Personal chat thread

[Time_Traveller]

Well this is something I would never think of doing on Wikipedia but I am planning from this Saturday to enquire and join Wikiproject: Epilepsy via the ILAE Wikiproject Project who oversees it now, it has been on my mind for awhile now and I have subscribed to the relevant pages in the meantime. I know I have limited knowledge on the subject even though I have it but it would be a an interesting learning experience to know more in the process from now on and of course, this would dramatically effect the outcome of future articles that I do on the site as well. I have some ideas to improve the main page of it too since it hasn't been properly edited since its creation in 2015.

[wjfox]

A friend and I went to Bill's Hammersmith Restaurant this evening.

This was our dessert.

"Bill's Flower Pot" –– edible pot, soil, flower... all made of chocolate. With strawberries.

[Time_Traveller]

Well this is something I would never think of doing on Wikipedia but I am planning from this Saturday to enquire and join Wikiproject: Epilepsy via the ILAE Wikiproject Project who oversees it now, it has been on my mind for awhile now and I have subscribed to the relevant pages in the meantime. I know I have limited knowledge on the subject even though I have it but it would be a an interesting learning experience to know more in the process from now on and of course, this would dramatically effect the outcome of future articles that I do on the site as well. I have some ideas to improve the main page of it too since it hasn't been properly edited since its creation in 2015.

Well an update on this, by the looks of it I have emailed the Wikipedian who is in charge of ILAE however, I have had no reply since posting the email that Saturday so I have decided to message the Medicine talk page on Wikipedia to see if I have better luck within the next 2 weeks.

I am planning however, over the next 2 weeks to create new categories/pages under the Wikipedia Commons for my photographs and expand it so for example if I took photos in Gloucestershire it would be under my name/Gloucestershire and so forth. I have had some inspiration earlier this morning from another another Wikipedians account by looking through his commons account page and perhaps, creating a church one too in the near future. I am starting to expand the United Kingdom photograph taken on "this date" too by encompassing all my photographs I have taken over the last 8 years into this category. It is rather strange how I get ideas on Wikipedia to totally overhaul my commons pages when looking through them.

[Jakob]

I'm working on creating a height map of the Kyanah homeworld, so far I've hardcoded elevations at the corners of quadrangles and used bilinear interpolation to fill in the intervening points at a resolution of 0.1 degrees per pixel at the equator (more at other latitudes to have a consistent level of detail). This should correspond to 1 pixel per 17-18 km everywhere on the planet. Unfortunately this means that most oases and city-states will be either invisible or just a single pixel. 0.01 degrees per pixel would mean 1 pixel per 1.8 km which would actually show most city-states and oases in some detail, but then the image would be 648 megapixels and likely no screen could render it at full detail anyway.

I also have some misgivings about the bilinear interpolation, it feels a bit janky and blocky in places. I will likely try biquadratic or bicubic interpolation. On top of that, I will implement Perlin noise at multiple scales (to have differently-scaled geographical features), which will hopefully also smooth some of the artifacts. But in any case, I'm pretty pleased with myself for having minimal artifacts at the poles. Of course, we can't forget the impact ranges and general prevalence of craters, so craters will be scattered lightly in geologically active biomes, heavily in geologically inactive biomes, and extremely heavily in shattered biomes, using the biome map I already made. Hopefully that will make things pop a bit.

Once I have this, I can use a separate Perlin noise map (perhaps blended with linear interpolation too) to control the height of the water table (likely using the biome map for parameters, as usual) and create oases where it intersects the surface. With oasis locations in place and the biome map, we have everything we need to a) place city-states to make the first proper political map and b) begin making an actual visualization of the world. I will likely texture it pixel by pixel using elevation, oasis, and biome data to determine the average color of the surface in each pixel--in some places this will be vegetation of various types, in others sand and rocks--if I feel ambitious, I may even try to generate seasonal variations. Likely the albedo will be slightly higher than Earth's to help explain why Tau Ceti e is not a molten hellhole. The city-state data can also be used to create imagery of the night side.

Sorry for the lossy gif :/

[Time_Traveller]

My USB extension lead is on its last legs and has decided this evening to blow a socket as they say and can only charge my laptop, I have bought a new one and arrives on Wednesday so, until then I will chuck out the extension lead plus only go on my laptop and mobile including charging downstairs until it arrives. However, in a few months I will be changing my plug socket to a USB one after I have finished redecorated and newly furnished my bedroom so, will rely on it less.

[firestar464]

wasted my time on braindead stuff on the internet. I feel really braindead myself. gee, futurism really is a more productive use of time.

[wjfox]

After 4.5 years... it finally got me.

I'm one of the Infected now.

[Jakob]

What if the Earth is just a big version of this, for aliens?

[40lightyears]

After 4.5 years... it finally got me.

I'm one of the Infected now.

I will carry on for you, my friend. I'm one of the few who didn't get it yet

[wjfox]

I'd say I'm 75% recovered now. First 24 hours were hell (extreme chills, pounding heart, aches and pains, etc). Next couple of days were easier, although felt very fatigued. It then basically developed into a cold.

I've been coughing a lot today, but my congestion has improved, and I have more energy. However, I've been told to avoid strenuous activities for the next 3-4 months, as putting too much strain on your body is apparently a major cause of Long Covid.

One more thing. I've lost my senses of smell and taste. They are pretty much 99% gone. This hasn't bothered me as much as I thought it would, and I'm sure is only temporary (1-2 months?). But it feels rather weird to have these "blank" senses.

[Ozzie guy]

I want to get away from AI/futurist optimism. The TLDR is I have used AGI being near and probably overestimating the potential of technology such as FIVR as a cope for a long time.
It has allowed me to think about my real world life less and instead hide in a utopian fantasy world whereby in the near future I will be handed a silver platter with everything I want.
When I have talked about goals and such here in the past most were quite pathetic because they were connected to my retreat from the world, (small irrelevant fluff around things which didn't actually require me to have a normal life for the most part).

A very optimistic very popular AI youtuber I liked is apparently a grifter now according to r/singularity and he had made sus videos like he has some other weird YouTube channels. He had a large impact on singularity circles, people have also turned on Sam Altman I haven't had the bother to look into the drama but yeah tech CEOs have an obvious agenda to hype everything AI related.


I want to try and develop the mindset of a "normie" when it comes to AI and tech.

It might not be true but I think it is healthy to assume mainstream news/opinions on AI are more accurate than "fringe" opinions such as opinions from those who believe in the singularity or tech CEOs who want to make profit. (I use quotations because I actually do respect these fringe views but they are probably not healthy/wise to hold).
That even mainstream AI opinions can be hyped up.
The singularity might happen in my lifetime but I should stick to short mainstream opinions rather than a long term hope.
Even if an AI breakthrough occurs I'll try to listen to the mainstream view, mainstream opinions will be updated accordingly and it's better to accumulate wins and have my opinion uptick with the mainstream than overhype myself believing something that probably wont be true.

I don't plan on leaving this site or anything it's a weird post to make on personal chat but at the end of the day futurism is a major hobby of mine and has had an impact on my life.

[firestar464]

I wouldn't believe that AGI isn't near or something. TBH the mainstream media hasn't really explored the idea of AGI, and the pace of AI development still brings us on track to AGI early next year, if not later in the year.

Do think that r/singularity isn't a very healthy place though.

[Vakanai]

I wouldn't believe that AGI isn't near or something. TBH the mainstream media hasn't really explored the idea of AGI, and the pace of AI development still brings us on track to AGI early next year, if not later in the year.

Do think that r/singularity isn't a very healthy place though.

Nowhere on reddit is healthy - the place is infamous for being a cesspit.

[Cyber_Rebel]

Do think that r/singularity isn't a very healthy place though.

Yeah, they've displayed quite the... fervor, whenever "two papers" are released. There is nothing wrong with being excited about the future (this is literally who we are) but clinging on to every Open AI release as if your very life depended on it, isn't mentally sane. They also decry the very same company if they aren't releasing anything at the speed they like, without the self-reflection that we're still pretty ahead of where many predicted we'd be now or even a year ago. In "some" of their minds, all scientific progress must have halted if GPT has not risen on some dubious leaderboard.

In any case, I do hope we're better here or more balanced on expectations. As for the MCM, there actually was a BBC report not that long ago, and the former Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair touching on the subject with Patel.

[Time_Traveller]

Finally as part of redecorating my bedroom, I have just ordered a new bedroom carpet which is called Black Magic it is black with shiny silver bits in it from one of my local carpet shops. Hopefully, I can finish it all by the end of August now after stop and starts since last April.

[Time_Traveller]

Well I didn't know I would do this ever, in my lifetime but I have decided to eventually and hopefully make a 3D Printing business with a little help from my friend where I stall my 3D printer at his place from August and officially have it up and running from January. However, I have lost interest in Wikipedia and I knew that in past chats on this thread I had wanted to do something new on it but I haven't found my oomph to create articles etc anymore. Hopefully over the next few months, I hope to change this by creating my business and put it on 3D Printing websites and go from there and if I want to go back on Wikipedia too.

I also wanting to start swimming again which is more a Summer thing nowadays but hopefully I can persuade him to go every 4 weeks from now on and every 2 start walking abit. Just need to convince myself on the weeks I don't go to his to do the same at my local pool etc.

[wjfox]

A friend and I went to Frameless, near Marble Arch – it's another of these "immersive" galleries which have been springing up lately. This one was probably the most amazing I've seen yet.

Five rooms, each with a different theme, and famous paintings being animated with stunning detail. Even the floors are interactive, as you'll see here. Almost like being in a holodeck from Star Trek!

[Time_Traveller]

It does show how much stuff you have accumulated over the years when you have just filled 2 boxes worth of books (mixed genres) and have packed these up ready for my new carpet to be placed down in a few days, so I will be going through the remaining stuff I have scattered under my bed and drawers after Monday to whether I would like to keep these items or get rid of them. As I am trying to be extremely minimalistic in my room now by buying what I need, not randomly buying things I think I need.

[Time_Traveller]

Well looks like I "inherited" a Samsung Galaxy S22 or similar version from my stepdad via his Dads old house as he went there to take more stuff out of it and a few weeks ago, he died and I attended his funeral but now I have 2 mobile phones my Huawei P40 which I am still happy still using plus just started a new 2 year plan for Three for it and this one, I could class it as my spare one just in case.

[wjfox]

Well looks like I "inherited" a Samsung Galaxy S22 or similar version from my stepdad via his Dads old house as he went there to take more stuff out of it and a few weeks ago, he died and I attended his funeral but now I have 2 mobile phones my Huawei P40 which I am still happy still using plus just started a new 2 year plan for Three for it and this one, I could class it as my spare one just in case.

^ Condolences to you and your family.

After a five-year break, I've been getting back into Elite: Dangerous. One of the features they've added is the ability to walk around in a spacesuit in both first and third person modes, so I've been trying that out.

Also, landable worlds include "tenuous" atmospheres now, up to 10% of Earth's density. So, you aren't just limited to airless vacuums, but can see a bit of colour in the sky.

Here's me exploring Anlave 9b, a small rocky moon. Very cold and with minimal surface gravity.