{"chain":[{"channel":"cities","content":" Fort McKay is located about 500 miles north of Calgary.\r\n Fort McKay is a small community in northern Alberta, located about 54 kilometers north of Fort McMurray along the Athabasca River. It has historical roots as a Hudson\u2019s Bay Company trading post and is now situated in the heart of Alberta's oil sands region. The local economy benefits significantly from nearby oil sands development, with businesses and partnerships tied to the industry, though environmental concerns remain a key consideration. Surrounded by boreal forest, the area is rich in natural beauty, and traditional activities such as hunting and fishing are still part of the community\u2019s lifestyle. Fort McKay offers essential services, including a school, health center, and recreational facilities, while more specialized services are accessed in Fort McMurray.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\ngoals for the week, \"professional\":\r\n# new personal website (with resume/portfolio; and also with photographs and \"list of hobbies\")\r\n# Atacama / LLM integrations\r\n# Atacama print-view tuning\r\n# Atacama \"small feature\" list: database re-structuring will be at the top of the list\r\n\r\ngoals for the week, \"personal\":\r\n# social events on Monday and Thursday\r\n# get haircut ( not today, not Sunday; the barber shops in central Iowa are closed or overcrowded on Sundays)\r\n# additional withheld from public view\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nThere are some *directional* choices to be made about Atacama. Will I be importing content from other platforms? Is it going to support multiple users and/or multiple installations?\r\n\r\nSome of the answers will be based around how the LLM features work. And look.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nhttps://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5066601-senate-democrats-consider-rfk-jr/\r\n\r\n<< Some Democrats said to be open to backing RFK Jr. >>\r\n\r\n I mostly agree with the take. RFK Jr is controversial in *different* ways than most of the other controversial nominees of the next administration.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nOver the past 2 months, the stock for Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) has gone from 1.12 to 19.02 . ( and yet, quantum computing is still fake)\r\n\r\nI must assume that Google's \"error-correction\" paper is the driving factor. It was at 1.35 on November 20 when Google announced \"AlphaQubit\". ( https://blog.google/technology/google-deepmind/alphaqubit-quantum-error-correction/ ) ( AlphaQubit is nothing. It is an LLM that does a computational task very slightly better than a much simpler model), and 4.4 on December 9 when Google announced Willow ( https://research.google/blog/making-quantum-error-correction-work/ ) ( Willow could be Big If True. )\r\n\r\nOf course, quantum computing is still fake. ( even with Shor's algorithm, one cannot accomplish anything useful with 49 bits in 58 microseconds) But, that isn't the question for the markets. The logic is \"LLMs are big, quantum computing feel similar, QED\".\r\n\r\nThe question is: when will the *Samaritans* get off the train? I have no answers.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nfootball is done.\r\n well, actually, there is still \"week 18\" of the NFL, plus two more rounds of college football playoffs, and ... does the East-West game count?\r\n\r\nit is college basketball season. much like football has done, there is too much supply for me to care about any individual game right now.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nunlike in football (where Iowa State is always the \"scrappy underdog\" or the \"lovable loser\" or \"team with a great year wins the Pop-Tarts bowl\"), ISU sometimes is legitimately good in basketball. ( both men's and women's; although this year only the men's team is possibly \"legitimately good\") this might be one of those years.\r\n\r\nfour of the top 6 teams in the polls are in the SEC. the other two are Duke and ISU.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nhttps://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/page/CBBblockbuster0103/sec-men-college-basketball-dominance-auburn-tennessee-florida\r\n\r\nESPN describes how good the SEC has been.\r\n\r\nalthough, I have one gripe. If you look at the team records (as-of 5 January), the worst home record in the conference is 8-1. The most road games any team has played is 3. ( this is not unique to the SEC; most major-conference basketball programs play 5 games against bad teams at home in the non-conference. it lets them sell tickets, it lets them get easy wins, and it hopefully doesn't erode the integrity of the sport too much.) ( well, actually, some teams have as many as six \"neutral-site games\")\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\ngoals for today:\r\n# write the long Atacama to-do list\r\n# laundry\r\n# Peloton ride ( the attempts to use a << level >> to level the bike were not successful. but I think it is good enough to ride.)\r\n# shopping?\r\n# no terminal/IDE usage until after sunset","created_at":"2025-01-05T16:41:48.829828","id":68,"is_target":false,"parent_id":null,"processed_content":"

\u2699\ufe0f Fort McKay is located about 500 miles north of Calgary.\r

\n

\ud83e\udd16 Fort McKay is a small community in northern Alberta, located about 54 kilometers north of Fort McMurray along the Athabasca River. It has historical roots as a Hudson\u2019s Bay Company trading post and is now situated in the heart of Alberta's oil sands region. The local economy benefits significantly from nearby oil sands development, with businesses and partnerships tied to the industry, though environmental concerns remain a key consideration. Surrounded by boreal forest, the area is rich in natural beauty, and traditional activities such as hunting and fishing are still part of the community\u2019s lifestyle. Fort McKay offers essential services, including a school, health center, and recreational facilities, while more specialized services are accessed in Fort McMurray.\r

goals for the week, \"professional\":\r

\n
    \n
  • new personal website (with resume/portfolio; and also with photographs and \"list of hobbies\")\r
    • \n
  • Atacama / LLM integrations\r
    • \n
  • Atacama print-view tuning\r
    • \n
  • Atacama \"small feature\" list: database re-structuring will be at the top of the list\r
    • \n
\n

goals for the week, \"personal\":\r

\n
    \n
  • social events on Monday and Thursday\r
    • \n
  • get haircut \ud83d\udca1( not today, not Sunday; the barber shops in central Iowa are closed or overcrowded on Sundays)\r
    • \n
  • additional withheld from public view\r
    • \n

There are some directional choices to be made about Atacama. Will I be importing content from other platforms? Is it going to support multiple users and/or multiple installations?\r

\n

Some of the answers will be based around how the LLM features work. And look.\r

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5066601-senate-democrats-consider-rfk-jr/\r

\n

Some Democrats said to be open to backing RFK Jr.\r

\n

\ud83d\udca1 I mostly agree with the take. RFK Jr is controversial in different ways than most of the other controversial nominees of the next administration.\r

Over the past 2 months, the stock for Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) has gone from 1.12 to 19.02 . \ud83d\udd25( and yet, quantum computing is still fake)\r

\n

I must assume that Google's \"error-correction\" paper is the driving factor. It was at 1.35 on November 20 when Google announced \"AlphaQubit\". \u2699\ufe0f( https://blog.google/technology/google-deepmind/alphaqubit-quantum-error-correction/ ) \ud83d\udca1( AlphaQubit is nothing. It is an LLM that does a computational task very slightly better than a much simpler model), and 4.4 on December 9 when Google announced Willow \u2699\ufe0f( https://research.google/blog/making-quantum-error-correction-work/ ) \ud83d\udd25( Willow could be Big If True. )\r

\n

Of course, quantum computing is still fake. \ud83d\udca1( even with Shor's algorithm, one cannot accomplish anything useful with 49 bits in 58 microseconds) But, that isn't the question for the markets. The logic is \"LLMs are big, quantum computing feel similar, QED\".\r

\n

The question is: when will the Samaritans get off the train? I have no answers.\r

football is done.\r

\n

\u2694\ufe0f well, actually, there is still \"week 18\" of the NFL, plus two more rounds of college football playoffs, and ... does the East-West game count?\r

\n

it is college basketball season. much like football has done, there is too much supply for me to care about any individual game right now.\r

unlike in football (where Iowa State is always the \"scrappy underdog\" or the \"lovable loser\" or \"team with a great year wins the Pop-Tarts bowl\"), ISU sometimes is legitimately good in basketball. \ud83d\udca1( both men's and women's; although this year only the men's team is possibly \"legitimately good\") this might be one of those years.\r

\n

four of the top 6 teams in the polls are in the SEC. the other two are Duke and ISU.\r

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/page/CBBblockbuster0103/sec-men-college-basketball-dominance-auburn-tennessee-florida\r

\n

ESPN describes how good the SEC has been.\r

\n

although, I have one gripe. If you look at the team records (as-of 5 January), the worst home record in the conference is 8-1. The most road games any team has played is 3. \ud83d\udca1( this is not unique to the SEC; most major-conference basketball programs play 5 games against bad teams at home in the non-conference. it lets them sell tickets, it lets them get easy wins, and it hopefully doesn't erode the integrity of the sport too much.) \u2694\ufe0f( well, actually, some teams have as many as six \"neutral-site games\")\r

goals for today:\r

\n
    \n
  • write the long Atacama to-do list\r
    • \n
  • laundry\r
    • \n
  • Peloton ride \ud83c\udf0e( the attempts to use a level to level the bike were not successful. but I think it is good enough to ride.)\r
    • \n
  • shopping?\r
    • \n
  • no terminal/IDE usage until after sunset
    • \n
","subject":"fort mckay (1/12)"},{"channel":"cities","content":"There are 26 things on the Atacama to-do list I wrote today. That doesn't count the \"multi-player features\" that have been asked for.\r\n\r\n it is possible that the full list will show up in a different message.\r\n\r\nseparately, there is \"log into an old computer with my AWS credentials, and see if there is anything of value (other than email archives) still there\".\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\none game of chess tonight, against Maia (1100 rating). ( it hung a bishop on move 3)\r\n\r\nI missed one move, but it missed it as well. beyond that, it was 45 moves of slowly suffocating the position.\r\n\r\nI spent a total of 6.5 minutes on my moves, and also got to think for about 5 minutes on the opponent's moves. ( being able to efficiently use your opponent's clock time is a key chess skill) ( the careful observer will note this is more than the roughly 3 minutes one gets in 2+1 chess)\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nin the NFL: Week 18 is meaningless. several teams were probably throwing ( deliberately trying to lose), either for draft position or to avoid having to play Cincinnati in the playoffs.\r\n\r\nit would be improper for the players on the field to try to lose. but, keeping your eight best players out of the game is accepted.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nIn The News: Justin Trudeau expected to resign as Prime Minister of Canada. This will not immediately trigger an election; the next planned election is in October.\r\n\r\n the *machine* won't know yet why he is resigning. ChatGPT, after a search, says it is \"internal party pressure\" due to \"policy disagreements\", which says nothing.\r\n as far as I can tell, \"everybody is tired of his schtick\" and \"Trump\" might be the only two reasons.\r\n well, actually, the Freeland resignation ... is not a root cause. it is normal politics once a situation is over-determined.\r\n the infamous \"every government from the COVID period is doing badly in elections\" trend is also relevant.","created_at":"2025-01-06T04:45:33.830873","id":69,"is_target":true,"parent_id":68,"processed_content":"

There are 26 things on the Atacama to-do list I wrote today. That doesn't count the \"multi-player features\" that have been asked for.\r

\n

\ud83d\udca1 it is possible that the full list will show up in a different message.\r

\n

separately, there is \"log into an old computer with my AWS credentials, and see if there is anything of value (other than email archives) still there\".\r

one game of chess tonight, against Maia (1100 rating). \ud83d\udd25( it hung a bishop on move 3)\r

\n

I missed one move, but it missed it as well. beyond that, it was 45 moves of slowly suffocating the position.\r

\n

I spent a total of 6.5 minutes on my moves, and also got to think for about 5 minutes on the opponent's moves. \u2699\ufe0f( being able to efficiently use your opponent's clock time is a key chess skill) \ud83d\udca1( the careful observer will note this is more than the roughly 3 minutes one gets in 2+1 chess)\r

in the NFL: Week 18 is meaningless. several teams were probably throwing \u2699\ufe0f( deliberately trying to lose), either for draft position or to avoid having to play Cincinnati in the playoffs.\r

\n

it would be improper for the players on the field to try to lose. but, keeping your eight best players out of the game is accepted.\r

In The News: Justin Trudeau expected to resign as Prime Minister of Canada. This will not immediately trigger an election; the next planned election is in October.\r

\n

\ud83d\udd25 the machine won't know yet why he is resigning. ChatGPT, after a search, says it is \"internal party pressure\" due to \"policy disagreements\", which says nothing.\r

\n

\ud83d\udca1 as far as I can tell, \"everybody is tired of his schtick\" and \"Trump\" might be the only two reasons.\r

\n

\u2694\ufe0f well, actually, the Freeland resignation ... is not a root cause. it is normal politics once a situation is over-determined.\r

\n

\u2699\ufe0f the infamous \"every government from the COVID period is doing badly in elections\" trend is also relevant.

","subject":"fort mckay (2/12)"},{"channel":"cities","content":" well, actually, i can't do \"one line per bugfix\" here. there is too much *interference*.\r\n\r\nSo, here are the things from the 26-item list I expect to finish before the next dispatch.\r\n\r\n# Fix sigil boxes in dark mode.\r\n# Fix \"rotating sigils\" - an idea half-created by the *machine*.\r\n# Fix single-message page - there is some old/bad CSS (no \"block\" for colortext, scrollable second column)\r\n# Create \"read more from stream\" page\r\n# Fix font color in \"Style picker\" widget\r\n# When an unsupported method is used (such as << POST / >>), don't throw an exception\r\n# Create robots.txt\r\n# Create favicon.ico\r\n# Create apple-touch-icon.png\r\n# Improve server logging\r\n\r\nIf all that is done, I will start looking at the other 16 items.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nalso it snowed a lot in various places.\r\n\r\n----\r\n\r\nthere is no other news since last night.","created_at":"2025-01-06T15:46:31.100515","id":70,"is_target":false,"parent_id":69,"processed_content":"

\u2694\ufe0f well, actually, i can't do \"one line per bugfix\" here. there is too much interference.\r

\n

So, here are the things from the 26-item list I expect to finish before the next dispatch.\r

\n
    \n
  • Fix sigil boxes in dark mode.\r
    • \n
  • Fix \"rotating sigils\" - an idea half-created by the machine.\r
    • \n
  • Fix single-message page - there is some old/bad CSS (no \"block\" for colortext, scrollable second column)\r
    • \n
  • Create \"read more from stream\" page\r
    • \n
  • Fix font color in \"Style picker\" widget\r
    • \n
  • When an unsupported method is used (such as POST /), don't throw an exception\r
    • \n
  • Create robots.txt\r
    • \n
  • Create favicon.ico\r
    • \n
  • Create apple-touch-icon.png\r
    • \n
  • Improve server logging\r
    • \n
\n

If all that is done, I will start looking at the other 16 items.\r

also it snowed a lot in various places.\r

there is no other news since last night.

","subject":"fort mckay (3/12)"}]}