More room for books

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I love books. Which is not exactly the same as saying I love to read. I love real, paper books. Hardback or paperback. Tried audio books a long time ago but that’s just having someone read a book to me. Just not the same.

While I’m being persnickety, I like to own the books I read rather than getting them from the local library. No idea how much I’ve spent for books on Amazon in the last 20 years. Don’t have to care, fortunately.

I did a book purge some years ago and donated a truckload to the local library for their annual book sale. I tried to hang on to books I thought I might read again but some good titles got lost in the process. But now I’m about out of shelf space again.


So today I assembled a new bookshelf and seeing all that room gives me a warm glow.

Why Do Your 30 Trillion Cells Feel Like a Self?

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I first became aware of David Eagleman in 2011 as the author of a little book titled Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives. Which led me to his book Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain As luck would have it, he gave a lecture later that year at nearby Westminster College (How the Internet Will Save the World: Six Easy Steps to Avert the Collapse of Civilizations) which I found fascinating. So when I discovered his weekly podcast I was quick to check it out and discovered he has done a deep dive into one of my favorite topics: the illusion of the self. (73 blog posts) Why Do Your 30 Trillion Cells Feel Like a Self? Part 1 & Part 2

WARNING: These are long. Part 1 is 30 min, Part 2 one hour.

Happy Winter Solstice

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ChatGPT: “The solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year, was celebrated in many pre-Christian cultures. Festivals like Yule in Scandinavian regions and Saturnalia in Rome marked this time with feasts, gift-giving, and decorations—elements that later found their way into Christmas traditions. When Christianity spread, many pagan practices were adapted to ease the transition and make the new religion more familiar. December 25th, chosen to celebrate Christ’s birth, aligns closely with solstice festivals, though the exact date of Jesus’ birth isn’t known.”

Thanks to James Nelson

Apple Intelligence and ChatGPT

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Like most iPhone users, I’ve never found Siri a particularly useful tool. I’ll use it to send a message or create a reminder or set a timer, but most tasks are too much for it. Enter ChatGPT, which can handle almost any task.

Using Siri in conjunction with ChatGPT seems to be the best of both worlds: smooth integration with the Apple operating systems, and all of the power of ChatGPT. This video provides some excellent examples.

1. Summarize and Get Info From PDF Documents
2. Summarize and Ask Questions In Numbers
3. Ask About Photos
4. Summarize Whole Email Conversations
5. Ask About Locations In Maps
6. Combine Image Playground and Copy Subject
7. Fact-Check Documents and Presentations
8. Create Sample Data
9. Figure Out What You Forgot
10. Help Answering Questions in Email and Messages

What Is A Thought?

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I have been fascinated by this question –and its many answers– for years. Forty-one posts (this makes 42). Additionally, I’m a fan of David Eagleman (tag link below). In the podcdast below he attempts to answer the question, What Is A Thought?

Couple of things about this video I found noteworthy:

  • Dr. Eagleman appears to be speaking extemporaneously. I suppose he could be reading from a prompter but it doesn’t sound/look like it. If not, what an amazing skill.
  • The brief video clips used to illustrate some of the ideas presented appeared to be AI generated. A little over-the-top but effective nonetheless.
  • Where would I have found a clear, coherent presentation by a noted neuroscientist on this topic before YouTube? Certainly not on network or cable TV. A college classroom (if you could afford to go) I suppose.

“Have you heard?”

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I spent far too much of 2024 following the news and took a much needed break a couple of months ago. A total blackout on television and almost nothing leaks through online. My mood has noticeably improved.

I’ve reached the stage of life — philosophically, geographically, and financially — where very little that happens in the world touches my life in any meaningful way. (Yes, I know, good for you, Steve.)

Bottom line: I’m much happier not following world (or local for that matter) events. Not knowing, if you will. And it turns out, if there is anything I really need to know, someone will call or text me: “Have you heard?” Hasn’t happened yet.

Sora

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Sora is “an  AI-powered platform that generates videos based on text prompts. It enables users to create visually engaging and dynamic video content efficiently. Sora integrates advanced generative AI technologies to produce high-quality animations, visuals, and video effects, often using just natural language descriptions. This tool is particularly aimed at creators, marketers, educators, and anyone looking to simplify video production while maintaining professional quality.”

New AI tools are coming faster than I can properly try out. The short videos below were created using a prompt of “an old man sitting on the tailgate of an old pickup truck, playing a ukulele.” For Barb the Gardener, I prompted “a yellow tulip with a butterfly on one of the petal, slowing flapping its wings.”

Image Playground

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Apple has issued updates to the iPhone (18.2) and the MacOS (15.2). It’s going to take me six months to explore all of the new features but the Image Playground app seemed like a good place to start. This video provides a good introduction. The app enables non-artists (like me) to create images. You can just describe an image and then tweak until you get what you saw in your head… or you can upload a photo and let the app use that as a starting point. Watch the video above if you’re curious. Below are some early efforts: Steve, David Brazeal, couple of Golden Retrievers, John Robison and Allen Hammock.