Tag: Arts and Culture | Page 2

illustration of a technological eye, close up, future concept, generative ai

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
October 21, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, Arts and Culture, Consciousness, film, horror, Killer robots, megan, Movies and TV, Robots, Science fiction}

Megan Review, Part 1

_{An AI doll that does more than just play.} _{Gary Varner
October 21, 2023

6

Arts & Culture}

Since it’s nearing Halloween, I figured now would be a good time to review some Sci-Fi movies that dabble in the horror genre. Megan came out in 2022 and has been referred to as Chucky for Zoomers. The premise is the same as the horror movie, Child’s Play, from 1988: a child gets a doll. Doll turns psychotic and kills people. It’s pretty straightforward. However, Megan differs by adding a technological twist, calling back to the creepy Furbies, which came out in 1998. Really, those awful toys should’ve had a horror movie of their own. There are many a tale of the mechanical monsters waking up under the bed in the dead of night six months after the poor child Read More ›

Checklist Writing Notice Remember Planning Concept,home office desk background,hand holding pen and writing note on wood table.

^{Type
post

Richard W. Stevens
Date
October 20, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI copyright lawsuit, Artificial Intelligence, Arts and Culture, ChatGPT, Copyright, Creative Writing, Creativity, Lawsuit, Legal, Writing}

Lawsuit Champions Human Creativity Over AI Mimicry

_{Copyright laws can protect against sophisticated plagiarism.} _{Richard W. Stevens
October 20, 2023

6

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

ChatGPT is specifically taught to read authors’ works so that a human can request ChatGPT to mimic the original authors’ content and style. Read More ›

Hands of a male photographer holding a digital camera taking pictures of a idyllic landscape with a lake and mountains while the picture shows at the display

^{Type
post

Peter Biles
Date
October 16, 2023

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Family, First Things, Gen Z, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, social media, tech use, Technology, Toddlers}

Two Notable Reads: Children and Tech and the Illusions of Photography

_{How much should kids be online? And is taking pictures taking us out of real life?} _{Peter Biles
October 16, 2023

4}

Teenagers' mental health has been on the decline over the last decade, particularly among teen girls. Idealized images can be fodder for the social comparison game. Read More ›

Modern glass elevator and escalator in a shopping mall. Empty mall.

^{Type
post

Peter Biles
Date
October 14, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Books, C.S. Lewis, Consciousness, don delillo, Euthanasia, immortality, meaning, novels, Technology, That Hideous Strength (book), transhumanism}

Zero K: A Novel About Escaping the World Through Technology

_{Zero K by novelist Don DeLillo is a frightening but prophetic tale of transhumanism and the temptation to evade suffering at all costs.} _{Peter Biles
October 14, 2023

4

Arts & Culture}

The book is prophetic, merging two pertinent issues into one speculative tale: euthanasia and transhumanism. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
October 7, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Books, dune, Frank Herbert, Movies and TV, Science fiction}

Dune Review, Part 2

_{A long-expected betrayal} _{Gary Varner
October 7, 2023

7

Arts & Culture}

The movie does a better job than the book in covering several of the intricate details involved. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
September 30, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, bene Gesserit, dune, Movies and TV, religion, Religious Order, Science fiction}

Dune Review, Part One

_{Despite the cynical ways of the Bene Gesserit sect, a deeper providence guides the story in Dune.} _{Gary Varner
September 30, 2023

6

Arts & Culture}

Despite the cynical ways of the Bene Gesserit sect, a deeper providence guides the story in Dune. Read More ›

modern full wall full-length bookshelf filled with colorful paper books, smart book background, generative ai

^{Type
post

News
Date
September 26, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, Arts and Culture, ChatGPT, novels}

Novelists Against AI

_{17 authors are suing OpenAI for copyright infringement} _{News
September 26, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

17 prominent authors including George R.R. Martin and John Grisham are suing OpenAI, the company responsible for ChatGPT, for copyright infringement and “theft,” according to the Associated Press (AP). The authors are among many in the creative field who are expressing concern over the ethics of AI use. A spokesperson for the Authors Guild said that it’s imperative to stop AI’s theft to preserve America’s “incredible literary culture,” according to the AP. Hillel Italie reports, The lawsuit cites specific ChatGPT searches for each author, such as one for Martin that alleges the program generated “an infringing, unauthorized, and detailed outline for a prequel” to “A Game of Thrones” that was titled “A Dawn of Direwolves” and used “the same characters Read More ›

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
September 16, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
aliens, Arrival, Arts and Culture, Extraterrestrial life, Gary Varner, Movies and TV}

Arrival Review, Part 2

_{On the strangeness of a language telling the future} _{Gary Varner
September 16, 2023

6

Arts & Culture}

When she asks why the aliens want to help humanity, the aliens respond by saying they will eventually need humanity’s help. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
August 26, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Science Fiction

Tagged
Adam and EVe, Arts and Culture, Consciousness, emotions, free will, god, mind, Movies and TV, Robots, tv, Westworld}

Westworld Episode 10 Review (Part Two)

_{Welcome to the dark end of the journey} _{Gary Varner
August 26, 2023

7

Arts & Culture, Science Fiction}

Last time, Teddy had just finished saving Dolores from the Man in Black, who turned out to be William all along. He takes her to the coast because that was where he promised to take her when they were performing their pre-programmed loop. However, the coast is apparently not very far because as Dolores dies in his arms, Teddy starts reciting a campy monologue, and then shuts down while the board applauds the speech. Even when they’re trying to escape their loop, the robots still, somehow, find themselves trapped in yet another one of Dr. Ford’s narratives. Dr. Ford appears, addresses the crowd, then orders for Teddy to be cleaned up, and for Dolores to be taken to a nearby Read More ›

Black labyrinth background with dof focus

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
August 19, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Science Fiction

Tagged
Arts and Culture, bad writing, character development, Dolore, Dystopian, Gary Varner, Man in Black, Mazes, Robots, Western, Westworld}

Westworld Episode 10 Review (Part One)

_{The maze isn't the only thing that's hard to navigate in this episode.} _{Gary Varner
August 19, 2023

8

Arts & Culture, Science Fiction}

I’ll start out with the most irrelevant plot first because almost no screen time is devoted to it, and it amounts to nothing in the end anyway. Hale successfully convinces the Board to fire Ford, not that he really cares. But Hale has been convinced this entire time that Ford is going to delete the park’s data out of spite. So, after Theresa is killed, she enlists Sizemore, a jaded writer who works for the park, to smuggle the data out through one of the decommissioned robots. This plan doesn’t work; however, because all the robots wake up by the end of the episode, and the data is lost in the vengeful horde. So, it’s a plot point that goes Read More ›

Shelves with books in a bookstore. Education and development. Blurred. Horizontal photo. A great background for your design.

^{Type
post

Peter Biles
Date
August 6, 2023

Categorized
Education

Tagged
academia, Arts and Culture, Conservativism, Culture, History, John Locke, Joseph Loconte, Liberalism, National Review, Politics, religion, The King's College, The Left, The West, Western literature}

Don’t Censor Western Books

_{For thousands of men and women, the Western canon served as a lifeline} _{Peter Biles
August 6, 2023

3

Education}

Today, people on the Left and Right worship politics. What if more conservatives put their wallets toward culture? Read More ›

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
August 5, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Arts and Culture, Gary Varner, mind matters, Movies and TV, Westworld}

Westworld: Episode 8 Review

_{Is misery the key to consciousness?} _{Gary Varner
August 5, 2023

7

Arts & Culture}

Episode 8 is one of the stronger episodes in the series. It starts with Bernard waking up after killing Theresa. Also horrified to realize he is a robot. Read More ›

Atomic weapon. After the US bomber Enola Gay dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. Generative AI

^{Type
post

Peter Biles
Date
July 29, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Atomic weapons, Bhagavad Gita, China, Christopher Nolan, Cillian Murphy, Communist Party, Harry Truman, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Japan, Nazis, Oppenheimer, Oppenheimer movie, Russia, Soviet Union, World War II}

American Prometheus: Destroyer of Worlds

_{Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" meets the hype and illustrates just how world-changing the atomic bomb was} _{Peter Biles
July 29, 2023

4

Arts & Culture}

“Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” So goes a line from the Hindu sacred text Bhagavad Gita, quoted by none other than J. Robert Oppenheimer, the quantum physicist who headed up the development of the first atomic bomb during World War II. Christopher Nolan’s new film Oppenheimer hit theaters on July 21 and has given audiences a taste of why the “father of the atomic bomb” entertained that haunting, little phrase. Nolan hit this movie out of the park. With a star-studded cast, a juxtaposed and non-linear storytelling mode, and a beautiful soundtrack to boot, some critics are calling it the most important movie of the century. That might be because the production of the atom bomb Read More ›

Female robot face, Artificial intelligence concept. Generative AI

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
July 29, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, Arts and Culture, Gary Varner, Science fiction, Westworld}

Westworld: Episode 7 Review

_{In which Theresa makes a terrible discovery} _{Gary Varner
July 29, 2023

6

Arts & Culture}

This episode begins with Bernard having a flashback of his son. It’s a very sad scene that turns out to be a dream sequence. After that, we follow Theresa to Hale’s apartment. Read More ›

Milky way in Utah over the Green River from Swasey's Beach.

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
July 22, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, Arts and Culture, Consciousness, Movies and TV, Robot sentience, Robots, Science fiction}

Westworld: Episode 6 Review

_{Maeve and the audience get some answers} _{Gary Varner
July 22, 2023

7

Arts & Culture}

In short, because the writers aren’t exactly sure how to explain the evolution of robot sentience, the viewers get mixed messages. Read More ›

close up portrait photo of humanoid android covered in shiny white grey and black metallic skin blue eyes glowing internal parts westworld style Volumetric Lighting ultrawide shot sharp

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
July 15, 2023

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
AI, Arts and Culture, Ed Harris, Gary Varner, Robots, Science fiction, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Westworld}

Westworld: Episode 5 Review

_{Mediocre writing made bearable by talented actors} _{Gary Varner
July 15, 2023

6

Science Fiction}

Episode Five opens with Ford talking to one of the parks older droid’s, something he has grown fond of doing over the years. He tells a story of an old Grey Hound he and his brother once had, and explains that one time, they let the dog off the leash. The dog was used to chasing a fake rabbit around the track, so when it saw a cat, it immediately went after it. But after the dog had caught the cat and killed it, he didn’t know what to do. This story obviously implies that Dr. Ford knows the droids are becoming conscious, and it seems as if he is the dog chasing the car and has finally caught it. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Peter Biles
Date
July 15, 2023

Tagged
Arts and Culture, ChatGPT, Elon Musk, Ethan Hunt, god, Government power, Mission Impossible, Movies and Film, OpenAI, religion, Tom Cruise, xAI}

Mission Impossible: A Dead Reckoning With Artificial Intelligence

_{The villain in the new blockbuster movie is an artificial intelligence known simply as "the entity."} _{Peter Biles
July 15, 2023

3}

I walked into the theater expecting a typical villain in the latest installment of Mission Impossible starring the inimitable Tom Cruise. And at the film’s beginning, you’re definitely led to believe that the pale, sour-faced Russians are behind yet another espionage program destined to thwart America and conquer the world. But that’s only a front. The real villain in the new blockbuster movie is an artificial intelligence known simply as “the entity.” The impossible mission, tasked to Ethan Hunt (Cruise) is to track down a mysterious key, made of two separate parts, that apparently can unlock the entity and reveal what it’s capable of. God in the Machine Hunt and his usual gang of expatriates find themselves at odds with Read More ›

JAN 1, 2019 - Los Angeles, CA USA - Los Angeles with Hollywood Sign at sunset seen from Kenneth Hahn Park, LA, CA

^{Type
post

News
Date
July 13, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, Arts and Culture, hollywood, Movies and TV, Oppenheimer, Strike, Union, Writers Guild of America}

Actors Join Hollywood Strike

_{With 160,000 actors now on strike, Hollywood will effectively shut down.} _{News
July 13, 2023

1

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

In a historic moment, over 160,000 TV and movie actors are joining scriptwriters in a Hollywood walkout, per the New York Times. The Writers Guild of America (WGA) initiated a strike in early May, demanding higher pay while expressing concern over the increasing role of artificial intelligence in TV writing. Now, actors are joining in with similar dissent. Brooke Barnes reports, The eyes of the world and, particularly, the eyes of labor are upon us,” Fran Drescher, the president of SAG-AFTRA, said. “What happens to us is important. What’s happening to us is happening across all fields of labor. When employers make Wall Street and greed their priority and they forget about the essential contributors who make the machine run, Read More ›

close up of dandelion on the blue background

^{Type
post

Peter Biles
Date
July 9, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Cormac McCarthy, Fate, fiction, Nick Romeo, Santa Fe Institute, Scientific American, Stella Maris, The Passenger}

Cormac McCarthy’s Love for Science and Mathematics

_{His interest in science and mathematics were not extraneous hobbies but performed a strong role in the fiction he wrote} _{Peter Biles
July 9, 2023

2

Arts & Culture}

The late novelist Cormac McCarthy passed away on June 13th in Santa Fe, leaving a legacy of fictional works grappling with fate, masculine alienation, and the possibility of a transcendent reality. McCarthy’s two last books, The Passenger and Stella Maris, which are intended to be read together, are about a brother and sister who are both brilliant mathematicians, and whose father helped craft the atomic bomb with the Manhattan Project. McCarthy’s work is haunted both by a bleak fatalism and glimpses of an enduring reality beyond the merely physical. His interest in science and mathematics were not extraneous hobbies; they performed a strong role in the fiction he wrote. Nick Romeo writes at Scientific American, Science is also a source Read More ›

Summer Storm, Monument Valley, Navajo Nation, Utah, USA

^{Type
post

Gary Varner
Date
July 8, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Fantasy, HBO, Native Americans, Nihilism, Robots, Science fiction, Season One Westworld, The Last Jedi, Westworld}

Westworld: Episode 4 Review

_{If nothing matters, then why are we doing this?} _{Gary Varner
July 8, 2023

7

Arts & Culture}

Episode three spent a great deal of time simply building the characters and world but had one good scene that explored some interesting ideas about consciousness. Episode Four has a lot more action and much less depth. It does; however, feed us some nihilistic nonsense along the way, and I couldn’t help but wonder why. In the first scene, we return to a glass room where Bernard is once again talking to Dolores. She expresses concern about her world, and this seems to be the first time Bernard has heard her communicating thoughts that are somewhat independent of her programming. So, he gives her a wooden toy he calls The Maze and tells her that if she can find the Read More ›