet that fits my purpose. Maybe I’ll just clone one of my other WordPress sites, rearrange things a bit, fill it up, and call it a day. Haven’t made up my mind, though.

Until last week, I hadn’t contributed a lot to the ongoing discussion on current developments in AI; mainly because I was sick throughout January, but also because I needed time to dig into it a bit more. Now I published two things: a lengthy (14 min read) essay at medium.com on “Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, and Transformational Change,” and a linked-list post at just drafts on Ted Chiang’s “ChatGPT Is a Blurry JPEG of the Web.” As for photographs, I uploaded a new album to Flickr with 20 shots from the Sensō-ji temple ground in Asakusa, Tōkyō; kept my daily vintage-style squaries at Pixelfed rolling; and filled my Instagram accounts betweendrafts and voidpunkverse with various pastime stuff.

For the Sunday Distractions, please enjoy this cute keyboard accessory, this hilarious sampling bias cartoon, and this live performance of 『Maybe I Know』 by The Jazz Avengers that I could listen to all day.

J.