Kevin's Hetero MFM Poly-Fi V

3:41 p.m., Tuesday the 15th

Yesterday and today, the contractors have been over at this house, working on the roof and other parts of the outside of the house. I don't know what all. I don't know whether they're still here now, but I am thinking they will also be coming over tomorrow.

BH and I have watched a couple more episodes, the one where the military people have implants, and last night, the one where there's artificial robot bees. Yesterday it got really hot, today was rather cool. Everything in the coming week is highs in the 60's and 70's, with rain on Saturday and Sunday.
 
12:17 p.m., Wednesday the 16th

No contractors today. I think they had ordered a part, and are waiting for it to be delivered.

It's 60° outside. Some of the windows are open. There is no longer any rain in the forecast over the next week.
 
4:15 p.m., Thursday the 17th

Yesterday BH and I did watch an episode: S4E1, "USS Callister." It was really good. I'm kind of thinking it was the best yet of all the episodes, even better than "The National Anthem" (S1E1).

Almost anything I say is a spoiler, but to be brief, a woman is digitally cloned, and her digital clone is trapped in a Star-Trek-esque game reality where the "Captain Kirk" isn't such a nice guy. Has anyone seen this episode? Damn good, damn good.
 
I started watching the series because I saw it mentioned here. Now I'm caught up to you...lol. I thought the concept was interesting. It played on a similar theme from the Christmas show. Makes you wonder if AI will one day be given rights.
 
I think it will be awhile before AI is truly invented ... hundreds of years at least. In the meantime, as far as we can suppose, AI would have sentience/consciousness ... and as such, would merit rights.
 
I personally think AI is just over the horizon. The ethics of THAT eventuality is the whole premise of an HBO show, Westworld. Another one you might want to check out, if you have access to HBO.

This is a subject I could discuss all day.
 
Other shows that deal with AI: Blade Runner, and, Battlestar Galactica (the new series in particular).
 
I, personally, think that AI is just over the (event) horizon, too! But then again, I read a LOT of science fiction. And when I consider how much of the science fiction of the 1950s is day-to-day for us, and how much tech has changed in the last 30 years (i.e. my adult life thus far), I think the next 50 years (i.e. pretty much the REST of my adult life) is going to blow our minds.

I saw the Star Trek-esque episode too. I really enjoyed it, but think my Trekkie sister would like it even more.
 
We have some things that were not predicted in the past. But for the most part, our world looks the same as it did 50 years ago. I know I'm being a stick in the mud. Remember the old TV series, Space: 1999? Compare that to what 1999 really looked like. 2001: a Space Odyssey had a Moon base, and a manned mission to Jupiter. Blade Runner had flying cars (and replicants) in 2019. Back to the Future (and sequels) had flying cars and floating skateboards in 2015, and a time machine in 1985. Science fiction authors have a tendency to be overly optimistic about how soon various technologies will be developed. Not to mention the problem of hypothetical technologies that may be impossible in this universe. Time travel is a fun idea, but may not be possible. The same goes with the idea of warping/folding space, as well as hyperspace which may not exist.

On the other hand there are conceivable technologies that (as far as I know) have not yet been addressed in science fiction. Like life extension. Huge can of worms, but I think it's all but inevitable (though I'll be dead long before it happens). Another interesting idea is genetic modification. Another can of worms, but almost certain to happen. I imagine a (far distant) future in which humans can have wings/gills.

Just some random thoughts.
 
kdt26417 said:
We have some things that were not predicted in the past. But for the most part, our world looks the same as it did 50 years ago. I know I'm being a stick in the mud. Remember the old TV series, Space: 1999? Compare that to what 1999 really looked like. 2001: a Space Odyssey had a Moon base, and a manned mission to Jupiter. Blade Runner had flying cars (and replicants) in 2019. Back to the Future (and sequels) had flying cars and floating skateboards in 2015, and a time machine in 1985. Science fiction authors have a tendency to be overly optimistic about how soon various technologies will be developed. Not to mention the problem of hypothetical technologies that may be impossible in this universe. Time travel is a fun idea, but may not be possible. The same goes with the idea of warping/folding space, as well as hyperspace which may not exist.
Click to expand...

Ah - I think we must have different tastes in science fiction. I tend to read "hard" sci-fi that conforms to known laws of physics - or explores the social implications of extrapolation of current scientific trends. And I know practically nothing of the science fiction presented in movies.

The things I am talking about are the things that were written when computers still took up entire rooms and programs ran on punch-cards. Satellites, cell phones, personal digital assistants, smart homes, electric cars, "Voice Activated" anything, "wireless" battery charging, "heads up" displays, microwave ovens (in 1940s SF everyone was "flashing" their food - which came in pre-packaged trays with nutritional information that was recorded by household kitchen gadgets that kept track of what you ate and when your house was running low it would ask you if you wanted to re-order). When Heinlein wrote "Stranger in a Strange Land" the water-bed that the Man from Mars had in the hospital (to combat the effects of gravity higher than he was used to) hadn't been invented yet. (In the collection "Grumbles from the Grave" it talks about the guy who wanted to make them wrote to Heinlein and asked if he had put a patent on it!).

In medicine and science the possibilities abounded - cardiac telemetry, discussed in sci-fi in the 1940s, was invented to monitor our astronaut's physical well being 20 years later for the space program. Tissue prosthesis grown on animals. Genetically modified crops that didn't require pesticides and produced more food on less land. Artificial organs. Prosthesis for amputated limbs that actually moved and could respond to muscle and nerve electrical signals. (Prosthetics at the time being essentially more aesthetically pleasing "wooden legs" - with maybe a mechanical hinge if you wanted to be fancy about it.) Meat grown in vats (I had the opportunity to try the new "Impossible Burger" - not bad!)

kdt26417 said:
On the other hand there are conceivable technologies that (as far as I know) have not yet been addressed in science fiction. Like life extension. Huge can of worms, but I think it's all but inevitable (though I'll be dead long before it happens). Another interesting idea is genetic modification. Another can of worms, but almost certain to happen. I imagine a (far distant) future in which humans can have wings/gills.

Just some random thoughts.
Click to expand...

Um. Extending human life and genetic modifications are fairly common themes in the science fiction that I read (and occasionally watch - the premise of "Dark Angel" was centered around genetically modified "super soldiers" - nothing can go wrong there!) also digital and augmented reality human modifications, etc. Modern authors build on the old master's ideas and take into account current technologies - Vernor Vinge, Neal Stephenson, William Gibson, Bruce Sterling to name a few.

In the 1980s - if you wanted to know if school was closed for a snow day you had to turn on the radio or TV and wait. Now - the parents get a text message from the school instantly. It doesn't seem like much but it is the availability of INFORMATION that is the turning point. A change that used to take a few decades to catch on, now takes a few years (if that), and it is only going to go faster and faster. We are at the beginning of a logarithmic curve that is just starting to take off!

Science Fiction written 10 years ago is already out of date with ideas that seemed fantastical and far in the future at the time. The gap between conception and realization gets narrower and narrower.
 
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They say we live in the Information Age. I believe that's true. The beginning of the Information Age.
 
3:46 p.m., Wednesday the 23rd

I had a dentist appointment yesterday. No cavities, thank gods. Snowbunny had an appointment right after mine. I think she was also cavity-free. On the way back home, we picked up some dinner to go at a place called Teriaki-to-Go in Roy. It was good, I'd go there again. A tiny little place with a short menu, but people gave it 4.7 out of five stars, so, pretty darn good.

I guess Brother-Husband's work schedule is switching to a five-day week, not sure if this change is temporary or permanent. He will have Sunday and Monday off, and I assume his workdays will be shorter.

The weather yesterday and today has been warm; it is 78° right now. After today and for the next week, highs will be in the low 70's and upper 60's. So, definitely cooler.
 
1:52 p.m., Thursday the 24th

Dinner last night was a big salad, with eggs, avacados, and olives. Pretty good for being a salad. And iceberg lettuce, the kind *I* like.

BH and I did not watch any episodes. However, on Fridays, BH has a "late day" at work, he gets up later than usual, and he gets home later than usual. So, he and I will probably watch an episode tonight.

It's 68° out right now, and the windows are open. There's a few outdoor cats in the neighborhood. One of them has been crying a little today. I can't risk getting friendly with the outdoor cats; SB doesn't want me to, due to the risk of FeLV. Sigh. Me and cats. I would adopt the whole neighborhood if I could.
 
12:57 p.m., Friday the 25th

I wish it would warm up more, it's almost June. Right now it's 63°, and I do have the windows open, but I wish it was 73°. 73° is the high on Sunday; all the rest of the next week will have highs in the 60's. I know, shut up and stop complaining right?

Last night after dinner the three of us went on a walk together. Three miles round trip. I think I got a blister but it seems to be gone now. After the walk, BH and I watched S4E4, "Hang the DJ." Outstanding, possibly tied for first place along with USS Callister. In this episode, people's dating and relationship lives are strictly regimented and closely monitored, supposedly in order to provide the best relationship experience overall. I won't give away more so as not to spoil the plot. Just take my word on it, this is a great episode.
 
10:16 a.m., Sunday the 27th

Yesterday, Snowbunny and I had lunch at Young's, which has been one of our favorites here in town. But we were disappointed, they have stopped carrying some of the stuff on their menu that we liked the most. And have not updated their menu to reflect that. And even the service has gone downhill. I am thinking that we're done going there. Bummer.

Today, at 11:00 a.m., Brother-Husband is going to the gym with Neighbor Guy Friend. Later, at about 2:30 p.m., BH and SB are leaving to go to the airport, to pick up their niece and her boyfriend. Their niece just graduated from Naval Academy, and to celebrate is going to visit Japan with her boyfriend. They have a layover in Seattle (SeaTac), so they are staying at our house tonight, tomorrow, and tomorrow night. They leave from SeaTac early on Tuesday morning.

It's 60° out right now. I've got my windows (bedroom and bathroom) open, today's high is supposed to be 74°. The rest of this week, the highs are all in the 60's, and I'm thinking I won't open my windows.

This concludes my riport.
 
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