Artifact, the social news app founded a year ago by Instagram’s co-founders, is shutting down..
I thought Artifact sounded intriguing and kept meaning to try it but I never got around to it. As it is, I see far more interesting links than I will ever have a chance to read. I have zero interest in an app that will show me more.
Apparently, many people felt the same way.
John Gruber says the reading experience on Artifact was not great.
OpenAI Quietly Deletes Ban on Using ChatGPT for “Military and Warfare”. Generative AI’s tendency to hallucinate makes it seem like a bad fit for military applications.
Your pacemaker and open source software. Using embedded medical technology, such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, or insulin pump? What’s running inside is a complete mystery.
Implanted medical devices running proprietary software present security vulnerabilities and lock up data where doctors can’t get to it when needed. That’s a problem open source advocate Karen Sandler knows about firsthand because she has an implanted pacemaker/defibrillator running proprietary software.
Why Google will waive egress fees for customers ditching GCP. The Register says Google is trying to placate regulators in the US and Europe even as Google tries to push those regulators to turn the screws on Microsoft.
Here is what puzzles me about “Bears Discover Fire:” There are at least three storylines in this super-short story: The protagonist, a 61-year-old man, dealing with his family. The protagonist’s mother is dying. And, of course, the bears discovering fire.
Why did Bisson choose these characters and their stories, bringing them together with the bears discovering fire?
RIP Terry Bisson. Here is one of his most famous stories, the excellent “Bears Discover Fire."
I just re-read the story. It’s very short and simple on the surface, with a lot going on underneath that I don’t quite understand. At some point, I might Google until I find an analysis—or, even better, try to figure it out on my own. But for now, I’ll just appreciate the story.
He also wrote the short story “They’re Made Out of Meat.” He wrote novels too, but he was a master of short fiction.
A client asked for a synopsis of each of five articles, and I think it makes sense to do them all as a single document.
When I need to locate the document again, I will find it by searching for its filename.
Will future-me remember that the plural of “synopsis” is “synopses?”
The Weirdest Advice From Vintage Entertaining Guides. “Here, written between 1880 and 1987, is a sampling of some of history’s most unhinged entertaining advice.”
Maybe I’m unhinged but most of these seem reasonable to me.
Oxiclean gets an insulated coffee carafe or Thermos clean as a whistle, without scrubbing
First, put the Oxiclean in the carafe. I used a partial scoop of Oxiclean, just above the line on the plastic scoop that comes with the product.
Fill the carafe halfway with hot water from the tap. Cover and shake.
Open and fill the rest of the way with hot water. Let it sit for a while. I let it sit for two hours; you can probably do it for less time.
The carafe is like new.
I’m passing this on because it does not seem to be widely known. Every time I Googled for how to clean a stained Thermos, I saw a lot of tips about denture tablets and dishwasher soap, which don’t work well at all in my experience. And the shape of the carafe makes scrubbing impractical.
Are whistles particularly clean, by the way?
I read the Robert B. Paker Spenser novels voraciously in the 80s. Spenser often eats food with Syrian bread. What the hell is “Syrian bread?” I wondered.
I’m currently listening to the audiobook of “Early Autumn,” which is not one I have re-read in more than 30 years. Spenser is eating Syrian bread again.
Google did not exist when I first read the books, but it does now. And now I know:
“Syrian bread” is another name for pita bread.
Katelyn Jetelina, Your Local Epidemiologist: Real-world data shows fall 2023 vaccines are effective. Vaccines help prevent against long covid and are safe and effective for children. Also, transmission takes hours. “Quick passersby at a grocery store are far less risky than staying in a house with someone infected.”
… AI isn’t going to replace you at work. But it’s already augmenting your shitty boss’s ability to rip you off, torment you, maim you and even kill you in order to eke out a few more basis points for the next shareholder report.
Cory Doctorow: The REAL AI automation threat to workers
Today’s fun fact: Rachel Bloom, who plays Elaine, Julia Child’s new director on “Julia,” became famous in 2010 with a viral music video: “Fuck Me, Ray Bradbury.”
The song is a banger, funny, clever, even dirtier than the title suggests, and — if Bloom is doing the singing and is not electronically augmented — she’s got a surprisingly good set of … pipes.
‘Julia’ Canceled After Two Seasons at Max. Disappointing. We just started watching the new season, and are enjoying it.
What ‘The Sopranos’ Iconic Filming Locations in N.J. Look Like Now. On the anniversary of the show’s premiere, its creator and location manager reflect on some of its iconic settings and why they were chosen.
Clarence Thomas and the bottomless self-pity of the upper classes. Poor bastard had to scrape by on a mere $285,400 per year.
Things I can’t be arsed to care about: Hunter Biden’s crimes, Lloyd Austin’s prostate, Taylor Swift, Claudine Gay, anything else having to do with Harvard University, sports, the golden globes, the Republican primary, Oppenheimer, the Barbie movie, Jonathan Majors, Pete Davidson and Selena Gomez.