Are You Talking To Me?

Some thoughts about communicating via the Internet.

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A newly acquired old camera had a small problem, so I went for some help to the Photrio site which caters to film photographers.

My request:

I recently acquired a Yashica YE. Everything works well except the frame counter which does not advance.
I would appreciate any insights on getting into the counter mechanism and fixing the problem.

Here was the first response I got:

Could be a number of things. You will have to open the camera and examine the counting mechanism to see what is wrong.

Here is a case where a little plastic piece broke, causing film counter failure...

The lack of specificity in the reply along with veering off into a lengthy explanation of an unrelated problem signaled that the response was AI-generated.  Someone had clearly just submitted my question to a chatbot and posted the result without further elaboration.

Another indication I have seen recently of AI intrusion is at Slashdot, a site where people post summaries of reports about interesting technical developments.  Many of the summaries have gotten  longer, which I think is the result of AI use.  Composing a good summary requires some time and effort which is saved by the AI intervention.  So, in this case, probably a useful implementation.

On the other hand, one has to wonder where all this is heading.  It seems possible that Slashdot and similar websites could ultimately be managed with virtually no human intervention.

I asked the DuckDuckGo AI what percentage of postings at Facebook were likely produced by AI and was informed that about 40% were not from humans.  The amount of images produced by AI on the Internet looks to be around 70%.

Since it is apparent that AI postings on social media and in the academic world are fairly easy to detect I am wondering if website operators might be asked to provide AI-free versions of what is offered, and if that is something that site visitors might find attractive.  It certainly has some appeal for me.

In fact, I have found that some success in avoiding AI is within my grasp without any outside intervention.  Much of the AI content one comes across is generated by algorithms that tailor what is presented based on AI-perceived preferences and personal characteristics which AI monitors have detected and accumulated about each of us.  So avoiding detection of your identify when interacting with a website is a step toward sought-after anonymity.

One way to achieve at least partial anonymity is to right-click on links and select the option to "Open in New Private Window". Give that a try, for instance, with accessing Google News and you will get a much pared down version of the daily news without all the click-bait fluff based on your personal record which has been assembled by the AI algorithms.

The "Private Window", of course, is still a window and some revealing information will get through including your geographic location and browser choice.  So, if you really want more anonymity you will need to take further steps like adjusting your browser for maximum security, or even using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) for accessing the Net.

The problem with those privacy measures is that they can quickly begin to interfere with the functionality and usefulness of the user's experience.  Such measures, if used widely, will also affect the bottom line of the big site owners for whom your identity is a commodity.

The Saturday Ride

 We had a little preview of Winter earlier in the week with a bit of morning snow on the sidewalk.  Then the sun returned, so a ride on the trike into Old Town was obligatory.

Custom '32

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And an inspirational message...

He is the undisputed master of self caricature.

You are being watched...

I mentioned in a recent blog post how Artificial Intelligence (AI) may intrude into the practice of commercial image making, likely eliminating the role occupied up to now by photographers. Today I came across an illustrated discussion about how AI might take on the role of the art critic. The centerpiece of the discussion was quite a fine photograph by a fellow I follow on Flickr, Leon Van Kemenade.

What Leon did was to request an AI critique of his photograph of a woman on the street holding an umbrella. The response was appropriate, but lacking in some interesting ways that the photographer describes quite well. The thrust of his argument was that the AI critic made a reasonable but inadequate response which omitted a consideration of how the photographic image might be interpreted.

Several things occurred to me when I considered the photograph and the discussion, starting with the idea that AI is going to intrude on every human endeavor including those activities which may have until now been considered uniquely human. I agreed with Leon's analysis of the inadequacy of the AI critic's evaluation of his photograph.

I also think that the shortcomings of the performance might also be considered due in part to the fact that the prompt was inadequately framed. It seems highly likely that adding some detail as to what was required would have produced something closer to what was wanted.  Also, making some more information available to the AI critic would have produced a learning opportunity which would certainly have altered future responses to similar questions.

Another angle on consideration of the AI response was that there was some value in spite of of the perceived inadequacy.  For instance, it is not hard to see that an AI summary of the issues in question could prove to be a useful time saver. In fact, students at all levels are using the technology in precisely that way now.

Many are understandably nervous and critical about the perceived threats from widespread AI implementation.  However, it is probably also important not to overlook potential benefits. An example of this balancing act is to consider one AI implementation that has now been in place for a considerable period of time -- the application of AI to the game of Chess.  I.E.

GPT-4o mini (via DuckDuckgo):

"A computer first beat a chess grandmaster on May 11, 1997, when IBM's Deep Blue defeated the reigning world champion, Garry Kasparov, in a six-game match. Deep Blue won the match with a score of 2-1, making it a historic moment in artificial intelligence and computer science. This event marked a significant milestone, demonstrating the capabilities of computers in strategic thinking and complex problem solving."

That development seemed to foretell the possible coming supremacy of machines over humans.  That may turn out to be true, but in the meantime AI programming has provided a means for practitioners of the art of Chess to deeply investigate potential strategies.  It also seems very likely that the opportunity AI provides for online chess competition has contributed to the appearance of a great number of youthful chess prodigies from all over the world.

So, it seems important not to jump to conclusions about such a complex issue. Given the billions that are currently being poured into AI development there is likely no way to stop the train.  Better, perhaps, to consider to what ends the technology will be applied and to whose benefit.

Thanks

We and our dog, Roxie, are thankful for water in the river.  

 There are still some muddy banks and shallows, but Roxie is undeterred and splashes in as if it were the first time she has seen water.

Classical

 I was pleased to see that today's Daily Kos features one of my favorite musical groups, The String Queens.

Trump's Calculation

 Trump's sudden U-turn on release of the Epstein files made headlines and raised questions about his motivation.  It seems to me the explanation is pretty simple.

Trump is counting on the fact that everyone - including his MAGA base - knows that he is a sleazy pervert who has made a habit of molesting women along with all his other abuses of power.  That is a pretty easy conclusion to reach since the wide knowledge of his character did not stop his being elected to the Presidency twice.

In addition to that it looked very likely that Congress was going to vote for release of the Epstein trove, leaving Trump's only option to be risking a veto which would only fuel evidence of guilt.  And, he is also counting on using his usual effective strategy of denying evidence and asserting that accusations are simply Democrat-sponsored lies.

Along with all of the above Trump will continue to intimidate the media and to create diversions, including the idea that he cares about affordability and healthcare.  More ominously, if the tide of opinion seems to be moving against him he may move beyond killing small boat drug runners to starting a war with Venezuela.

The Wednesday Ride

I am enjoying some renewed mobility thanks to my trike.  I think it is at least a couple years since since I've gotten to the end of 15th St. where the little nicho is located. 

The weather has been perfect for such excursions, and it looks like we'll enjoy another ten days before the first frost.

New Mexico was visited Tuesday night by the Northern Lights.  We could only see a hint of them to the North, but our daughter got a nice view from the eastern heights of the city

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PS: 

I see that I photographed the ikon in its nicho nearly five years ago with my then newly acquired Leotax Elite.