601 now you know

March 08, 2024

Well geez, I wanted to write about ebikes, but I'm not quite ready to write about the ebike we just got, so I went scrolling through screenshots to see what I need to get rid of on my phone, and wound up here, with the screenshot above.

What are we looking at?

The top row of pictures were shown to people. Then the people were put into an fMRI, which scanned their brains as they thought about the image they were shown. Then that data was given to an AI, which produced the bottom row of pictures.

You think of a teddy bear, tech reads your thoughts and makes an image of a teddy bear.

Yes, I guess today we're starting off with the cutting edge of tech: brain to computer direct interfaces.

Here's another one, that doesn't require an MRI machine. This is a working prototype from an MIT student. I forget the details, but the basic gyst is it listens to your thoughts, as I wrote in the caption. Then I think it transmits data via audio vibrations into your ear. Or something like that. They're saying it's a good interface for people with mobility issues.

Something tells me that these external listening devices are going to be way more popular than a chip implant.

(That's happening now, too.)

It's nuts, some of these old screenshots are less than a year old and are already out of date. Here's a formula for LLM prompts. I was reading today there's a new way to hack LLMs. You ask the forbidden questions using ASCII art. I kid you not.

AI loves a challenge.

And is apparently in it's teenage phase. Next time you want to generate AI porn on one of these images generators, try typing in 816 80085.

Let's see, what else is in here...

Hmm, I don't know what this is. But there are more...

Still not quite sure. Whatever I was reading was pretty deep.

Oh. Something to do with a house divided failing. Or how if we all pull together, we might make it. But if we pull apart, other fates may befall us.

Sounds about right.

Geez, it's almost like I should toss these screenshots rather than subjecting you to speculation. But nah... So, yeah, guess what? Machines can live where we can't. Or can they?

Phew, finally something I don't need to ask my AI about. Here's a chart of people who pressed the emergency alert button on their Garmin Inreach. I've mainly heard about this device from sailors, who use it as a cheap(er) way to text and get weather reports from the middle of nowhere.

Apparently, they don't use it to call for help nearly as much as some other groups. That's probably partly because there aren't as many sailors as hikers or drivers, but also likely because sailors are taught from the get go to be self-reliant when things go astray, and generally you don't go out onto the water without some level of knowledge.

At least, not if you're prepared enough to have a satellite device. (Besides the one in your phone.)