tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-133945182024-03-17T23:02:05.229-04:00Polymath at LargeA guy in late middle age with many interests.Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.comBlogger2533125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-8580893750801769312024-03-11T14:22:00.000-04:002024-03-11T14:22:21.767-04:00Creeping toward the Matrix<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, cosmology, simulation, modeling</p><p>I was for several years, in my career of writing scientific software, the leader of a "Modeling and Simulation Group". One of our products had three sections, simulating first the geochemistry of crude oil generation from organic matter in deep rocks (up to a few kilometers), then the upward migration of the petroleum liquids through porous rocks, and finally their entrapment against nonporous, or less porous, rock layers to form oil and gas reservoirs.</p><p>I was sent to a few exploration offices to show off the software. In one instance, after the geologist set up access to a set of grids based on seismic data, I ran the software, which displayed the progress through time of oil and natural gas collecting under the trapping layer some half-kilometer beneath our feet. At the end of the run, he pointed to one green blob on the map, saying, "This is X field," and to another, "This is Y field." Then he pointed to a third one between them, asking, "But what is that?" I answered, "That could represent a lot of money." As it happened, the company had decided to sell that property to another company. That oil company made the money! But the software found the oil before the property was drilled. Later that year I spoke about the experience at a Research Review. My talk was titled, "Finding Oil in a Computer."</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyZiL3W0AG9fk7ZNvIFLYu8RRzW9o9msGW0h9YmyTZOBNrA3H-cxz_3o5nRm2sfKMdRCwBYvlwVYexCAAkwiPVQuZStfrdVNvFq2Xj-LNMYN5wXztzEjdx3H45LbSEEA4r5dE7Nq-Qqoswx7RuTr0eidN80IMLYOwAy3IfmYlDVWZ_ehx3B0U0vw/s1024/PG%20240302-05a%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%20-260650348.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyZiL3W0AG9fk7ZNvIFLYu8RRzW9o9msGW0h9YmyTZOBNrA3H-cxz_3o5nRm2sfKMdRCwBYvlwVYexCAAkwiPVQuZStfrdVNvFq2Xj-LNMYN5wXztzEjdx3H45LbSEEA4r5dE7Nq-Qqoswx7RuTr0eidN80IMLYOwAy3IfmYlDVWZ_ehx3B0U0vw/s320/PG%20240302-05a%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%20-260650348.png" width="320" /></a></div>It was with great relish that I read <i>The Universe in a Box: Simulations and the Quest to Code the Cosmos</i> by Andrew Pontzen. If you buy the book feel free to download this image to print a bookplate; it's 1024x1024 px. Use Upscayl or something similar if you want it rendered at higher resolution. I produced it using Playground AI; the only prompt was "Cosmology". I tinkered with Samplers and other parameters, looking for something else. Getting this image was a side benefit.<p></p><p>The author could have delved deeply into sundry technical issues—there are many! Instead, he has skirted these, providing just a taste of some of them, in favor of the philosophy and motivations for making computer simulations of natural phenomena.</p><p>The terms "simulation" and "modeling" have overlapping meanings. In principle, a Model is the framework and the sets of parameters that define the physical structure and the physics rules to be followed, while a Simulation is the operation of the Model over a chosen span of time, producing a series of output data sets that describe the expected physical state of the modeled "thing" at one or more points in time, whether past or future. Note that a simulation can be done on equipment other than a computer. One story of the book is about a galaxy simulation done with light bulbs and photocells and a glorious tangle of wires.</p><p>Weather forecasting is one very visible result of computer simulation, seen daily (or hourly) on newscasts and in the various weather apps on our devices. There are a couple of dozen important models used by weather agencies the world over. One expression of these is the Spaghetti Plot of a hurricane's forecasted track, as produced by several models. The models differ in the importance they place on various aspects of the modeled system, including whether it represents the whole Earth or a hemisphere, or a couple of continents.</p><p>All weather models are based on a global General Circulation Model, in which the atmosphere and the land and sea surfaces in contact with it (and sometimes a surface layer of the ocean) are divided up into roughly ¼ to ½ million quasi-rectangular portions. Half a million to a million "cells" is about the most that modern supercomputers can handle. In general, spatial resolution is likely to be as large as 200x200 km! The Earth's surface area is about 127 million km², and the models have between 20 and 40 vertical layers (at present). A 40-layer model would have more than five billion cells of 1x1x0.5 km, so to get the count below one million requires using cells with an area of more than 5,000 km², which is 71x71x0.5 km, and most models are set up for grid squares of about 100x100 to 200x200 (and half a km thick). The physics rules, primarily those relating to pressure and temperature relationships, are applied at the boundaries between grid cells.</p><p>To get a "future radar rain" map with finer detail requires using "sub grid" rules, and partial simulations over short times and restricted areas, a subject that Dr. Pontzen discusses. Compared to Earth, the Universe is immensely more complex, and the problems of building an appropriate model and running simulations that may span billions of years, but don't take billions of years of computer time, are truly tough!</p><p>For example, consider a galaxy. On the scale of the while Universe, galaxies are tiny and far apart.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUi6fBII9OBItwoFgzcdGhHYzEwtiVDvQBqdxv7U0icM64ktf5uuyzQf8oXzIm-QZrSuSrVQmINMDDZmlHo7xFDulzS2tNINgbiz-lEPd2EZvo1ipOdzZKCiyRbC-QcN3ID1I23vLBrmc-ZA9NPM9LyRg7t9dnm6lwD5X9VwuHLmVM3vQDJ19Rw/s1280/heic1411a.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1169" data-original-width="1280" height="584" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUi6fBII9OBItwoFgzcdGhHYzEwtiVDvQBqdxv7U0icM64ktf5uuyzQf8oXzIm-QZrSuSrVQmINMDDZmlHo7xFDulzS2tNINgbiz-lEPd2EZvo1ipOdzZKCiyRbC-QcN3ID1I23vLBrmc-ZA9NPM9LyRg7t9dnm6lwD5X9VwuHLmVM3vQDJ19Rw/w640-h584/heic1411a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>This is the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field image, which shows about 10,000 galaxies (only one star is in the field, the really bright point with spikes caused by diffraction). The area of this image on the sky is 0.038°x0.038°, or about 0.15% of a square degree. It is about the size of the smallest thing you can see with your eye.</p><p>To a very rough estimate, although galaxies vary a lot in size, the really big ones seen here are a lot closer than the really small ones. The six or eight largest ones in this image are seen to be far from one another. If their intrinsic size is a little smaller than the size of "our" galaxy, the Milky Way, they are about 50,000 light-years across, and the average spacing between them is one or two million light-years. But larger-scale observations reveal that nearly all galaxies are strung out along strands in an immense web, with voids that contain no galaxies at all but span hundreds of millions of light-years.</p><p>One problem of computational cosmology that the author dwells on is that it is really hard to produce a cosmological simulation that doesn't result in a much larger number of galaxies. According to most models, this image "should" contain so many galaxies that there would be very little black space seen between them! A conundrum of computational cosmology is, "Why is space so empty?" I suppose all I can say is, "Stay tuned." I await a follow-on book on the subject as more is learned!</p><p>The smallness of galaxies compared to the intergalactic web, and the incredible smallness of the stars that make up the galaxies, and even more amazing smallness of planets, moons, and everything "solid" that we are familiar with, produce a huge problem of "stiffness" in any kind of simulation that seeks to span the entire range of sizes. Mathematical equations that drive simulations are called differential equations (DE's). By their nature, DE's produce one or more side effects, which mathematicians deal with using various schemes, and such schemes are embodied in the computer codes that run simulations. However, these schemes are seldom perfect, and runaway effects can swamp the simulation if it is run outside of a carefully chosen range. If a simple simulation includes two processes, and one runs 100 times as fast as the other, it is necessary to cater to the faster process or the results blow up. This time-scale contrast is called "stiffness". One must use time steps shorter than the time scale of the faster process, even though during such short steps, the slower process doesn't do much. Now consider what happens if the time scale varies over a range, not of 100 to one, but millions to one, with numerous processes all across the time spectrum. Not only that, if 99% of the volume is empty, and the remaining 1% has similar ranges of "spatial stiffness", the problem compounds dramatically. A lot of the book deals with such things, but using more accessible language.</p><p>The author also discusses dark matter and dark energy. Dark matter is probably quite real. It is needed to keep the stars in their orbits about their galactic centers, because the visible mass is not sufficient. This is not a small effect: the "extra gravity" needed is about five times what would be exerted by all the visible stuff we see. The current theory is that 70+% of the matter in the Universe isn't affected by electromagnetic radiation, so we can't see it. Scientists are working hard to find out what kind of stuff could be so invisible but so heavy.</p><p>Side question for the author or other cosmologists who may come across this review: Do black holes consume dark matter that encounters them?</p><p>Anyway, dark matter and the properties we infer for it must be included in cosmological models for their simulations to make any sense.</p><p>Dark energy is the term applied to an odd effect seen when very distant supernovae are studied. They seem too dim. Their distances are determined from the redshift calculated from their spectrum and, if possible, the redshift of their host galaxies. There are distinct "lines" in the spectrum of any astronomical body that allow us to determine its composition and the speed with which it is moving, radially at least. The Hubble Constant (named for Edwin Hubble, not the space telescope which was also named for him) characterizes the velocity-distance relationship.</p><p>Determining the actual brightness of a distant object is not straightforward. Dust and gas in and between galaxies absorbs some light. The relationship between distance and "intergalactic extinction" ("extinction" to an astronomer means light is being absorbed) is thought to be well understood. When such calculations are applied to certain supernovae, a discrepancy is found between how bright they are and how bright they "should" be. The farther away they are, the greater the discrepancy. This indicates that they might be farther away than their redshift would indicate; the "Hubble Constant" would then be not so constant! This implies that cosmological expansion is speeding up, not slowing down as we would expect.</p><p>I personally look at two matters that need more study before I will seriously consider that dark energy is real. </p><p>Firstly, it is not mentioned in the book that the kind of supernovae one must study to discern dark energy are Type 1a. They are produced by a special mechanism. Most supernovae result when a large star (8-20x the mass of the Sun) runs out of fuel and its core collapses. About a quarter of supernovae result from a white dwarf star being loaded up with matter from a nearby red giant that is shedding mass. The maximum mass of a white dwarf is 1.44 solar masses; at this point it collapses and erupts as a Type 1a supernova. Because of these mechanics, Type 1a supernovae have very similar maximum brightness, making them a "standard candle". However, I have looked in the literature for an indication that the composition of the white dwarf and/or its red giant companion might affect the brightness of a Type 1a supernova. In the very early Universe there was hardly anything except hydrogen and helium. The first supernovae were all Type 2, when large stars, that had been forging hydrogen into more helium, and then forging helium into heavier elements, up to iron, exploded. Over time, the abundance of heavier elements in the Universe increased. To astronomers, all elements from lithium on up are called "metals" for convenience. Metallicity is a measure of the percent of "metals" in a star or galaxy. Our Sun's metallicity, at its visible surface, is 1.3%. Its age is 4.5 billion years, and it has not undergone fusion reactions that could change its metallicity, but an unknown amount of interstellar "stuff" has fallen into it; this is probably quite small in proportion to its total mass. Thus, a little over 1% probably represents the metallicity of this part of the Universe 4.5 billion years ago. The metallicity of the stars in a galaxy varies with distance from the center also, but not over a huge range. The bigger difference is seen between "Population I" stars, that are younger and have higher metallicity, and "Population II" stars, that are older and have something more like the metallicity of the Milky Way when it first formed, perhaps 10-12 billion years ago. This is roughly 1/10 or less of our Sun's metallicity, or less than 0.1%.</p><p>Very early galaxies and their stars had very small metallicities, ranging from 0.001% down to nearly zero. Therefore, so do the earliest Type 1a supernovae. A question I have not seen answered:</p><p>We know that white dwarf stars are composed primarily of carbon and oxygen. They are known to have some metals, because they are diagnosed by lines of silicon. BUT: <b><i>Is the peak brightness of a Type 1a supernova significantly affected by the proportion of elements heavier than oxygen?</i></b></p><p>Secondly, is it possible that dark matter interacts very slightly with electromagnetic radiation? Simply put, the Universe's age is considered to be 13.8 billion years. At an age of 1.38 billion years, its "size" was 1/10 of its present "size", and the concentration of both ordinary matter and dark matter would have been, on average, 1,000 times greater. Somewhere along midway, say at an age of 4.4 billion years (the square root of 1/10 times 13.8), the "size" would have been about 0.32 of the current size, and the concentration of both ordinary matter and dark matter would have been about 32 times greater than at present. If there is even a slight interaction, "dark matter luminous extinction" could be a genuine effect, yet we would be very hard put to determine whether the dark matter that must be all around us has a measurable influence on light.</p><p>For the time being I consider that it is much, much more likely that "dark energy" is a phantom, and will eventually be found not to exist.</p><p>That is a significant digression from the discussion of the book. The author discusses the utility of cosmological simulations of various kinds. They aren't just a way for us to have a "pocket Universe" to play with, but they help us understand what might have occurred at various stages of the evolution of the Universe, or of groups of galaxies, or of stars and star clusters. Unlike weather forecasting, Universe simulation focuses on retro-casting, trying to reproduce how things worked out over some interesting span of past time, whether measured in centuries, millennia, or billions of years. To know where we really are we need to know what came before. Looking at distant things, as the Ultra Deep Field does, lets us look back in time. Things were different way back then, and computational cosmology is a powerful tool to help us understand it all. We've made a bit of a start; we're just getting going!</p><p>The author also asks whether it is plausible that we are living in an über-simulation inside some super-Matrix run by super-beings. He gets into that because he gets asked about it frequently. I'll mention one thing that he does not: one human brain has complexity of the same scale as a good chunk of the non-human Universe, and all of us together are more complex than the whole rest of the Universe (unless there are lots and lots of alien species!). In the <i>Cosmos</i> series by Carl Sagan, decades ago, it was stated that there are probably 100 billion galaxies in the observable Universe, with an average population of 100 billion stars each. The number of galaxies is probably more like a trillion. The number of stars is thus a number with 23 digits.</p><p>What's in a brain? The cortex has 16 billion neurons and the cerebellum has 70 billion. Each neuron has about 5,000 connections to other neurons. The 100 billion smaller "glial cells" also contact numerous neurons and large numbers of each other. The number of connections is thus a number with 15 digits. The number of humans is about 8 billion, a 10-digit number. So the "total human connectome" is about 100 times as great as the number of stars in the Universe. Another number of similar size is the number of molecules in 18 grams of water (a quantity known to chemists as a "mole"), which is a 24-digit number starting with the digit 6. If one could somehow use each water molecule in a tablespoon of water as a computer bit, it would take ten tablespoons to have enough molecules to devote just one "bit" to each connection in the sum total of all human brains. That's the bare bones of what's needed to produce The Matrix. And that's just one intelligent species on one planet. I'd say that if Moore's Law gallops along unimpeded long enough (but it won't, it's already faltering), it would take hundreds of doublings, or at least 1,000 years, for a big enough, fast enough computer to be produced (by Someone) that could simulate the entire Universe in real time. Of course, by making the computer's time steps for each second of real time actually take, say, a century, a much smaller computing system could to the work. How could we tell? Dr. Pontzen doesn't know, and neither do I.</p><p>A very enjoyable book. You don't have to be a computer geek like me to understand it.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-11468803479572767762024-03-09T14:46:00.000-05:002024-03-09T14:46:01.631-05:00Guidance Parameter in Playground AI<p> kw: experiments, ai art, generated art, artificial intelligence, simulated intelligence, comparisons, photo essays</p><p>Another parameter to explore in Playground AI is Guidance. This influences how closely the generated image conforms to the prompt, so they say. I decided to find out. In earlier experiments I had kept a few images I particularly liked. One had the seed <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>260650348</b></span>, and I decided to use that for this experimental project, and to use only the <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler a</b></span> Sampler.</p><p>The three Models have very different sets of Guidance parameters:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Stable Diffusion XL (SDXL) has levels from 0 to 30, and Guidance above 30 is available to subscribing (paying) users. The default is 7 and in FAQ's they recommend primarily using between 7 & 10. After some pre-work I decided to use 2, 4, 7, 11, 16, 24, and 30.</li><li>Playground v2 (PGv2) has levels from 0 to 5. The default is 3. I determined that levels 0, 1, and 2 produce identical results, so I decided to use levels 2, 3, 4, and 5.</li><li>Playground v2.5 (PG25) doesn't use a Guidance parameter. It also doesn't have multiple Samplers. It's a "point and shoot" generator.</li></ul><p></p><p>I've learned from others' reviews and some "help" YouTube videos that longer prompts give the software more to work with. It stands to reason that there could be a greater difference among Guidance levels with a long prompt, compared to a short one. I decided to test four prompts of a wide range of lengths; the word counts below are "meaningful" words, ignoring articles:</p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>1 word: <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Cosmology</b></span></li><li>5 words: <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Quaint village near a mountain stream</b></span></li><li>13 words: <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>A rocky beach grading into a sandy beach below sea cliffs beneath a partly cloudy sky</b></span></li><li>28 words: <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Fantastical clock with a big dial for the time using roman numerals, the second hand on a small dial of its own, and indicators for month and day and phases of the moon</b></span></li></ol><p></p><p>I'll present the resulting images half size (512x512) in pairs or groups of 4, beginning with PGv2 and Prompt 1.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFDaORePJSs0TOTf4JGNIFVHKM1Tt2dASbnBBW6nedISefubIog0lxT5zm4lg1xq_HXtPT5-1AQl1I95rh9NRmYIp6casK1BMeMTH8n5CvrPZPSaPMjQf0M52OqAZyDpz8nxv0100uQVGQ076tSzF68F2OQVOYg3GykYNq0Jwnv0urlI1-6jP2rw/s1032/W01%20PGV2%20G2n3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFDaORePJSs0TOTf4JGNIFVHKM1Tt2dASbnBBW6nedISefubIog0lxT5zm4lg1xq_HXtPT5-1AQl1I95rh9NRmYIp6casK1BMeMTH8n5CvrPZPSaPMjQf0M52OqAZyDpz8nxv0100uQVGQ076tSzF68F2OQVOYg3GykYNq0Jwnv0urlI1-6jP2rw/w640-h318/W01%20PGV2%20G2n3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOHNItGAHW8Jb3xseh89JisiaLV4iS37HOj5Zpnum6ypsRBh74qkH5GV1hnIFqLxzwNxjUxZ1mLib_kCQf3vjLXY8-Bu2sp1MosOubMz864ybnHRi6nwhiOdDcQtOcm7wUZUh0MDMy84F3GtdyujqgoyPNs4hhzKKKctGrCa6X5HPOUEMnVWScjw/s1032/W01%20PGV2%20G4n5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOHNItGAHW8Jb3xseh89JisiaLV4iS37HOj5Zpnum6ypsRBh74qkH5GV1hnIFqLxzwNxjUxZ1mLib_kCQf3vjLXY8-Bu2sp1MosOubMz864ybnHRi6nwhiOdDcQtOcm7wUZUh0MDMy84F3GtdyujqgoyPNs4hhzKKKctGrCa6X5HPOUEMnVWScjw/w640-h318/W01%20PGV2%20G4n5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>A number of trends are seen as Guidance (G from now on) goes from 2 to 5:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The sky arch begins with a look like a multiverse, and goes to more of a dynamic universe look.</li><li>The observer is bigger at G4 and 5, while the child seen at G2 turns to a rock which progressively shrinks.</li><li>Trees appear at G3 and move around.</li><li>The nebula of G2 gradually turns into a galaxy.</li><li>Sundry planets come and go.</li></ul><p></p><p>However, there is no dramatic change in the overall look of the image.</p><p>Next, 7 images from SDXL, plus one by PG25.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGUWSzqWWHvlWe_Tcw-9IaEInx5fFMX1Q26AQyNYfISGwhqDgRfatbBkt2vcnN9i7_9-JRHO40WFGYAXt8WA4rG_ZI55UIHfgcaaVvoSQ3vFtLX5clDvKipYifGHy2qMSiUj49NWdN2avAG8DfqRULVrMBFcPygoqNSBaPi9mKuakf3QWXorpgYQ/s1032/W01%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGUWSzqWWHvlWe_Tcw-9IaEInx5fFMX1Q26AQyNYfISGwhqDgRfatbBkt2vcnN9i7_9-JRHO40WFGYAXt8WA4rG_ZI55UIHfgcaaVvoSQ3vFtLX5clDvKipYifGHy2qMSiUj49NWdN2avAG8DfqRULVrMBFcPygoqNSBaPi9mKuakf3QWXorpgYQ/w640-h318/W01%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxfh3UF79YlWehLfo0pjwN98Qaohi8Wl1HEmOj4McWmaf81ogdozqHR4JkMXHjmZ8vJ_aiSpp-vQHGppWa-CFpQTgSDNNir1qOCUauXug0VijFFhI2IGBUkn494jDWIB3n0nBOCVYdkZyTLjSlrhDiN7Qfae0bxx4lZdUyUuw22r-IBZl88AF0rA/s1032/W01%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxfh3UF79YlWehLfo0pjwN98Qaohi8Wl1HEmOj4McWmaf81ogdozqHR4JkMXHjmZ8vJ_aiSpp-vQHGppWa-CFpQTgSDNNir1qOCUauXug0VijFFhI2IGBUkn494jDWIB3n0nBOCVYdkZyTLjSlrhDiN7Qfae0bxx4lZdUyUuw22r-IBZl88AF0rA/w640-h318/W01%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMyI2Es990sJTbZrO2-qbyKxTIXBNtV5p_PEA3MEvstlOVmI0KfzE1i7pEiUmdZRVvlaiVNNG1kBmKl1U3cQ9gDhQM0t-OPgyCqn5aNZbFna1-lEQI04qWQb-BPQxyQAnNzyOJ_4aoRKJQ1rXnKYf_x82-slAnWW3vFlvBw7EjUJrLhge88wTudA/s1032/W01%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMyI2Es990sJTbZrO2-qbyKxTIXBNtV5p_PEA3MEvstlOVmI0KfzE1i7pEiUmdZRVvlaiVNNG1kBmKl1U3cQ9gDhQM0t-OPgyCqn5aNZbFna1-lEQI04qWQb-BPQxyQAnNzyOJ_4aoRKJQ1rXnKYf_x82-slAnWW3vFlvBw7EjUJrLhge88wTudA/w640-h318/W01%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7gImVvW7awstgIyQl1-_S1MOvecHnUtiAegjwLSLX0Ihko16HerDnRvaXYIw7gLOxMyMprsWi7qUGg3IvpoURxN77xVHdjWREdpVHPlH22d0ao-yh0Yv_U37-g6TFP3rmEfhpESI9GzlgwljIQCi-MJtuHdLu0cxgqzPs-QuFEBfX0mg5l742_A/s1032/W01%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7gImVvW7awstgIyQl1-_S1MOvecHnUtiAegjwLSLX0Ihko16HerDnRvaXYIw7gLOxMyMprsWi7qUGg3IvpoURxN77xVHdjWREdpVHPlH22d0ao-yh0Yv_U37-g6TFP3rmEfhpESI9GzlgwljIQCi-MJtuHdLu0cxgqzPs-QuFEBfX0mg5l742_A/w640-h318/W01%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The SDXL images all have a Medieval look to them. The two that look best are the third and fourth, with G07 and G11. Above G16 they kind of go off the rails. At G30 in particular the frame is quite detailed, but the rest of the image has lower quality, as the FAQ warned. The PG25 image is quite fetching, similar to the central portion of the PGv2 images, with a kind of swirly surround. This one could be fun to run a bunch of with random Seed turned on.</p><p>Now for Prompt 2, the village by a stream. PGv2 first:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7XDf6hxzqK0IwPdETAERUeW3Szqd-cOvNExYharUBB5L2KQtoHDy55min4iJ55RRTvWuf_J8pdOMRTw8sNKb2IL86W6fY1HrcN_IydWl9vSaWzwL4SuJRYi7bPhPJ-HrPo9hFfAUml30rwpVUPBCEBvxda153xymMbsZYHDMnEOWo_9AUt8ECtg/s1032/W05%20PGv2%20G2n3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7XDf6hxzqK0IwPdETAERUeW3Szqd-cOvNExYharUBB5L2KQtoHDy55min4iJ55RRTvWuf_J8pdOMRTw8sNKb2IL86W6fY1HrcN_IydWl9vSaWzwL4SuJRYi7bPhPJ-HrPo9hFfAUml30rwpVUPBCEBvxda153xymMbsZYHDMnEOWo_9AUt8ECtg/w640-h318/W05%20PGv2%20G2n3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBehWOvUnlS-7VXsCP3olC12OANLnXRUCoPH9Oj60KOWvbNuCX49dovYC4IsQ2VVV9eIZLPMoJBdHdohW9SVEmPlyvgOnYBO0ZD-jXa3Tr8LQjgeeoBFcfWyMgTB4mHt0GkuRRlBWvV57iZN6zP4IRv0wXZudofeX3_hoUiKvytpqPZbaE8Zw64g/s1032/W05%20PGv2%20G4n5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBehWOvUnlS-7VXsCP3olC12OANLnXRUCoPH9Oj60KOWvbNuCX49dovYC4IsQ2VVV9eIZLPMoJBdHdohW9SVEmPlyvgOnYBO0ZD-jXa3Tr8LQjgeeoBFcfWyMgTB4mHt0GkuRRlBWvV57iZN6zP4IRv0wXZudofeX3_hoUiKvytpqPZbaE8Zw64g/w640-h318/W05%20PGv2%20G4n5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>As before, these are all very similar, with added details at each increased G level. Next, SDXL and PG25.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6z2x6mYqPfGkpDylAT7rFuB27551U5RxHVi-i-BV4Y9c-7deYO0Tcm9PbiifdOGSD2WffE7NTAMsEQfBTgdK9_bbMMG8tHk2BjxDduhDFRJYGqxDIWeJ14DA_B1SvvtG79OiwzPoDj1wKOEzJ2xJQfe588qfcNuE-tvPrliBL38udYXQ0cliAXw/s1032/W05%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6z2x6mYqPfGkpDylAT7rFuB27551U5RxHVi-i-BV4Y9c-7deYO0Tcm9PbiifdOGSD2WffE7NTAMsEQfBTgdK9_bbMMG8tHk2BjxDduhDFRJYGqxDIWeJ14DA_B1SvvtG79OiwzPoDj1wKOEzJ2xJQfe588qfcNuE-tvPrliBL38udYXQ0cliAXw/w640-h318/W05%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_SBqJFmTTBDyLYPwdq6AZXujffwI5D5_6HEncJzxtuXU5gA_DTQ8DIUjrpEaJBOtQHziSXjSHuVYFfzZwuORasjniamdcKGlfmoXgMg59FhHP_fIKcwN2ayIYf29Pv1XKPVxE2ZslFtVGB12yjk0exqztPrkb_yw7T_vRphx2ZQxxwjdt1bpG3w/s1032/W05%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_SBqJFmTTBDyLYPwdq6AZXujffwI5D5_6HEncJzxtuXU5gA_DTQ8DIUjrpEaJBOtQHziSXjSHuVYFfzZwuORasjniamdcKGlfmoXgMg59FhHP_fIKcwN2ayIYf29Pv1XKPVxE2ZslFtVGB12yjk0exqztPrkb_yw7T_vRphx2ZQxxwjdt1bpG3w/w640-h318/W05%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIz7MtJjYGDxa6IkZBjuHXY3XEdK4CECCB0A7yIBLamq8RnfaVuIcmZ6OZXM_PpZB_Etr-LK0rueY4KwNtTMXWnUaScMu67Q5j8TQy5Gx5nRUvbXBGnNwwEFL7bnf-7L3sSyBFxYkQv1mSV_GsUrCgDRwpupT4tDU6UJMdzr1sjClJ3wlGsCi90g/s1032/W05%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIz7MtJjYGDxa6IkZBjuHXY3XEdK4CECCB0A7yIBLamq8RnfaVuIcmZ6OZXM_PpZB_Etr-LK0rueY4KwNtTMXWnUaScMu67Q5j8TQy5Gx5nRUvbXBGnNwwEFL7bnf-7L3sSyBFxYkQv1mSV_GsUrCgDRwpupT4tDU6UJMdzr1sjClJ3wlGsCi90g/w640-h318/W05%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsuudTJQFhiamyHcjOp_J6I40Ns9Zglmzogekg2c7Zh0jbxK1P_WVBYyy_ra7IDBYQbT0uz4uz06g4cbk4tA1MVhH_0ZDM3kT0ojflQ5YqOI3mVGXOsthxL4BFVs-cpUi5tBAtsqBWHBEmAF25kv4l0Gym81MMXI1vlyVa98kZLn2gRP6lSkjaQ/s1032/W05%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsuudTJQFhiamyHcjOp_J6I40Ns9Zglmzogekg2c7Zh0jbxK1P_WVBYyy_ra7IDBYQbT0uz4uz06g4cbk4tA1MVhH_0ZDM3kT0ojflQ5YqOI3mVGXOsthxL4BFVs-cpUi5tBAtsqBWHBEmAF25kv4l0Gym81MMXI1vlyVa98kZLn2gRP6lSkjaQ/w640-h318/W05%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The frame seen in the earlier series is still with us. Here, the overall look gets a dramatic overhaul after G11. The image for G16 has a bookplate look, while G24 and G30 seem to emanate from confusion, perhaps due to conflicting requirements.</p><p>The PG25 image is very pleasing, similar to any of the four PGv2 images, but more detailed and dramatic. Next, the beach scene, PGv2 first.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPPCpmWrp_oZOA3gH7li5Bz-_fzRxspObQQc0gtlihi7_wZUjgYILGS8bw-LdsMunXvdx_BcnQIrSIYHZkUJGWUqug0vkIJ9rtCxB3XidYNn9bSocnwNEr4rCOPU9PE_xOSHawfSSmk6H6nr9hmjNlXM2e1RgvcFZ87BklWbUotjswj8yz7tDuFg/s1032/W13%20PGV2%20G2n3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPPCpmWrp_oZOA3gH7li5Bz-_fzRxspObQQc0gtlihi7_wZUjgYILGS8bw-LdsMunXvdx_BcnQIrSIYHZkUJGWUqug0vkIJ9rtCxB3XidYNn9bSocnwNEr4rCOPU9PE_xOSHawfSSmk6H6nr9hmjNlXM2e1RgvcFZ87BklWbUotjswj8yz7tDuFg/w640-h318/W13%20PGV2%20G2n3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhHygM6KUD07OIXte8gBYLTpXadunZ4jGFyV4Qgf4JspdjXmIsqtBZLUNsgXxkqCmloUWcdsL7gpoN-58pwKI2zIpa9yCuRxJ39o5tYFl9bNlnFb6BqPGcwznd4dSRRViNRhvcgXI_5gC1JI5zCCffnms0CC3eC-CGgG8BKjcqI4EI9Lgegie7TA/s1032/W13%20PGV2%20G4n5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhHygM6KUD07OIXte8gBYLTpXadunZ4jGFyV4Qgf4JspdjXmIsqtBZLUNsgXxkqCmloUWcdsL7gpoN-58pwKI2zIpa9yCuRxJ39o5tYFl9bNlnFb6BqPGcwznd4dSRRViNRhvcgXI_5gC1JI5zCCffnms0CC3eC-CGgG8BKjcqI4EI9Lgegie7TA/w640-h318/W13%20PGV2%20G4n5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The differences between these are a matter of increasing detail. I note that the main cliff attains an overhang in the fourth image, and while it looks like the sun is higher, it's just that the second headland is lower, with a notch in it. Now for SDXL and PG25.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWvsoVyyfOQlx4dZERhQgR6MyQ1R5Ve46aIKAA3kf_sdpfjRalWbRJxzXb8ewSNQjrO6npGx7Xl4QCjSroa8CXSXqU64wW-0gA4-6cLVuj6kUpKBgj-u7o9FstAzq8CtwHAluyFUBxvwpNwuLcabukBQK9YLhPJM_VB7BxcPx-z0k8z9xjD6IG-A/s1032/W13%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWvsoVyyfOQlx4dZERhQgR6MyQ1R5Ve46aIKAA3kf_sdpfjRalWbRJxzXb8ewSNQjrO6npGx7Xl4QCjSroa8CXSXqU64wW-0gA4-6cLVuj6kUpKBgj-u7o9FstAzq8CtwHAluyFUBxvwpNwuLcabukBQK9YLhPJM_VB7BxcPx-z0k8z9xjD6IG-A/w640-h318/W13%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV_Y_HKXBXsL_x1WK7lRFMA-1FTGYHY1bGtdLX9jRgFXLg3uCDB6KCC9ecEOsexPUrsruGTy5ajjrHIslBR30RplcrTdaZnRRDfJ9rr6jBYnuBl1jDvlDSS8OuAcwe0tfa4H6ibqZr_2EUTk3zk0xLPM6w8Gy-sopNxnTUMtuOycDna72CU1PLXA/s1032/W13%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV_Y_HKXBXsL_x1WK7lRFMA-1FTGYHY1bGtdLX9jRgFXLg3uCDB6KCC9ecEOsexPUrsruGTy5ajjrHIslBR30RplcrTdaZnRRDfJ9rr6jBYnuBl1jDvlDSS8OuAcwe0tfa4H6ibqZr_2EUTk3zk0xLPM6w8Gy-sopNxnTUMtuOycDna72CU1PLXA/w640-h318/W13%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdHed4OU1NpYaq3ViDbNDQf2MPxCS1KmkMhiCl7iDt6XAGbPmxKAOkWyIZYqkLDGyrd560s5q2jWeqSbhkihiIYAAz4mGMYIYDSKY9ZHdTRwllhkw-CXptXISKmq68gQWEwPNSmseaiIbYH4mp0-OMWGly0lkstG2WTHeV8uaXVLX-4AgVDovgjA/s1032/W13%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdHed4OU1NpYaq3ViDbNDQf2MPxCS1KmkMhiCl7iDt6XAGbPmxKAOkWyIZYqkLDGyrd560s5q2jWeqSbhkihiIYAAz4mGMYIYDSKY9ZHdTRwllhkw-CXptXISKmq68gQWEwPNSmseaiIbYH4mp0-OMWGly0lkstG2WTHeV8uaXVLX-4AgVDovgjA/w640-h318/W13%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGJbOKy2qqTxQYVqO-s7S1cAFTCIaZatBWYox4i7h8aWc27zQaiJ1_nuceigLlN5SgNdwjayfYq8Dm1CpUwZZmQVtjXTVRySjarfzH2TXFCU7eQZYffq0hW3uZVAWPvtdG_JxCY1v2iZ0O49MHD4IayNrsN6OiW_Rp-Ihxqfx5zGiFCWGwy-aYyg/s1032/W13%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGJbOKy2qqTxQYVqO-s7S1cAFTCIaZatBWYox4i7h8aWc27zQaiJ1_nuceigLlN5SgNdwjayfYq8Dm1CpUwZZmQVtjXTVRySjarfzH2TXFCU7eQZYffq0hW3uZVAWPvtdG_JxCY1v2iZ0O49MHD4IayNrsN6OiW_Rp-Ihxqfx5zGiFCWGwy-aYyg/w640-h318/W13%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I see that these retain the frame. The first two images, at G02 and G04, are from a high perspective; it would have taken more words to specify where eye level is. The next one, G07, is about what I had in mind. The fourth image, at G11, is very good and G16 is almost as good, if a little exaggerated. After that things go downhill, and the frame is even breached.</p><p>PG25 has a very good look, with more diverse scenery than the PGv2 images. Now for the final series, the clock, beginning with PGv2.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5cTntMgJ_94aSskavMZ4sxq3sB9Oe6pjbp74cyMiZWJ34Zh9UC4tUpZgz1XXBLKMth41VhXOGYylh9x2Ao-QFlsPFCwAL5iR16fVl8mCTFPz6cKT56lUMb1Pk4fLQUq0lLjRiJ3g_Pe8YWxh_B5aAA_3VY2Pk5x4vb8QOSauyMOnyTErlfSagQ/s1032/W28%20PGV2%20G2n3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5cTntMgJ_94aSskavMZ4sxq3sB9Oe6pjbp74cyMiZWJ34Zh9UC4tUpZgz1XXBLKMth41VhXOGYylh9x2Ao-QFlsPFCwAL5iR16fVl8mCTFPz6cKT56lUMb1Pk4fLQUq0lLjRiJ3g_Pe8YWxh_B5aAA_3VY2Pk5x4vb8QOSauyMOnyTErlfSagQ/w640-h318/W28%20PGV2%20G2n3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAtV6L2qK0VnA2pgrxLDhZs-cpXjCXq4Vd0pgv6NbCauZeKL4zropHvNdiPeUWWnWVZ7_DZtCO57YYgmKanlafwiivH7tJ06QEIbM8gaeYDNzpubgJNl9LVY8HHrnFRn7TUlx65tJ8GyDkCCovR2KNWjJvnVV5NerAG_zvNqB_5ZNfH0_lKPQz_w/s1032/W28%20PGV2%20G4n5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAtV6L2qK0VnA2pgrxLDhZs-cpXjCXq4Vd0pgv6NbCauZeKL4zropHvNdiPeUWWnWVZ7_DZtCO57YYgmKanlafwiivH7tJ06QEIbM8gaeYDNzpubgJNl9LVY8HHrnFRn7TUlx65tJ8GyDkCCovR2KNWjJvnVV5NerAG_zvNqB_5ZNfH0_lKPQz_w/w640-h318/W28%20PGV2%20G4n5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I had something in mind when I wrote Prompt 4, which I'll get into below. Only the fourth image, with G5, appears as if it could be a real clock. All four of these have the "smaller dial for the second hand" concentric with the main dial. That's not what I had in mind, but I didn't specify "next to" or "below" the main dial. Now for SDXL and PG25.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipnUMeoFcIalIZDzoWeNBBHcaU5210C68ZslZaEUZpsEmbqJKm2Xf2BEaSPp7OTBDLshwJ0JToe4R81KcxOEk35x9cEWtP6zAxeNklh3OAZF09hqGOiy30hR_Er_SORsgoVChKhsENvMCTH3hRLn-c6Lx0J06BWbfzTDZjdwI5r12_o691LaJbeQ/s1032/W28%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipnUMeoFcIalIZDzoWeNBBHcaU5210C68ZslZaEUZpsEmbqJKm2Xf2BEaSPp7OTBDLshwJ0JToe4R81KcxOEk35x9cEWtP6zAxeNklh3OAZF09hqGOiy30hR_Er_SORsgoVChKhsENvMCTH3hRLn-c6Lx0J06BWbfzTDZjdwI5r12_o691LaJbeQ/w640-h318/W28%20SDXL%20G02n04.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu7YUzTTKsKtxb08tczm56sh_QMHwh7288DI1EjzFXDSbPMhCz3I1Hqgaqmj5r9KZrcUZXUN-exlnPTozyEoyMVLuJyDsul-pBJYLp5Z4gIjCLZgmK9gqH94SXl5Va58hqPL7y4TaCbgKyHIDKfMsghHDzT9C1RQn1Q4iJNL_CwBtG5t1xphB1sg/s1032/W28%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu7YUzTTKsKtxb08tczm56sh_QMHwh7288DI1EjzFXDSbPMhCz3I1Hqgaqmj5r9KZrcUZXUN-exlnPTozyEoyMVLuJyDsul-pBJYLp5Z4gIjCLZgmK9gqH94SXl5Va58hqPL7y4TaCbgKyHIDKfMsghHDzT9C1RQn1Q4iJNL_CwBtG5t1xphB1sg/w640-h318/W28%20SDXL%20G07n11.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOjDcSeoeHedbLT3I5VdQKqbea-NHp1cIJeV6H6XNh57T5d_60p4TMhxYO5da87btHfe4vB9peeKOzqQ0RlfcKETr4cP2ESM_RAAmFGn4iqspbfdWgb-LPJSrILKk7MaQzyYaYFG6YEpfJr5jZuQ9JqAQM26cOiI1GtYd9TiH0ftbewLXwqitOaA/s1032/W28%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOjDcSeoeHedbLT3I5VdQKqbea-NHp1cIJeV6H6XNh57T5d_60p4TMhxYO5da87btHfe4vB9peeKOzqQ0RlfcKETr4cP2ESM_RAAmFGn4iqspbfdWgb-LPJSrILKk7MaQzyYaYFG6YEpfJr5jZuQ9JqAQM26cOiI1GtYd9TiH0ftbewLXwqitOaA/w640-h318/W28%20SDXL%20G16n24.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fvNewTwhAld0YLYt5Zkc1dabX4hyGYB0CjKwjyMOuqzzy3FSqZWBK3q-pZfQRODaSJ2uRZKp9Bqylt2raCGgpQnPCoYCh-FY1mycu6XBQ4IgMK5fPIYeBMH8ZOf4RnMZ0vrJPMsh1I6x76eRcLVkjC4_Y6CD_gOAX2YE6EyYJaUfgLrPFPeFaA/s1032/W28%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1032" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fvNewTwhAld0YLYt5Zkc1dabX4hyGYB0CjKwjyMOuqzzy3FSqZWBK3q-pZfQRODaSJ2uRZKp9Bqylt2raCGgpQnPCoYCh-FY1mycu6XBQ4IgMK5fPIYeBMH8ZOf4RnMZ0vrJPMsh1I6x76eRcLVkjC4_Y6CD_gOAX2YE6EyYJaUfgLrPFPeFaA/w640-h318/W28%20SDXL%20G30%20n%20PG25.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>It's pretty clear by now that, however many words one uses, the best range is usually from G07 to G16. The first two images are rather primitive, and the last two go wonky. I suppose the best is at G07.</p><p>PG25 has produced an entire clock, not just a dial in a frame. It still doesn't meet all the criteria. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieazL53BVTOSb2qWxtowWl3pEH_V02gmFaQhRJyhml-TzrXbo4RuXf6OFxpFKEVw2YEnDRmRmoXiu2_uhKpkNKsnFeBX5Our1-FNCUxse6Owh-SdNObueP0FIhgwV-kIkkJkL3E12mucfrDIE3W_PS9LFWeBnrsI0lED5kW6GSSx_Vqr0WSzhtgw/s1475/Moon%20Dial.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1475" data-original-width="1091" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieazL53BVTOSb2qWxtowWl3pEH_V02gmFaQhRJyhml-TzrXbo4RuXf6OFxpFKEVw2YEnDRmRmoXiu2_uhKpkNKsnFeBX5Our1-FNCUxse6Owh-SdNObueP0FIhgwV-kIkkJkL3E12mucfrDIE3W_PS9LFWeBnrsI0lED5kW6GSSx_Vqr0WSzhtgw/s320/Moon%20Dial.jpg" width="237" /></a></div>Here is what I had in mind, a clock with a moon dial and a separate second hand dial above the center. The day indicator is in the square window; numerous variations on showing days have been produced. This is a modern dial, in a style going back 150 years.<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBhmFzJzQi6x_tr1NfP5G20mMCqAyo5JxfaCAoDh_ndGtoOBL8DlnUNtu7GKBlXm5slEtZsR0ZLHRT-4rL6fQnmDLmEu7UqDCrkLfiO1X8sBIHVbbHpevXoBthPl026jDGf7xbsitaykE2akDlQOds_1ll8zFoKe0a4iHIbVyaLLOug4gecdinag/s2000/Multi-dial%20Clock%20Louis%20XIV.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1336" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBhmFzJzQi6x_tr1NfP5G20mMCqAyo5JxfaCAoDh_ndGtoOBL8DlnUNtu7GKBlXm5slEtZsR0ZLHRT-4rL6fQnmDLmEu7UqDCrkLfiO1X8sBIHVbbHpevXoBthPl026jDGf7xbsitaykE2akDlQOds_1ll8zFoKe0a4iHIbVyaLLOug4gecdinag/w268-h400/Multi-dial%20Clock%20Louis%20XIV.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><br />Had I specified "many dials" I might have expected something more like this, a French clock from the Louis XIV era. The "dial" at the top signals a speed control, typically adjusted for the seasons as temperature affected the length of the pendulum.<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAcS06IvajwlpuVmYgZR6oPLZ59E5cXMAHema_FbtIq4NpXO-DMCe_O_ETyJKlUU4Fo6PUprJW82MRXYk8fbbHGnG_b0wFn0KHy7_hKrsrjGkJQiSOd4MPM5HwSm9uyUCuVnvE-ndD9Ymg2IJRAfzAdQxiIRwglnWRWLyj6nYP8wQnAxQRiHhG7w/s1115/Zimmer-tower-in-Lier-Belgium.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1115" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAcS06IvajwlpuVmYgZR6oPLZ59E5cXMAHema_FbtIq4NpXO-DMCe_O_ETyJKlUU4Fo6PUprJW82MRXYk8fbbHGnG_b0wFn0KHy7_hKrsrjGkJQiSOd4MPM5HwSm9uyUCuVnvE-ndD9Ymg2IJRAfzAdQxiIRwglnWRWLyj6nYP8wQnAxQRiHhG7w/s320/Zimmer-tower-in-Lier-Belgium.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>This last image is from a clock tower in Belgium. Clearly, the AI interpretation of "fantastical clock" is still somewhat limited.<p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-12039636992232349662024-03-04T23:46:00.015-05:002024-03-05T08:29:51.748-05:00The new artist on the block<p> kw: ai art, generated art, artificial intelligence, simulated intelligence, comparisons, photo essays</p><p>A year and a half ago I began to use Dall-E2 as my "hired painter". A favorite pastime has been generating landscapes, particularly for use as Zoom backgrounds. This image is one I have used a lot:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOATmvGehylcz6B3PqSmz3tMVBhCNILbTOqDDXOtYhoni3OqBJ3v10_I4azPG-jCxvED_KUSVDp-Yu7q_VRU9tcTI06IWKLVQcT5ab0lEgiNjaUgK-Z08rzOycQ8UpwpzshyphenhyphenyWaZc4RHU474CWUnuZVp4-dxWoCoXL-QBv1gDfi2mWh090NA3oFA/s1280/DALL%C2%B7E%202022-12-10%2012.14.31%20-r-%20a%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOATmvGehylcz6B3PqSmz3tMVBhCNILbTOqDDXOtYhoni3OqBJ3v10_I4azPG-jCxvED_KUSVDp-Yu7q_VRU9tcTI06IWKLVQcT5ab0lEgiNjaUgK-Z08rzOycQ8UpwpzshyphenhyphenyWaZc4RHU474CWUnuZVp4-dxWoCoXL-QBv1gDfi2mWh090NA3oFA/w640-h360/DALL%C2%B7E%202022-12-10%2012.14.31%20-r-%20a%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeDKgyLPWIwnYSo3GaVQE9vtzZNFWDnAw4PHOXC3VgRTyoL7FgbtbetU99M5DwpbUQCe9GCYmrnDSmKFzuHnu5p5Nx8lnNG_NFRMVXugZCbt22JB1JFdwdsZTmRl_l0HUdXpJOmOhGXxYMBPHbZmGi_9nychskl_aXCn7bpeji6dUeqXsO3RKhNw/s1024/DALL%C2%B7E%202022-12-10%2012.07.11%20-%20a%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeDKgyLPWIwnYSo3GaVQE9vtzZNFWDnAw4PHOXC3VgRTyoL7FgbtbetU99M5DwpbUQCe9GCYmrnDSmKFzuHnu5p5Nx8lnNG_NFRMVXugZCbt22JB1JFdwdsZTmRl_l0HUdXpJOmOhGXxYMBPHbZmGi_9nychskl_aXCn7bpeji6dUeqXsO3RKhNw/w320-h320/DALL%C2%B7E%202022-12-10%2012.07.11%20-%20a%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The prompt for this was "<span style="font-family: courier;"><b>A calming forest scene with wildflowers in a meadow, a stream, and a small pond, landscape painting</b></span>." I don't recall how many times I ran the prompt, probably no more than twice, before I saw a 1024x1024 pixel square I liked, shown here. Then I outpainted (extended) it. The images Dall-E2 produces are PNG files, which are 5-7 times as large as a JPG saved with a 95% quality factor.<p></p><p>The result is 2624x1472 px, including the color bar used by Dall-E to identify its products. I cropped out a 2572x1447 portion, which is very close to the 16:9 aspect ratio needed for HD wallpaper. (As with any Blogger image, you can click on these to see them full size. The first image was reduced by about half from the original.)</p><p>Just a few days ago I got a notice from Bard, Google's version of ChatGPT, that its name was being changed to Gemini, and that it could now generate images. In the past few months I got access to a free version of Dall-E3 through Bing, and discovered another AI image program called Playground, that I've written about recently.</p><p>When I started to use Dall-E2 in 2022 I also tested the other two "legacy" AI art generators, MidJourney and Stable Diffusion. I found them more limited than DE2, and they are more expensive to use, so I ignored them since then. I recently took another look at MidJourney, but it runs as a Discord service, and I find Discord hard to use; it's also still too expensive. I'll mention more about Stable Diffusion in a moment.</p><p>I decided to test the products that I do use on the same prompt. Later I added another prompt, and we'll come to that.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9_Tb1rPwno2txZu18GZ_cwXSHhaYiMz8TkXCK75VZqLOGAiKLnElP7lZd-VzYHEMvAsFOZ6mOxYVG5iUU3V3ENYPVo1Qiw0jPuwWTr_UQT7nsxSUzUw4ExnPejTFKAc5swZVTZGWhMKGzKKbIQdNhRd514jTf9l6GdgMXLYrPEtkN4bi_hV7OtA/s1024/DE3%20240228-01%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9_Tb1rPwno2txZu18GZ_cwXSHhaYiMz8TkXCK75VZqLOGAiKLnElP7lZd-VzYHEMvAsFOZ6mOxYVG5iUU3V3ENYPVo1Qiw0jPuwWTr_UQT7nsxSUzUw4ExnPejTFKAc5swZVTZGWhMKGzKKbIQdNhRd514jTf9l6GdgMXLYrPEtkN4bi_hV7OtA/s320/DE3%20240228-01%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>First, I ran the "calming forest scene" prompt with Dall-E3 a few times, and picked the square shown here as the one most pleasing to me. DE3 doesn't yet do outpainting (at least not in the free version). Where the free version of Dall-E2 allows 15 free "Generate" steps per month, the free Bing version of Dall-E3 allows 15 per day. Running a prompt in Dall-E3 yields four square JPG images.<p></p><p>It is immediately clear that this image is more detailed, while retaining the look of a painting. Also, there is no color block or other "signature".</p><p>Both versions of Dall-E adhere pretty well to the prompt. Shorter prompts result in more variety. Prompt construction and editing become tools to negotiate with the product to get an image you want.</p><p>Secondly, I ran that prompt with Gemini. Since Gemini is also a chatbot, one must say, "<span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Create a calming forest scene…</b></span>", for example. You can ask Gemini for more suggestions, and get its help producing a prompt. Gemini also can produce four results per prompt, but sometimes it gives only two or three. At the moment, you cannot ask for human figures to be included; Google got in trouble when its early release of Gemini images yielded nearly all "minority" (non-Caucasian) faces.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicYVaxuoAq04ZRAgXU0gW6tB5eNSmLxlms6FUR9VYZ6exhqYVHvidBt-fyqBpTLVjA9CVeGfzK8S1YWS0X9QgtmQUQo-sdDrRWhx0Sv2lhbJpyJt2httofw9-KPuuStzZ96a0g7HPVAOvgH1GrHfPcl3a_l-ww6Gph66Lut6ycs4RyndpYRF15aA/s1024/Gem%20240228-01%201k%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicYVaxuoAq04ZRAgXU0gW6tB5eNSmLxlms6FUR9VYZ6exhqYVHvidBt-fyqBpTLVjA9CVeGfzK8S1YWS0X9QgtmQUQo-sdDrRWhx0Sv2lhbJpyJt2httofw9-KPuuStzZ96a0g7HPVAOvgH1GrHfPcl3a_l-ww6Gph66Lut6ycs4RyndpYRF15aA/s320/Gem%20240228-01%201k%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The default size of Gemini images is 1536x1536, and they are JPG files. I reduced this one to 1024x1024 to compare with the other programs.<p></p><p>The level of detail is between that seen for Dall-E2 and Dall-E3. There is also a painterly look. I haven't tried asking for photographic detail.</p><p>Gemini claims that you can ask it to produce images of other sizes, between 256x256 to 1536x1536, and other ratios, such as 1024x576 (an HD ratio), but when I included size instructions in the prompt, I still always received 1536x1536 squares. Queried about this, Gemini said the capability was not yet there. I'd love to be able to produce 1920x1080 images from the get-go, but that has to wait.</p><p>Now, with Playground there are complications. Playground has a "side version" called Playground.AI that can produce images that are 1920x1080 and a wide variety of other sizes, but after doing about 20 prompts, a countdown reaches zero and you need to subscribe. I haven't seen whether more images become available after a month or whatever; I had other issues so I stopped using it. The "big version" at playgroundai.com has so many controls and options that it is hard to pick a single "default". For example, there are presently three Models, Stable Diffusion XL (they once included Stable Diffusion 1.5, but have dropped it), Playground v2, and Playground v2.5; there are also Samplers, which are mathematical methods used for the Diffusion operation, as many as 12 in the paid version and 8 in the free version; and there are dozens of Filters that affect the look of an image in ways ranging from subtle to dramatic; you can also turn on or off the random number generator used to produce a different Seed for each image. </p><p>To simplify things for this experiment I let the Seed be random, I didn't use any Filters, and I used the following setups to produce five images, selected from groups of four under these conditions:</p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>SDXL (Stable Diffusion XL) with DPM2 Sampler</li><li>SDXL with Euler a Sampler (Euler a is the default when you start to use Playground)</li><li>PGv2 (Playground v2) with DPM2 Sampler</li><li>PGv2 with Euler a Sampler</li><li>PG25 (Playground v2.5), which doesn't use an explicit Sampler (of course there is a Sampler buried inside somewhere)</li></ol><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCH24fG5UcHPoRJnGR015WeXpYNLiENNLjL4AJlBRKphN0MUm5omZ4a5pSy5HT7362OPOk3j21RtXgo45NYF0wE2X9nDPbUtt3uuFlLfMYG0l4jWBAM6LCdx-TKHjV9wfdF_DFzIO9RNHdJ9V7nja85Ag73CJ9IpHVca6Xt4sMqAt5HByA6GKOaw/s1024/PG%20240228-01%20SDXL%20DMP2%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-303617842.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCH24fG5UcHPoRJnGR015WeXpYNLiENNLjL4AJlBRKphN0MUm5omZ4a5pSy5HT7362OPOk3j21RtXgo45NYF0wE2X9nDPbUtt3uuFlLfMYG0l4jWBAM6LCdx-TKHjV9wfdF_DFzIO9RNHdJ9V7nja85Ag73CJ9IpHVca6Xt4sMqAt5HByA6GKOaw/s320/PG%20240228-01%20SDXL%20DMP2%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-303617842.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>SDXL with DPM2. This and the following four images have quality and detail equal to DE3. This has a brighter look overall, including a little drama in the sky. I'll compare its siblings below with it.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2N1_BS5-8T2TDusLgiiH-p3IsRQcou9Rmjg4rWfwTUgA_YT7arJ4o0_WB6ZqXss2qqZZYOl_rb8lyf_E-eEdb8EwzQkWJrRc92DJmXMb4wWZ5OahiSQ_MsMU7nlCTXUB3liXGhuhzlXPXclFLvWRB4GAS5uiAZqUqzM8E8oonYG5aHweDdd7t5g/s1024/PG%20240228-02%20SDXL%20Euler%20a%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-240180324.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2N1_BS5-8T2TDusLgiiH-p3IsRQcou9Rmjg4rWfwTUgA_YT7arJ4o0_WB6ZqXss2qqZZYOl_rb8lyf_E-eEdb8EwzQkWJrRc92DJmXMb4wWZ5OahiSQ_MsMU7nlCTXUB3liXGhuhzlXPXclFLvWRB4GAS5uiAZqUqzM8E8oonYG5aHweDdd7t5g/s320/PG%20240228-02%20SDXL%20Euler%20a%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-240180324.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>SDXL with Euler a. Euler a in general has a softer look than DPM2.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeva24wdtCu4fYY2FPydYTnMbkulrjgQdfzmK5axx-A_irsJfhYqVUHhHj-9iWAIgVlf8MfugR7ZPsk578uBgISDgP5awcydQelibHSSYkksDPT7aW3lHNhT35EqnbBU8aEB3u1lRIA27MsCXuCnow8xOYaRi8Q436OXdVv2STQqWohekyzntM8A/s1024/PG%20240228-03%20PGv2%20DMP2%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-177892542.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeva24wdtCu4fYY2FPydYTnMbkulrjgQdfzmK5axx-A_irsJfhYqVUHhHj-9iWAIgVlf8MfugR7ZPsk578uBgISDgP5awcydQelibHSSYkksDPT7aW3lHNhT35EqnbBU8aEB3u1lRIA27MsCXuCnow8xOYaRi8Q436OXdVv2STQqWohekyzntM8A/s320/PG%20240228-03%20PGv2%20DMP2%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-177892542.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>PGv2 with DPM2. This is even brighter than SDXL, even a bit edgy, though the sky is more bland. I like the misty aspect of the background for all these, but this one is more pronounced.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7G5HByn0Dl9qJvtQplCaA9eJQyOWsZmMjN6vlPrnYXen-1H7RiZzn_9vdFtVh9TD5FHpolEv8_bsgFTB-oRiBzyjRfcBaC81UEAgzaYbDjOGWdYHWN4yAjHcFVSjoKQGqq5fHukbpc6gku3Emg1KxwcQIUvHv0Hxy1UaCQCliFEh2xQK2UjvbA/s1024/PG%20240228-04%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-642173276.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7G5HByn0Dl9qJvtQplCaA9eJQyOWsZmMjN6vlPrnYXen-1H7RiZzn_9vdFtVh9TD5FHpolEv8_bsgFTB-oRiBzyjRfcBaC81UEAgzaYbDjOGWdYHWN4yAjHcFVSjoKQGqq5fHukbpc6gku3Emg1KxwcQIUvHv0Hxy1UaCQCliFEh2xQK2UjvbA/s320/PG%20240228-04%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-642173276.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>PGv2 with Euler a. A little softer, as before, but this one also has a better sky.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXf9xOrg1arB2iCeyIQRIZJcNc-r-Il1re1RvSc7qDAmq3467mD0-9n7hA3vImrJbjbQV9IXx4JahrNLMpCs8OZViHXJFiPwwMEy49ggvubDO77YUNpcssv668JVm8yDqh7oxh3TAWDGrFU17kJjT6s8KBH_7OKBQlrkKMA2rStjcfvkoTB4xSRA/s1024/PG%20240228-05%20PGv2%20noS%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-230796448.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXf9xOrg1arB2iCeyIQRIZJcNc-r-Il1re1RvSc7qDAmq3467mD0-9n7hA3vImrJbjbQV9IXx4JahrNLMpCs8OZViHXJFiPwwMEy49ggvubDO77YUNpcssv668JVm8yDqh7oxh3TAWDGrFU17kJjT6s8KBH_7OKBQlrkKMA2rStjcfvkoTB4xSRA/s320/PG%20240228-05%20PGv2%20noS%20-%20A%20calming%20forest%20scene%20with%20wildflowers%20in%20a%20meadow,%20a%20stream,%20and%20a%20small%20pond,%20landscape%20painting-230796448.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>PG25. This is even brighter than the others, almost too bright. All these five have a greater aesthetic quality than DE2 and Gemini, while matching DE3 in aesthetics though having a rather different feel.<br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>They are all beautiful. But we are only half done here. All these art generators have the characteristic that they produce more widely diverse images when given very short prompts. Diverse not only from one product to the next, but from one image to the next in any product.</p><p>I happened to be reading a book about simulations in cosmology, so I decided to use a one word prompt: "<span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Cosmology</b></span>". This time I ran the prompt twice with each product. Here, for each product and variation I'll show all four responses to each issuance of the prompt. Dall-E2 is first:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPL5ISFTGpmu7N9eYn4mT9AyidqP4dvyG9qcNfpUdAxVX6RYZbC8fMdLc_gQTqZNED_EvfqacMBnixSGGPfnHDY2UsVcjHp6Q1yDVu3B43r1V60qnzJBu4HdU6_MihLhjzyVHmeR9FoYWDLp_akJUDENBJJUA2kwrmv3EtfIBI7N4foNZ9O1R1g/s1710/DE2%20240302-01%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="436" data-original-width="1710" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPL5ISFTGpmu7N9eYn4mT9AyidqP4dvyG9qcNfpUdAxVX6RYZbC8fMdLc_gQTqZNED_EvfqacMBnixSGGPfnHDY2UsVcjHp6Q1yDVu3B43r1V60qnzJBu4HdU6_MihLhjzyVHmeR9FoYWDLp_akJUDENBJJUA2kwrmv3EtfIBI7N4foNZ9O1R1g/w640-h164/DE2%20240302-01%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimRO-E_Zt9D4feAiD-Pq40Ur2a_gFd9oGu0Kceu8ijbG2y2oEuRXFH-wY_rGoY96-Rjtjsis2j0XDcuVEQB4pk_kFKHNJjwIU2_dPyANFtPHlLyvCn1mmCi39YP1ivwTVhHN7_pK8imPHjs-Uty0eQUfn613YYarMskoJ1X-HpLyhGoUDoAwmc4w/s1706/DE2%20240302-02%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="433" data-original-width="1706" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimRO-E_Zt9D4feAiD-Pq40Ur2a_gFd9oGu0Kceu8ijbG2y2oEuRXFH-wY_rGoY96-Rjtjsis2j0XDcuVEQB4pk_kFKHNJjwIU2_dPyANFtPHlLyvCn1mmCi39YP1ivwTVhHN7_pK8imPHjs-Uty0eQUfn613YYarMskoJ1X-HpLyhGoUDoAwmc4w/w640-h162/DE2%20240302-02%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>These are screen shots of the image sets Dall-E2 produced. There's lots of variety from image to image, not just of subject matter but of style. Most of these have a focus, planets, galaxies, <i>etc</i>. The last image, at lower right, seems to have a wider scope, and most closely evokes "cosmology".</p><p>The next two sets of four are from Dall-E3, which displays its results in a block rather than a line, and with a black background:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiRmv2w7OymvE-QsUtxIxZE46rJRBAB1muk1JRQDdE6ahohCLCLBFCxG9v7ul40T6BvpPjodYUSY5BecjETk9hvBwzqF7U5jEzvHvxzbxAZidprypWwTRBK5VucP3corkw3kdL4yT8nkOllif8LQrJ_3b_0UQsIsJSkLWjxunGogZ-c3zW4mc7jg/s579/DE3%20240302-01%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="573" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiRmv2w7OymvE-QsUtxIxZE46rJRBAB1muk1JRQDdE6ahohCLCLBFCxG9v7ul40T6BvpPjodYUSY5BecjETk9hvBwzqF7U5jEzvHvxzbxAZidprypWwTRBK5VucP3corkw3kdL4yT8nkOllif8LQrJ_3b_0UQsIsJSkLWjxunGogZ-c3zW4mc7jg/w396-h400/DE3%20240302-01%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuEUBunPwJAuj8EuOkz15NpAmnirhMgskCaz60sAFdz2qqj51vVViZ2qRqvbvNiuJh3j8xTTxdgMPQEnCW1MqsQ4Hqn-E3LGumdiUSYHhB3jALglIhd7GfEU-NqESCXwrelsdt2lpr5PX9e77hYoAPm63qbo6REL-HFYhuylKuE_QbqNhW10H8Pg/s575/DE3%20240302-02%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="575" data-original-width="575" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuEUBunPwJAuj8EuOkz15NpAmnirhMgskCaz60sAFdz2qqj51vVViZ2qRqvbvNiuJh3j8xTTxdgMPQEnCW1MqsQ4Hqn-E3LGumdiUSYHhB3jALglIhd7GfEU-NqESCXwrelsdt2lpr5PX9e77hYoAPm63qbo6REL-HFYhuylKuE_QbqNhW10H8Pg/w400-h400/DE3%20240302-02%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p>Here, each set of four has a common theme, but the theme varies, as does the style, from one set to the next. Both sets have a galactic focus, but in the first set, two appear to host quasars.</p><p>Next is Gemini.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigIw57PrShECl_Qxf_8xf72MhtbioYDf5Jsw4rRxFLdL3MGh6t0q_XuVyfWUaB1V0XsygKKJbbAGOtxK6Aeim_vRk0OR8Ubw1DBfDqpuRn0LEjyuAZ9gHT_71ez67j8MQTLHBctSS7sG4CORinAjkLjriAs46bdXB8jBfAZmP4hVCaq7aUGxQ27A/s475/Gem%20240302-01%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="473" data-original-width="475" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigIw57PrShECl_Qxf_8xf72MhtbioYDf5Jsw4rRxFLdL3MGh6t0q_XuVyfWUaB1V0XsygKKJbbAGOtxK6Aeim_vRk0OR8Ubw1DBfDqpuRn0LEjyuAZ9gHT_71ez67j8MQTLHBctSS7sG4CORinAjkLjriAs46bdXB8jBfAZmP4hVCaq7aUGxQ27A/w400-h399/Gem%20240302-01%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Htyeckjfcx8GwfeFKeu6lySs4nfp4KaKt6TLnGJGQ3_YMZb_5olgDShEyCSMwLLuQGBCV1UscvUxXbDCajhbZByRMMXiScTQFizRIei022yDJ8ZG0J2wyXjceWwJnc4Q0xfCx7LqjnN7Pipp1Hg9DqA9gXaBrRnfV7M8BBF3l84tpqlZ1hUZcQ/s470/Gem%20240302-02%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="470" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Htyeckjfcx8GwfeFKeu6lySs4nfp4KaKt6TLnGJGQ3_YMZb_5olgDShEyCSMwLLuQGBCV1UscvUxXbDCajhbZByRMMXiScTQFizRIei022yDJ8ZG0J2wyXjceWwJnc4Q0xfCx7LqjnN7Pipp1Hg9DqA9gXaBrRnfV7M8BBF3l84tpqlZ1hUZcQ/w400-h400/Gem%20240302-02%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p>The first set is similar in concept to Dall-E2, with greater diversity. Its first image seems to best encapsulate "cosmology", having great scope. For the second set, Gemini produced only three images, all similar. One may click "Generate more", which I did, and it came up with two more images, one of which is shown here. The one not shown is different from all the others.</p><p>Now we turn to Playground, which produces groups up to four in a line. First, SDXL with DPM2 Sampler:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNWeDtnORxUmavB8VRW4N6vub3aXkACDYmJ5Yr4JdWn-ot_jTiDJFCSrByo05McLOPEXw_lFq0tXcDc4y0-R-O4LTeps99QCxxpkeH2XVGEA6RVgVRTctkeiyx-7iHAsGaM3hZFo0H_tAzbuN7ONlIN5ReP1Qm1dw6q2ai6rz7pFzlsExOa1b51w/s1052/PG%20240302-03%20SDXL%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="1052" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNWeDtnORxUmavB8VRW4N6vub3aXkACDYmJ5Yr4JdWn-ot_jTiDJFCSrByo05McLOPEXw_lFq0tXcDc4y0-R-O4LTeps99QCxxpkeH2XVGEA6RVgVRTctkeiyx-7iHAsGaM3hZFo0H_tAzbuN7ONlIN5ReP1Qm1dw6q2ai6rz7pFzlsExOa1b51w/w640-h164/PG%20240302-03%20SDXL%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgemQNgd9z_QO5p2vNqDV8uNYZzs1xxeH1xGwUaXYmfIeIsO-dyb04mUUeogRgXfi0KGbEKOKzxRe9OoMh6xjuRRuv4lygmSVGBz9dMauhQbB7TLA9oV6dUH-NNSuM74kLnOOAooeGsE6u4xIQG78y4s-c3_uD4RRmjn6u3N4VlmmojL3zaTVh6dw/s1049/PG%20240302-04%20SDXL%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="268" data-original-width="1049" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgemQNgd9z_QO5p2vNqDV8uNYZzs1xxeH1xGwUaXYmfIeIsO-dyb04mUUeogRgXfi0KGbEKOKzxRe9OoMh6xjuRRuv4lygmSVGBz9dMauhQbB7TLA9oV6dUH-NNSuM74kLnOOAooeGsE6u4xIQG78y4s-c3_uD4RRmjn6u3N4VlmmojL3zaTVh6dw/w640-h164/PG%20240302-04%20SDXL%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Six of these echo historical, pre-Enlightenment era, concepts of the Universe, in sundry ways. I'd say that the first image in the first set best illustrates the prompt. It seems to segue from Earth to infinity. Only the second image in the second set includes something vaguely like a galaxy.</p><p>Switching to the Euler a Sampler produced these:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRGVuDG4T0i8RRBWijsPpbYqdYibF0ErYutoC5_ySk1dVucISzSyek0T4i6VQEyk762a_GptIVfDtD-9TBD_G3OoUJGNSV2SNNlmG_f5XtEN5-vcxAQYJ0nDMsNCdlp-AulbcOmKBupoV6j8amHFVuoke6yO1o0qP5HutFxC2WKS-bfb8GAL43Sw/s1043/PG%20240302-01%20SDXL%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="268" data-original-width="1043" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRGVuDG4T0i8RRBWijsPpbYqdYibF0ErYutoC5_ySk1dVucISzSyek0T4i6VQEyk762a_GptIVfDtD-9TBD_G3OoUJGNSV2SNNlmG_f5XtEN5-vcxAQYJ0nDMsNCdlp-AulbcOmKBupoV6j8amHFVuoke6yO1o0qP5HutFxC2WKS-bfb8GAL43Sw/w640-h164/PG%20240302-01%20SDXL%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJpzCkpSK-jz6-STzZWxIHlqTH6YSq__OGlbRmT12qHmyZ6qBAbK2xzyiWgSa34v6oXa6FSiD9Vw7MuhalzbymIDIeJJpeuDAfbGTFQ9DcVpbxW1qNmRpWnQVvPfq3E7NXNtdCciPCQlecIEp5PaLFsqXzArd-zEG2AMu43bX_d9GTBxR_hcNwXg/s1052/PG%20240302-02%20SDXL%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="1052" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJpzCkpSK-jz6-STzZWxIHlqTH6YSq__OGlbRmT12qHmyZ6qBAbK2xzyiWgSa34v6oXa6FSiD9Vw7MuhalzbymIDIeJJpeuDAfbGTFQ9DcVpbxW1qNmRpWnQVvPfq3E7NXNtdCciPCQlecIEp5PaLFsqXzArd-zEG2AMu43bX_d9GTBxR_hcNwXg/w640-h168/PG%20240302-02%20SDXL%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Five of these bear some resemblance to the six "historical" images above, but the allover feel of these is different. None of these really fit the scope of the prompt.</p><p>Next we'll see PGv2 with the DPM2 Sampler:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOL6NTMUNyUFOt5n0LOSW0HnhANkOeqyLFWL-V5YBSiY0BOQvRQ-4_i0EkJD-TeBbDd073YnjYGN88bmfxuI8U2dn8n2ruxWXGVVxzSw0eJwNl5f3S_vM-x6ydAB51Tz9m8aahbjujKUaVG_wF9JK0CUXHI9lYJXzZE7EwjXtJOotPJyL75zwDOQ/s1051/PG%20240302-07%20PGv2%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="272" data-original-width="1051" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOL6NTMUNyUFOt5n0LOSW0HnhANkOeqyLFWL-V5YBSiY0BOQvRQ-4_i0EkJD-TeBbDd073YnjYGN88bmfxuI8U2dn8n2ruxWXGVVxzSw0eJwNl5f3S_vM-x6ydAB51Tz9m8aahbjujKUaVG_wF9JK0CUXHI9lYJXzZE7EwjXtJOotPJyL75zwDOQ/w640-h166/PG%20240302-07%20PGv2%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyPe1cAk-TYdfBX5zkHipVvAjc7axoGZblAcaEm4zhUkTp2BAq3aiQyDPS1wk73Luo4L65ZhOTK6pFQw1PvQgMcclH1EX-6DC5-X0mnD7O1OefugD4Elz8PlgxeiSLxBBcgVQyb2eGlBnJNi-sHCWayG5Z4F7vtShlQ1zm98cpQ6hfKc1yOuT7Q/s1050/PG%20240302-08%20PGv2%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="1050" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyPe1cAk-TYdfBX5zkHipVvAjc7axoGZblAcaEm4zhUkTp2BAq3aiQyDPS1wk73Luo4L65ZhOTK6pFQw1PvQgMcclH1EX-6DC5-X0mnD7O1OefugD4Elz8PlgxeiSLxBBcgVQyb2eGlBnJNi-sHCWayG5Z4F7vtShlQ1zm98cpQ6hfKc1yOuT7Q/w640-h164/PG%20240302-08%20PGv2%20DPM2%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>These have less overall variety. The last image of the eight seems to go the farthest "out there". It's curious that PGv2 put people in nearly every image.</p><p>Now for the switch to the Euler a Sampler:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilOrBDNYEIp7vAn4Gi6UqH8uIAdcfOmYMVTP4PxlRx_D918hQltEd8VRNprSfspaRVoZc1DxtaaBMfzwK-aNIYtY7wlOivKULXFEXvoYmJz-qqgtuPWsRCoSt7GXx9CULVqsjq_OgV0oNTCaQW3wxORc1JOKJCerVIstdgJ3_LxK7nOxv5wLyNlA/s1052/PG%20240302-05%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="272" data-original-width="1052" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilOrBDNYEIp7vAn4Gi6UqH8uIAdcfOmYMVTP4PxlRx_D918hQltEd8VRNprSfspaRVoZc1DxtaaBMfzwK-aNIYtY7wlOivKULXFEXvoYmJz-qqgtuPWsRCoSt7GXx9CULVqsjq_OgV0oNTCaQW3wxORc1JOKJCerVIstdgJ3_LxK7nOxv5wLyNlA/w640-h166/PG%20240302-05%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology%204up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-XgIUnV483luIs2rbo1oNLTkJwBJWuRtYsfJSTzqTa9-VugN0bRtUb657BAtqap5M2oxvBzvKP9CnNNaQuNTAHEdLrFbe1V_BH6AQQ8dv4fvukXS7POGy8z2F3sW-n-MwOfMuFAy_42jE5Qvb4H0TSC6h6tmCCcVKkDwxibhmXV3o65DBGWvPwQ/s1047/PG%20240302-06%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="1047" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-XgIUnV483luIs2rbo1oNLTkJwBJWuRtYsfJSTzqTa9-VugN0bRtUb657BAtqap5M2oxvBzvKP9CnNNaQuNTAHEdLrFbe1V_BH6AQQ8dv4fvukXS7POGy8z2F3sW-n-MwOfMuFAy_42jE5Qvb4H0TSC6h6tmCCcVKkDwxibhmXV3o65DBGWvPwQ/w640-h170/PG%20240302-06%20PGv2%20Euler%20a%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Wow! The first of the images would make a great bookplate. The rest are similar to the sets with the DPM2 Sampler, with the same tendency to include a person, if not persons. The third image in the second set is the closest of these eight to the "cosmology" concept, as I envision it.</p><p>Finally, let's see what PG25 does:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ7cjpfs50xQ6BVITNJNOc0AfR-oUMVQVEGPgTjARXcMJ2QHGRvxJtYY0LhidwFpcwPl_wOJFdTtSBqhKymQUM5y7yvtKtD2ovtfp2n4DCR60RTPJKj7LUEVxPXECSSt7ZZNqQuLzz0QkKhflU3rxeSbsjUwF5Lzxbpm3pdciBelovuMgvWtxEMg/s1051/PG%20240302-09%20PG25%20noS%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="268" data-original-width="1051" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ7cjpfs50xQ6BVITNJNOc0AfR-oUMVQVEGPgTjARXcMJ2QHGRvxJtYY0LhidwFpcwPl_wOJFdTtSBqhKymQUM5y7yvtKtD2ovtfp2n4DCR60RTPJKj7LUEVxPXECSSt7ZZNqQuLzz0QkKhflU3rxeSbsjUwF5Lzxbpm3pdciBelovuMgvWtxEMg/w640-h164/PG%20240302-09%20PG25%20noS%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7O01ZnP-SGVlqNaeTKQLiGIKH76UtZcd9tIZTr5eIbiuxbcfjDkWH1ZDsigP0EAof5rD4r1fn3n2IHqXsC8CxXAgb4fJ3tt0-pkLwKNq1tYl-GDYugxIuLqy3G7XbBm7JWVOShVYMS9gGoMQZdVFSku8RjrjHj9ia1maOZFoGZ6WqG6leeW7zA/s1050/PG%20240302-10%20PG25%20noS%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="1050" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7O01ZnP-SGVlqNaeTKQLiGIKH76UtZcd9tIZTr5eIbiuxbcfjDkWH1ZDsigP0EAof5rD4r1fn3n2IHqXsC8CxXAgb4fJ3tt0-pkLwKNq1tYl-GDYugxIuLqy3G7XbBm7JWVOShVYMS9gGoMQZdVFSku8RjrjHj9ia1maOZFoGZ6WqG6leeW7zA/w640-h172/PG%20240302-10%20PG25%20noS%20-%20Cosmology.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I still see a person or two, but all of these better approach the prompt in concept, with the eighth perhaps being the best. It is interesting that, with the one exception noted above, the images produced by Playground don't show things that look like galaxies. </p><p>I see this collections of images as a catalog of "looks" I can refer to when choosing the way I want a generated image to appear. It is evident that Playground has the greatest variety of ways it can respond to a prompt, but that each of the other three art engines has something unique to offer.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-14376997004726229512024-02-29T22:15:00.000-05:002024-02-29T22:15:32.208-05:00Yes, she is funny<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, humor, comedians, sociology</p><p>At my grandmother's funeral, many years ago, I was with my then-fiancée, in the second row behind my parents. At some point, someone coming in had a minor mishap—nearly tripping—and my fiancée laughed. She laughed rather loudly, and then stifled it. And turned very red. I just held her hand and we waited it out. I was glad for her laughter, really. It calmed me somehow.</p><p>Fast-forward nearly thirty years. I had a very major cancer operation and came home looking like a corpse. Being able to do nearly nothing, I alternated between reading, watching inane TV, eating and sleeping. That Sunday evening I happened to turn on ABC to watch, for the first time ever, <i>America's Funniest Home Videos</i>. Tom Bergeron was the host. I laughed my fool head off! I felt great for the first time in a long time. I watched that show faithfully for the next decade or so. I don't credit the show for my amazing survival (nobody lives 20+ years after having what I had, but <i>I</i> did). But it sure helped. I called it my Laugh Therapy. It has been a few years since I had time to watch <i>AFV</i>, or anything else, for that matter. I lead an active life. But from what I hear, a lot of popular themes from the show in the early 2000's aren't used any more. Too many "professional offended people" complained.</p><p>One would think that the country (and most of the West) is overrun by the always-offended folk who are bigger buzz kills than the dourest of Puritans in Colonial America. They don't like it when anyone laughs at anything...unless it is them doing the laughing, mostly as Schadenfreude against conservatives' embarrassment. However, consider that, less than a quarter of Americans use X/Twitter, and the noisy, vocal trolls are just a percent of that. That is what drives Cancel Culture, 1/4% of the country. Talk about the tail wagging the dog! But we <i>should </i>expect the tail to be in a bad mood, it's right next to the s**thole!</p><p>The best defense against humorless idiots (<i>most especially</i> the Woke, in my view) is to laugh them out of town. Kat Timpf, for one, is doing just that. Her new book, <i>You Can't Joke About That: Why Everything is Funny, and We're All in This Together</i>, is a big breath of fresh air to me and to anyone who just wishes folks would loosen up a little. So what does she think is funny? It's better to ask, what <i>doesn't</i> she joke about? The list is very, very short. Maybe nonexistent. Start with the most taboo subjects: disease and death. Go on from there.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUnf4FEcvRX1y84j7fjI6MoIF1odE-0wHxvEIwK-Vt0FH4tjiuFTiadJSo4nAWDR7dX98ERCc44Zr4BSk8ks2sGHSbcKmI_A9bsk_xNaB-kwdrkrNgM4Lhof46l4J0xn2uKjM2sn5S4eqZMl4vtYithXsm9gPNTLFR3vtkg86TskTrDxWWasssA/s1024/DE3%20240229-02%20A%20silhouette%20of%20a%20long-haired%20comedienne%20with%20a%20microphone%20in%20her%20hand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUnf4FEcvRX1y84j7fjI6MoIF1odE-0wHxvEIwK-Vt0FH4tjiuFTiadJSo4nAWDR7dX98ERCc44Zr4BSk8ks2sGHSbcKmI_A9bsk_xNaB-kwdrkrNgM4Lhof46l4J0xn2uKjM2sn5S4eqZMl4vtYithXsm9gPNTLFR3vtkg86TskTrDxWWasssA/w200-h200/DE3%20240229-02%20A%20silhouette%20of%20a%20long-haired%20comedienne%20with%20a%20microphone%20in%20her%20hand.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Kat Timpf is a comedian. Her current gig is <i>Gutfeld </i>on FOX. She doesn't just do comedy. She writes (writing lots of columns is good practice for writing a book) just as much, often her own soufflé of libertarianism and satire. Particularly in the political arena, she's an equal-opportunity abuser.<p></p><p>How's this for dark humor. Riffing on "the Quarantine" of 2020, upon hearing "Anne Frank had to hide in an attic…" a few too many times: "Pioneers probably didn't have time to notice the little annoying things about their pioneer family, because they had that exhausting, dangerous cross-country journey to distract them. Plus, if you were a chick, you were just constantly getting pregnant and giving birth, and then some of the kids you had already given birth to would sometimes die along the way before you reached your horse-driven destination. So no, they probably were <i>not </i>noticing how much their husbands' whistling bothered them because the were too busy discussing whether or not they should, I don't know, eat the body of the kid that just died in order to have the strength to pop out the next one." (pp39-40). That is from the chapter "No one wants to hear you whine (unless it's funny)". </p><p>This is a serious book, under the satire. She is making a plea for allowing humor to work its magic as a universal releaser-of-really-bad-feelings. As it happens, comedians are the second-biggest target of the humorless Wokemeisters, right after Christians. As a lapsed Catholic, perhaps Kat ought to be glad she doesn't have Christian faith just now. Christian comedians are doubly Cancelled these days.</p><p>Bottom line: She is in favor of the freest of free-speech environments possible. Then, her final chapter consists of instructions on when not to speak: when the police want you to. It is three pages of instruction on handling several scenarios. Not a joke in the chapter, because police, by the nature of their job, need to be entirely humorless. Of course, when you're with a cop friend off duty, joke around all you like. But <i>not</i> whenever there's a chance you are under suspicion.</p><p>Kat is, as generations X and later are, pretty free with her use of expletives. It seems that, for all the generations subsequent to mine, various derivatives of the F word are the general adjectives of choice, and the S word is the generalized noun of choice. I watched a few of her routines that are on YouTube; she rarely dropped either bomb, but she did occasionally do so. I am an old-school entertainer (think of Red Skelton or Roy Rogers): in the public arena we have a choice, to ennoble our audience or to debase them. Blue humor causes snickers, not honest laughter. Go watch an old video of Red Skelton doing a Clem Kadiddlehopper routine, or Gertrude and Heathcliff the seagulls. You'll laugh with tears until you get a smile-ache. Not a cuss word from end to end. Are you an entertainer? Leave your audience feeling better about themselves because they were with you. (But if there is a Woke heckler in the crowd, <i>that</i> fool you want to drive out in pelting shame! It can be done without cussing. The rest of the audience will be thankful.)</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-10819685260287259572024-02-27T19:52:00.001-05:002024-02-27T19:52:20.844-05:00Learning Playground Samplers<p> kw: artificial intelligence, automatic art, evaluations, instructions, photo essays</p><p>The learning curve for the Playground AI art generator is a bit steeper than it is for Dall-E. But the level of control is amazing. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about <a href="https://polymath07.blogspot.com/2024/02/an-experiment-with-versatile-ai-artist.html">testing Playground's Filters</a>. Here I introduce what are called Samplers. They seem to work by emphasizing different aspects of the prompt. The web site has a video available that explains Samplers, but the examples are all based on the description of a suit of armor. I don't try to illustrate video games; I like landscapes, both semi-real and sci-fi imaginary, and also domestic scenes. The prompt for all the images shown here is:</p><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Several customers in various places within a very well-stocked music and musical instrument store</b></span></p></blockquote><p>I also used the same Seed value for all: <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>618732496</b></span>. This was chosen after generating several images using random Seeds; I picked one that made an image I liked, using the Playground v2 Model and the default Sampler, <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler a</b></span>, which means "Euler ancestral". I don't know how the Sampler names arise, but I do know that Euler was a pioneer of linear algebra, which is used very much by AI software.</p><p>Eight Samplers are available to free users of Playground. The learning video has a table of certain characteristics, which I clipped:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5WOI_oJcWfU7V25iHeegsNkMQrwPF0jg3r-rBAReU6BaqncGAiefJ9CKvu-GCp6rWtYvflWp0Ec0IshxAh-pp3ud4BiMzTphe2lq9Tt6zOyH_eTGX3bjTHQASasCXUkoV0AnD29b0qfM-lSOs7ihlI0PRrze53vy0It5J1NOTGwY8lyoZElvqg/s936/Sampler%20Comparison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="936" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5WOI_oJcWfU7V25iHeegsNkMQrwPF0jg3r-rBAReU6BaqncGAiefJ9CKvu-GCp6rWtYvflWp0Ec0IshxAh-pp3ud4BiMzTphe2lq9Tt6zOyH_eTGX3bjTHQASasCXUkoV0AnD29b0qfM-lSOs7ihlI0PRrze53vy0It5J1NOTGwY8lyoZElvqg/w400-h246/Sampler%20Comparison.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p>The video was made a couple of years ago, so the list of Samplers has changed. The present list of free Samplers is, in the order I used them:</p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><b style="font-family: courier;">Euler a</b><span style="font-family: inherit;"> (a="ancestral")</span><b style="font-family: courier;"> </b></li><li><b style="font-family: courier;">DPM++ 2M Karras</b><span style="font-family: inherit;"> (I abbreviated it in the file names)</span><b style="font-family: courier;"> </b></li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DDIM</b></span></li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>PNDM</b></span> (which I entered as PDNM in the file names)</li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler</b></span></li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DMP2</b></span></li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DMP2 a</b></span> (a="ancestral") </li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>LMS</b></span> </li></ol>The <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Heun </b></span>Sampler is now among those in the paid-only version.<p></p><p>The ones marked "Varied Output" in the diagram tend to hew more closely to the prompt, but can diverge from it widely. The others, "Similar Output" are similar to one another. I just used one prompt to make all 16 images, so I'll have a different impression, as we'll see.</p><p>I don't have a good handle on the difference between "fast" and "slow" for these. Free users' generation times range from half a minute to several minutes to "we can't do that now, too busy".</p><p>I used each Sampler with both the <b><span style="font-family: courier;">SDXL</span></b> and <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>PGv2</b></span> Models. The image sets are screen shots from Explorer windows, so they show the file names I used to keep track of everything. I present four images, two pairs, in each portion below. These were generated with a different aspect ratio: 1024x576, or 16:9 like HDTV. Forthwith:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2BYw3edpiuCKU-E5pMtU1Ni7K_iQYYbFmNG097aSBtVEr4ssvH4i9Gr7R1ker1fSPfb37avRjt4V3jGVCjxVnkTYe1o1-cNSEnWpLtI3zbTlc2Bp83bl7KUu0NKQuKurRIYdE0cMAWug6fYPRTdRImW8NsiO44o-0Qyiu-5gVwOgW5NOIm2v8Pg/s546/Samplers%201%20n%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="546" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2BYw3edpiuCKU-E5pMtU1Ni7K_iQYYbFmNG097aSBtVEr4ssvH4i9Gr7R1ker1fSPfb37avRjt4V3jGVCjxVnkTYe1o1-cNSEnWpLtI3zbTlc2Bp83bl7KUu0NKQuKurRIYdE0cMAWug6fYPRTdRImW8NsiO44o-0Qyiu-5gVwOgW5NOIm2v8Pg/s16000/Samplers%201%20n%202.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p>My first impression is that the <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>PGv2</b></span> Model is closer to what I had in mind than <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>SDXL</b></span>. With both Models <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DPM-Karras</b></span> provides more "stuff" in the music store than <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler a</b></span>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfZrdjQ5nr-j5Q8bAmSdnEu0MKdAfEgrM-ZNf6oo3W0YevBT5Lcbo-RCXh41a99rGPzI5taIt1PPNwn35Dsjzj0M-DmYL-mSfstapuBRnnclHeUMH0FqAEwiR1WimTCN-gA-skFU4gsyhFwKyxn5_HI-B_3_NRnbtNszgAJfljvy5vKo2i7EPGpQ/s546/Samplers%203%20n%204.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="546" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfZrdjQ5nr-j5Q8bAmSdnEu0MKdAfEgrM-ZNf6oo3W0YevBT5Lcbo-RCXh41a99rGPzI5taIt1PPNwn35Dsjzj0M-DmYL-mSfstapuBRnnclHeUMH0FqAEwiR1WimTCN-gA-skFU4gsyhFwKyxn5_HI-B_3_NRnbtNszgAJfljvy5vKo2i7EPGpQ/s16000/Samplers%203%20n%204.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p>With both Models, <b><span style="font-family: courier;">DDIM</span></b> and <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>PNDM</b></span> are very similar to one another, only differing in small details. These are quite different from the first two Samplers.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Ad2XzuKc-THoz5vjsV1JK9GyUH1DWybJAGnEHO0fCjKlCr4Yh7dbB9jAiuru8ME_diFviTy7z4dclC_x3LlEhqB4Urk0ZMPa5c23DmtiQ54BNzgks_Jz60wQ9gw6v3mR8yrFxLvdhoDSNDMZIwGgLi3iLM2mPdvYIevQxGpDAGl7MQyzMFLi6A/s546/Samplers%205%20n%206.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="546" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Ad2XzuKc-THoz5vjsV1JK9GyUH1DWybJAGnEHO0fCjKlCr4Yh7dbB9jAiuru8ME_diFviTy7z4dclC_x3LlEhqB4Urk0ZMPa5c23DmtiQ54BNzgks_Jz60wQ9gw6v3mR8yrFxLvdhoDSNDMZIwGgLi3iLM2mPdvYIevQxGpDAGl7MQyzMFLi6A/s16000/Samplers%205%20n%206.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p>These two Samplers are most similar to <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DPM-Karras</b></span>. In the two images on the left, <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DMP2</b></span> has produced some funky mini-guitars (they look almost like bent violins) above the guy on the right, and with <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler</b></span> the customer on the left is female.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS7fQn7TjkK1jF35wW1ef3XFuIH-j9IxAXl81352iJpRVfESGpgoVDt4u_UXGP8IaQbZPyiqY8Z3Tee_69QybaSX-GURCvYzavM46ggBmaMYGJX-5jHxGuU4Zvmtujmm-2xa9UMe8IYdixsTTWctbn1NRWxpjsHN6uzzWqAYL4-zykV8dk9vDrg/s546/Samplers%207%20n%208.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="546" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS7fQn7TjkK1jF35wW1ef3XFuIH-j9IxAXl81352iJpRVfESGpgoVDt4u_UXGP8IaQbZPyiqY8Z3Tee_69QybaSX-GURCvYzavM46ggBmaMYGJX-5jHxGuU4Zvmtujmm-2xa9UMe8IYdixsTTWctbn1NRWxpjsHN6uzzWqAYL4-zykV8dk9vDrg/s16000/Samplers%207%20n%208.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p>Now we see that <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DPM2 a</b></span> is like <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler a</b></span> in being "more different" than the others, while <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>LMS</b></span> is very similar to <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler</b></span> and a few others.</p><p>Conclusions at this point:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><b style="font-family: courier;">Euler</b> leads a cluster that includes <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DPM++ 2M Karras</b></span> (abbreviated in file names) , <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DMP2</b></span>, and <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>LMS</b></span> in having a certain "look" to the image, with either Model.</li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DPM2 a</b></span> emptied the room of occupants with <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>SDXL</b></span>, but lined up four of them with <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>PGv2</b></span>. <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DPM2 a</b></span> also added a grand piano. This earns it a "Varied Output" designation from me.</li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>DDIM</b></span> and <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>PNDM</b></span> form another cluster, with either Model, that is distinct from all the other Samplers' output.</li><li><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler a</b></span> produced a unique look, with some similarities to the <span style="font-family: courier;"><b>Euler</b></span> cluster.</li></ul><p></p><p>In the future I hope to repeat this series using a landscape-generating prompt, perhaps one with an "alien city" in the scene. The reason I changed the aspect ratio from the default square (1024x1024) is that, using an upscaler such as Upscayl I can double the size of an image, which also doubles the detail density, to make a 2048x1152 image, which works well as wallpaper on HD (1920x1080) screens. No outpainting needed: I just need to "negotiate" with Playground until I get an image I like all at once.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-75880069890043400312024-02-23T17:21:00.000-05:002024-02-23T17:21:02.488-05:00Final Fourteen<p> kw: story reviews, anthologies, literature, fiction, poetry</p><p>In the past couple of days, I've finished the last fourteen pieces in <i>2024 Pushcart Prize XLVIII: Best of the Small Presses</i>, edited by Bill Henderson and others. There were two (of six) bits of verse I'm sorry I read, and four others that were "OK". One was clearly well-written prose broken into a "poem" in lines of nearly equal visible length; otherwise unremarkable. Another is worth a short remark:</p><p>"Blue" by Erin Wilson is short, and very sad (gut-punch sad), and I dare not say more because it's too easy to spoil.</p><p>Three of the prose pieces are worth mentioning:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>"Dear Damage" by Ashley Marie Farmer – Apparently a true story, of an attempted (and failed) murder-suicide brought on by unimaginable pain. Where's a Kevorkian when you need one? Though I am a Christian, I understand, and sympathize with, the need to determinedly end one's own life in certain circumstances.</li><li>"Dreaming of Water With Tiger Salamanders" – This is also nonfiction. Most of it is an essay compounded of equal parts pandemic panic and climate panic, in a setting of "development" of land that ought not be developed. The author (or narrator) is the token biologist who must accompany a development crew, by California law. The two panics are overhyped. On the other hand, I am in favor of strong laws forbidding "development" of arable land (with a Capital penalty) and forbidding destruction of habitat for vulnerable species (slightly-less-than-Capital).</li><li>"Black Land Matters: Climate Solutions in Black Agrarianism" by Leah Penniman – An excellent essay on the efficacy of traditional soil enrichment. The historical flow as I have observed it is sadly almost predictable: in recent years it has been determined that the Amazon rainforest is not a "jungle" but a now-neglected (and much abused) garden, which includes huge areas enriched by biochar and river-bottom muck to make it more fertile. It is only now becoming clear that significant parts of the African continent have a similar history of cultivation. I learned of the impressive usefulness of biochar when I edited a PhD dissertation for a friend who did research with biochar. This essay focuses on many traditional practices, and on their continuation by American Blacks, where they have been permitted to own land. A formative experience in my own young life was a visit to Malabar Farm in Ohio, where conservation tillage was "rediscovered" a millennium after the fact, as it happens.</li></ul><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJxbN6FCa8z4JISkZ01nTumvDTPLWlLlYMI7trkAwloPBEJ2r-Ulgxfi4ONYmkAxHBgu5uv-ymWQem-FDy6Ej_Fje9X_sSci12EYMjDFsqAhUsxTisLYB3Zv8bSVy-MkdwHTVXAdbWWefCHbcLHzAkAjVBD5kP8QYZDIY0iuBL5DN5KL6jbrXICA/s1024/DE3%20240222-01%20Setting%20a%20book%20aside%20and%20wiping%20forehead,%20color%203d%20render.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJxbN6FCa8z4JISkZ01nTumvDTPLWlLlYMI7trkAwloPBEJ2r-Ulgxfi4ONYmkAxHBgu5uv-ymWQem-FDy6Ej_Fje9X_sSci12EYMjDFsqAhUsxTisLYB3Zv8bSVy-MkdwHTVXAdbWWefCHbcLHzAkAjVBD5kP8QYZDIY0iuBL5DN5KL6jbrXICA/w200-h200/DE3%20240222-01%20Setting%20a%20book%20aside%20and%20wiping%20forehead,%20color%203d%20render.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>There were several other stories that were good reading, but rather thin on ideas. The four noted above have strong ideas, and I am an idea guy. I read, not just for escape, but to see what people are thinking, to glean good ideas.<p></p><p>I've finished the Pushcart volume. At 462 pages, it took me a while. Mostly, it was well worth it.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-43414546496825010072024-02-19T20:40:00.000-05:002024-02-19T20:40:27.903-05:00Four out of five — Not so bad<p> kw: story reviews, anthologies, literature, fiction, poetry</p><p>In the past day or so I've had time to read only five pieces in <i>2024 Pushcart Prize XLVIII: Best of the Small Presses</i>, edited by Bill Henderson and others. I'll ignore one of the five. The others:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>"A Most Generous Offer" by Joy Guo – It took a while to see where this story was going. Superficially, it's about an inherited apartment. Really, lack of communication risks loss of everything.</li><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWmgkz0pkVorsvOZ6Kbr0LflJ326SCgTHoMU_PiBCWpKck-ghoKfik47o93TXjYpoMVNFsAHjzwnsD6oSFdGfOWaR7dcEOVxLFjMT-GYLcA-AXj1E1El9loGbOGW4a5RnDiDlSuO3HkIGFu8eizDBNUPCL32MIOZKtxUrbc48827-cfGLXohJ2NA/s410/blob-booth-c.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="410" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWmgkz0pkVorsvOZ6Kbr0LflJ326SCgTHoMU_PiBCWpKck-ghoKfik47o93TXjYpoMVNFsAHjzwnsD6oSFdGfOWaR7dcEOVxLFjMT-GYLcA-AXj1E1El9loGbOGW4a5RnDiDlSuO3HkIGFu8eizDBNUPCL32MIOZKtxUrbc48827-cfGLXohJ2NA/s320/blob-booth-c.jpg" width="320" /></a><li>"The Blob" by Molly Gallentine – Flashing forward and back, with the old film <i>The Blob</i> as a metaphor for climate anxiety, while the protagonists attempts artistic climate activism. The image is the beginning of the movie theater scene from the 1958 film.</li><li>"Marmalade" by Fred D'Aguiar – In the aftermath of a breakup, the kids are hurt the most. Of many treatments on this old theme, this is one of the best.</li><li>"Toward a Unified Theory" by Wayne Miller – It's hard to say if it is intended to be one poem: very short bits of free verse with a strong TITLE every 4-8 lines, and lots of white space. No relationship to the overall title that I can discern.</li></ul><p></p><p>Sometimes, being puzzled is as valuable as being gratified.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-37772495078004264312024-02-17T11:07:00.002-05:002024-02-17T11:07:18.300-05:00Spiders from Hong Kong outrun those from Singapore<p>kw: blogging, spiders, spider scanning</p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrtTJAvfqzCLnUnUxog3rzUCmFftnr1tC0gujw8MzB_eN0t3ygdkXkHrIh3ihSKwHrrzcs9sgOt1jWD1DaOqwehsPUgzHm8FiYcnw_yMOfD8HFL8ES1YzLTQmR9b8zW-3WeGYEwl21jp3v6h4N62ITNTmZMlAS-DsxrrfNHryTEb3sN2T_gNw-4Q/s1024/DE3%20240217%20Text%20vacuum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrtTJAvfqzCLnUnUxog3rzUCmFftnr1tC0gujw8MzB_eN0t3ygdkXkHrIh3ihSKwHrrzcs9sgOt1jWD1DaOqwehsPUgzHm8FiYcnw_yMOfD8HFL8ES1YzLTQmR9b8zW-3WeGYEwl21jp3v6h4N62ITNTmZMlAS-DsxrrfNHryTEb3sN2T_gNw-4Q/w146-h146/DE3%20240217%20Text%20vacuum.jpg" width="146" /></a></div><p><br /></p>Just when I'd got used to seeing another extra 400-600 views per day, just from Singapore, today I saw this, for the past 24 hours:<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkB-o0XR-0P3cqf8Xx3WTWwNuN1W1gnp9Nl7ZuY2nl9L4l58zirASyNU3ysrKX2JNFxYCrPTZnCtYjTj6tAEXThdQq9C2DTgo0HbAA5KDJsXTWABY5HxVp1e5aK_OFn-8dGuvhSuWDvPpZJrE7cxnskY3WyJ8nYwc5A-JRkB9pwrJS_YJXWD5K8w/s1243/Today%20spiders.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="391" data-original-width="1243" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkB-o0XR-0P3cqf8Xx3WTWwNuN1W1gnp9Nl7ZuY2nl9L4l58zirASyNU3ysrKX2JNFxYCrPTZnCtYjTj6tAEXThdQq9C2DTgo0HbAA5KDJsXTWABY5HxVp1e5aK_OFn-8dGuvhSuWDvPpZJrE7cxnskY3WyJ8nYwc5A-JRkB9pwrJS_YJXWD5K8w/w640-h202/Today%20spiders.gif" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Here, the usual "Singapore plus everyone else" is the low terrain on either side of the "mountain". Naturally, I had to see if this is also Singapore. As it happens:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDM5XuxgNRNM2IFvWvbPPXePu_XuLkvC_OIgg03E93aYNOrAZyZ-icJEpoKt9QZ7LlS9eRD3DD0HhGpXJh0a2dlBFMbaeKwLindgTDfeNXasbInN1MxOv1QDkD-V5MPW4sWSTseJ0cK5boWo98JD8iJ9dsKIXRcLe0w5t8azMUmaWeB9DyyZ2RoA/s776/Today%20spiders%20map.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="748" data-original-width="776" height="616" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDM5XuxgNRNM2IFvWvbPPXePu_XuLkvC_OIgg03E93aYNOrAZyZ-icJEpoKt9QZ7LlS9eRD3DD0HhGpXJh0a2dlBFMbaeKwLindgTDfeNXasbInN1MxOv1QDkD-V5MPW4sWSTseJ0cK5boWo98JD8iJ9dsKIXRcLe0w5t8azMUmaWeB9DyyZ2RoA/w640-h616/Today%20spiders%20map.gif" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>No! Views from Singapore are indeed many, at 555 for the day, but Hong Kong, in an eight-hour spree, racked up 5,225 views, or about 650 per hour. Considering that the total number of posts in this blog is about 2,500, I suspect that my blog is one of perhaps millions of blogs that are being gulped down wholesale to train AI text models such as ChatGPT and, where images and text occur together, diffusion models such as DALL•E or Playground. I checked into the top posts for the past day:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqrBPZOwU-j8DSEomt83U6YAp5S-Tsa5X8NQBnEN0DBcIxNRnbE2_9jUEKd_3D0NQpkGcGjv9CY823kCaWREMUJYILd9UxIbPxlwbnjtH8sE_syUjfRH0OZqmk7XCh_aqNiU7hbOFFHIxC6SbbcMVJ9_-BHdm0zPFc1IbTcBQtZFRth4Xfd4y4nQ/s777/Today%20spiders%20posts.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="739" data-original-width="777" height="608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqrBPZOwU-j8DSEomt83U6YAp5S-Tsa5X8NQBnEN0DBcIxNRnbE2_9jUEKd_3D0NQpkGcGjv9CY823kCaWREMUJYILd9UxIbPxlwbnjtH8sE_syUjfRH0OZqmk7XCh_aqNiU7hbOFFHIxC6SbbcMVJ9_-BHdm0zPFc1IbTcBQtZFRth4Xfd4y4nQ/w640-h608/Today%20spiders%20posts.gif" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Everything below the first ten posts has been viewed no more than twice in the past 24 hours. The "text vacuuming" going on is unfocused. At this point, I don't what more to conclude. It would be interesting to learn if other bloggers are experiencing new and unusual numbers of hits, most likely from automated text vacuums.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-78690732830740316452024-02-16T15:31:00.001-05:002024-02-16T15:31:29.075-05:00Leaning into the Apocalypse<p> kw: story reviews, anthologies, literature, fiction, poetry, essays</p><p>The eight items I read today in <i>2024 Pushcart Prize XLVIII: Best of the Small Presses</i>, edited by Bill Henderson and others, are evenly matched, four in verse and four stories/essays (sometimes it's hard to tell the difference). I'll touch on most of them.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI9cSAnut9V9B1oJQW6n2podhRcoFe1u53u7gJzAeXDEAng_sISAxFN8ptGhvbZ7RePjLAO2GkO5Oc31cb0Btss3ID9p2Cq3lgIeCikIqw0lrKfe2lvetSdzOY5ETIdeX608ayVa3jIU1ln2lo4Pt1YtsD9KgIbqWcxb5UuW6dw86PzA69_kAYQg/s1016/PG%20240216-01%20Post%20apocalyptic%20farmstead%20-%20preview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="730" data-original-width="1016" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI9cSAnut9V9B1oJQW6n2podhRcoFe1u53u7gJzAeXDEAng_sISAxFN8ptGhvbZ7RePjLAO2GkO5Oc31cb0Btss3ID9p2Cq3lgIeCikIqw0lrKfe2lvetSdzOY5ETIdeX608ayVa3jIU1ln2lo4Pt1YtsD9KgIbqWcxb5UuW6dw86PzA69_kAYQg/s320/PG%20240216-01%20Post%20apocalyptic%20farmstead%20-%20preview.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>"Memorials" by Tyler Sones – Remembering the localized apocalypses in the author's memory, one near Waco, Texas and the other at Ruby Ridge, in Idaho. The word "apocalypse" just means "taking off the cover", and by extension "revelation". It is, by itself, the title of the last book of the Bible. The content of the apostle John's visions has colored our understanding of the term. The author describes a fiercely Bible-centered culture in which the two attacked homesteads were embedded.<p></p><p>The image was produced using Playground AI; a milder view than what is warranted by the text, but a more appropriate prompt would have been rejected.</p><p>The verse "Dawn 2040" by Jorie Graham is intended to evoke a post-apocalyptic scene, set just sixteen years in the future (perhaps 17-18 when the piece was written). Overblown, in my view.</p><p>"Fight Week" by Laura Van Den Berg – A young woman, a prize fighter, is drawn into a drama and inadvertently does a good deed. It leads to a step change in her fighting skills.<br /></p><ul></ul><p>I'll limn three other pieces with the two words that came to mind as I finished each:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>"Nomad Palindrome" – <b>Extended palindrome</b>. [At 87 words, one of the longest I've encountered]</li><li>"Jorie, Jr" by Michael Czyzniejewski – <b>Superman metaphor</b>.<b> </b>[there's no relationship with the author of "Dawn 2040"...I think]</li><li>"The Emperor Concerto" by Julie Hecht – <b>Musical rumination</b>.</li></ul><p></p><p><br /></p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-90719330675315881612024-02-15T16:17:00.000-05:002024-02-15T16:17:26.166-05:00Four hits in a row!<p> kw: story reviews, anthologies, literature, fiction, poetry</p><p>In the past 24 hours I read just four pieces in <i>2024 Pushcart Prize XLVIII: Best of the Small Presses</i>, edited by Bill Henderson and others. Surprise, I liked all four, so I'll give all four "the treatment".</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEMKwk3548eQBzl6Eegl1QKYRCTgdBipTDgzAXNJ0KvRV6pCi-Wy4XxDhQ8-42WScQM9kz7IZUtFz1H9pRGI3356Qe1EkBTZX4wg4dvMjeU5Br5egW5Tztx_1IQ9hJJDqlXKFJINhpe6cCRguHjLrsdiThc0YE52Ow_CxFk4HqUlhjDGqU4s-EoQ/s1024/PG%20240215-01%20Scuba%20divers%20and%20Manta%20rays,%20strong%20underwater%20lighting,%20fish%20all%20around-266541348.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEMKwk3548eQBzl6Eegl1QKYRCTgdBipTDgzAXNJ0KvRV6pCi-Wy4XxDhQ8-42WScQM9kz7IZUtFz1H9pRGI3356Qe1EkBTZX4wg4dvMjeU5Br5egW5Tztx_1IQ9hJJDqlXKFJINhpe6cCRguHjLrsdiThc0YE52Ow_CxFk4HqUlhjDGqU4s-EoQ/s320/PG%20240215-01%20Scuba%20divers%20and%20Manta%20rays,%20strong%20underwater%20lighting,%20fish%20all%20around-266541348.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />"Two Breaths" by Christina Rivera Cogswell – A wife and husband scuba dive at night to observe Manta rays off Kailua-Kona in Hawaii. The Hawaiian word for the Manta, <i>hahalua</i>, means "two breaths". The woman cannot get her mind off her two children, asleep at home. Much of the story is her stream of consciousness as she copes with near-panic, something she didn't experience before becoming a mother (mothers reading the story will sympathize). The image was created using Playground AI.<p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsS6UxdJdtRsP01vrldqYi0lWljP7ian4qwEYSDR_NJu4hbyBwzqLa5r88oOH_RRVFM3Z8IqmHq4sh_WoLXcdwIQmwqDe_mfa978oSptnra7gUNyqdlZr6wIBEXAMdAtd1ah8rEvACdNgE9gBMLAPwZzFtQYYzvJKDny835dOuvp327UT0B2XNLg/s1024/DE3%20240215-01%20Rifles%20being%20turned%20into%20violins,%20mysterious%20lighting,%20fantasy%20scenery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsS6UxdJdtRsP01vrldqYi0lWljP7ian4qwEYSDR_NJu4hbyBwzqLa5r88oOH_RRVFM3Z8IqmHq4sh_WoLXcdwIQmwqDe_mfa978oSptnra7gUNyqdlZr6wIBEXAMdAtd1ah8rEvACdNgE9gBMLAPwZzFtQYYzvJKDny835dOuvp327UT0B2XNLg/w200-h200/DE3%20240215-01%20Rifles%20being%20turned%20into%20violins,%20mysterious%20lighting,%20fantasy%20scenery.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />"It is Once Again the Season of Corn" by Onyekachi Hoh – Thirteen couplets of free verse, full of observations and wishes. One of these, "let all the rifles become violins…" evoked the image. The final wish is for an orchestra. The image was created using Dall-E3, which threw a horse into the image I liked most.<p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9GvwgSSv08MpErhzgtYPy39YQFcOgGkb0DC6lFy1lKhaKOkxN6sP4aejOWXphYbvA6RyQlVKj4hDLsyx8UM_hjeLcaLcy_5ysrxJJqOFdHT8TvUbLsghwo3UF8baxAmgtb95zLz4KxS8uaNh8xuwl6zVFj0LnMX5eBZVfng3QoJevglamx6eZwg/s1024/DE3%20240215-02%20A%20magician,%20a%20woman,%20a%20saw,%20bowing%20to%20the%20audience.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9GvwgSSv08MpErhzgtYPy39YQFcOgGkb0DC6lFy1lKhaKOkxN6sP4aejOWXphYbvA6RyQlVKj4hDLsyx8UM_hjeLcaLcy_5ysrxJJqOFdHT8TvUbLsghwo3UF8baxAmgtb95zLz4KxS8uaNh8xuwl6zVFj0LnMX5eBZVfng3QoJevglamx6eZwg/w200-h200/DE3%20240215-02%20A%20magician,%20a%20woman,%20a%20saw,%20bowing%20to%20the%20audience.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />"The Magician's Assistant" by Kelsey Bryan-Zwick – Four quatrains of free verse: after the act is over and the magician has sawn her in half, the assistant sews herself back together. Her thought near the end is poignant: "the applause is for his miracle and not hers". I also used Dall-E3 to produce this image. Dall-E3 didn't like the first prompt I tried, "too violent", so a more innocuous one produced this image.<p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEize2xxB4ktOHfS_nCAQxcP7je3-AzyiAW6JkDu-BTqzxmCRsP9r01UE1115D3FqB2PvHuCNJCRG9vqq6PVqllj3zlxARgzg3P8oa_YGOQwR8LI8lt5RAQBfVfEJGdRXIdrvkfEQzzoVV7Y_ZQ3-rBrYR2wip0kYTulXegSg9SUbTaOgMAS9i8o8g/s1024/PG%20240215-03%20A%20slot%20machine%20parlor%20with%20several%20black%20women%20playing,%20rather%20dim%20smoky%20light.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEize2xxB4ktOHfS_nCAQxcP7je3-AzyiAW6JkDu-BTqzxmCRsP9r01UE1115D3FqB2PvHuCNJCRG9vqq6PVqllj3zlxARgzg3P8oa_YGOQwR8LI8lt5RAQBfVfEJGdRXIdrvkfEQzzoVV7Y_ZQ3-rBrYR2wip0kYTulXegSg9SUbTaOgMAS9i8o8g/s320/PG%20240215-03%20A%20slot%20machine%20parlor%20with%20several%20black%20women%20playing,%20rather%20dim%20smoky%20light.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />"Tomorrows" by Lakiesha Carr – A slot machine addict, coping as best she can. It's no surprise that her familial feeling for fellow slots players exceeds all others. At least she has an income. This image was created using Playground AI. Note that we can control the aspect ratio of PG-AI images.<p></p><p>At this point I am just past halfway done with the volume.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-41868895712458068842024-02-14T11:55:00.000-05:002024-02-14T11:55:03.998-05:00Fifteen more, half pointless<p> kw: story reviews, anthologies, literature, fiction, poetry</p><p>In the past two-plus days I have read fifteen more pieces in <i>2024 Pushcart Prize XLVIII: Best of the Small Presses</i>, edited by Bill Henderson and others. Of the fifteen, nine are "poems". One of these, "Chemo Becomes Me" by Lily Jarman-Reisch resonated with me. I have been on chemo, and though I didn't lose hair (as the poet did), there were other effects. Also, this poem has rhyme and rhythm, being in couplets with a coda.</p><p>If the other eight free verse items are a kind of intelligence test, I utterly failed. To me, they are a waste of words. I suppose they really, really meant something to their authors.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWvGtiwAlTAXhckkq7pdgueg66pS6R9ezM2hA7i50OlRDrG3Z9sgOkSjTlJUKf_wUHFqk3EEeQt9UNSyAoq3jFJptwInnYurPL-DJ5gPRes93yOqxS06vbvhJqfy4ApegzhFZaFV_Iq6JvSHwTLvYa8rjS11e6GaRM5IrI9qO51v7DbaWCDdP3Kg/s1024/DE3%20240214-04%20A%20locksmith%20on%20a%20bicycle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWvGtiwAlTAXhckkq7pdgueg66pS6R9ezM2hA7i50OlRDrG3Z9sgOkSjTlJUKf_wUHFqk3EEeQt9UNSyAoq3jFJptwInnYurPL-DJ5gPRes93yOqxS06vbvhJqfy4ApegzhFZaFV_Iq6JvSHwTLvYa8rjS11e6GaRM5IrI9qO51v7DbaWCDdP3Kg/w200-h200/DE3%20240214-04%20A%20locksmith%20on%20a%20bicycle.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>I particularly liked "The Locksmith" by Grey Wolfe LaJoie. Though the words "autism" or "spectrum" never appear, the locksmith's condition is evident. Nonetheless, he copes. I was sympathetic to someone who must ride a bicycle because he can't get a driver's license. For about a year I didn't drive; because of an accident, the "best" insurance premium I could obtain was the cost of my car, per year. So I rode bicycle until the points dropped off my record.<p></p><p>The pieces that were stories affected me variously. Two worth mention are "The Ba'al Shem's Daughter" by Glenn Gitomer and "Everychild" by Alix Christie. From very different perspectives, they tell of parents who have lost control of a child, and cope about as badly as possible. I'll leave it to you to read and find out.</p><p>And I do hope you will read this volume and these stories. Maybe you'll even like the poems.</p><p>Coda: I prompted Dall-E3 with "A pushcart in the style of a bookplate sticker". Here are a couple of its offerings:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLGpETX6bht_9diOIHCDn-iMVd7Xe2gQPpjJrAdpmR6PWoPu0zziRb3dsAeTfYXRr6SrMme0-L6CxZEP2BrkipXaFhKN5hAp0kxE7rBGF_5pqKjyaA6LtQdxV733OYT5ruBS5zSOG6_BImGFS07nSrpZFx_l8yFeKJc26C-IoeC-eigVadwxYe0w/s1029/DE3%20pushcart%20duo%20bas-relief.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1029" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLGpETX6bht_9diOIHCDn-iMVd7Xe2gQPpjJrAdpmR6PWoPu0zziRb3dsAeTfYXRr6SrMme0-L6CxZEP2BrkipXaFhKN5hAp0kxE7rBGF_5pqKjyaA6LtQdxV733OYT5ruBS5zSOG6_BImGFS07nSrpZFx_l8yFeKJc26C-IoeC-eigVadwxYe0w/w640-h318/DE3%20pushcart%20duo%20bas-relief.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-1659183413195480662024-02-12T21:12:00.001-05:002024-02-12T21:12:38.551-05:00An experiment with a versatile AI artist<p> kw: artificial intelligence, automatic art, evaluations, instructions, photo essays</p><p>I have been using Dall-E2 for a couple of years. Recently Dall-E3 became available at no cost in Bing. However, the free version doesn't have outpainting. I went looking to see which automatic art products do outpainting, and I found Playground. There are two versions of the same product, apparently aimed at quite different audiences. The one I use is at <a href="https://playground.com/">playground.com</a>. It is also available by typing www.playgroundai.com, which can be confusing because the alternate version is at playground.ai!</p><p>As with any free version of a paid product, there are limitations. In this case, they are:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>500 images (or "generate" actions) per day.</li><li>3 Canvases</li><li>You're running on a slower server</li></ul><p></p><p>Actually, I think the last issue is that paying users get bumped ahead of free users in the server queue, so at busy times, you can wait quite a long time.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFiITalJnMfLfxaWLP_2t3s3oOwSm2tTEpNXL5t9HvouGOScIYl9IIfAffeufqTXs7ZrcUCZ-oy-T0LzFwuEmRhf_0ZVGMNH5KltF8B95pDb5HvjnVj9ewMux0yAjiko-R5Y15BSkdWOupWqcVKO7rKg7KJQuTKI-x4L8LSR9UR5KDZhRAZj9AEg/s540/A%20pair%20w%20no%20filter.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="283" data-original-width="540" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFiITalJnMfLfxaWLP_2t3s3oOwSm2tTEpNXL5t9HvouGOScIYl9IIfAffeufqTXs7ZrcUCZ-oy-T0LzFwuEmRhf_0ZVGMNH5KltF8B95pDb5HvjnVj9ewMux0yAjiko-R5Y15BSkdWOupWqcVKO7rKg7KJQuTKI-x4L8LSR9UR5KDZhRAZj9AEg/w400-h210/A%20pair%20w%20no%20filter.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>For more than simple image generation, there are a lot of controls! After getting basic experience, I decided to experiment with them. Here I will focus on one: <b>Filters</b>. These two images were generated without any filters, using the same <b>Prompt </b>and <b>Seed</b>, but different <b>Models </b>(more on all these soon).<div><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Getting Started</h3><p>You log in by connecting to a Google account (you must have one). Then you see this control screen:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK3Ov4KACsSE85RSb7_3mxCaRsKGSQ2g3SRVo9XukeVGP8O_ciVO5hkRB1uQPkoR_zPplUqWNH30Q7ELtm084B3Qc2nRv3_4ww2wJaxwm3Oa24i2NECfAY2vFgv34twlf46gxu4d6DJ77c4-Wi4a2PIE71sGElw7B2N0VMHqmKpMAbR1Ew_V8g7Q/s1335/PG%20main%20Board%20and%20controls.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="872" data-original-width="1335" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK3Ov4KACsSE85RSb7_3mxCaRsKGSQ2g3SRVo9XukeVGP8O_ciVO5hkRB1uQPkoR_zPplUqWNH30Q7ELtm084B3Qc2nRv3_4ww2wJaxwm3Oa24i2NECfAY2vFgv34twlf46gxu4d6DJ77c4-Wi4a2PIE71sGElw7B2N0VMHqmKpMAbR1Ew_V8g7Q/w640-h418/PG%20main%20Board%20and%20controls.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I already produced a couple of images, to be discussed at the very end. To take the screen components in order:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>At top left is the Playground Logo. Clicking the "v" next to it opens a submenu, including Logout.</li><li>So far, I ignore the three things at top right.</li><li>Below the Logo we see that we are in Board view. Images generated here are ephemeral and vanish when you log out. Images in Canvas are kept, and more things can be done to them. For our purposes here, I used Canvas in a limited way, which I'll describe soon. Since I downloaded all the images upon creation, I don't care if they vanish.</li><li>In that same row, there is a control to let you import an image. This is more pertinent to Canvas.</li><li>To the right of that, I have the Columns control set to two columns.</li><li>Down the left side, we first see Presets. This became available February 10 and I haven't used it yet.</li><li>Next we see Filters, which we'll be discussing in the bulk of this post.</li><li>Below that is the Prompt area. The prompt shown is "Gormenghast Castle"; the software doesn't like how the castle name is spelled, thus the red wiggleworm.</li><li>Next is Expand Prompt, which uses an AI engine (probably ChatGPT) to add a lot of words to the prompt you typed in. I haven't used it.</li><li>There are more controls available by scrolling, but they are not pertinent at the moment.</li><li>Down the right side, we first see Model. Three diffusion models are available, Stable Diffusion 1.5, Stable Diffusion XL (recently renamed this; it was formerly Stable Diffusion 2.0), and Playground v2. SD 1.5 is going to be dropped in a few weeks, so I don't use it. I used the other two for this experiment.</li><li>Next one may choose Image Dimensions. I usually use 1024x1024; I'll discuss why a different one is highlighted at the end.</li><li>Prompt Guidance is next. I usually leave it at 7 when using Stable Diffusion XL, and at 3 (the default) with Playground v2. Lower numbers give the Model more freedom, and higher numbers instruct it to hew more closely to the Prompt. This makes more difference when the Prompt is long.</li><li>Quality & Details settings will make an image look more or less detailed and "finished". Paying users can use more steps than 30.</li></ul><p></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip-Nhf0m3ZxjaRSdPkiuxJt2CalsyTQgYteMugWnci_zUXekSuTUOo-sXOQo7z2iSBaPmGUcSWHKde43SaujX305LHf1YrJaDB4Sve7f0dnyF0SAttwy4cy38N94RkZ_URz7OPw_IOPAWleByAlzjYRLXwa17UE7n8vKJYsojA9tcXpGJYogg53w/s762/PG%20more%20controls.jpg" style="clear: right; display: inline; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="762" data-original-width="254" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip-Nhf0m3ZxjaRSdPkiuxJt2CalsyTQgYteMugWnci_zUXekSuTUOo-sXOQo7z2iSBaPmGUcSWHKde43SaujX305LHf1YrJaDB4Sve7f0dnyF0SAttwy4cy38N94RkZ_URz7OPw_IOPAWleByAlzjYRLXwa17UE7n8vKJYsojA9tcXpGJYogg53w/w134-h400/PG%20more%20controls.jpg" width="134" /></a></p><p></p>The next image shows more controls found in the right side:<ul><li>Refinement adds fine detail. Although I can set it higher than 15, Playground doesn't seem to like that; Generation times out. It probably works better for paying users.</li><li>The Seed is all-important. When producing multiple images (4 is the max in the free version), the "Randomize" box must be checked. When a single image is selected and the box is unchecked, a seed that's about to be used is exposed. You can type or paste in a seed up to 9 digits in length. I suppose that means that any particular prompt can produce 10 billion variations.</li><li>The Sampler has a number of options, which I hope to experiment with on another occasion. "Euler a" is the default, and I haven't yet tried others.</li><li>Below, off-screen, is a Public/Private option which isn't available in the free version.</li></ul><h3 style="text-align: left;">Getting the Seed</h3><p>To get started, I had to determine a Seed. When you generate images in Board view, you don't have access to the Seed used. Images generated in a Canvas have the Seed shown when you click on them. Thus, I generated four at a time using the Stable Diffusion XL model in Canvas, tinkering with a simple prompt, until I saw an image I liked:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Prompt I settled on is "Small town near a winding stream".</li><li>The Seed for my favorite is, as shown in the image above, 802745251. I used this seed for all the images shown below.</li></ul><p></p><p>Back in Board view, I tested the Seed to be sure I had what I wanted. I saved the resulting image with the file name "901 Stws SDXL None", according to a numbering scheme I worked out beforehand. SDXL is my abbreviation for Stable Diffusion XL. I changed the Model to Playground v2 (PGv2 is my abbreviation), generated again, and saved the file with a similar name; this image pair (the same as that shown near the beginning of this post) is the result, clipped from an Explorer window.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFiITalJnMfLfxaWLP_2t3s3oOwSm2tTEpNXL5t9HvouGOScIYl9IIfAffeufqTXs7ZrcUCZ-oy-T0LzFwuEmRhf_0ZVGMNH5KltF8B95pDb5HvjnVj9ewMux0yAjiko-R5Y15BSkdWOupWqcVKO7rKg7KJQuTKI-x4L8LSR9UR5KDZhRAZj9AEg/s540/A%20pair%20w%20no%20filter.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="283" data-original-width="540" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFiITalJnMfLfxaWLP_2t3s3oOwSm2tTEpNXL5t9HvouGOScIYl9IIfAffeufqTXs7ZrcUCZ-oy-T0LzFwuEmRhf_0ZVGMNH5KltF8B95pDb5HvjnVj9ewMux0yAjiko-R5Y15BSkdWOupWqcVKO7rKg7KJQuTKI-x4L8LSR9UR5KDZhRAZj9AEg/w400-h210/A%20pair%20w%20no%20filter.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p>The two images have similar composition, but differ quite a lot in detail. The two Models have different things they "pay attention" to.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Producing the Images</h3><p>Now that I had a Prompt and a Seed ready to go, I proceeded to use filter after filter. First, there are 15 Filters that work only with SDXL. I used screen clips from an Explorer window with the View set to "Extra large icons", showing the icons in three columns. I gathered them by sixes. Comments follow each group of six.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjF3gAD7iRZN7szDlbTXL-aHUdVWHhgFqe6BPsG7joEyRYlAO6l0_8QDMinbUaM9ip5nZkmFI8wYkJzMe-jVCx8vVYVlBWuCJE_YeImiq7J0sGGC3K4cGRKQhcRFLZhVQZUN-qQ2hvA9C9HJY8N4m-s3wIXNj0QQHuQtPw1d3FFONQgI2Hw5JONA/s818/B%20filters%2002-07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="818" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjF3gAD7iRZN7szDlbTXL-aHUdVWHhgFqe6BPsG7joEyRYlAO6l0_8QDMinbUaM9ip5nZkmFI8wYkJzMe-jVCx8vVYVlBWuCJE_YeImiq7J0sGGC3K4cGRKQhcRFLZhVQZUN-qQ2hvA9C9HJY8N4m-s3wIXNj0QQHuQtPw1d3FFONQgI2Hw5JONA/w640-h436/B%20filters%2002-07.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The image file for the first Filter is numbered "02" because I used "01" for "None", and later renumbered it "901" to get the Explorer window to sort the way I wanted. These are all from a higher viewpoint than the "None" version. The icons in the Filter selector make it clear that they are designed to affect portraits the most.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOPzK3_k89izF_AkY6TrM2R9aII4vQWheWm4VJ68mrEylqZtKSUCOn_FZRRaN9XASmWD6bG2SLvvKAeNXDVICrAxzVsQ0tF7BSrgtjAN_rIoNgxLWvSZDL6uJwGfdN__5Cbzpn1utf-8rY10Oz7vd49bW5zN2mA2DL3tvTv28dDRRk4cpQ0BpWog/s818/C%20filters%20008-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="818" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOPzK3_k89izF_AkY6TrM2R9aII4vQWheWm4VJ68mrEylqZtKSUCOn_FZRRaN9XASmWD6bG2SLvvKAeNXDVICrAxzVsQ0tF7BSrgtjAN_rIoNgxLWvSZDL6uJwGfdN__5Cbzpn1utf-8rY10Oz7vd49bW5zN2mA2DL3tvTv28dDRRk4cpQ0BpWog/w640-h436/C%20filters%20008-13.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Three of these resemble the first six. "Mysterious" has a look I like for some purposes, and it is back to the streamside viewpoint. "Niji SE" is also closer to "None" in its viewpoint, while "Pixel Art" shares the elevated viewpoint of most of them, but is blocky, as we would expect.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFAtaXYdEABMlslxCKbF0fFvuKeHDBUHaXNnPT36BblWeUHdVKENOE_W95hoIlv9lv7nAnrT56IElZf1PPBkdsTGnfYQglTqaWWY0qFJedScd6QQwtLw60m116koFM7H0bJSrebaEd2dpktqRNLaZoehClDgsuZAIUqBgcpSFz0Hw8GBbE0M3gfw/s818/D%20filters%2014-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="284" data-original-width="818" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFAtaXYdEABMlslxCKbF0fFvuKeHDBUHaXNnPT36BblWeUHdVKENOE_W95hoIlv9lv7nAnrT56IElZf1PPBkdsTGnfYQglTqaWWY0qFJedScd6QQwtLw60m116koFM7H0bJSrebaEd2dpktqRNLaZoehClDgsuZAIUqBgcpSFz0Hw8GBbE0M3gfw/w640-h222/D%20filters%2014-16.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>These last three are more similar to the first eight. Of all those with an elevated viewpoint, I like "Counterfeit" the best. </p><p>Now for the SDXL - PGv2 pairs for the other 23 shared Filters (prefixed A through W). They are presented in groups of four images, or two Filters per group, shown larger than those above. The last set has a bonus.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbZpd8-wdJNz6Q7ueVQUw5Mh59GzWSTC0MSRMhIwZxxYZvZyo_ZEDEXbU_7H3mLfpombFpOySDGoPug0_1AAWS-k7tv5XlBJF9D_vbwnK-Nf6K3HLdLKJDD8t-kGO73hi5JNayvT5NimGxXl2NPO9gWtxyWnagDs9sWkK6iHwbq4bLjkeciiXeA/s556/Shared%20filters%20AB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbZpd8-wdJNz6Q7ueVQUw5Mh59GzWSTC0MSRMhIwZxxYZvZyo_ZEDEXbU_7H3mLfpombFpOySDGoPug0_1AAWS-k7tv5XlBJF9D_vbwnK-Nf6K3HLdLKJDD8t-kGO73hi5JNayvT5NimGxXl2NPO9gWtxyWnagDs9sWkK6iHwbq4bLjkeciiXeA/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20AB.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>It is interesting that "Vibrant Glass" with SDXL has removed the village. With PGv2 it put the glass in the stream. The "Bellas Dreamy Stickers" Filter frequently puts a border around the image with SDXL, but seldom does so with PGv2. Its images would make good bookplates or logos.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCJjwBL8Redws5gecaDPIPRdmfRFcXg2ZecYY2jA7VOJAWT-qFx1GYi6ZSwq22DRR8agEJr1Kx7Y7w1ULKw-H3fbx4xPaMXp-aFKoK4Dkfm9R1aFMBNxWuGvosZZBi8CAhyphenhyphen3GApsC0KsW3DOfEQ0fCBnbxXLrIKgaopJlUUG2ZJAYjciUp76QdKA/s556/Shared%20filters%20CD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCJjwBL8Redws5gecaDPIPRdmfRFcXg2ZecYY2jA7VOJAWT-qFx1GYi6ZSwq22DRR8agEJr1Kx7Y7w1ULKw-H3fbx4xPaMXp-aFKoK4Dkfm9R1aFMBNxWuGvosZZBi8CAhyphenhyphen3GApsC0KsW3DOfEQ0fCBnbxXLrIKgaopJlUUG2ZJAYjciUp76QdKA/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20CD.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>"Ultra Lighting" produces a very pleasing look. "Watercolor", when looked at in detail, has a very definite painted appearance. Either of these images could be cropped, perhaps to a 4x3 ratio, doubled or tripled in resolution using a product like Upscayl (the one I use), printed and framed, and hung on your wall. Or it could be moved to Canvas for outpainting, <i>etc</i>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXazWudAbuuUU5Shz9_Y2wCly_wBbcgYhtv1JLAYhpVEbOUXFiqpZLICYVjgIODvqkaZbZ3dpgGchMTVhiNhGdcy2nvI88_jDAlOI6ap5nSqtuDpBzQeLWL2V-dFhxOJNGAilO1VlRNr-xYigkadlQE4b9dl_714WqM-jeShhT_6rbuOsxTAm8Kg/s556/Shared%20filters%20EF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXazWudAbuuUU5Shz9_Y2wCly_wBbcgYhtv1JLAYhpVEbOUXFiqpZLICYVjgIODvqkaZbZ3dpgGchMTVhiNhGdcy2nvI88_jDAlOI6ap5nSqtuDpBzQeLWL2V-dFhxOJNGAilO1VlRNr-xYigkadlQE4b9dl_714WqM-jeShhT_6rbuOsxTAm8Kg/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20EF.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>With many prompts, "Macro Realism" produces extreme closeups that may or may not resemble the output of other filters. Here it only bows to the Macro world by having a narrow depth of field, especially with PGv2. "Delicate Detail" sometimes makes a big difference, sometimes not. Here it is similar to some of the others, but otherwise unremarkable.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-oIO4fvsa6i6UH5FAQy9HgJoGzJdKTEZZPFbtshs53oKxLdT-HotMQJEAPj5y4mPMqOktZbOxrO15YLky_-_B0Xdl1nddJPiBbpIySjIIqLMObQh0OBQ7kqGKGLVXJMBQA88N_VKW4IPV9mgWlT5LuBEqnTbtiAd85gLgQd92tyt7M0dTEtJ4Lg/s556/Shared%20filters%20GH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-oIO4fvsa6i6UH5FAQy9HgJoGzJdKTEZZPFbtshs53oKxLdT-HotMQJEAPj5y4mPMqOktZbOxrO15YLky_-_B0Xdl1nddJPiBbpIySjIIqLMObQh0OBQ7kqGKGLVXJMBQA88N_VKW4IPV9mgWlT5LuBEqnTbtiAd85gLgQd92tyt7M0dTEtJ4Lg/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20GH.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>"Radiant Symmetry" will sometimes produce very symmetrical mirror-image views; these are only approximately symmetrical. "Lush Illumination" is another of my favorites. Note that some areas of the images differ a lot between the two Models, but the cloud is very similar.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGK754FrX1cMDcgEC416jUhRIfjItWIBLqottGIEoiH2pZ3rPCv4WwBf4LrKnRoPgHfFJfmii4HSwqMzYzfEK8_1__CXKfckrlVyrgUEyAhxjK3Im6rBT9XqnYw8ueO7HVtPNnJR41nGl3YKFBPPyMgM-tB8vii8DDVbF-SmVARPnv7ZruuvT50g/s556/Shared%20filters%20IJ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGK754FrX1cMDcgEC416jUhRIfjItWIBLqottGIEoiH2pZ3rPCv4WwBf4LrKnRoPgHfFJfmii4HSwqMzYzfEK8_1__CXKfckrlVyrgUEyAhxjK3Im6rBT9XqnYw8ueO7HVtPNnJR41nGl3YKFBPPyMgM-tB8vii8DDVbF-SmVARPnv7ZruuvT50g/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20IJ.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>"Saturated Space" usually has a SciFi look. I note that SDXL put a boat in the water, while PGv2 put spaceships in the sky. I am not sure what the goal of "Neon Mecha" is, but at least in PGv2 it seems to evoke technopunk.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjayGDSYMqBf0cGsTLqrs0Lv1wRVIJLnlD9zcBysGnqsjpQghxYCvxCVD1mAfGzDZacM55saw6UF42zT73m3SfqODltpwqKntBYJ_NJRIZCoemnHFqRrcl8-pkJB64gfEfV5bRX1ICpx__yvP9QS8x8Hp9UbtWX4WEOCFYm9a57prjBvyp0F8BuNQ/s556/Shared%20filters%20KL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjayGDSYMqBf0cGsTLqrs0Lv1wRVIJLnlD9zcBysGnqsjpQghxYCvxCVD1mAfGzDZacM55saw6UF42zT73m3SfqODltpwqKntBYJ_NJRIZCoemnHFqRrcl8-pkJB64gfEfV5bRX1ICpx__yvP9QS8x8Hp9UbtWX4WEOCFYm9a57prjBvyp0F8BuNQ/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20KL.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>"Ethereal Low Poly", where "Poly" means "polygons", evokes older renderings on computers with limited memory. "Warm Box" is most similar to "Lush Illumination", with perhaps more geographic exaggeration. We're halfway through these…</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbftDtjayV12eKzEPHV5VoUXd87Mrb3b5NPyU8UMJIGy-eluXGqXlChJJoLAH6Gb7_1fgnX-h8RHLxcx-io_fWSL0lq9MQcwajiqtRzZtafp7S6NfgbVpVS2fSRi4vVz10DYTk_IAyN1gsxkP6sKWIigcndKiRJSBCODezmB4NSWkpEBMwPeXpZA/s556/Shared%20filters%20MN.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbftDtjayV12eKzEPHV5VoUXd87Mrb3b5NPyU8UMJIGy-eluXGqXlChJJoLAH6Gb7_1fgnX-h8RHLxcx-io_fWSL0lq9MQcwajiqtRzZtafp7S6NfgbVpVS2fSRi4vVz10DYTk_IAyN1gsxkP6sKWIigcndKiRJSBCODezmB4NSWkpEBMwPeXpZA/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20MN.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>"Cinematic" and "Cinematic Warm" evoke the look of movie sets.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX-VKoLHgoYyXmVWdPMjVOVtSaONfE8o9_6HvGuj99urw0Cs78NPMhdDfPk56ntyIlcn-yai66HnQyxfczy0omamIJWrhhPSE5LMeaTtJwwbSGHXMsr30FEmpW0QttTpdumaac-7t6LCutmkPHEVRGWF5f4hT0RxjCgs79qKI9bpEYlXM7LL0uzQ/s556/Shared%20filters%20OP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX-VKoLHgoYyXmVWdPMjVOVtSaONfE8o9_6HvGuj99urw0Cs78NPMhdDfPk56ntyIlcn-yai66HnQyxfczy0omamIJWrhhPSE5LMeaTtJwwbSGHXMsr30FEmpW0QttTpdumaac-7t6LCutmkPHEVRGWF5f4hT0RxjCgs79qKI9bpEYlXM7LL0uzQ/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20OP.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>"Wasteland" is, of course, saying, "Industry overdid it." "Flat Palette" uses a restricted range of hues, for a rather painterly look. I see that, while many of the Filters straighten out the "winding stream", at least a bit of curve is found here.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKtrgccQbN-t_EtP9ehBR6gc-D4JjQVKKUK09lA332K2OJGTyH43EE0rpKe2oEitqdr00wmR8CZMsKhOQ44CbfGtz_YqSQS0gAnmooJzFql9sOny8GSOnBu7NbPT537Mc2DxIi-qWLc1tT_xmbgYguT-F4VQtdefUWRPHEbG5UKYwVcJIQGblcig/s556/Shared%20filters%20QR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKtrgccQbN-t_EtP9ehBR6gc-D4JjQVKKUK09lA332K2OJGTyH43EE0rpKe2oEitqdr00wmR8CZMsKhOQ44CbfGtz_YqSQS0gAnmooJzFql9sOny8GSOnBu7NbPT537Mc2DxIi-qWLc1tT_xmbgYguT-F4VQtdefUWRPHEbG5UKYwVcJIQGblcig/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20QR.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>"Ominous Escape" seems similar to a couple of others. I don't know what it is for. "Spielberg" attempts to evoke film sets used by that great director.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0hE0C359nLxu3Lw1ltfOYb7-bmYZZvkw9l-ZEzF1lUAeIY1FQEj2krnVSpT0yCcBWguzEZLAx87ufTadTY4C5zmy743myepTgfyvpT-pEMIyV5dYYTrs3bZevFqSPS3nyavCf4-G7MAvttvCMpipVgGHkJLWixbu3lIyZLws8e2EIy2IpOo5GIw/s556/Shared%20filters%20UV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0hE0C359nLxu3Lw1ltfOYb7-bmYZZvkw9l-ZEzF1lUAeIY1FQEj2krnVSpT0yCcBWguzEZLAx87ufTadTY4C5zmy743myepTgfyvpT-pEMIyV5dYYTrs3bZevFqSPS3nyavCf4-G7MAvttvCMpipVgGHkJLWixbu3lIyZLws8e2EIy2IpOo5GIw/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20UV.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>I am not sure what is the point of "Wall Art". For many of the prompts I've tried, the image is dominated by an exaggeratedly ethnic face, most frequently Black. Both of these images really could become a picture in your dining room. "Haze" is just that: a foggy morning look.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3x8Kf6ZsBoEXB9ZFfF2pI5Oyrlj4PWaszhsRSI6s5yJDo9fGIoWK96tJiZ6ubiFHisBgIu4YmyDIqvhOaHZ-FMr17L48ZixQyJ9dtZ98CHGUkBOv3fmz6e-3kzelfRiYBannL6M-1_vZImLM1nZupS4DJ7ixkx6lSgNJNayyGgRiojuSqSNMCA/s556/Shared%20filters%20W%20plus%20Z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3x8Kf6ZsBoEXB9ZFfF2pI5Oyrlj4PWaszhsRSI6s5yJDo9fGIoWK96tJiZ6ubiFHisBgIu4YmyDIqvhOaHZ-FMr17L48ZixQyJ9dtZ98CHGUkBOv3fmz6e-3kzelfRiYBannL6M-1_vZImLM1nZupS4DJ7ixkx6lSgNJNayyGgRiojuSqSNMCA/w622-h640/Shared%20filters%20W%20plus%20Z.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>The last Filter is "Black and White 3D". What it does is obvious. Less obviously, with SDXL it produced a European look. </p><p>The bonus is the result when I tried the same Seed but no Filter with the Prompt "Gormenghast Castle", a stray memory from reading the oblique novel <i>Titus Groan</i> decades ago (read it at your peril; it ranges from obtuse to profane). The castle is supposed to be so huge nobody can explore it all in one lifetime. I see that in my haste I put STWS rather than SDXL in the file name on the left. This image looks like it could be a book cover. In the PGv2 image it looks more like I imagine Gormenghast Castle could have looked.</p><p>Way, way back near the beginning of this essay, in the screenshot of Playground, the SDXL image of the castle sits next to a taller image with a different look. The only thing I changed was the aspect ratio of the output image. I was hoping for a "book cover" look that is closer to the shape of a book, but it was not to be. That's the breaks when you commission an AI Artist that has a few billion (or trillion) little decisions hidden inside its operation.</p><p>The folder of image files I created for this post is a good reference I'll use when I have a particular "look" in mind for an image.</p><p>At least in terms of physical space taken, this may be my longest blog post!</p></div>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-29017000296795691782024-02-11T15:06:00.000-05:002024-02-11T15:06:07.319-05:00Some items worth reading, some not so much<p> kw: book reviews, story reviews, anthologies, literature, fiction, poetry</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCl6NNVl3BGvGK0D9ttvh2PiJaPMteROI_ZNtSA7o3MJS9UvYMtGZ7WiWMp6mhanoZ8dJuMmcesDpUi-5JUtZOWooDKHMNTi4LtfUzhQFffeAJscotFH80Ofv8m4qEUaLrwGQuvqcJ8Y6Ee9RUKMaI9QukvWDHvs-v94I1fqELIg62EUSm_uCMnw/s1024/DE3%20240211-01%20A%20reader%20reading%20a%20book%20who%20has%20a%20big%20question%20mark%20overhead.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCl6NNVl3BGvGK0D9ttvh2PiJaPMteROI_ZNtSA7o3MJS9UvYMtGZ7WiWMp6mhanoZ8dJuMmcesDpUi-5JUtZOWooDKHMNTi4LtfUzhQFffeAJscotFH80Ofv8m4qEUaLrwGQuvqcJ8Y6Ee9RUKMaI9QukvWDHvs-v94I1fqELIg62EUSm_uCMnw/w200-h200/DE3%20240211-01%20A%20reader%20reading%20a%20book%20who%20has%20a%20big%20question%20mark%20overhead.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Since the prior post I've had time to read seven more pieces from <i>2024 Pushcart Prize XLVIII: Best of the Small Presses</i>, edited by Bill Henderson and others.<p></p><p>Some of them had me wondering, as this fellow is, "What could possibly have led the author to write this?" I'll comment on the others, though there was only one that I actually liked. It comes first, then the others.</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>"<b>Dreamers Awaken</b>" by Scott Spencer – A memory of someone about my age of Jim Crow America in the 1950's. The real core of the story is his longing for acceptance, which transcends culture, race, and time.</li><li>"Two People" by James Langenbach – Free verse vignettes of a couple's lives. Saved from total obscurity by sort of going somewhere.</li><li>"<b>What if Putin Laughed</b>" by Steve Stern – A long discursion on the meaning of "schlemiel" (a Yiddish term for a semi-lovable loser), which is found to be a long lead-up to a two-line joke about V. Zelenskyy confronting V. Putin. A clever joke, really.</li></ul><p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn0fQWzeZ5nunKIFeAmO6bj9X8ERIe3W0v0VFxs9csObw45ZTDfVdVlirEqX5tjt7Z-y8eCHiQOHy4M0OxW_UkTxXpgFrPSDkQyrWJagSE_GH7ey44ACy0Dsaa3Y5HPaEgFoClHTOMHjOsMiaa4u445aFA_mS17orx0bhWggPngcg8idzzDU5n-g/s1024/DE3%20240211-02%20A%20reader%20reading%20a%20book%20who%20has%20a%20big%20question%20mark%20overhead%203d%20art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn0fQWzeZ5nunKIFeAmO6bj9X8ERIe3W0v0VFxs9csObw45ZTDfVdVlirEqX5tjt7Z-y8eCHiQOHy4M0OxW_UkTxXpgFrPSDkQyrWJagSE_GH7ey44ACy0Dsaa3Y5HPaEgFoClHTOMHjOsMiaa4u445aFA_mS17orx0bhWggPngcg8idzzDU5n-g/w200-h200/DE3%20240211-02%20A%20reader%20reading%20a%20book%20who%20has%20a%20big%20question%20mark%20overhead%203d%20art.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Just as a side note: I used Dall-E3 to produce the image above. It took a few tries. I was tempted to use this image instead, but none of the pieces really made my head explode.<p></p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-53636295033016107042024-02-10T19:50:00.005-05:002024-02-10T19:55:05.788-05:00Some of this year's Pushcart items<p> kw: book reviews, story reviews, anthologies, literature, fiction, poetry</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQQIyF2735gqLyN6mZInDg4bwX-_QLwUUh1YS9Aj3xD1LpPv8pjcfKTP9Dur26oiuPDTM9iUo8zLBw43RD3Lh9KD2Nkr0Nklk1lyBRGLm7g5CpvSVgc_ZgJDo0IEkoW2w6bbOjXbhY2tpO4E2XRqiPcp9bJ-BKbeI8iFnxBTQ-LDtPy3pzFnigzA/s572/img20240210_19181148.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="404" data-original-width="572" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQQIyF2735gqLyN6mZInDg4bwX-_QLwUUh1YS9Aj3xD1LpPv8pjcfKTP9Dur26oiuPDTM9iUo8zLBw43RD3Lh9KD2Nkr0Nklk1lyBRGLm7g5CpvSVgc_ZgJDo0IEkoW2w6bbOjXbhY2tpO4E2XRqiPcp9bJ-BKbeI8iFnxBTQ-LDtPy3pzFnigzA/w200-h141/img20240210_19181148.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The cover illustration for <i>2024 Pushcart Prize XLVIII: Best of the Small Presses</i> is red on orange, as seen here (the colors change almost yearly). It was edited by Bill Henderson and an editorial board. For my purposes, the appeal of these stories varies from year to year. This year seems average, with eleven of the 63 items under my belt so far. I'll comment briefly on a few that I liked.<p></p><p>As is my habit, if I really don't like a story, I don't mention it. In this case, though, I've picked four to comment on, of these first eleven. I sorta-liked most of the other seven. As I read more, I'll post successive portions.</p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>"<b>Sunny Talks</b>" by Lydia Conklin – A cross-generational coming-of-age story about the trans experience. An older woman who wanted to transition to male gender, who now calls herself non-binary, is aunt to a trans boy who had the opportunity to transition (at least chemically so far), who is an Internet influencer in the trans community. The feelings are raw; this will make many uncomfortable. For that alone, it is worth reading, and even the more because it is brilliantly written.</li><li>"<b>Tender</b>" by Sophie Klahr – A rare bit of free verse that I actually enjoyed. That is very rare! The theme is loneliness and death. The writing is sufficiently tight that I cannot see how setting it to rhymed, metric verse could avoid ruining it. There are but 14 lines, though I would not call it a sonnet (perhaps free verse aficionados would do so).</li><li>"<b>Backsiders</b>" by Kathryn Scanlon – Horse people, as told by a horse person, apparently over several interviews. This one isn't stated to be fiction, so I take it as genuine. From what I know of people in the horse racing circuit, this is straight-up journalism, from a more personal viewpoint than usual.</li><li>"<b>The Future is a Click Away</b>" by Allegra Hyde – A fantasy on "The Algorithm", as it becomes so aware of our inner rhythms that it anticipates what we want and delivers it just before we might have requested it…until it overdoes it. I have lost count of how many times I have checked reviews for something—and forgotten to use DuckDuckGo—and purchased something, then seen ad after ad for that thing for a period of several weeks. I've wanted to write to Google, "I already bought it. Leave me alone! Don't you have a record of my purchases, also?" But I always think, <i>I don't want to give them ideas</i>…</li></ul><p></p><p>As is usual for this annual volume, the writing is excellent, even if the subjects are not always to my liking. So far there is only one story I got a page into and then skipped the rest.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-11645991075497906212024-02-08T16:38:00.002-05:002024-02-08T16:39:15.232-05:00An icon of the Old West<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, biographies, outlaws, stage robbers</p><p>He was a Civil War hero, wounded twice. He didn't smoke, drink or visit bordellos. He was polite and spoke as an educated man. He married and had children, then abandoned them. He seldom swore, and though he carried a shotgun to ply his trade, only discharged it once, and that was an accident. He claimed he never stole from persons, only from Wells Fargo—but he actually reaped more from cash and gold sent by registered mail, so it's hard to credit such a statement.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioLUxjJmvQ2rIbrBq8wdlyHJh5X6HeGEYtruOCTPiGYKUrGCYq81gpR27fSO6SsHsJDsbO_5vcOIgZL8ewpo-EvpUnGZGSsd-6M3SuPXWYu9Ewo3sFeIzVPlysptKKqMWVTyAWbY_lxbaXvdF6QV2yiRmp4B6PR1EiKV-DDAMRFqBnMCeNB3EcbA/s1306/BBart%20Holdup%20p159%20h.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="717" data-original-width="1306" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioLUxjJmvQ2rIbrBq8wdlyHJh5X6HeGEYtruOCTPiGYKUrGCYq81gpR27fSO6SsHsJDsbO_5vcOIgZL8ewpo-EvpUnGZGSsd-6M3SuPXWYu9Ewo3sFeIzVPlysptKKqMWVTyAWbY_lxbaXvdF6QV2yiRmp4B6PR1EiKV-DDAMRFqBnMCeNB3EcbA/w400-h220/BBart%20Holdup%20p159%20h.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>He was Charley Boles, known to post-Civil-War San Francisco society as Charles E. Bolton, and to stage drivers and lawmen in northern California as Black Bart. On a few occasions, he left doggerel poems behind at a robbery scene, signed "Black Bart, the Po8".<p></p><p>As the picture shows, he disguised not just his face but his whole costume; he usually wrapped his boots in cloth to make himself hard to track. He walked, and never rode a horse when "working", making tracking him even more difficult. He could walk 50 miles a day.</p><p>He robbed 26 stagecoaches over a period of 17 years, and after a four-year stint in San Quentin prison, three more. During the short post-prison period he corresponded with his family, but didn't return to see them. Then he vanished from history. Nothing is know of his fate after November 20, 1888, when he committed his last (known) robbery. The 29 stage robberies of his that are known make him the most prolific stage robber in history.</p><p>This is a brief sketch of the history detailed in <i>Gentleman Bandit: The True Story of Black Bart, the Old West's Most Infamous Stagecoach Robber</i>, by John Boessenecker. The illustration above is from p159. The author tells in his Acknowledgements that he gathered material about Black Bart for fifty-plus years. The depth and breadth of his research is evident, making for a fascinating account.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-86313884246690882212024-02-08T12:34:00.002-05:002024-02-08T12:34:51.395-05:00Singapore spiders, and others<p> kw: blogs, blogging, spider scanning</p><p>The past few days I've noticed a big increase in views of this blog. It has been a while since the last flurry of spider scanning. Here is what the past month looks like:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg72nL5k9_DRmfJLuDyVULtvnHn2jyN7udoJFPqcUQ_bM_9UBJ8BFzrPDmUxTdghP7LqXotKrbypTS0-uG0iu_dJVFlZ7tPZPtTkJY2Dwhns_VOwpuFhiayN1bsGYRGO5yeokm4xLNfxh3RjEfaCEldpuUsA1boi_TllKx-QQl0odGFDvV01zv2Mg/s894/Spiders%20views%20mo%20of%20240109-0208.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="894" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg72nL5k9_DRmfJLuDyVULtvnHn2jyN7udoJFPqcUQ_bM_9UBJ8BFzrPDmUxTdghP7LqXotKrbypTS0-uG0iu_dJVFlZ7tPZPtTkJY2Dwhns_VOwpuFhiayN1bsGYRGO5yeokm4xLNfxh3RjEfaCEldpuUsA1boi_TllKx-QQl0odGFDvV01zv2Mg/w640-h214/Spiders%20views%20mo%20of%20240109-0208.gif" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The usual daily activity is 30-40 views; about 1,000 per month. Let's look at the past week (Blogger doesn't have a custom date setting):</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcsIJ3NYvuuGIAQ2UHevDRdYdFlIvATAAKIVhcB9Vid8ArBk1IXKK09MjxHhlhxhrQ3a5LsWSFC3izU-XsKD6yYMmBxQvPNDtmhtjTjqndsBJ3lsw5Av5lWLe6BDCRUMotGk1csmb8ksPfqFES2eeIUJxTKl4wyjCrRpVchgm1-Rox2BNVH-aqBg/s894/Spiders%20views%20wk%20of%20240202-08.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="297" data-original-width="894" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcsIJ3NYvuuGIAQ2UHevDRdYdFlIvATAAKIVhcB9Vid8ArBk1IXKK09MjxHhlhxhrQ3a5LsWSFC3izU-XsKD6yYMmBxQvPNDtmhtjTjqndsBJ3lsw5Av5lWLe6BDCRUMotGk1csmb8ksPfqFES2eeIUJxTKl4wyjCrRpVchgm1-Rox2BNVH-aqBg/w640-h212/Spiders%20views%20wk%20of%20240202-08.gif" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Matters get a little more clear when we look at the sources:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-08fJ1Z76GKUwpojou9A0t9qWZd1WvFhWWtvBoZTocXM1tdcN0supzlkDdbfzu5DsrLFfn88k_RduYOaVmFyMnb-lFxB-80qd1wWJ6_LoTZ679-VicjhcTvr2AmLZnqedfVB9am9HZmxSbUTyfO_ck0dk_tZDZQqNKNAUDaxtHxhaI9FOGe-xkg/s864/Spiders%20world%20wk%20of%20240202-08.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="864" height="620" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-08fJ1Z76GKUwpojou9A0t9qWZd1WvFhWWtvBoZTocXM1tdcN0supzlkDdbfzu5DsrLFfn88k_RduYOaVmFyMnb-lFxB-80qd1wWJ6_LoTZ679-VicjhcTvr2AmLZnqedfVB9am9HZmxSbUTyfO_ck0dk_tZDZQqNKNAUDaxtHxhaI9FOGe-xkg/w640-h620/Spiders%20world%20wk%20of%20240202-08.gif" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>In the past the primary spider source was Russia, sometimes Ukraine. This time it is Singapore, with supporting roles from Hong Kong and China. If you add these numbers, leaving out those three countries, then add back in 45 for China and 90 for Hong Kong, you get a usual month of views for this blog. In a typical month, China may have 1-2 views daily and Hong Kong 2-4. Singapore is a rare "customer".</p><p>I wonder what they were looking for? The total blog has roughly 2,500 posts…</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-31284055692918365202024-02-05T19:40:00.003-05:002024-02-05T19:40:38.327-05:00For love of the deep sea<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, science, oceanography, adventurers, submersibles, memoirs</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ4Vhpjqths02MVZdlXd4GHmVrWn_3lJ42TXREDut2l4sgyoLYnkwb4y7cjYg-d5-r1dhOhGm1cPgzJ0r5zGI7LgrsHm9am0GFf9ynwuqBnCGME7nBCnMqQtiEBuhKhdofw6Pvf7fUuSYX3ts3u9G3TYRXaY3vo826kChIpfX38oIux77KKBAqxA/s536/img20240205_14492984.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="418" data-original-width="536" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ4Vhpjqths02MVZdlXd4GHmVrWn_3lJ42TXREDut2l4sgyoLYnkwb4y7cjYg-d5-r1dhOhGm1cPgzJ0r5zGI7LgrsHm9am0GFf9ynwuqBnCGME7nBCnMqQtiEBuhKhdofw6Pvf7fUuSYX3ts3u9G3TYRXaY3vo826kChIpfX38oIux77KKBAqxA/w400-h313/img20240205_14492984.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Spoiler: Susan Casey did indeed get to dive with Victor Vescovo in his ultra-deep-diving submersible Limiting Factor. Here they are about to dive to the base of Loihi, as we Haoles call it. The Hawaiians call the soon-to-be-a-Hawaiian-Island <i>Kamaʻehuakanaloa</i>. More on that anon.</p><p>Ms Casey's book is <i>The Underworld: Journeys to the Depths of the Ocean</i>. She has been enthralled by the ocean as far back as she can remember. She recounts her own life briefly, and chronicles the growing knowledge of the deep sea as humans have prepared more and better ways of seeing into it and of going there.</p><p>Many may still think of "the abyss" as a near-lifeless volume of water, and of the ocean floor as a vast stretch of "unoccupied" real estate with resources we can harvest with impunity. Their understanding is a few generations out of date. Two striking facts emerge from putting eyes in the deep sea, whether robotic (in remotely-operated vehicles, or ROVs) or in person: Firstly, life is everywhere, right down to the bottom of the deepest trenches; and Secondly, our trash is everywhere, from plastic bags and other litter even in the deepest holes, to fibers and bits of "stuff" in the flesh of fish and other animals captured all up and down the water column.</p><p>The book lacks an index, which precludes my going back to find the name of the new species of amphipod (they look vaguely like shrimp without the long carapace) which incorporates plastic fibers into its tissues, because, well, it has to. That's easier than trying to exclude them!</p><p>Along the way we learn of fish like bristlemouths (they have lots of sharp, very thin teeth), smaller than a finger, that exist in such numbers that they outweigh the entire mass of all mammals put together. Wouldn't you know it, as soon as they were discovered, fishing businesses began to speculate about how to make a net that trawls deep enough (a few miles), with fine enough mesh, to catch a few trillion of these for, well, whatever use can be found for them. That's ignoring the equivalent trillions of squids and jellyfish and hydrozoans (like chains of jellyfish—some are 150 feet long). This "bycatch", if deemed less valuable than the fishes, will be discarded, dying and dead, by the thousands of tons. I wonder what <i>that </i>will do to the chemical balance of the ocean? Ms Casey writes, "The idea of commercially fishing the twilight zone is off-the-charts stupid. That doesn't mean we won't do it." Lust for money makes people stupid.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxBDA2lv5Pa0wLb1z5xrffLyWdczTd9Jwvqv0HiIoTvJj73_BTMUS9yT4H0MR_1U05mnRWaOlpakmIg00jQOL4r48X2vOdZEXbAMESqXNUuyTGWcfBT_Nc4TN5xyPjcdRHB86jpx5pKh1RsWMupcEHeZYkV8vXN71Sqi10HBUw2zPaJmw_ZaJG8A/s1280/Snailfish%20on%20bait.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxBDA2lv5Pa0wLb1z5xrffLyWdczTd9Jwvqv0HiIoTvJj73_BTMUS9yT4H0MR_1U05mnRWaOlpakmIg00jQOL4r48X2vOdZEXbAMESqXNUuyTGWcfBT_Nc4TN5xyPjcdRHB86jpx5pKh1RsWMupcEHeZYkV8vXN71Sqi10HBUw2zPaJmw_ZaJG8A/s320/Snailfish%20on%20bait.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>We also learn of snailfish, the deepest-dwelling fish so far known. They live as deep as 23,000 feet, or 7,000 m. These snailfish came to bait dropped on the ocean floor.<p></p><p>Pressures of several tons per square inch affect the ways proteins work, and so far, snailfish and a few other fish species have been able to evolve ways to counteract certain pressure effects, but they haven't made it all the way to the bottom of the deepest trenches, which measure about 37,000 ft, or nearly 11,000 m. Other animals have done so, and are seen crawling around in the deepest of deeps.</p><p>The author devotes a chapter to the things she learned at a conference about seabed mining, and about efforts to prevent it or delay it. Large areas of the "abyssal plain", the flat-lying areas at depths between three and six kilometers (10,000 to 20,000 feet, or 2-4 miles), are paved with polymetallic nodules. Once called "manganese nodules", they consist of oxides and hydroxides of many metals. The transition metals (Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn) are the most abundant, but many other metals are present, including "rare earth" metals, which aren't really rare, but they <i>are </i>rather hard to separate from their ores. At one time they were thought to grow rather quickly. It has been learned that their diameter increases by one or two millimeters per million years.</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1uikQaCq8SxoqJ0xPRBsYfTx2rbaEPiyylpLa65fsQMT-FASz-n1MTOO7ZgsGRY7DoQiGYRKkPGG07HUlBhZnwo30RvTuvaRNaFRtw5x__GN1lJVQUUMm7jDkqPC8ysnH8uaGUDGZNaKRIV-P6nfh2jujHAJlvVmUVLJkyog3XuR5Oc5F_ijgrQ/s900/Nodule%20w%20sponge-r.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="900" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1uikQaCq8SxoqJ0xPRBsYfTx2rbaEPiyylpLa65fsQMT-FASz-n1MTOO7ZgsGRY7DoQiGYRKkPGG07HUlBhZnwo30RvTuvaRNaFRtw5x__GN1lJVQUUMm7jDkqPC8ysnH8uaGUDGZNaKRIV-P6nfh2jujHAJlvVmUVLJkyog3XuR5Oc5F_ijgrQ/s320/Nodule%20w%20sponge-r.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><p>Polymetallic nodules grow slowly enough that many animals live on and in them. The beautiful sponge in this picture distracts from the numerous "little white things" seen on the nodules. Consider this: every time scientists get the opportunity to sample the seabed, they find that about half of the organisms they bring up have never been seen before. This is also true of samples taken at deep hydrothermal vents, the "black smokers" and scarcer "white smokers". We don't know enough to know what we'd lose if millions of acres of the ocean floor were to be scraped clean, or if thousands of metallic "chimneys" at hydrothermal vents were "mined". We do know that the mid-to-deep creatures are intimately involved in the carbon cycle, which would be dramatically altered, and not for the better, by all the large-scale extraction businesses just mentioned. </p><p>Hey, climate change activists? How come the Cancel Culture hasn't begun to target deep ocean mining firms? Here's where you can have a much greater impact than all prior efforts so far, combined! Get on it, my favorite fanatics!</p><p>So far we have just investigated a percent of a percent of a percent of what the ocean contains. Nearly all land life is found within 20 meters of the surface; in tropical rain forests, a decent proportion extends to four times that high, but those account for just a few percent of the total area. The volume of the terrestrial biosphere is thus about 3,000 trillion, or 3 quadrillion, cubic meters. The volume of the ocean is 1.33 million trillion, or 1.33 quintillion, cubic meters: 444 times as much! While it's unlikely that there is 400x as much biomass in the ocean as on land, it is quite reasonable to expect between 10x and 50x. And we don't know what 99.99% of it is!</p><p>In her quest to get to know the ocean deeps, naturally Ms Casey was eventually brought into contact with Victor Vescovo, who spent around $40,000,000 to have a full-ocean-depth submersible built, and to obtain ships and other equipment and crew, so he could dive to the deepest point in all five sections of the ocean. <a href="https://polymath07.blogspot.com/2021/07/opening-ocean-deeps.html">I reviewed his book</a> about those experiences a couple of years ago. He has since made more dives in those locations and many more, sometimes solo, and more often with scientists accompanying. His sub Limiting Factor has been purchased by an organization named Inkfish Ocean Exploration (they don't have a website that I can find; it's owned by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabe_Newell">Gabe Newell</a>). She accompanied a couple of the cruises, and was then asked if she wanted to take a dive herself (Did she ever!).</p><p>In 2021 she went on a dive with Vescovo to the base of the <i>Kamaʻehuakanaloa</i> seamount, to retrieve a costly piece of equipment that had descended and failed to ascent...and they had time for some exploration. While this dive wasn't in a trench, it did reach a depth greater than 17,000 feet, or 5 km. At the time, the number of people who had been on dives that deep numbered a couple of dozen. That number is growing, partly from the efforts of Inkfish and even more from manufacturers such as Triton (who manufactured Limiting Factor) that make 5- and 6 km-rated submersibles. Some of these can hold six or more persons. In addition to the immense scientific value of having eyes in situ, the huge impact just being in the deep ocean has on everyone who experiences it is slowly changing the public perception of the deep ocean.</p><p>I had an idea. Take every executive from a seabed mining company to see the nodule fields for themselves. I think of it as a kind of intelligence test. If someone takes such a drive and still has only dollar signs in his eyes, take him back down and leave him there (I suspect very few females could be that rapacious).</p><p>Failing that, get this book and read it. Read other books about the deep ocean. It's a problem that it costs 1,000 to 100,000 times as much to go one mile down as it does to go one mile up…in many places you can hike a mile up a mountainside in $30 sneakers and wearing jeans and a warm shirt. A tourist ride in a submersible costs in the $50,000 to $500,000 range. A bit more than the typical ocean cruise, and it lasts only a day (plus getting to and from the dive site). And bookmark <a href="https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/livestreams/welcome.html">this NOAA site</a>, which access to livestreams from ships employing deep-diving ROVs to see what's going on, typically about a kilometer deep, but highly variable. During dive season (typically April to November, at least in the northern hemisphere), I like to have one of these cameras going on my screen. In the off-season they have highlights videos available.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-21269780060449348862024-01-29T16:46:00.002-05:002024-01-29T16:46:53.230-05:00Small airplane caught on satellite camera<p> kw: interesting things, satellite imagery</p><p>I do many geographical investigations for my work at the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science. Today, looking on Google Maps for a certain geographic feature that was reported "North of the Miami-Dade County line", I saw this:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtv9n6TXfop_geU7W7fqXOCeXkmLvjL9wdp0Kd9Yd936V3NHGZy8qKzW0gJBPUKNyF_RqmBHqLlvvT-9ZlNj0SBI7OTv_gGKF7IvjisqbMniK-a0B1Gt5ZWD5Xhfa9jgwl631CA3wGGbim4EHMxjYneaQPXZRcv2btD9r5yr_tEg7V_aLohHIRTg/s1202/Small%20airplane%20in%20GMaps%201.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="826" data-original-width="1202" height="440" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtv9n6TXfop_geU7W7fqXOCeXkmLvjL9wdp0Kd9Yd936V3NHGZy8qKzW0gJBPUKNyF_RqmBHqLlvvT-9ZlNj0SBI7OTv_gGKF7IvjisqbMniK-a0B1Gt5ZWD5Xhfa9jgwl631CA3wGGbim4EHMxjYneaQPXZRcv2btD9r5yr_tEg7V_aLohHIRTg/w640-h440/Small%20airplane%20in%20GMaps%201.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>What I actually saw at first was a row of three white dots. Upon zooming in, I could see it was three views of a small airplane. The dashed line is the county line I was following. It is evident that the satellite was taking strip images from north to south, and three in a row caught the airplane as it passed to the southwest. You can see this for yourself; type in to Google Maps (or in Google Earth) these coordinates: 25.95717 -80.65822. Be sure to put a space before the hyphen so the numbers are correctly interpreted as coordinates. This image was produced 1/4/2021, so later this year we can expect a newer image to replace it. Never fear: the "historical imagery" button will let you backtrack to the date of your choice.</p><p>Zooming in further, we can glean a little information about the photographic method used:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5wSCvAnJ9id3FqDEhgzAMCjqPQvjLEC10n1tnhdoQawW_tJK58GmRPGixmmQR1VfIqY9zLEkvAG1dbYTmgoatBwhsqPvuTGOrAKdObbOlL6klu2M-k0G5T2ga1ykKXkg2WJ7MIpu3dnTVxNM8tdZMdMxdxWt7oZdOaBbPy7cUkapOgQa-JUc0Lw/s796/Small%20airplane%20in%20GMaps%2025.95717N%2080.65822W.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="546" data-original-width="796" height="438" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5wSCvAnJ9id3FqDEhgzAMCjqPQvjLEC10n1tnhdoQawW_tJK58GmRPGixmmQR1VfIqY9zLEkvAG1dbYTmgoatBwhsqPvuTGOrAKdObbOlL6klu2M-k0G5T2ga1ykKXkg2WJ7MIpu3dnTVxNM8tdZMdMxdxWt7oZdOaBbPy7cUkapOgQa-JUc0Lw/w640-h438/Small%20airplane%20in%20GMaps%2025.95717N%2080.65822W.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The rainbow effect shows that the satellite doesn't operate like a digital camera, but takes successive images through color filters. In this case, we can see at least blue, cyan, green, yellow and red, although the cyan and yellow colors may result from overlap of blue, green and red. Google Maps allows taking a measurements of the airplane: wing span 40.5 feet, length 35.5 feet. Airplane buffs can look up what kind of plane this is likely to be.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-70116441941082026272024-01-27T18:14:00.003-05:002024-01-27T18:14:51.334-05:00It ain't the King's English any more<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, linguistics, united states, dialects</p><p>When I was about twelve my family attended a Congregational church in Salt Lake City, Utah. We frequently arrived early, so I would help the ushers fold programs. One day one of the ushers, an elderly man who must have originally come from New York, said to me, "Youse is a good kid." "Youse" is pronounced "use", the noun not the verb, as in "Put that elbow grease to good <b><u>use</u></b>." It's the only time in my life that I've heard that, even though I've been to NYC a few times in the ensuing 65 years.</p><p>Some 48 years ago we spent part of a year in Houston, Texas, and visited people we knew in Louisiana a couple of times. We got acquainted with a couple of variations on "you". You may have heard the parting greeting, "Y'all come back now, hear?" They do say that in Louisiana, where "y'all is the typical plural form of "you". But in Texas "y'all" is singular, and the plural is "all-a-y'all" or even "all of you-all". I once kidded some of our friends in Texas, "There's a popular convenience store out West, that would have to change it's name if they open any here: Y'all Totem!" (the store was U-Totem, out of business since 1984).</p><p>Based on our experiences, living and vacationing all over the continental US, I've compiled this generalized map of various ways people supply the missing plural "you" in "standard" English:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQT_SyGavFhqIjjyOVpUrnxhSL34YKBWeg1lJdnZdER3nJ0JohIYlEEcoIaCgFdHKAWY7vmOe4fC-QdrNLHeVcrd682p3agVM9l_IrnNQZEIWffQdn0P2mtGmgmTZvyrom41UoemLGXWIGJ-wIW-6txf3ULMyRKPqhguX8mNjFfIhMtJr5fX4aQ/s1003/US%20of%20You.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="629" data-original-width="1003" height="402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQT_SyGavFhqIjjyOVpUrnxhSL34YKBWeg1lJdnZdER3nJ0JohIYlEEcoIaCgFdHKAWY7vmOe4fC-QdrNLHeVcrd682p3agVM9l_IrnNQZEIWffQdn0P2mtGmgmTZvyrom41UoemLGXWIGJ-wIW-6txf3ULMyRKPqhguX8mNjFfIhMtJr5fX4aQ/w640-h402/US%20of%20You.png" width="640" /></a></div>This is strictly from my own impressions and memories. I'd expect a professional linguist to have a more accurate take on this pattern, and perhaps a few expressions I've missed. One such is Rosemarie Ostler, in her book <i>The United States of English: The American Language from Colonial Times to the Twenty-First Century</i>. As a matter of fact, the descriptions of "you" usage in the book are practically identical to these, although with more detail about where certain variations are common.<br /><p>Much of the discussion in the book concerns vowel shifts that have occurred over the centuries since English immigrants began coming to North America in large numbers. The sounds of a language change over time as the way that the commonest words are pronounced is made easier by shifting the vowels to be easier to say. To a linguist, changing the sound of a vowel is accomplished by changing the position of the tongue and the shape of the mouth and upper throat. For example, the "ee" sound most of us use in "feet" has the tongue high and forward, while the "ih" sound in "will" has the tongue halfway up and still forward. In some regions, however, "will" is pronounced more like "weel", which means the "ee" sound had to "go" somewhere else. Either the mouth now opens more, turning "feet" into "fate", or the tongue moves further back, which yields "feht", where "eh" represents the schwa (shown as "ə" in the phonetic alphabet IPA). That may cause a speaker to move the schwa in words like "about" to a more open "a" sound (think of "about" sounding like "abbot"). And so it goes.</p><p>It's amazing that such shifts occur unconsciously. People don't get up one day and say, 'I'm going to harden the "i" in "will" from today forwards.' And however it was that the singular pronouns for second person (formerly "thou" and "thee") were dropped, it didn't take long for people to devise substitutes. Although the area seemingly dominated by "you/you" in the map above is vast, few people live in the middle of the continent; it's "flyover country" for a reason. The number of folks using a regional pluralism is a pretty high percentage.</p><p>Again and again I read that words from other languages and cultures were assimilated into English, as English-speaking people spread across the globe during the Colonial Era in North America and the period of the British Empire, and people from all over the Earth immigrated to the United States. Thus "tycoon" and "tsunami" are of Japanese origin, "kowtow" is from Chinese ("t'au kau" is Mandarin for "pray" or "worship"); the verb "smelt" is very old, having entered Anglo-Saxon via Danish, while the noun "smelt", a type of fish, is either Dutch or Danish, and refers to the fishes' odor. A host of food words have both Germanic (Anglo Saxon) and French (Norman) synonyms: meat vs beef, chicken vs pullet, deer vs venison, dove vs pigeon. And many Spanish or Mexican Native words have been mainstreamed ("taco", "amigo", <i>etc</i>.)</p><p>Where other languages may take in a word or name and bend it into a more "native" form, English speakers tend to take words in wholesale. Sometimes, a nickname becomes "the name"; for example the painter Dominikos Theotokopoulos, who signed his paintings with his full name in Greek, had the nickname "the Greek" throughout Europe, but the Spanish version of his nickname is the one used here: El Greco.</p><p>Such promiscuous borrowing has led to English being the largest language. The initial Oxford English Dictionary had about 291,000 entries, but about 10% have been removed in more recent editions. A comprehensive dictionary of that sort for American English would likely have between half a million and a million words! However, those in common use number about 100,000. A typical U.S. fifth grader knows about 50,000 words. But, as this book shows, going around the country, <i>which </i>50,000 words a youngster knows will differ. This is why thesauruses exist for English but hardly at all for other languages. English has lots and lots of synonyms. If one were to boil down the "meanings" in a well-constructed, comprehensive thesaurus, the number would likely be in the 20,000-40,000 range.</p><p>It took me longer than I like to read the book. It is well written, but the subject does not lend itself to page-turning prose. It can get tedious. The author does well to gather facts in as interesting a way as possible, but there are limits… There are just too many facts, and it is clear she was being very selective, because if the book consisted simply of word-pair lists and other groupings, without any "glue" or other text, it would be quite a bit larger than 230+ pages. The appendix has a useful summary of where phonetic sounds are made in the vocal cavity, and explanations of how the various vowel shifts produced the most common "American English".</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-15382089243668914602024-01-19T21:39:00.000-05:002024-01-19T21:39:08.396-05:00He brought the lions back<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, science, natural science, cougars, mountain lions, memoirs</p><p>It takes a real optimist to wait fifty years to write a memoir. The kind of optimism that motivates a young naturalist to stake the success of his PhD research on his determination to work in the tough Idaho wilderness surrounding the River of No Return, to track, capture, and study the most elusive apex predator that North America has to offer: the cougar. Furthermore, when he began the study he had a family. That's exactly what Maurice Hornocker did, and thus his recently-released memoir relates events that occurred in the period 1964 to 1973. He was 91 when he began to write…</p><p><i>Cougars on the Cliff: One Man's Pioneering Quest to Understand the Mythical Mountain Lion—a Memoir</i> kept me up late several nights. It is the kind of page-turning book one would not expect from a scientist. Dr. Hornocker has a co-author, "roving reporter" David Johnson, who must have had something to do with the compelling prose. But artful prose needs something to work with, and boy, was there a lot to work with!</p><p>Possibly more dangerous than the big cats were the hunters, the ranchers, and others with a vested interest in destroying as many cougars as possible, and in keeping them classified as "vermin", so that there would be no "hunting season" or other restrictions on the slaughter. In the face of disparagement and occasional threats, and even attempted sabotage of the research project, Maurice (not Dr. Hornocker yet), with immense help from Wilber Wiles, caught the cats he needed to catch, re-caught them repeatedly, tracked them through several winter seasons (there was no radiotelemetry before the 1970's, so tracking in snow was a must), and gathered priceless data on their habits. Slowly, the data itself, and his passionate advocacy, made itself felt. At first, a temporary moratorium on hunting the cats (after a few collared cats were killed) was put in place, allowing the study to be completed, and eventually, a new law was passed giving the Idaho Fish and Game Commission the power to declare the Cougar a game animal, and thus to regulate it, including barring hunting the cats in specific areas. Eventually the largest contiguous wilderness area was created in central Idaho, where no persisting human presence is allowed: visit but leave only footprints, and gather only photos.</p><p>Cougars manage their territories well, and they practice "mutual avoidance", a term Maurice stressed and possibly coined. They manage their own reproduction. Rather than being rapacious monsters that kill for the fun of it, cougars kill to live, and their natural tendency to take down the weak and the old, primarily elk and mule deer, actually manages the prey herd to encourage strength and to ensure a thriving population. The "demon cats" of superstitious lore would soon wipe out the entire herd, and descend into starvation. Big cats can do cost/benefit analyses. Once this was understood, the wind went out of the sails of the "cougars as vermin" viewpoint.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOHrYtW9Ms1ahhLZMW2LEQ0QSHBD3w5-9iuxViNPZq1vgPhAxffIZEF7oL2iL_0AFzy_KzPyS5CJ-QlFHKR6redNgyjCccrnNl-qFOF-Z4uGr5pe2sgo2wzi6XVoswUxusZFazJc7EE_MTlKCOLb0BMpthqzw7i4lYyBe4Yv4KwuiVW6e9afI-sQ/s650/Cougar%20family.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="437" data-original-width="650" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOHrYtW9Ms1ahhLZMW2LEQ0QSHBD3w5-9iuxViNPZq1vgPhAxffIZEF7oL2iL_0AFzy_KzPyS5CJ-QlFHKR6redNgyjCccrnNl-qFOF-Z4uGr5pe2sgo2wzi6XVoswUxusZFazJc7EE_MTlKCOLb0BMpthqzw7i4lYyBe4Yv4KwuiVW6e9afI-sQ/w400-h269/Cougar%20family.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>How would one describe a typical day during the winter cougar-study season? It seems impossible, mainly because what Maurice and Wilber did are impossible to most of us. They began by preparing (sometimes building) and stocking ten camps throughout the study area. In each season, they both, and the 3-4 dogs they had with them, traveled on foot more than 1,000 miles. Not flat miles, but up hill and down dale, often in knee-deep or hip-deep snow. The average mileage required to track, tree, tranquilize and tag & measure one cat was about 100. In the initial three (exhausting!) seasons, somewhat more than 30 cougars were tagged, and multiple observations of previously-caught cats, plus re-catches to replace missing tags or collars: all added up to a ton of data about them. In addition, the men took samples from prey animals, to assess age and condition, so as to compile a picture of the ecology of cougar country.<p></p><p>The picture above shows a lioness with two half-grown "kittens". The book doesn't use the word "cubs". An interesting fact learned from the population studies, and from the author's family raising two orphaned kittens that weighed ten pounds at the start, is that the ears stay about the same distance from the chin as a lion's head grows, so that the mother cat, on the left, had her ears set lower compared to her young. Females have smaller heads than males, so mature males have ears set even lower. Once this relationship was understood, it was possible to determine the sex of a cat from a distance, and also estimate its age during its first few years. The heaviest females seldom exceeded 100 pounds, but most grown males were heavier; the heaviest was 182 pounds, though the average was more in the 120-140 pound range.</p><p>I worked at DuPont in Wilmington, Delaware for many years. For a few of those years a cougar resided in northern Delaware and southeastern Pennsylvania. One snowy day, a laboratory building at a DuPont facility was ringed with cougar tracks. The animal could smell the lab rats inside the building, and circled it a few times trying to find a way in. Later it bedded down at an outdoor YMCA facility a few miles away. For about a week, the Y Camp was its home base. Then it seemed to vanish, until reports in Maryland indicated it had moved on. Many white-tail deer live in this area, and it probably reduced the herd to the point that leaving was necessary. By the deer being "reduced" I mean partly eaten, and partly scared into moving on themselves. The big cat followed its food supply. Curiously, I don't know a single person who every actually saw the cat as more than the end of a tail as it vanished into the woods. They are secretive and very hard to spot!</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIrpTHoq0SmYbCCQBpJGS4CGs_FJuZlcG_q702taibYpw1I4eHRb0bMvLQLBVr3oPwS6ne2Pjl2e4rSClaurnoLH_aIc3-fJKaRj0aXE7YTxiUmpFTjdVI0MFV3kDJ_VmqIq7UWBcGG-NB6tgS_qMckpG9le8foVFwxI4vItBP3sA5cZLC1c3gEg/s1024/Yrd23050h-1k.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIrpTHoq0SmYbCCQBpJGS4CGs_FJuZlcG_q702taibYpw1I4eHRb0bMvLQLBVr3oPwS6ne2Pjl2e4rSClaurnoLH_aIc3-fJKaRj0aXE7YTxiUmpFTjdVI0MFV3kDJ_VmqIq7UWBcGG-NB6tgS_qMckpG9le8foVFwxI4vItBP3sA5cZLC1c3gEg/s320/Yrd23050h-1k.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>When I say in my title above that Dr. Hornocker "brought the lions back", I refer to bringing back the concept of the cougar as an integral and necessary part of the natural world, throughout North America. Before his work, they'd become almost extinct outside a few wilderness areas such as the Bitterroot Mts of Idaho, because of their "vermin" image. That has changed. A change for the better. Just as the local family of foxes keeps the squirrels in our neighborhood on the alert, and limits the population of mice and voles, so a resident cougar or two keeps the deer from becoming vermin themselves. P.S. This juvenile fox had just awakened from a nap in our back yard. I took the picture from the family room window.<p></p><p>I don't mind that this memoir looks back half a century. The adventures are as fresh as yesterday's snowfall. Dr. Hornocker is one of the great benefactors of wide-scale ecology studies.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-53534008447944357302024-01-13T13:57:00.000-05:002024-01-13T13:57:05.123-05:00Spreading your wings beyond butterfly collecting<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, science, natural history, insect collecting, moth collecting</p><p>I got my start as a collector collecting butterflies, using a net made from discarded a lace curtain. Later I collected all kinds of things, such as stamps, shells, minerals, and fossils. These days I collect primarily photos; they take up less space and they aren't heavy (like the two tons of low-to-medium quality agate I discarded many years ago). If I wanted to take on another collecting hobby, Tim Blackburn's new book would motivate me in the direction of collecting moths.</p><p>His book is <i>The Jewel Box: How Moths Illuminate Nature's Hidden Rules</i>. Dr. Blackburn is a professor of Invasion Biology in London. He bought a lighted moth trap online at the beginning of the Covid lockdown, and found that moth-ing fit in well with his profession and proclivity. He discusses the interconnectedness of ecology and the many interactions that drive the evolution of moths, and by extension, all animals and the plants they eat.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4mAT7ms6FkWk1hhv2aTqawc9iNEVD6n7nRghqQs4KfokVRXLSOKbOQR3BDzdePi_OvEEOsVWVTJrmSfp1qF2bnYLUW38WwS9X6FG71sSZ5iJyMnQEf7qwDGb-Am2tSFIPt1ODE6JTlz9J91T2YHe2oeOm5hSGCekfRFjZN5JZe3G0rm_My1Eacg/s1024/Gypsy%20Moth%20male%20Lymantria%20dispar.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4mAT7ms6FkWk1hhv2aTqawc9iNEVD6n7nRghqQs4KfokVRXLSOKbOQR3BDzdePi_OvEEOsVWVTJrmSfp1qF2bnYLUW38WwS9X6FG71sSZ5iJyMnQEf7qwDGb-Am2tSFIPt1ODE6JTlz9J91T2YHe2oeOm5hSGCekfRFjZN5JZe3G0rm_My1Eacg/s320/Gypsy%20Moth%20male%20Lymantria%20dispar.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>As a student of Invasion Biology, he begins his book with that poster child of invasiveness, the Gypsy Moth, <i>Lymantria dispar</i>. This male moth has the characteristic enormous antennae, with which the male detects very tiny amounts of the pheromone emitted by the female. This image is similar to one in the book, but more clear and in color (only black-and-white photos adorn the book's pages).<p></p><p>Gypsy moths are pan-Mediterranean and Asian originally, and their presence in various part of the British Isles has ebbed and flowed with the vagaries of time. Their introduction into the United States by Leopold Trouvelot in 1868 at first didn't make much impression. His intention was silk production, but that didn't work out well. Some moths escaped (As Malcolm says in Jurassic Park, "Life finds a way."). For a decade they didn't spread far, but then their population exploded. Their caterpillars erupted on trees in such numbers that a tree could be stripped of leaves in a few days, and major portions of some orchards were destroyed. The species name <i>dispar</i> means "destroyer".</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj74yJiWcL03yZWbmJc98nHBF6bbLjJwsl2nH7ETFze9u6CrDlwe3W3v2Xcoq6nBImIFET_Xlm97wNqR5pAWAptIFrv20txDLAnfOGiX4t_IPcTrPPnVwL2nq7mAAWtkCT2I6-Ef63m-66kkCyI7uVgu9Ou__sBPhGFwScDN8sKr0cwhD52iNBd-A/s1024/The%20Uncertain%20moth%20Hoplodrina%20octogenaria.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="998" data-original-width="1024" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj74yJiWcL03yZWbmJc98nHBF6bbLjJwsl2nH7ETFze9u6CrDlwe3W3v2Xcoq6nBImIFET_Xlm97wNqR5pAWAptIFrv20txDLAnfOGiX4t_IPcTrPPnVwL2nq7mAAWtkCT2I6-Ef63m-66kkCyI7uVgu9Ou__sBPhGFwScDN8sKr0cwhD52iNBd-A/w200-h195/The%20Uncertain%20moth%20Hoplodrina%20octogenaria.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Another moth called The Uncertain, <i>Hoplodrina octogenaria</i>, is discussed as one of a group of species that are hard to tell apart. The photo in the book shows three small moths that look alike in markings, though they have slightly different base tones. The Uncertain can only be identified "for certain" by dissecting its sex organs. Only particular differences in this bit of anatomy keep the look-alike moths from interbreeding!<p></p><p>At rest, like this specimen, their size is about 20mm (3/4 inch). In flight their wingspan is about 38mm (<1.5 inch), so they are medium-sized…for a moth. Size is a peculiar matter with moths. A number of taxonomic families consisting primarily of species measuring less than 20mm wingspan are called "micromoths" or "microlepidoptera", yet each family includes some members that are larger, perhaps quite a bit larger. Furthermore, some families consisting primarily of "macromoths" include micro-sized species, including the Noctuidae, to which The Uncertain belongs. So it is a macromoth, but some of its sister species are only 1/3 its size.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyoUVBtQLWzlJTAFLNE4W9NQximKNwZNwBv_CKsrtywrgbPFDHH5Ya1xvTdLN6g8g3_SH92KfdC0JPTwd612cF09jBPGbKwpQlgOM5oZwJk4XuKsXE5zm9vnCrTtzWWXzRfmhvV6jwTPKuLyKEI9T5t31muQml6X4Zc4yaUw52IveCGxdWnNbcfQ/s640/Micromoth.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="547" data-original-width="640" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyoUVBtQLWzlJTAFLNE4W9NQximKNwZNwBv_CKsrtywrgbPFDHH5Ya1xvTdLN6g8g3_SH92KfdC0JPTwd612cF09jBPGbKwpQlgOM5oZwJk4XuKsXE5zm9vnCrTtzWWXzRfmhvV6jwTPKuLyKEI9T5t31muQml6X4Zc4yaUw52IveCGxdWnNbcfQ/w200-h171/Micromoth.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>This unnamed moth is a typical micromoth. The wings are about 8mm long, so its wingspan is probably 16-17mm.<p></p><p>The smallest moths include those having caterpillars that are "leaf miners": the larva lives between the surfaces of a leaf, eating the flesh between. A caterpillar that can fit inside an oak leaf will develop into a very small moth. Following the rule that small things outnumber big things, there may be several thousand of the big, day-flying moths we call "butterflies", and tens of thousands of similarly-sized night-flying moths, but there are hundreds of thousands of smaller moths known, and it is likely that the total number of moth species is several million. We just don't now yet. Dr. Blackburn surmises that moth species may outnumber beetle species.</p><p>Each chapter focuses on a few related matters, such as predator-prey dynamics, migration and other issues of movement, or strategies of food sources. Again and again he reminds us that ecology is a whole, but a very dynamic whole. The year-to-year changes in environmental conditions, including more or less rainfall or higher or lower average temperature (which affect food sources and species vitality), or in-migration of a new species or local extinction of a formerly common species (which may be either a predator on or the prey of certain moths): all affect the continuing vitality of every species. Some become more abundant and some less, and there are often cycles of abundance.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4P6KEmdUBHlThDn-o86Y54XyfALTzeQuXYY9a1k8Cq2NUhLqBKpv5GwNET1erF8ScEx6skrFN1wNwNEMpTRq00LudMx9_5NUMJKqqKweVMNtIhmyXQnkUK_BWuhCdTXdRpK2pMskO_RbTvMcyWVyjSP2-mo_QE-KCy2o0P_BtXE9J_KibMu4DEQ/s1024/Moth%20Trap.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4P6KEmdUBHlThDn-o86Y54XyfALTzeQuXYY9a1k8Cq2NUhLqBKpv5GwNET1erF8ScEx6skrFN1wNwNEMpTRq00LudMx9_5NUMJKqqKweVMNtIhmyXQnkUK_BWuhCdTXdRpK2pMskO_RbTvMcyWVyjSP2-mo_QE-KCy2o0P_BtXE9J_KibMu4DEQ/s320/Moth%20Trap.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Gradually one realizes that a matter introduced at the beginning of the book is the key to the title. This picture shows a lighted moth trap. This is the jewel box. Every morning it contains many new jewels.<div><p></p><p>The author reports frequently collecting 200-300 specimens from the trap when used in his London home (a terrace apartment), and about 50% more when used at his parents' place in the Devon countryside.</p><p>This emphasizes that moth trapping is a time-consuming hobby. If you are trapping to collect and identify and store the insects you trap, it takes a significant chunk of your day, every day! If the few hundred moths caught belong to 50, or 60 or more species (80 is a common number in a London trap), just the sorting and identifying takes much time, at least when one is learning to recognize the species. I reckon the process gets quicker with experience. Collection trays then multiply…</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hp3JDeysvJquxHKar9Y0NHg3aN_XKChEzPDhkyJZro9oVYWW9znXF3KJXkqaH7uAnIZzLZ54Uz1efCWdaSnZphHwUN-Oqa4FXvqSKNCY85M9_5m2AyC38OrvPKU8BdXH318jSqwjHG0s6AkEcd2DT3n8ud7fXJELKZTBcxi6KK1kWWo-L5t8lQ/s1000/group-of-moths-h.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hp3JDeysvJquxHKar9Y0NHg3aN_XKChEzPDhkyJZro9oVYWW9znXF3KJXkqaH7uAnIZzLZ54Uz1efCWdaSnZphHwUN-Oqa4FXvqSKNCY85M9_5m2AyC38OrvPKU8BdXH318jSqwjHG0s6AkEcd2DT3n8ud7fXJELKZTBcxi6KK1kWWo-L5t8lQ/s320/group-of-moths-h.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>A similar device for collecting moths, and other night-flying insects, is a sheet with a light shining on it. It is used for an hour or two rather than overnight. A sheet trap is particularly useful if one doesn't plan to collect (and kill) the moths, but just to census them from photographs. The dozen largest moths in this picture can probably be identified right off. A series of closeup photos should allow identification of most of them, at least to genus level.<p></p><p>I have used this method. In my experience, if a sheet trap is used in a backyard, one will gather mostly moths. If it is done in a forested area, a lot of beetles will join the moths, and frequently, a number of flies and small wasps also.</p><p>The book is full of ecological information, on which I have barely touched. The author's enthusiasm for his new pastime shines through every page. This is a very enjoyable book, and it may introduce some folks to a rewarding hobby. Natural History Societies in many U.S. states and in many countries have ongoing data collection efforts to which citizen scientists can contribute. The <a href="https://butterfly-conservation.org/">Moths Matter</a> site is one place to start.</p><p>I have one issue I must mention. The term "moth-ers" is used in the Acknowledgements, referring to moth collectors and enthusiasts. Throughout the book the hyphen is not used, and confusion with the word for "female parent" is evident. The hyphen is needed! It must never be dropped. Although we have the term "birder" for bird watchers and bird enthusiasts, there is no competing meaning for this word, so no hyphen is needed for it. But please, moth people, embrace that you are moth-ers. Thank you.</p></div>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-84791313021726629562024-01-05T22:50:00.001-05:002024-01-05T22:50:53.738-05:00Back into tumbling (rocks)<p> kw: hobbies, rockhounding, lapidary, rock tumbling, jasper</p><p>In March 2008 my brother and I went into the upper Mojave desert, to Lavic, to collect jasper. I wrote about the experience at the time; <a href="https://polymath07.blogspot.com/2008/03/lavic-is-my-favorite.html">this post</a> includes several pictures of the jasper. This is a view from the collecting area on Lavic Lake, north toward mountains above the Sidewinder Dunes, a hiking area. The colorful mountains are part of the same series of ranges that includes Calico, which is to the northwest, closer to Barstow.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf1YTS7EmEzW06uYCr443qwOrEk18eu2z-o6oIwfcsqSMrzQM74vr3u44yYrpY3FrdUPrRdJ2XGmr0koDTesDl1beI3_BYhubc9suK0YSq6I79xnXMBBWQVbuIHD06JVdSG8PLvoIXuexEer23-yFIwZsyQ3iT5AZK1EKnkobQL1bPAJ-RQQVbkA/s1200/Cal08029-pancut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="1200" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf1YTS7EmEzW06uYCr443qwOrEk18eu2z-o6oIwfcsqSMrzQM74vr3u44yYrpY3FrdUPrRdJ2XGmr0koDTesDl1beI3_BYhubc9suK0YSq6I79xnXMBBWQVbuIHD06JVdSG8PLvoIXuexEer23-yFIwZsyQ3iT5AZK1EKnkobQL1bPAJ-RQQVbkA/w640-h256/Cal08029-pancut.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWz3gDkEXxU6ZGvg76-dMKl-giuFSCHHx4hCiZ2BZXADBhNeJoRbf2cseZA4DHVaklvPa4AJ9LphpCCLYHCrIXmT9QjWggKpVgTfLup40Gjitb10b5WtHqO2BN3FnlsWzDHuyE8mT32PW28R7vjTV4wb2ASWaw9K8MbbXe8PTbRVIFe6QFbKHU7w/s960/Cal08030r.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="960" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWz3gDkEXxU6ZGvg76-dMKl-giuFSCHHx4hCiZ2BZXADBhNeJoRbf2cseZA4DHVaklvPa4AJ9LphpCCLYHCrIXmT9QjWggKpVgTfLup40Gjitb10b5WtHqO2BN3FnlsWzDHuyE8mT32PW28R7vjTV4wb2ASWaw9K8MbbXe8PTbRVIFe6QFbKHU7w/s320/Cal08030r.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Looking down near my feet from the same spot, small chunks of the unique jasper known as Lavic Jasper are scattered everywhere. Rock collectors call this "float". More than a dozen pieces of red and brown jasper are seen in this picture.<p></p><p>My wife and I had collected here a few years earlier, but brought back only about ten pounds of rocks. This time my brother and I gathered closer to 30 pounds. </p><p>After I got home I bought a small rock tumbler—on this trip I had visited the Diamond Pacific store in Barstow and obtained grinding grits and polishing compound—and began to tumble in earnest. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1i_KVem_sHBmILLCcrQpPMf9Zf5afDRzYWFLA7B6iiKJ-_EVEC-8Qw2jZdW8Bw9HKICMDKGNIhLszeMc595PdHD62_mTDg7l3jkfqHR-fQX4CyOTHL22V9mCslXy2KPn0cBTuip3KdYIacCid88vGM2TWaLxYP7iCM2i6QVYrF8RIr755DxdhQA/s900/Tumbler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="900" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1i_KVem_sHBmILLCcrQpPMf9Zf5afDRzYWFLA7B6iiKJ-_EVEC-8Qw2jZdW8Bw9HKICMDKGNIhLszeMc595PdHD62_mTDg7l3jkfqHR-fQX4CyOTHL22V9mCslXy2KPn0cBTuip3KdYIacCid88vGM2TWaLxYP7iCM2i6QVYrF8RIr755DxdhQA/s320/Tumbler.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>I wore out the cheap tumbler I had bought, so I did more research to get a better quality one. I bought a Thumler's Tumbler, and it has the staying power I need. I finished the last batch of really "clean" stones, those with no serious cracks or pits, in 2012, and <a href="https://polymath07.blogspot.com/2012/04/this-springs-stony-harvest.html">reported</a> on the that batch then (with more pictures of the lovely material). I replaced the drive belt once during those four years of on-and-off tumbling.<p></p><p>A couple of months ago I decided to go through the remaining rough material and pick out some that might be worth tumbling. I eventually settled on about six pounds of chunks and pieces, weighing between 10 and 120 grams each. It's best to tumble a range of sizes together. The small rocks get into indentations in the larger ones and help them get abraded more uniformly.</p><p>I put just over two pounds (967 grams) into the tumbler along with an appropriate amount of rough grit and water, and set it going. After six days the drive belt broke. I ordered a replacement along with some extra parts I thought I should have as spares, such as the lid, which can wear through. Here is a picture of the larger stones after six days of tumbling. At the start they all had sharp corners.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR15PDNQa8asUczpsYatVNQiA9NJj3rKYIUKoZRDF7rPlsdnRb2SDaqZVLxSltjL6yNh8XwBdwa9C8CIYDJTYD5n5XckLWMpe-fbVyGRmA1LDuprmoxoeQF-MhgHVBZ1zLmBJhxP-6jcOL9-8UH-T1W2QTK_GX_a-LzmIu_eBeb5fZi0moVRIsvA/s1200/TRox2301-1%201200h.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR15PDNQa8asUczpsYatVNQiA9NJj3rKYIUKoZRDF7rPlsdnRb2SDaqZVLxSltjL6yNh8XwBdwa9C8CIYDJTYD5n5XckLWMpe-fbVyGRmA1LDuprmoxoeQF-MhgHVBZ1zLmBJhxP-6jcOL9-8UH-T1W2QTK_GX_a-LzmIu_eBeb5fZi0moVRIsvA/w640-h426/TRox2301-1%201200h.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The third one from the left in the top row features in what comes next. I like it because of its mix of red and green sections. Green is the rarest color for jasper. This picture is one of a series taken November 30, 2023.</p><p>I had weighed the stones before I started (967 grams), and I weighed them at this point (925g). The 42 gram difference is 4.3%.</p><p>I reloaded the tumbler, including a charge of fresh grit. These clearly need a lot more material removed. I let it go two weeks and then took the stone out, to inspect and weigh (842g, down another 8.6%). I took another series of photos. The yellowish stone at upper left had such a hole in the end that I decided to break part of it off. I added the 2g piece so removed when I reloaded the tumbler and ran everything another two weeks. More photos and more weighing (742g, down a further 10.3%, for a total removal of 23.3%).</p><p>I'll quickly show three examples of tumbling progress. Firstly, the green-plus-red one I pointed out above.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcuyRFMOu7_x2ZwzyXQvT6D3oDNJROy5ckY39abxQqHjinKrP4DPQHORW8o7fvjQ8krEmN2T5zKaIXimb_jSrKsyCYNEFJmgAclX7Ttdg4fYvbAdzNwrpgHa8VjqMuLhnpnlfgSltHQk-pzY-Ilk3ia0xzUCvGRtB-smm1BzP8xmSAlahfW8UScw/s1198/TRock%202%203-up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="558" data-original-width="1198" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcuyRFMOu7_x2ZwzyXQvT6D3oDNJROy5ckY39abxQqHjinKrP4DPQHORW8o7fvjQ8krEmN2T5zKaIXimb_jSrKsyCYNEFJmgAclX7Ttdg4fYvbAdzNwrpgHa8VjqMuLhnpnlfgSltHQk-pzY-Ilk3ia0xzUCvGRtB-smm1BzP8xmSAlahfW8UScw/w640-h298/TRock%202%203-up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I did my best to take all photos at the same scale. Here we see some interesting things happening. Firstly, of course, the stone is getting smaller. The white mineralized crack is still there, and at the right, white mineralization has begun to appear at the tip of the stone. The deep crack at the opposite end shows that this stone may not be suitable for further rough tumbling. I may need to use epoxy filler. Finally, the green material is seen to be rather thin, and much of it has been abraded away. This is a further indication that I should fill the cracks and proceed to finer grinding and polishing with this stone.</p><p>Secondly, one of the red stones.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh68U6NrFHsJ7crjeYedRWju3TqJBenJn_IBSxLx0snwEeDsI21NPiJFjA6kVH3E0pOWum8HcRqHcyl87wl1i_T4YlZaK1zLXsGlz6yrqzots5VZaPQs-Uy5WpDTZwlHjRybEQH6yLRvrxgZ2RvZU9Vg-5lObimQs_cIcBv33euyJLRx7s_aX9xbw/s1224/TRock%201%203-up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="1224" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh68U6NrFHsJ7crjeYedRWju3TqJBenJn_IBSxLx0snwEeDsI21NPiJFjA6kVH3E0pOWum8HcRqHcyl87wl1i_T4YlZaK1zLXsGlz6yrqzots5VZaPQs-Uy5WpDTZwlHjRybEQH6yLRvrxgZ2RvZU9Vg-5lObimQs_cIcBv33euyJLRx7s_aX9xbw/w640-h230/TRock%201%203-up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>This stone began substantially smaller than the prior one, weighing less than half as much. In the left and middle views, there is a deep gouge, which is almost totally gone in the third view. I'll probably remand this to another round of rough grinding to see if some of the whitish areas can be removed.</p><p>Thirdly, a greenish yellow stone with red striping, quite a small one. It started out as about ten grams.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7-F8Zjr1Nb4hrFE5QgWSFgYcgD4qCv4kyR5Uu-gZ52velzCJeIHz52MNftnJV2KsMPoGC8sF7fmHtYMMi16FJV4qu5k42ypnt9l4fv3aosSw-RnAKCvobjaTh1u4bn-wNEHv1l__vSWUEaPvU7sIzaWd8bNwj_xnC45vnLnN9YwSD6xSX_QVE0Q/s1053/TRock%203%203-up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="473" data-original-width="1053" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7-F8Zjr1Nb4hrFE5QgWSFgYcgD4qCv4kyR5Uu-gZ52velzCJeIHz52MNftnJV2KsMPoGC8sF7fmHtYMMi16FJV4qu5k42ypnt9l4fv3aosSw-RnAKCvobjaTh1u4bn-wNEHv1l__vSWUEaPvU7sIzaWd8bNwj_xnC45vnLnN9YwSD6xSX_QVE0Q/w640-h288/TRock%203%203-up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The smallest stones lose the most proportional mass. This one has lost nearly all of the big gouge, so it is almost ready for finer grinding.</p><p>This batch of stones is presently set aside while I rough grind another batch. I noticed that the two sessions of two weeks' duration resulted in a slurry containing no trace of the coarse grit I started with. The six-day run still had plenty remaining (which I added back in). For the batch that is running now, I'll start with a ten-day run, and adjust run times to just barely use all the grit.</p><p>It will be several weeks before I have more to report. My plan is to do rough grinding on all six pounds of stones, then select which ones to continue with for finer grinding and polishing, or mix-and-match them into two batches for finishing.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-45167947575162472472024-01-01T13:52:00.001-05:002024-01-01T13:52:44.193-05:00Women embracing monsterism<p> kw: book reviews, speculative fiction, fantasy, anthologies, women, stereotypes</p><p>What would you call a woman who stands up for herself? We'd like to think, "hero" (or heroine), "victor", "winner". Isn't is much more likely that she'd be called "harpy", "bitch", "virago", "termagant"…depending on one's vocabulary? Rarely a word with a positive sense.</p><p><a href="https://www.virago.co.uk/">Virago Press</a> began fifty years ago, but I only just learned of their existence. The volume in hand just now is <i>Furies: Stories of the Wicked, Wild, and Untamed</i>, introduced (edited?) by Sandi Toksvig. I find it curious that the subtitle of the book includes the word "wicked". Really? "Wild" and "untamed", great. I'd have preferred those latter two words to be paired with "dynamic" or "intense", or both. Particularly because, while a number of the characters can indeed be wicked, that's not the point.</p><p>A virago is an assertive woman. The word initially had a neutral connotation, but it's used negatively (if at all) these days. Depending upon the dictionary one uses, definitions of "virago" can be quite positive: "A strong, courageous woman"; "A female warrior". But it goes downhill rapidly. The opening sentence of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virago">Wikipedia</a> article on the subject is quite condescending: "A virago is a woman who demonstrates abundant masculine virtues."</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBonWydNGxJy-X0JDgLbblVBI7unrMph91kMAtW0xJw1a1GU3F3az2elzPiimAQF4IOuzeHDt20PyG5Pyc5o41Bcj30tpEFVPRCICZ1wGJPLyqY5n6dARd4C-Zg66UVNK8T6RSFbCrf9NJy8wvhhQ-bT6a6nsdridqFtEiIPd0dvv25WMCQnT0A/s1024/DE3%2020240101%20A%20friendly%20dragon%20and%20a%20griffon%20playing%20cards%20and%20having%20tea,%20digital%20art%20-%20signed.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBonWydNGxJy-X0JDgLbblVBI7unrMph91kMAtW0xJw1a1GU3F3az2elzPiimAQF4IOuzeHDt20PyG5Pyc5o41Bcj30tpEFVPRCICZ1wGJPLyqY5n6dARd4C-Zg66UVNK8T6RSFbCrf9NJy8wvhhQ-bT6a6nsdridqFtEiIPd0dvv25WMCQnT0A/s320/DE3%2020240101%20A%20friendly%20dragon%20and%20a%20griffon%20playing%20cards%20and%20having%20tea,%20digital%20art%20-%20signed.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The opening chapter, "Siren" by Margaret Atwood, consists of an address by that most musical of mavericks to various creatures assembled as the Liminal Beings Knitting Circle. It is at once hilarious and searching. The fourteen chapters that follow are primarily riffs on fourteen culturally negative words for a strong, or untameable, woman: Virago, Churail (from Pakistan), Termagant, Wench, Hussy, Vituperator, Harridan, Warrior, She-Devil, Muckraker, Spitfire, Fury, Tygress, and Dragon.<p></p><p>I'll make only the briefest of comments on a few of them, to avoid spoilers.</p><p>First, as a student of the Bible I am very familiar with the story of Deborah, the judge of Israel and prophet, from <i>Judges </i>4 and 5. "Warrior" by Chubundu Onuzo elaborates on the Biblical account to show how Deborah arose to save Israel when all the male rulers had failed. In the Song of Deborah, the major part of <i>Judges </i>5, she mocks them thus:</p><p></p><blockquote><p>The rulers ceased in Israel, they ceased,<br />Until that I Deborah arose,<br />That I arose a mother in Israel.<br /></p></blockquote><p></p><p>By the way, the term "the Mother of Israel" is used a few times in the chapter. The quote from Deborah's song is the accurate rendition. She is saying she acted as any mother would to protect her children, and as Jael did in her turn, when she lured the Canaanite leader into her tent and assassinated him with a tent peg and a hammer.</p><p>Secondly, "Tygress" by Claire Konda expands a little on the theme "tiger mother". I'm familiar with the concept, from frequent contact with our many Chinese, Japanese and Korean friends. Twin girls that were our son's friends once told him and me that their mother was not satisfied with them receiving all "A" grades. They had to be at the absolute top of the class. My wife remembers her Japanese childhood, taking extra courses after school at a private tutoring organization. Not because her mother had pretensions of her daughter attaining to a higher class, but just because that was expected even at second-class schools.</p><p>And finally, the one story I didn't care for was "She-Devil" by Eleanor Crewes. It's in graphic novel style, much too enigmatic. It tries for Gothic horror and instead achieves banal dread. No question is answered, no conclusion reached.</p><p>Each story, with that one exception, brings a fresh take on an old word. An excellent collection.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-54410768737553056492023-12-29T13:01:00.029-05:002023-12-29T18:00:13.612-05:00Anomalous biography<p> kw: book reviews, nonfiction, science, oceanography, bathysphere, biographies</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtEDHuJMAZfGK8D3snCRFqRIa3JpeId715eGCkOOVzdRZsAdG9eYD8G0i4Df12-9di9Ng9TSrHmQdLH6SP2VcDpk5YNpGkQjT4Ep89QqL87dv7l2L48Sa4wcQKHkkvKyivuMEcbwCHeQ9tdwwlfcqoPbBUNHTGTFRIQs_HuV1r1yOQxx9bghyphenhyphenxGQ/s1561/Bathysphere%20and%20fish%20by%20Else%20Bostelmann.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1344" data-original-width="1561" height="345" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtEDHuJMAZfGK8D3snCRFqRIa3JpeId715eGCkOOVzdRZsAdG9eYD8G0i4Df12-9di9Ng9TSrHmQdLH6SP2VcDpk5YNpGkQjT4Ep89QqL87dv7l2L48Sa4wcQKHkkvKyivuMEcbwCHeQ9tdwwlfcqoPbBUNHTGTFRIQs_HuV1r1yOQxx9bghyphenhyphenxGQ/w400-h345/Bathysphere%20and%20fish%20by%20Else%20Bostelmann.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Naturalist William Beebe (1877, Brooklyn, NY – 1962, Simla, Trinidad) was already a noted scientist when he and Otis Barton made 35 descents using the bathysphere, designed by Barton. Funding was mostly provided by The National Geographic Society.</p><p>The descents were made to increasing depths as Beebe and Barton and the diving crew gained confidence in the equipment. The deepest descent, on August 15, 1934, reached 3,028 ft (923m). The dives were made off Nonsuch island, in Bermuda.</p><p>Had there been another 253 feet of cable on the drum, they could have reached one kilometer, but that probably would not have changed the title Beebe used for his book about these experiences, <i>Half Mile Down</i> (Published Dec. 1934). The final descent with Beebe in the bathysphere was on August 27, 1934.</p><p>None of the items above, except for the Nonsuch Island location, is found in <i>The Bathysphere Book: Effects of the Luminous Ocean Depths</i> by Brad Fox. It is a biography of the bathysphere itself, not of Dr. Beebe. However, much of the material is derived from Beebe's writings, so naturally he is at the forefront. The painting above is by Else Bostelmann, who painted many of the species Beebe described over the telephone installed in the bathysphere, recorded topside by Gloria Hollister.</p><p>One matter Beebe studied was the increasing blueness of the light reaching the bathysphere as it descended. He carried a spectroscope and colored sheets. In early dives there was still a trace of light from above, of an intense blue color that Beebe despaired of describing. Below 1,000 feet or so, however, Beebe would sometimes be heard (by Hollister) muttering, "Black, black, black". He and Bardon would turn the searchlight off for periods of time, and back on again to see what creatures were present. Many of the animals of the deep are luminescent; what appears as a row of blue dots in the dark sea would be seen, with the light on, as a fish such as those shown in the painting. Not all creatures were so clearly seen; several times something large, barely visible as blackness against the black deeps, kept its distance.</p><p>The author makes much—more than he should have, in my opinion—of the love affair between Beebe and Hollister in the 1930-34 period, and a later, longer-term affair with Jocelyn Crane. I find it sadly interesting that so many modern writers, supposed heirs of the sexual revolution my generation brought about, are galvanized by supposed misdeeds, when the desired result of the SR was that we all would say, "Who cares?"</p><p>After the last dive, the bathysphere was displayed in a few places, including at the 1939 World's Fair, and used by the U.S. Navy to study the effects of underwater explosions. Now it resides at the New York Aquarium at Coney Island.</p><p>I read <i>Half Mile Down</i> in the late 1950's, one of many books of popular science that cemented my desire to be a scientist. As I recall, it was in 1958 or '59 that my father and I built a small telescope, which I still use.</p><p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtG3VpL_gsepDfDRe6iqJntmY-zEf5fCmfxLYYULTd0jW9Hu_zSehy7YpEuDmoFCTNlW6fPLNzi4Apxpa-UrJlrIt6IMJrsPg2KgkCorSRuUbX2aBjOuV5LHoFlAjshRBn_da2DxnUNCaryCxCdYwEHrkWQRXbHB3iJuOZbjuN_J__V2XoQU1W-A/s986/img20231229_11111501.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="986" data-original-width="670" height="541" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtG3VpL_gsepDfDRe6iqJntmY-zEf5fCmfxLYYULTd0jW9Hu_zSehy7YpEuDmoFCTNlW6fPLNzi4Apxpa-UrJlrIt6IMJrsPg2KgkCorSRuUbX2aBjOuV5LHoFlAjshRBn_da2DxnUNCaryCxCdYwEHrkWQRXbHB3iJuOZbjuN_J__V2XoQU1W-A/w367-h541/img20231229_11111501.jpg" width="367" /></a></i></div><i>The Bathysphere Book</i> has a unique style, similar in concept to the "mosaic memoir" I have been writing about my own life, but my work is much better "glued" together. Each of the fifteen chapters is composed of vignettes ranging from one or two sentences to at most three pages, accompanied by illustrations, many of which are paintings by Else Bostelmann. <p></p><p>Other painters include George Swanson, who spent about a year on Nonsuch Island. He apparently had plenty of time on his hands, as this list indicates. I find some of these items utterly mystifying; how can a sane person not only do that, but write about it?</p><p>Quite a number of the 2- to 3-page vignettes are mini-biographies of seemingly random persons. It takes some care to discern their connection with Dr. Beebe or others in the text.</p><p>One later item describes the dive by Jacques Picard and Don Walsh in 1960 to the 7-mile-deep Marianas Trench in the first bathyscaphe. Alfred Wegener's early theory of continental drift had been discussed just before it. But then the text states that samples collected at the Marianas Trench included recently-erupted new crust from the central valley, supporting Wegener's theory. This is clearly a blunder: the bathyscaphe did not collect samples. The samples of nearly fresh lava, collected by a different submersible, were from the central trench of the Mid-Ocean Ridge, hundreds of miles away in much shallower waters (but still a couple of miles deep). They did indeed support sea-floor spreading, a key part of Wegener's theory.</p><p>In spite of the very choppy nature of the book, it is mostly quite enjoyable to read. However, I would recommend a first reading of <i>Half Mile Down</i>, which is still available in reprint.</p>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13394518.post-85070683085489314362023-12-25T16:21:00.001-05:002023-12-25T16:21:18.176-05:00A big SciFi compendium<p> kw: book reviews, science fiction, anthologies, short stories</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoqilVSbchyphenhyphenxlgAPpi9aXwi4I0Wx0YHtm2FCOherLvHFnppamxC8d1pQlL-DDRMlbrP32xaLr0UAONPww0fyl3_Tl5IQu2TyWjOQn567a93Qr_0JFjjnmxLlttnfIiMUUNzARpxOErpjMZ63veolDNaCN49iQDyEfPo_nNCzQHjRynz6o8yOTY-Q/s1024/DE3%2020231223-01%20A%20laboratory%20with%20microscopes,%20glassware,%20posters,%20lab%20benches,%20and%20robot%20assistants.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoqilVSbchyphenhyphenxlgAPpi9aXwi4I0Wx0YHtm2FCOherLvHFnppamxC8d1pQlL-DDRMlbrP32xaLr0UAONPww0fyl3_Tl5IQu2TyWjOQn567a93Qr_0JFjjnmxLlttnfIiMUUNzARpxOErpjMZ63veolDNaCN49iQDyEfPo_nNCzQHjRynz6o8yOTY-Q/s320/DE3%2020231223-01%20A%20laboratory%20with%20microscopes,%20glassware,%20posters,%20lab%20benches,%20and%20robot%20assistants.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Androids and AI's and Bots, Oh My! It isn't hard to figure what is on people's minds: just look at what is popular in science fiction.<p></p><p>I see that it has been two weeks since I posted. The current volume contains 31 stories, many of which reward close reading: <i>The Best Science Fiction of the Year, Volume 7 (2022-2023)</i>, edited by Neil Clarke. It has been an enjoyable fortnight.</p><p>Unlike any other volume of SciFi stories in recent years, this time there were no stories that I actively disliked. I awarded at least one "+" to all but three, and to those I gave a "~", for "ordinary, but not bad." The majority received "++", meaning, "I'm glad I read it", and three of them I marked "+++", for "good and full of great ideas".</p><p>Had I had time for more than reading these past two weeks I'd have reviewed a few stories at a time, daily. As it is, what I have time for is to touch on the three "+++" stories, and leave you with this chart of my notes:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfnoU4M9zelzBlPCRN7OghkqT1aNdasarSvMjIn5-4C0J_sP_dyyeE3X4dyxu3OC7IJe2GNS6zwatfqQd3aOZR8Lasr7rTE_-mabu0VM0JblcteF7V92VKWPCI10PHcpwzH-TC5IjXGFCnEyiFjJIqYEhJ_btTNm4rczBZt2Baau8XvlazH6nzYQ/s1540/SciFi2023%20ToC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1093" data-original-width="1540" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfnoU4M9zelzBlPCRN7OghkqT1aNdasarSvMjIn5-4C0J_sP_dyyeE3X4dyxu3OC7IJe2GNS6zwatfqQd3aOZR8Lasr7rTE_-mabu0VM0JblcteF7V92VKWPCI10PHcpwzH-TC5IjXGFCnEyiFjJIqYEhJ_btTNm4rczBZt2Baau8XvlazH6nzYQ/w640-h454/SciFi2023%20ToC.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>As I finished each story I wrote a one-line impression on a copy of the table of contents. Now, on to the stories I liked best:<div><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>"Aptitude" by Cooper Shrivastava – My one-liner is, "Interviewing to be a god—Parable of Gödel's Incompleteness". The woman being tested is one of the last humans, the last denizens of our universe, among a "room" full of singular persons—they appear mostly human to her—who are presumably from other universes. The interview candidates are each tasked to build a model universe, on a much-too-short timeline. Without giving away too much, let us just say that she and another interviewee collaborate to sidestep the process, using recursion to break the system.</li><li>"Jaunt" by Ken Liu – Here I have, "Telepresence robots!! Reaction – Counterreaction". Imagine a very capable, roughly hobbit-sized, robot on a farm in Myanmar through which you can experience much of what it is like to work on that farm. Further, imagine hosting such a robot as it shadows you and your work or leisure activity, conversing with you as though the person "riding" the robot were actually with you. Of course, governments will want to either get involved or control such activities. Imagine the dollars lost by traditional tourism companies! Naturally, an encrypted system is developed to get around the totalitarian restrictions. It resembles TOR, the first incarnation of a hidden Internet.</li><li>"Bots of the Lost Ark" by Suzanne Palmer – I wrote, "AI vs AI – Artificial Initiative almost as good as the real thing". Like in many of the stories, here Bots are small, ranging down to barely visible, and exist in huge numbers. They can conglomerate to perform more complex functions, even carrying out a human's duties; the word "glom" is coopted for such groupings. But these bots and gloms get a mind of their own, and the superintelligent Ship needs all the help it can get from a small number of more loyal bots to regain control of mutinous gloms.</li></ul><p></p><p>I note that a recurring theme is subversive activity. It runs throughout this anthology; not in all the stories, but a majority. It makes sense from a societal perspective: those who still trust Government are seen as threatening to a majority who have lost that trust. The feeling is mutual. So, modern "saviors" and "heroes" are those who get the better of the powerful persons and organizations that are seen as dominating our lives, or attempting to do so (Does anybody want to know why Mark Zuckerberg is building a house the size of a football field in the middle of a 4,000-acre self-sufficient farm in Hawaii?).</p><p>Get this book, read the stories, write your own one-line summaries. You'll be the better for it.</p></div>Polymath07http://www.blogger.com/profile/18412740018402454865noreply@blogger.com0