Thursday, December 18, 2008

Evolving Ambiguous Digits


The above image represents my final Machine Learning project, Evolving Ambiguous Digits. I have just finished writing it now.

Yeah! First semester of Master's finished!

More details are to come (I will likely make a project page). But the above is the output of a neural network as represented by a Restricted Boltzmann Machine, when it is prodded in the direction of different digits. The top row is how the digit evolves if you poke the 'zero' neuron (think of it as poking the 'burnt toast' neuron) and each row down represents the next digit. Poking five works pretty well since it is a five already.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Blog Entry Ideas

I keep a bunch of text files on my cellphone that contain random ideas I get while on the go, categorized such as 'Books I want to write', 'Funny ideas', 'Directives', 'Improv Ideas', 'To read/watch/play'. One of these files is 'Blog entry ideas', a collection of stuff I wanted to write or rant about but haven't yet. Well, I've had it for a year now, and still haven't written these posts. Possibly because I could never come up with a coherent way to express what I meant, I was too lazy, or I forgot what the hell I was talking about. Instead, let's do it the easy way and let your imagination fill in the blanks. This way, I don't have to write something, and you can imagine exactly what you would want to read about. Except where I've noted, these are completely unedited:


Academia vs industry: you always maximize stockholder value. In aca, that's you! But, you're hired on the presumption that stockholder value corelates [sic] highly with personal value.

An argument against knives

I've been going at it wrong. What is expressable [sic] through mime is viewable by the power of imagination and anything that tries to recreate that will destroy that effect.

Blog name: follow these instructions

Observation: movies like tropic thunder, kiss kiss bang bang and adaptation mock the film conventions of Hollywood initially, but then use all of them very effectively in their final acts. Is this out of homage, or mockery? Is it true that these ridiculous things are, inevitably, the most effective way to tell stories on the large screen? As an audience, are we so entrenched in film language that we can't expect otherwise?

The honour of the grind. Granddad Rahnasto [on my mom's side] once built the foundation of a house by himself. Conversation I had with a guy after the play copenhagen.

Dumb thoughts on clean hydrogen fuel. Where does it come from? Clean?

Numbing in the transfer from actor to audience.

On my approach to objectivity and art, specifically by script-reading. Why do I seek to be objective? Does it matter?

The implicit nature of geometrical shapes

Difference in interactive media between part of the 'plot' and something it is possible for the player to do. Who is responsible for their actions, ie drink driving in GTA or spousal abuse in fable.

Catch 22s and strange loops in godel's incompleteness theorem.

On genuineness and science. On the sliding scale of carefulness whenit comes to truth, where should you be? Not admitting a chance of failure. 'Religious' thinking.

User responsibility:
My viewpoint on things that can be "addictive", such as videogames and drugs, and the roles/responsibilities of users and designers. how my viewpoint has changed recently with my awareness of HCI. Acting like a baby as a user. Also applies to pieces of art that need to be understood. Eg. The knife in "no exit" - the audience is expected to notice it.

Coping with tunnel vision - epiphanies are important

Rationalizing decision time. Monetary. The value of my time and reducing stress