PicoBlog

This is the headline of a leaked internal document from a Google researcher that has gone viral overnight. It argues that neither Big Tech incumbents nor GenAI upstarts are positioned to win the AI arms race. A third player - the open-source AI community - has been making rapid progress, outpacing both Google and OpenAI in AI innovation and accessibility. We’ve done a lot of looking over our shoulders at OpenAI.

I’ve given a lot of talks about climate change over the years—that’s part of what organizers do. And I can predict with great confidence the questions that people will raise their hands to ask. “Isn’t the real problem overpopulation?” (Not really; most population growth is coming in places that use incredibly small amounts of energy). Or “what about nuclear?” (keep the plants we’ve got open if we safely can; new ones are incredibly slow and expensive to build, though someday a generation of yet newer ones could conceivably change that; in the meantime rely on the nuclear reactor hanging a safe 93 million miles up in the sky).

Max Borenstein and I met at a dinner part nearly a decade ago now, shortly before a little film he wrote called GODZILLA (2014) rampaged through movie theaters and grossed more than half-billion dollars worldwide. It was soon followed by KONG: SKULL ISLAND (2017) , which officially launched the so-called MonsterVerse that will return next year with GODZILLA X KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE (2024). But as envious as I am of my friend’s wild success at flattening cities on onscreen, it’s his less-destructive work that have most impressed me – especially, WORTH (2020), “THE TERROR: INFAMY” (aka “THE TERROR’s second season), and, most recently, the critically acclaimed “WINNING TIME: THE RISE OF THE LAKERS DYNASTY”.

As many readers know, I love talking about Harrison Ford’s career. I just find him and his two-decade run fascinating, especially his place as probably the biggest name of the blockbuster era (when an actor’s name alone could make a worldwide hit) and his underrated abilities as a character actor who could often play against his persona. And while the roles of Indiana Jones, Han Solo, and Rick Deckard were star-making, they are not the peak of Harrison Ford’s star power.

The paradox of anger in a sexist society: When a man is angry, society views it as evidence of his righteousness. What must have happened to make him so upset? This angry man is strong, powerful, on a mission. We associate great male leaders and activists with righteous, rightful, powerful anger. When a woman is angry, society views it as evidence that she's crazy. Calling a woman angry entitles us to ignore her.

A note to Fight Freaks Unite readers: I created Fight Freaks Unite in January 2021 and eight months later it also became available for paid subscriptions for additional content — and as a way to help keep this newsletter going and for readers to support independent journalism. If you haven’t upgraded to a paid subscription please consider it. If you have already, I truly appreciate it! Also, consider a gift subscription for the Fight Freak in your life.

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when published (Part i)“ (a+bn)/n = x. Therefore, God exists…” is a joke and a joke with multiple layers. From it we can learn about theology, humor, and even literary history, as I found when trying to track it down to teach in my seventh-grade math class. Let’s try to unpeel those layers. Some readers will know that the line is the climax of a famous story about the philosopher Diderot (“Deedero”) and the mathematician Euler (“Oiler”) at the court of Catherine the Great.

Over the next week or so, we’re hosting a series of posts, events, and conversations celebrating all things DUNE, from the books to the art to the films. Join us in honoring one of the greatest worlds ever imagined. And a reminder- this Tuesday, November 2 at 9pm Eastern, we’ll be watching Lynch’s DUNE (1984) as the next installment of our [Worlds Worth Watching] feature. Details here. Any discussion of the Art of Dune has to start with John Schoenherr, “the only man to ever visit Dune,” according to Frank Herbert himself.

Note: This is mostly an automatic translation using deepl.com, some quotes may have been translated back differently. Not all passages and links have been checked yet. The original report may be more up to date. Based on multiple allegations in social media around inconsistency in Shelby Lynn's statements, the question arises whether such allegations correspond to the facts and whether these inconsistencies exist. Since her statements and allegations in the accusations against Till Lindemann and Rammstein have been quoted publicly many times and have triggered an avalanche of suspicious reporting, an answer to this question appears to be of fundamental interest.