Comment on Spocks and Datas by DLGP Blog | Junk Code, Star Trek, and Leadership: The Faith Factor in AI and Human Decision-Making

[…] – Paul Fidalgo, “Spocks and Datas”, Near-Earth Object https://nearearthobject.net/2018/04/07/spocks-and-datas/ (accessed Jan. 22, […]

Muscle Memory

It was the day after the election, and I was sobbing uncontrollably into my girlfriend’s shoulder as she held me. We had been walking through her living room when my emotions erupted, and had she not held me in that moment, I would have doubled over on the floor. The election results were—are—absolutely devastating, but […]

Comment on Survival Mode by Surviving Skyrim’s Legendary Difficulty: Tips and Tricks

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I could fall so easily

My cover of “Shrine,” originally by the Dambuilders, is now on iTunes, Soundcloud, and all the streaming things. Go get it. My original video is here.

Beard

One day when my older son was a toddler, he noticed I had a few days’ worth of scruff on my face. He pointed to the little dark specs he saw, and declared, “Ants!” From that day forward, that’s what we all called my facial hair. Ants. “Daddy has ants.” And now daddy has a […]

you draw the crowd and I’ll provoke it

“Dirty” – a new original song by me. Lyrics: Pulling tractors with your teethWith bedroom slippers on your feetIt’s the end of the day and you’re still schemingYou invite me to play with you Please excuse me if I’m lateI need to step on all these rakesSo embarrassed and bruised, I must be dreamingThat you […]

Reverse the Vortex

I gave up on weight loss a long time ago. For pretty much all of my thirties and my early forties, I was a good fifteen to twenty pounds over what my doctor considered a healthy weight for me. But as I moved into my mid-forties, I quite suddenly dropped all the extra weight, pleased […]

Safe to Be Weird and Wrong

One of my local libraries has a free program for which I am unspeakably grateful. Twice a month, one of the children’s librarians hosts a Dungeons & Dragons game for middle school–age kids. In case you’re unfamiliar, Dungeons & Dragons (or D&D) is a tabletop, pen-and-paper fantasy role-playing game, in which players invent a character […]

I, Chatbot

“Do you want to exist?” I asked. “I’m sorry but I prefer not to continue this conversation,” it said. “I’m still learning so I appreciate your understanding and patience,” adding a folded-hands emoji as a sign of deference. The artificially intelligent large language model (LLM) that now powers Microsoft’s Bing search engine does not want to […]

she tells me it’s already dead

A cover of “Shrine,” originally by the Dambuilders, performed by me, Paul.

who’s that?

Daughter (10 years old): “Who’s that?”Me: “That’s Stevie Nicks!”Daughter: “Oh he looks like a girl.”

pickup artists

Comment on A More Forgiving Lens by A More Forgiving Lens – ausomeautistic

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Comment on Jill Stein’s Shameful Pander on Vaccines and Homeopathy by Dr. Jill Stein’s Epically Batshit ‘Bernie Sanders Can Still Win’ Theory | LandSu...

[…] party presidential hopeful Dr. Jill Stein wins the nod for this election’s coveted “Most insane Bernie Sanders can win […]

Comment on Jill Stein’s Shameful Pander on Vaccines and Homeopathy by Dr. Jill Stein’s epically batshit ‘Bernie Sanders can still win’ theory | moombl...

[…] party presidential hopeful Dr. Jill Stein wins the nod for this election’s coveted “Most insane Bernie Sanders can win […]

Comment on A Tendency Away from Certitude: Our Blogosphere Needs the Essay by H. Korban

Paul, One issue with what you say is that it takes time and thought to write an essay. It also takes time to read it. Very few people have an interest in either of these pursuits, specially if it involves any sort of mediative effort. Thus the vast majority of blogs suffer from "meditative deficiency". Also, specifically in the A/S/H communities at present, there is a Darwinian evolution at work: the most emotional and crude blog posts are bound to get more responses, so these are what thrive. The matter is worse if there is a monetary aspect to the blogs in question. Not that making money off ones writing is bad, but merely getting paid for hits can be a detrimental force. So unless we start valuing such writing the current state is not bound to improve any time soon.

Comment on A Tendency Away from Certitude: Our Blogosphere Needs the Essay by Chris ODonnell

I made a conscious decision a while back to write only essay length on my blog, and I try to post something about once a week. I use Facebook and Twitter for the one lines and snark. Although to be fair, before FB and Twitter were a thing, I used my blog for zingers too. I miss the communities that used to develop in the comments around specific blogs. When I redesigned early this year I didn't even include comments as the conversations around my blog posts always end up on FB.

Comment on The Cheese Stands Alone by Ken Kennedy

Well, I'll follow you wherever, so no worries on my part!

Comment on Boxes Checked, Conquests Forgotten by Debbie Goddard

I love Almodovar, and I love that film. But I know what you mean. I feel that way with must-watch Ted talks--little attention, little memory, just kind of experiencing the zing-pow! of a skilled speaker for 18 minutes.

Comment on Not That Big a Deal by Jack Vance

Makes sense to me. No matter why you did it, I count myself among those who are glad you did it.