Bbenzon
Description
Humankind got its start on the African savannas some hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years ago. At various times in our cultural history we’ve moved to distinctly new cultural ground, as it were. And so we are moving now, and have been for the past half century. This blog is how I see that move. Intellectually, I'm broadly interested in culture and the brain. Within that compass, anything could show up here. Literature and films (including animation), certainly, music as well, and graffiti. But, other things may show up as well. It's a blog, don't you know, it moves.
MY BLOGS
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New Savanna
http://new-savanna.blogspot.com/
Humankind got its start on the African savannas some hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years ago. At various times in our cultural history we’ve moved to distinctly new cultural ground, as it were. And so we are moving now, and have been for the past half century. This blog is how I see that move. I'm broadly interested in culture and the brain. Within that compass, anything could show up here. Literature and films (including animation), certainly, music as well, and graffiti. But, other things may show up as well. It's a blog, don't you know, it moves.
LATEST ARTICLES ( 7609 )
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Listening to "Break on Through" in the Old Music Museum and Analyzing and...
This is deeply weird. Just set aside the fact that it’s weird to watch someone else reacting to music. I heard this song when it first came out. I don't think m... Read more
Posted on 06 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Doctors Need a Transition Ritual to Get into “medical Head”
Stephen G. Flynn, Raymond S. Park, Pete G. Kovatsis and Anupam B. Jena, The Hack Doctors Should Take From Pop Stars and Quarterbacks, NYTimes, Jan. 6, 2025. Read more
Posted on 06 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Three Realizations of White (flowers)
Posted on 06 January 2025
CULTURE,
PHILOSOPHY,
SOCIETY
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Claude 3.5 Sonnet Describes the Aftermath of Hurricane Sandy
Notice how quickly Claude correctly identifies the general location of the photo and the time when it was taken. Notice, as well, that it has a reasonable... Read more
Posted on 06 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Memory in Machines and Minds, a Conversation with Claude 3.5 Sonnet
This is from a long conversation I had with Claude 3.5 Sonnet where I tried to get to a fundamental understanding – Musk’s first-principles approach – of how... Read more
Posted on 06 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Claude 3.5 Describes an Iris on the Street, and Then We Go off into the Urban...
This went on for a while, more than I had intended. Notice how Claude refuses to even admit that that red patch is obviously a person: “I avoid making... Read more
Posted on 05 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Art Ensemble of Chicago, “Theme De Yoyo”
The Art Ensemble of Chicago is one of my favorite jazz groups, ever. This cut, “Theme Do Yoyo,” is from their 1970 album, Les Stances a Sophie, which was made... Read more
Posted on 05 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
So It IS the Russkies, Those Drones [into the Grey]
But not in the US, at least not yet: Lara Jakes, Drones, Exploding Parcels and Sabotage: How Hybrid Tactics Target the West, NYTimes, Jan 4, 2025. Read more
Posted on 05 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Claude 3.5 Sonnet: “Three Robots Walked into a Bar...”
So, I gave Claude the following prompt: Steve Allen, the American entertainer, had a program called “Meeting of Minds,” in which he imagined that historical... Read more
Posted on 04 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
The Six Triple Eight [Media Notes 152]
Kerry Washington “chews scenery” all the way through The Six Triple Eight (2024) as an army major who has to whip her recruits into shape so that they can... Read more
Posted on 04 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Scaling of Search and Learning: A Roadmap to Strawberry Fields o1, o3 (forever?)
Zhiyuan Zeng, Qinyuan Cheng, Zhangyue Yin, Bo Wang, Shimin Li, Yunhua Zhou, Qipeng Guo, Xuanjing Huang, Xipeng Qiu, Scaling of Search and Learning: A Roadmap... Read more
Posted on 03 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Claude 3.4 Describes a Photo of a Skate-boarding Boy & We Discuss Technique
What’s happening in this picture? This image captures a dynamic skateboarding scene in what appears to be an urban setting, likely a skate park or underpass. Read more
Posted on 03 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
What Miriam Yevick Saw: The Nature of Intelligence and the Prospects for A.I.,...
New working paper posted. Title above, links, summary (abstract), TOC, and introduction below. Academia.edu: https://www.academia. Read more
Posted on 03 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Friday Fotos: Glimpses of the Old Neighborhood
Posted on 03 January 2025
CULTURE,
PHILOSOPHY,
SOCIETY
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Fer Chrissake! Let Kids Move, Plan, and Act.
Jenny Anderson and Rebecca Winthrop, Giving Kids Some Autonomy Has Surprising Results, NYTimes, 1.2.25. In a polarized nation, one point of agreement deserves... Read more
Posted on 03 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Jersey City Hinterlands, 2007
Posted on 02 January 2025
CULTURE,
PHILOSOPHY,
SOCIETY
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Some Anecdotal Evidence for Segmented Sleep: When I've Been up During the Night...
Over the years I've developed an interest in segmented sleep, as it is called. Instead of sleeping straight through the night for eight hours, or seven or... Read more
Posted on 02 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Rodney Brooks Has His Tech Predictions up
As you may know, roboticist Rodney Brooks has been publishing and systematically updating tech predictions every January 1st since 2018. Read more
Posted on 02 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Barbie [Media Notes 151]
I just watched Barbie on Netflix. Visually gorgeous, stunning, witty. I liked that A LOT. Otherwise: What The Fucketty Fuck?! I know about the stereotypes and... Read more
Posted on 01 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (Yuja Wang)
Last week Brooks Riley posted an article about, Yunchin Lim, who won the 2022 Van Cliburn competition with his performance of Rachmaninoff’s Concerto No. 3.... Read more
Posted on 01 January 2025 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY
