It’s cold outside. Christmas is creeping in to my December. We have the smallest Christmas tree we’ve had in decades. It’s funny, but mostly sad. I’m hoping it does its job when it’s decorated.
I’m 40% through Harari’s latest book - Nexus, “I just started Part II and excited about the jump to the computer generation and the inevitable concerns about AI” (excerpt from my update on Goodreads). AI is on my mind as I doomscroll through social media and simultaneously feed the social media algorithms with my own content, wondering if my more regular postings have any unseen, indirect, small impact on my friends’ feeds. In my business world, I work for a large software company that is laser-focused on AI. I am confident we need to harness AI to increase automation, but luckily the nag of the dystopian what-could-go-wrong scenarios are more fiction than being close to reality. On technology, I’m comfortable explaining the impacts of post-quantum computing on cryptography - I have to be, it’s important for my customers and long-term data security. The news this week that Google has made massive strides in quantum computing raises the stakes and may be a tipping poing to enhance fundamental encryption algorithms we all use every day.
I like music, I like to have background music tuned to my activities throughout the day. In my office, I have a small radio that is tuned to CBC Radio 2 and its format aligns quite well with my weekday work patterns. Right now, sitting in at the kitchen bar, finishing breakfast I have a long-playing YouTube video on the TV - you may have seen these types of videos - I use them a lot. I prefer jazz tones and some bossa nova with pretty and calming visuals, but also get into dancier content with live? DJs at the mixing table. I’m sure watching the videos is messing with my YouTube viewer algorithm, like the algorithmic impact of listening to Sleep Sounds on Apple Music. I’m wondering if this lovely Jazz music I’m listening to right now is a recording or AI generated? Hold on, hitting Shazam…the result “Postcards: Cozy Bedroom, Cozy Apartment, Cozy Places” - suspicious!
I’m enjoying the NFL. It helps the Detroit Lions are playing so well, but I think I’ve decided that American football is the best sport this side of the Atlantic. The main reason - every game (and almost every play) matters. Netflix and Amazon Prime have realized the appeal of in-depth sports documentaries and I often say to new fans of sport, if you’re interested, becoming a fan, docu-series like Drive to Survive (for F1) and Receiver (for football) are superb.
I’ve been up for a few hours now and feel I’ve let my mind flow onto this page and I can get on with the rest of my day. It’s cold outside. I’m going for a walk and then a good coffee when I return and get cozy.
Post-walk: a perfect example of There’s No Such Thing As Bad Weather, Just Inappropriate Attire.
