Tuesday, December 26, 2023
The 14th Amendment and the Supreme Court
Faces 12262023
As a tool of self expression, MidJourney can be very productive. You can spend all day and get no where, or you can spend an hour and get interesting work.
Tuesday, December 12, 2023
Theory About Why Cities Skylines 2 was Released Before It Was Ready
I have no excuses for playing computer games but it is the best way I know to procrastinate. And when you have problems that you really can not solve no matter how hard you work, then what could be more appropriate than to dig your own grave a little deeper by wasting time with a game?
Monday, December 11, 2023
Watching "Earthly Pleasures" by Jill Fraser being Mastered
Not only has Jill Fraser finished her album, Earthly Pleasures, but she has signed a record deal with Drag City. A record deal! Could an international tour be far behind? Drag City wanted to create a vinyl version of her work and so Jill went off to watch her album being inscribed on a lathe. I tagged along because I have always wanted to see how they did this.
Thursday, November 23, 2023
Politeness to Robots
Friday, November 10, 2023
1915 City of LA Traffic Planning Report
Thursday, October 26, 2023
Midjourney Continues to Surprise
Midjourney is sometimes brilliant, sometimes useless, sometimes surprising, but always a leap into the night. The images of a witch with curly blonde hair at her synthesizers was nearly perfect on the first try. The angel on the beach was an evolutionary result and not what I was aiming for although I think it moved in an entertaining direction.
Witch with synthesizers
Sunday, October 22, 2023
Unanticipated Consequences and Guilt
Wednesday, October 18, 2023
Mexican restaurant or Harvard?
This is a test of writing a blog post on my phone.
Thursday, October 5, 2023
Prohibited Terms in MidJourney and the Public Morality
Imagine the problem that Midjourney faces: to police the morals of millions of the worlds' citizens many of whom have very sick ideas of what they want to visualize. So if it finds a term that is prohibited, it just stops you cold and gives you a button you can push if you dont like it. Of course the button does nothing, but maybe it makes the user feel better.
I have innocently run into some of these, which I specify below as far as I remember. I speculate there are others that we can imagine that are also on the prohibited list.
Terms I have tried that dont work: latex, spandex, nazi, national socialist, bloody, swastika
The Black Flag of Vengeance Courtesy of MidJourney
Although MidJourney is clearly hit and miss, and can be frustrating, it can also be very productive. Here are a few concept sketches of a black flag with daggers and stars. Unspoken is the thought that this is a homage to the Wagner Group and their now deceased leader.
And these with more emphasis on the dagger element.
ChatGPT Release Forever of All Things
I offered to create a class picture of my high school reunion and was cautioned to be concerned about privacy rights. Hence, I asked ChatGPT to write me a release to own everything someone might do, for all purposes, forever, in all media, without compensation. I dont think this quite does that, but it is a fun first draft.
[Your Name/Your Organization]
[Address]
[City, State, Zip Code]
[Email Address]
[Phone Number]
[Date]
[Subject's Name]
[Subject's Address]
[City, State, Zip Code]
RELEASE AND WAIVER OF RIGHTS
I, [Subject's Name], hereinafter referred to as the "Subject," hereby grant to [Your Name/Your Organization], hereinafter referred to as the "Recipient," and its legal representatives, successors, and assigns, the absolute and irrevocable right and permission to use, reproduce, distribute, display, and publish in any media, now known or hereafter devised, including but not limited to photographs, images, ideas, intellectual property, and any related materials (the "Materials") depicting or created by me.
I understand that the Materials may be used for various purposes, including but not limited to promotion, advertising, marketing, educational, and editorial purposes, without any further compensation to me. I waive any right to inspect or approve the final product wherein the Materials appear.
I hereby release, discharge, and hold harmless the Recipient, its agents, representatives, and all persons acting under its permission or authority from any liability related to the use of the Materials, including but not limited to any claims for libel, defamation, invasion of privacy, or infringement of copyright.
I affirm that I am the sole owner of any intellectual property rights associated with the Materials and that I have the legal right to grant the permissions and rights outlined in this release. I agree that this release is binding upon me, my heirs, legal representatives, and assigns.
This release shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the [Your State/Country]. Any disputes arising out of this release shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located in [Your City/County].
I have read and understood this release before signing it and hereby acknowledge receipt of a copy for my records.
Subject's Name: [Subject's Full Name]
Signature: ______________________________
Date: ______________________________
Witness (if applicable):
Witness's Name: [Witness's Full Name]
Signature: ______________________________
Date: ______________________________
Monday, September 25, 2023
Sunday, September 3, 2023
Fundamentals for LLMs and Image Diffusion
Saturday, August 26, 2023
Photoshopped Mug Shots
Wednesday, August 23, 2023
Art, Moral Improvement and Midjourney
Is the 14th Amendment to the Constitution Real?
A recent editorial by Turley in thehill.com argues that of course the 14th amendment is not relevant or in current use. I dont expect Republicans to agree with me on much, but I dont appreciate it when they insult my intelligence. And this has larger implications.
I wonder if I am just being overly precious about what is standard debating / rhetorical technique. I find it offensive that a republican that has been so very adament about "original intent" and "every word is precious in the constitution" would then with a straight face say "oh, that 14th amendment, ha ha, they werent serious". When in fact they were very serious, the clause is to our amazement completely relevant to the current situation. But these are republicans which means that they have no credibility when it comes to actually defending and supporting this country (see two impeachment fails to convict, there will never be a better case for impeachment in our lifetimes). The conclusion I reached long ago is that it does not matter what arguments a Republican makes, they arent serious, they are just lying to steal the money. Well, OK, nobody's perfect, but this is a very dangerous situation and this kind of glib bullshit reinforces the belief that the Republican party is the enemy of this country and must be removed from any critical political and judicial position. There is no point in compromising with these people. They are literally the enemy just as much as, for example, Vlad Putin is.
A corollary of this is that whenever a "democrat" says "bipartisan", I think "traitor". There is no point in compromising with fascists, they are just stalling for advantage.