Ilya Farber
@nihilfit.bsky.social
Cognitive scientist @ A*STAR IHPC; erstwhile philosopher; infrequent poster, but damn, look at that signal/noise ratio!
Reposted by Ilya Farber
「白馬と黒馬」
左は白い馬、右は黒い馬に見えるが、画像の輝度は同じである。
“White Horse and Black Horse”
The left side appears to feature a white horse, while the right side displays a black horse; however, the horses are the same luminance.
左は白い馬、右は黒い馬に見えるが、画像の輝度は同じである。
“White Horse and Black Horse”
The left side appears to feature a white horse, while the right side displays a black horse; however, the horses are the same luminance.
December 28, 2025 at 5:05 AM
「白馬と黒馬」
左は白い馬、右は黒い馬に見えるが、画像の輝度は同じである。
“White Horse and Black Horse”
The left side appears to feature a white horse, while the right side displays a black horse; however, the horses are the same luminance.
左は白い馬、右は黒い馬に見えるが、画像の輝度は同じである。
“White Horse and Black Horse”
The left side appears to feature a white horse, while the right side displays a black horse; however, the horses are the same luminance.
Reposted by Ilya Farber
dark gritty santapunk world where the Great Powers of Europe both mandate celebration of Christmas and encourage their subjects to be as naughty as possible to preserve unlimited access to coal and continued industrialization.
December 25, 2025 at 6:51 PM
dark gritty santapunk world where the Great Powers of Europe both mandate celebration of Christmas and encourage their subjects to be as naughty as possible to preserve unlimited access to coal and continued industrialization.
I’ve long thought that Scrofula would make a great name for a pet. It sounds so cute and fluffy!
Top ten names that would make a decent baby name if it wasn’t already the name of a medical condition or medication…
10. Amnesia
9. Rubella
8. Codeine
7. Malaria
6. Paxil
5. Alopecia
4. Bonjela
3. Aphasia
2. Typhus
1. Chlamydia
10. Amnesia
9. Rubella
8. Codeine
7. Malaria
6. Paxil
5. Alopecia
4. Bonjela
3. Aphasia
2. Typhus
1. Chlamydia
December 24, 2025 at 11:55 AM
I’ve long thought that Scrofula would make a great name for a pet. It sounds so cute and fluffy!
This is a great slow burn of a piece.
Were classical statues painted horribly?
buff.ly/fS78ULM
It is often suggested that modern viewers dislike painted reconstructions of Greek and Roman statues because our taste differs from that of the ancients. This essay proposes an alternative explanation.
buff.ly/fS78ULM
It is often suggested that modern viewers dislike painted reconstructions of Greek and Roman statues because our taste differs from that of the ancients. This essay proposes an alternative explanation.
Were classical statues painted horribly? - Works in Progress Magazine
Many claim that modern viewers dislike painted reconstructions of Greek and Roman statues because our taste differs from theirs.
buff.ly
December 20, 2025 at 7:00 PM
This is a great slow burn of a piece.
Reposted by Ilya Farber
Gauntlet but Alan Watts is the voice of the Dungeon Master: “Red Warrior is about to die. But is not death one of the great events of life? Try to imagine what it will be like to go to sleep and never wake up… now try to imagine what it was like to wake up having never gone to s—Elf shot the food."
December 19, 2025 at 2:52 AM
Gauntlet but Alan Watts is the voice of the Dungeon Master: “Red Warrior is about to die. But is not death one of the great events of life? Try to imagine what it will be like to go to sleep and never wake up… now try to imagine what it was like to wake up having never gone to s—Elf shot the food."
Reposted by Ilya Farber
Space news is the best. Like, what do you mean there's a runaway supermassive black hole 10 million times bigger than the sun moving through space at 2 million miles per hour www.space.com/astronomy/bl...
James Webb Space Telescope confirms 1st 'runaway' supermassive black hole rocketing through 'Cosmic Owl' galaxies at 2.2 million mph: 'It boggles the mind!'
"The forces that are needed to dislodge such a massive black hole from its home are enormous."
www.space.com
December 19, 2025 at 4:40 AM
Space news is the best. Like, what do you mean there's a runaway supermassive black hole 10 million times bigger than the sun moving through space at 2 million miles per hour www.space.com/astronomy/bl...
In that third pic Epstein appears to have EIGHT pairs of glasses within arm’s reach, including two ornate trays holding three pairs each. Is this a They Live scenario? How do these people get so weird?!
🚨 BREAKING: Oversight Dems received 95,000 new photos from Jeffrey Epstein's estate. These disturbing images raise even more questions about Epstein and his relationships with some of the most powerful men in the world.
Time to end this White House cover-up. Release the files!
Time to end this White House cover-up. Release the files!
December 15, 2025 at 8:29 AM
In that third pic Epstein appears to have EIGHT pairs of glasses within arm’s reach, including two ornate trays holding three pairs each. Is this a They Live scenario? How do these people get so weird?!
It’s funny how reliably you can tell where someone grew up by (1) the shape of their campaign’s main continent and (2) where the main cluster of named towns is located.
December 15, 2025 at 2:27 AM
It’s funny how reliably you can tell where someone grew up by (1) the shape of their campaign’s main continent and (2) where the main cluster of named towns is located.
Nothing will ever beat the science center where we saw a display on the Smart Toilet of the Future … and the demo toilet had BSOD’d. An inadvertently valuable lesson!
Take your kids to the science museum where they can learn about plasma balls and touch screens with JavaScript errors on them.
December 13, 2025 at 4:42 AM
Nothing will ever beat the science center where we saw a display on the Smart Toilet of the Future … and the demo toilet had BSOD’d. An inadvertently valuable lesson!
Reposted by Ilya Farber
i asked chat gpt to fact check an article for me
December 8, 2025 at 9:33 PM
i asked chat gpt to fact check an article for me
Reposted by Ilya Farber
Did not expect a capybara explaining brexit to be so affecting
December 4, 2025 at 5:35 PM
Did not expect a capybara explaining brexit to be so affecting
Reposted by Ilya Farber
Grateful to The Verge for publishing my essay on why large-language models are not going to achieve general intelligence nor push the scientific frontier.
www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Is language the same as intelligence? The AI industry desperately needs it to be
The AI boom is based on a fundamental mistake.
www.theverge.com
November 25, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Grateful to The Verge for publishing my essay on why large-language models are not going to achieve general intelligence nor push the scientific frontier.
www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Narratively perfect. It also has me mentally compiling a list of other organizations whose election mishaps could be predictably comical.
November 22, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Narratively perfect. It also has me mentally compiling a list of other organizations whose election mishaps could be predictably comical.
Reposted by Ilya Farber
Truly smart devices would choose not to connect to the internet.
November 18, 2025 at 7:54 AM
Truly smart devices would choose not to connect to the internet.
Reposted by Ilya Farber
these charts show the relationship between zip code-level average income and individual probability of voting for democrats in different regions of the country. one of my favorite group fo charts, lots of stories to unearth
November 2, 2025 at 9:36 PM
these charts show the relationship between zip code-level average income and individual probability of voting for democrats in different regions of the country. one of my favorite group fo charts, lots of stories to unearth
Reposted by Ilya Farber
Been reading "What is Innateness?" by Paul Griffiths (2002) philpapers.org/rec/EGRWII in which he offers this very sound advice:
November 2, 2025 at 12:29 PM
Been reading "What is Innateness?" by Paul Griffiths (2002) philpapers.org/rec/EGRWII in which he offers this very sound advice:
I instinctively respect anyone who has 1) a good natural smile and 2) a range of other smiles they can deploy that are plausibly polite yet unmistakably *not* smile #1.
Zero interest in popes generally, but certain kinds of skill say a lot about the mind behind them, and so far I’m impressed.
Zero interest in popes generally, but certain kinds of skill say a lot about the mind behind them, and so far I’m impressed.
That smile says "people are going to be giving me, the Vicar of Christ, sports jerseys for the rest of my time on earth, and that is not a problem I thought I would have in my papacy."
This is a real: Pope Leo XIV was gifted a Buffalo Bills jersey.
The Diocese of Buffalo said Bishop Fisher met with the Pope on Monday to discuss the ongoing bankruptcy filing, among other issues.
Pope Leo was said to have "expressed his gratitude for this symbol of hometown pride." #billsmafia
The Diocese of Buffalo said Bishop Fisher met with the Pope on Monday to discuss the ongoing bankruptcy filing, among other issues.
Pope Leo was said to have "expressed his gratitude for this symbol of hometown pride." #billsmafia
October 30, 2025 at 1:02 PM
I instinctively respect anyone who has 1) a good natural smile and 2) a range of other smiles they can deploy that are plausibly polite yet unmistakably *not* smile #1.
Zero interest in popes generally, but certain kinds of skill say a lot about the mind behind them, and so far I’m impressed.
Zero interest in popes generally, but certain kinds of skill say a lot about the mind behind them, and so far I’m impressed.
OK done with meetings! Gonna take a nap
October 27, 2025 at 8:03 PM
OK done with meetings! Gonna take a nap
<creaking and bubbling sounds fill the darkened woods as my undead legions hasten to fill their quivers with fluoride-tipped arrows>
'Fluoride Disconnects One from God': Inside the Weekly Call With RFK Jr.'s MAHA Hype Squad
A growing weekly call gives insight into RFK Jr.'s biggest allies, showcasing how a fringe movement now holds legitimate power.
www.notus.org
October 15, 2025 at 1:02 PM
<creaking and bubbling sounds fill the darkened woods as my undead legions hasten to fill their quivers with fluoride-tipped arrows>
I’ve always wanted to do an eye-tracking study of academic/literary very-fast readers. My strong impression is that our eyes flick around the page (including back/up) in a way that would look insane if plotted against the linear text.
yeah I am a freakishly fast reader but what I do doesn't seem to bear any resemblance to speed reading as it is commonly taught.
October 13, 2025 at 7:11 PM
I’ve always wanted to do an eye-tracking study of academic/literary very-fast readers. My strong impression is that our eyes flick around the page (including back/up) in a way that would look insane if plotted against the linear text.
Reposted by Ilya Farber
BBC Model Linear B
October 11, 2025 at 12:36 PM
BBC Model Linear B
Reposted by Ilya Farber
I watched this right before falling asleep, and wound up in an extended hypnagogic reverie about CONCEPTUALLY PALINDROMIC MEMES,* which are apparently a fitting thing to post on Michaelmas.
... so uh, thanks for that, @misterabk.bsky.social ?
... so uh, thanks for that, @misterabk.bsky.social ?
It's that time of year again. Happy Michaelmas to all who celebrate.
youtu.be/WDXLxpQdIUQ
youtu.be/WDXLxpQdIUQ
The Nightmare Before Michaelmas
YouTube video by Alasdair Beckett-King
youtu.be
September 29, 2025 at 4:34 PM
I watched this right before falling asleep, and wound up in an extended hypnagogic reverie about CONCEPTUALLY PALINDROMIC MEMES,* which are apparently a fitting thing to post on Michaelmas.
... so uh, thanks for that, @misterabk.bsky.social ?
... so uh, thanks for that, @misterabk.bsky.social ?
@gelliottmorris.com with the best explanation I've seen for the puzzling tendency of big legacy media outlets to keep boosting and sanewashing the party that hates them.
It's a cousin to the usual "owners are Republicans" and "can't quit bothesidesing" theories, but more grounded and plausible:
It's a cousin to the usual "owners are Republicans" and "can't quit bothesidesing" theories, but more grounded and plausible:
September 26, 2025 at 10:37 PM
@gelliottmorris.com with the best explanation I've seen for the puzzling tendency of big legacy media outlets to keep boosting and sanewashing the party that hates them.
It's a cousin to the usual "owners are Republicans" and "can't quit bothesidesing" theories, but more grounded and plausible:
It's a cousin to the usual "owners are Republicans" and "can't quit bothesidesing" theories, but more grounded and plausible:
Reposted by Ilya Farber
Extremely obvious level design in Shoreditch. It's a side quest, we get it.
September 3, 2025 at 9:30 AM
Extremely obvious level design in Shoreditch. It's a side quest, we get it.