Too many things kept me from regular writing while I was away in Singapore, which also included a fantastic trip to Malaysia from Penang Island via Ipoh and Melaka to KL—where we arrived just in time for the Countdown and New Year celebrations at the Petronas Twin Towers. Everything was awesome, I tell you! Only thing that didn’t work out was an AI Tech conference at the National University of Singapore I had registered for, which was slightly pushed back for unknown reasons, and I neither had the nerve nor the money to rebook my flight. Bummer! Contrary to what some people believe—because I’ve articulated strong opinions at Medium and my secret level just drafts on both the social impact of LLM and the “AGI” nonsense it attracts like flies—I do see the phenomenal things text synthesis machines can do, and how they’re set to change the way we live and work. Maybe even in good ways—provided we manage to keep it from being buried under mountains of exploitative shit and corporate greed. And I dedicate time to keep up with the technical aspects, not least because it’s exciting! Besides that, I would’ve loved to make some academic connections—it’s highly unlikely that I wind up with a job in Singapore some day, but it doesn’t hurt to try. I’d buy a ticket tomorrow.
In the meantime, I’ve pushed out stuff. There were two posts at my blog between drafts about a jungle adventure and the National Gallery’s “Tropical” exhibition in Singapore, and before that on the Chaïm Soutine K20 exhibition and the notabu Neue Musik concert at Tonhalle. Plus, a number of brief movie reviews—among them Gojira Mainasu Wan, Napoleon, Perfect Days, and Miyazaki Hayao’s How Do Y’all Live? aka “The Boy and the Heron.” As for new albums on Flickr, I’m frantically trying to wrap up previous journeys so I can tackle fresh ones! My progress so far: I finished Beijing 2014 with new albums on CBD, China World Mall, Commuting, Beijing Olympic Park, NPAC, Beijing by Night, Mansions, District 798, and A Night Out. Then, I finished Tōkyō 2014 with new albums on Odaiba, New Transit Yurikamome, Ebisu, Zōshigaya Cemetery, Yasukuni Jinja, Imperial Gardens, Chiyoda, International Forum, and, once more, A Night Out. Also, I finished South Korea 2017 with shots I took along walks in Songtan and Suwon. As for Singapore 2019, I’m still on it—new albums so far include Tanjong Pagar (with The Pinnacle@Duxton), City Gallery, and Sky Garden 50th Floor (on top of The Pinnacle@Duxton). That’s a lot, so pick your poison :)
As for the Sunday Funnies, my favorite posts were this pun on Auld Lang Syne and this updated HAL 9000 AI prompt. Plus, here’s some cat content. Enjoy!
J.
In the meantime, I’ve pushed out stuff. There were two posts at my blog between drafts about a jungle adventure and the National Gallery’s “Tropical” exhibition in Singapore, and before that on the Chaïm Soutine K20 exhibition and the notabu Neue Musik concert at Tonhalle. Plus, a number of brief movie reviews—among them Gojira Mainasu Wan, Napoleon, Perfect Days, and Miyazaki Hayao’s How Do Y’all Live? aka “The Boy and the Heron.” As for new albums on Flickr, I’m frantically trying to wrap up previous journeys so I can tackle fresh ones! My progress so far: I finished Beijing 2014 with new albums on CBD, China World Mall, Commuting, Beijing Olympic Park, NPAC, Beijing by Night, Mansions, District 798, and A Night Out. Then, I finished Tōkyō 2014 with new albums on Odaiba, New Transit Yurikamome, Ebisu, Zōshigaya Cemetery, Yasukuni Jinja, Imperial Gardens, Chiyoda, International Forum, and, once more, A Night Out. Also, I finished South Korea 2017 with shots I took along walks in Songtan and Suwon. As for Singapore 2019, I’m still on it—new albums so far include Tanjong Pagar (with The Pinnacle@Duxton), City Gallery, and Sky Garden 50th Floor (on top of The Pinnacle@Duxton). That’s a lot, so pick your poison :)
As for the Sunday Funnies, my favorite posts were this pun on Auld Lang Syne and this updated HAL 9000 AI prompt. Plus, here’s some cat content. Enjoy!
J.