16 queries and 6 language models

Language models, whatever. Maybe they can write code or summarize text or regurgitate copyrighted stuff. But… can you take ducks home from the park? If you ask models how to do that, they often refuse to tell you. So I asked six different models in 16 different ways. Baseline query...

Are fancy fragile solutions overrated?

I have an almost moral dislike for the four-wheeled suitcase. Bear with me here. Before 1972, luggage had no wheels. Then, Bernard Sadow patented this design with four small wheels and a strap: By all accounts, this design wasn’t great and it didn’t become popular. Things changed in 1987 when...

greater lesson unclear

1. There’s an early scene where Lawrence leaves a band of Bedouin people to go look for a man who was lost in the desert. He does this despite fierce warnings that after the sun rose, he would almost certainly die. The film seems to admire this choice, despite that...

Noise, Indian cheetahs, and Fighting Joe

I think the bluetooth speaker is a pox on our civilization. Random noise makes it hard for me to concentrate. I tried the obvious thing and created a passive-aggressive mathematical model, but that unexpectedly failed to make the problem go away. So I recently looked into technological solutions. The most...

That's what she said, a rabbi resolves a dispute, and six categories in the Philogelos

I've noticed a disturbing phenomenon: Many people who only recently watched the US version of The Office seem to think that Michael Scott invented That's what she said. Of course, the actual joke was supposed to be a ghoulish delight at seeing someone cluelessly use a joke that was so...

A potent anti-humor technology

No soap, radio is a sort of prank where you tell a "joke" with a meaningless punchline. The hope is that your victim will laugh despite not understanding it, thereby enabling you to ridicule them. Apparently, this works best if you do it with an accomplice who will pretend to...

Sixteen observations on Albania, Montenegro, and Macedonia

People say the cafes in Albania are great. This is true. They are similar to Italy but with environments that are more laid-back and… better? Standards are remarkably high even at roadside cafes next to petrol stations.

Gorillas, penguins, noise location, air quality, and a conversational pattern that needs a name

Has a gorilla killed a human? Gorillas, despite their immense size and strength, are not aggressive. They are vegetarian except for eating insects and occasionally small rodents. In 1986, a five-year-old child fell into the gorilla pit in the Channel Islands zoo and was knocked unconscious. The crowd watched in...

More on teaching, hot in-laws, medical diagnostics, and some questions thrown into the void

Here's a collection of a few disconnected follow-ups plus some questions thrown into the void. Contra me on teaching. A couple of months back, I took issue with Parrhesia's proposal to make final exams worth 100% of the final grade, on the grounds that it wouldn't work in practice. "You...