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brightowldarkpigeon · 10 months ago

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Power_of_Anime_Girl_23’s fic Ministry’s Law - presented as part of the @heartsandcauldrons Gift Exchange 2023 - was written using AI.

This post will consist of two parts: 1) the evidence that supports this accusation. And 2) my thoughts on the matter.

I. THE EVIDENCE

I understand that Power’s style is unique, and it can be difficult to perceive the difference between her works and ones written by AI. The key difference is that her other fics rely on the storytelling standard of scenes whereas her AI fic relies on summary.

I debated using multiple methods to prove that Ministry’s Law was written with AI. However, after exhaustive research, it is clear that the best AI detector is Copyleaks. Not only has it been shown to be the most accurate AI detector, it was the only AI detector that was able to accurately detect AI-generated text that had been modified by humans. A cursory google search and the “computer science PhD” who the mods of H&C allegedly consulted both cast aspersions on AI-detection software. It's ’s important to note, however, that this is extremely new technology, which is changing every day. Unless someone is actively studying not just AI, but Large Language Models specifically, it is unlikely that they will have up-to-the-minute knowledge on what is and is not possible with AI-detection software. The research that I was able to do in the past two months points to the fact that at the current moment, as long as the text provided is longer than 1000 words, Copyleaks is astoundingly accurate at detecting AI.

(I also believe that Power’s fics We Found a Family During the Darkest of Days and Loving Dance in the Rain, which were the two fics she published immediately preceding Ministry’s Law, were also partially generated by AI. I think it makes sense that Power started with using a bit of AI and was empowered to use more for her next two fics, which were both published on a deadline. When she was called out, she returned immediately to original writing with her subsequent fic Meet Me By the Waves. I have included the copyleaks reports of all of those fics in my google drive folder, but will not be including them in this analysis because one shows only about 20% AI-content and the other is less than 1000 words. I encourage you to look and judge for yourself.)

First, let’s compare a sample. One fic written by me using my pseud DarkPigeon, and another with the same prompt, written by ChatGPT.

Clicked by DarkPigeon - Copyleaks Detects 0% AI

Between the Shelves by ChatGPT - Copyleaks Detects 100% AI

Now let’s take a look at three of Power_of_Anime_Girl_23’s fics:

October 20, 2023 - Family Protect Their Own by Power_of_Anime_Girl_23 - Copyleaks Detects 0% AI

December 15, 2023 - Ministry’s Law “by” Power_Of_Anime_Girl_23 - Copyleaks Detects 97.8% AI

December 31, 2023 - Meet Me by the Waves by Power_Of_Anime_Girl_23 - Copyleaks Detects 0% AI

So, that’s that. Feel free to peruse this Google Drive folder if you have more questions or interest in the matter. (Within the folder, there are folders containing Copyleaks Studies which are the published reports on the accuracy of Copyleaks as an AI-detection tool, and Copyleaks Reports, which are AI-analyses of 5 of Power_of_Anime_Girl_23’s fics, one of mine, and one written by ChatGPT).

II. MY THOUGHTS

I do not expect a response to this from either Power_of_Anime_Girl_23 or the H&C mods. They were made very aware of all of this in private and “unanimously” decided to deny it.

I left Hearts and Cauldrons because I felt that the mods were lacking integrity, and I do not feel the need to argue about this any further. But I’m tired of the culture of obfuscation and anonymity that enshrouds this fandom. Even though I am no longer active on Discord, I value my work as an SSHG writer, and I refuse to be silent on this matter.

I want to be very clear that this is coming from me and no one else.

I'm sure the dozen or more people who suspected Ministry's Law was written by AI would be willing to leave this in the past. And I know people will accuse me of dredging up a "resolved issue," but since so much of this happened while I was traveling (not to mention the other contentious fandom incidents that have unfolded since then), I didn’t have a chance to collect my thoughts before now.

Using AI to “write” fics is wrong. Plagiarism is wrong. Lying is wrong.

If anyone chooses to DM me negatively about this, I will post my response publicly.

Thank you.

#snamione #sshg #anti ai #heartsandcauldrons #pro snape

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theartofbeinganerd · 7 years ago

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can’t have you (but oh, how I want to)

Look, all I can really say about this is here’s Chapter Two, where Fitzsimmons continue to be awkward dorky beans, because that’s literally this whole chapter (and probably, this whole fic lmao).

(Ao3)

She’d tried her best not to, she truly had, but after finding herself quite abruptly left alone in a hallway, after having been essentially ditched, Jemma had ended up worrying herself sick trying to figure out just what she’d done to upset Fitz so much that he’d done such a thing. It had been taken over her mind so fully, in fact, that she hadn’t even been able to pay much attention in microbiology, which had followed chemistry that day and was a class that she’d been looking forward to since she’d signed up for it months ago.

That night, she had gone back to her dorm room and spent an embarrassing amount of time going back over the entire chemistry class and her brief conversation (if it could even be called that) with Fitz, but she hadn’t been able to find a single thing that she’d done wrong.

Sure, he’d caught her staring at him across the lecture hall, but that couldn’t truly be that bad, could it?

So, in the end, Jemma had come to the only reasonable conclusion: that he must have been late to his next class or to a meeting or something, so late that he couldn’t even stop to offer her an explanation or apology. His hasty retreat had to have just been a fluke thing, something that she’d misinterpreted and shouldn’t be taking so personally.

The realization had served to make her feel immensely better about the whole thing, and she was now excited for tomorrow rather than apprehensive, ready and prepared her next chemistry class, where she would be seeing Fitz again for the first time since the hallway incident.

Of course, Jemma could have just let the whole thing go and moved on, focusing solely on her classes and eventually securing her spot at the top of the class, but she was determined now to at least get Fitz to have a real conversation with her. Truthfully, he had only become more interesting to her since the first time that she’d heard him speak (and her fascination had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that his face was nicely symmetrical and the way that he blushed made her heart beat unevenly).

However, even though she had planned on having another day to prepare herself before she was to see Fitz again, her planning process was quite abruptly and rather rudely interrupted when her gaze fell upon none other than Fitz in her History of SHIELD class. She’d been doing a cursory glance around the lecture hall before the period officially began, just to see if she’d recognized any of the cadets from her handful of other classes, but she’d stopped halfway through at the sight of him, hunched over a desk at the very back of the room with eyes pointedly turned down.

For a moment, Jemma wasn’t sure what to do; she hadn’t planned to see him again so soon, and was caught very much off-guard at his sudden reappearance. Which was all quite absurd, really, because of course they were bound to have more than one class in common – why hadn’t the thought even occurred to her?

But, after taking another handful of moments to regain her composure and considering pretending that she hadn’t seen him and still waiting until tomorrow to talk to him, Jemma decided that she could easily alter her plan just slightly; she didn’t necessarily have to adhere to it quite so strictly. After all, it was just a day earlier than she’d been expecting, and plus, this might even work better – the time set aside for lunch followed this period, and that presented her with the opportunity to ask him to sit with her, and then they could talk even for longer than a hallway conversation would allow for.

Smiling in satisfaction, she opened her notebook to a fresh sheet of paper just as a grouchy-looking older man stepped in front of the blackboard. She was also, coincidentally, very much prepared to start standing out, after having spent a fair amount of time studying everything that she could on the history of the organization that she was someday soon set to join.

Fitz was quite aware of the fact that he was staring at the back of the head belonging to the girl that he hadn’t been able to stop himself from thinking about since chemistry class the other day, but he also couldn’t seem to get himself to look away, either. He wasn’t sure what was more embarrassing, the fact that he had been thinking about her with alarming frequency in the past couple of days, or that he was staring so blatantly at her and was almost likely to be caught if she turned around again.

Ever since that chemistry class, the girl seemed to have disappeared off the face of the earth – he hadn’t caught even the smallest of glances of her (not to say that he was deliberately looking for her). Briefly, he’d even given into the absurd thought that he’d simply dreamed her and the whole awkward situation up in his first day jitters.

But, Fitz had never in his life been that lucky, and now, there she was, right there in front of him.

So, he was doing his best to seem small and unobtrusive, bound and determined not to start shouting out every error their professor may or may not make – he didn’t need to make a fool out of himself twice in a matter of just a few days, he should at least wait until next week before he opened his big mouth again.

Fortunately (or not), that didn’t seem to be a problem, though, given that the man that had introduced himself as Professor Vaughn seemed content to spend the whole period just droning on and on. In fact, it wasn’t long before Fitz felt himself begin to fade out and even start to drowse slightly, though he did feel a lick of shame about the whole thing.

But, it wasn’t too far into class when he was brought back to full, albeit startled awareness. The sound of the crisp English accent that he could still hear ringing in his ears, calling his name down the noisy hallway, cut straight through the sleepy fog that had settled over his brain, causing him to nearly topple straight out of his chair.

Blinking a bit as he steadied himself, Fitz’s gaze automatically zeroed in on where he’d glimpsed her sitting earlier, and he found that sure enough, her hand was raised above her head. Near as he could tell, she was currently reciting information on the founding of SHIELD, as though she was reading a passage straight from a textbook or something.

They’d yet to receive books of any sort for this class, however, and with a quick glance, Fitz could see that Professor Vaughn was looking just as shell-shocked by the sheer volume of information coming from the girl. When she finally finished her long-winded statement of facts, the professor was quiet for a beat, then he cleared his throat and said haltingly, “Very good, yes, thank you, Cadet…”

“Simmons,” she filled in helpfully, and with that, Fitz now had a name to put to the girl that he’d managed to convince himself couldn’t possibly be as smart as he was imagining that she was.

Much to his horror, she was, in fact, even smarter.

Feeling quite pleased with having found the perfect opportunity to display her vast knowledge on the beginnings of SHIELD and its founders (she was especially fond of Peggy Carter), Jemma had spent the rest of class jotting down the few things Professor Vaughn mentioned that she hadn’t already memorized, and fighting the urge to glance back over her shoulder and see if Fitz looked impressed at all.

Now, the bell signaling the end of the period had finally rung, and Jemma had hurried out of the room in order to once more wait outside in the hallway to catch up with Fitz. She was positive that things would be different this time around, especially after she’d been given the chance to show off her own intelligence a bit, to show him that she was worth getting to know.

Just as she was mentally going over possible topics for them to discuss over lunch (what his area of expertise was, where he’d gotten his PhD – or PhDs, if he was like her, what he thought of the Academy so far), she noticed Fitz just exiting the classroom. Just like it had been the previous time, his gaze directed downward, focused on his shoes rather than looking ahead of himself to make sure he wasn’t bumping into anyone.

Feeling an eager smile tugging at her lips, Jemma rushed to catch up with him as he hurried down the hall, calling excitedly, “Fitz!”

She waited a moment, very narrowly missing a small group of older cadets just leaving a classroom further down the hall and very obviously not paying attention to where they were going. However, Fitz didn’t stop or even slow down, and she wondered if, perhaps, he hadn’t heard her over the din.

So, picking up her pace a bit to follow more closely along behind him as he dodged around other students and raising her voice slightly, she simply tried again. “Fitz!”

It was only once she noticed his shoulders tensing and the way that his footsteps briefly faltered before he began walking so quickly that he was almost jogging away that it finally occurred to her that he’d heard her perfectly – he was just choosing to ignore her instead.

And with that realization, Jemma abruptly gave up her attempt to catch up with Fitz, allowing him to get far enough down the hall that he disappeared completely.

Feeling truly awful and horrible and like the worst person to have ever lived, Fitz didn’t stop until he’d exited the building and could drop heavily back to rest against the brick wall beside the doors, closing his eyes and groaning in defeat. However, quickly trying to soothe the guilt that was gnawing at his insides and making his stomach twist with nausea, he told himself firmly that in the long run, it was better this way.

Despite how foolish he’d been acting as of late, Fitz was no fool, and he knew that if he were to talk to Simmons now, he was inevitably going to muck it all up and ruin any chance he had of ever talking to her again. He may not have known her all that well (or at all, really), but from what he’d observed already, he just knew deep down inside that they truly could get on, if given the chance.

But, in order for that to happen, he first had to find the right words to say to her, something impressive enough that she wouldn’t just laugh in his face as soon as they left his mouth. He had to show her that he wasn’t just some loud-mouthed kid that corrected professors and refused to talk to his peers. He had to prove to her that they were one in the same, the youngest cadets on the Academy campus and, apparently, with a great love of knowledge.

He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but there was something about Simmons, something that gave Fitz the impression that this – and she – was important, something further than the fact that they seemed to have things in common. And, because of that, he had to make sure that everything went according to plan.

So, placing the utmost importance on said plan, he made a quick detour across campus and ducked briefly into the cafeteria to grab a lunch on the go, then headed back to his dorm room. There, he immediately got started on coming up with the perfect thing to say to impress Simmons.

Once he found it, Fitz assured himself that he’d be the one catching up with Simmons in the hallway and striking up a conversation, and the very idea had a smile tugging at his lips.

The following day, the time that Jemma had originally allotted to trying to speak with Fitz again, she instead found herself silently stewing in chemistry, unable to figure out just what it was that she’d done to deserve the way that Fitz treated her. Initially, she’d been upset and hurt about the whole thing, wondering what it was about her that seemed to repel or even repulse Fitz. Now, however, after spending all night thinking it over, she was simply angry.

She just didn’t understand it – everyone she’d ever met seemed to have found her perfectly lovely (if not a bit strange, what with her above average intelligence, but that was to be expected), and Fitz hadn’t even given her a chance to show him how lovely she was! It was incredibly rude of him, really, and Jemma couldn’t help but wonder where he’d gotten manners like that from.

Just as much, though, she couldn’t seem to figure out why the whole thing bothered her the way that it did (and no, it didn’t have anything to with his symmetrical features and cute little blush either). In the grand scheme of things, she didn’t even really know Fitz, so his opinion of her shouldn’t matter in the slightest. Sure, she’d found herself fascinated by the first person she’d met who could keep up with her intellectually but was around her age, but…

Before she could give anymore thought to the wide range of questions surrounding her feelings about the whole situation, however, she quickly returned her focus back in on Agent Patterson, raising her hand to answer the question that he’d just posed to the room at large (just because she wasn’t paying full attention didn’t mean that she wasn’t still intent on learning something).

Then, she heard Fitz’s voice coming from the back of the room, his tone clearly rushed as he hurried to answer the question first.

Jemma’s eyes grew wide in complete surprise and utter disbelief – he was sitting right there, just a couple of rows behind her, so surely he’d seen her hand raised patiently. Perhaps he just hadn’t been paying much attention either?

However, it became quite clear that he was paying attention and just didn’t care, as it only continued to happen all throughout class. And, to make matters worse, when Jemma turned around in her seat to throw a fierce glare at him to show how much she didn’t appreciate his actions, he didn’t even bother to meet her gaze. Instead, he seemed to simply look straight through her as he kept his eyes firmly on the front of the room and Patterson.

Truly annoyed now, Jemma came to the sharp and sudden conclusion that the reason Fitz had been avoiding her and blowing her off was because he wasn’t interested in making friends, as she had been. In fact, it seemed as though he was taking the fight for top of the class as seriously as she was, and he’d correctly singled her out as competition. She hadn’t expected it to start quite so soon, but she was just fine with it.

If Fitz wanted a rival, then he’d have a rival.

#shayna writes #fsfic #fitzsimmons #academy au #can't have you (but oh how I want to)#academy era #chapter two #awkward beans #look i'm just weak for academy fs #especially jemma simmons believing that leo fitz wants her as a rival i just???#oh honey my sweet summer child

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mysterious-prophetess · 7 years ago

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What The Mummy (1999) did better than The Mummy (2017) And the one area The Mummy (2017) got it right.

This is in no way an exhaustive list because:

A. that would require me RE-SUBJECTING myself to the 2017 movie (it’s out of theaters anyway)

B. My memory isn’t perfect.

I will say this now: I am not a film studies major. I was a Writing Studies Major (BA), a Literature Major (MA) and I am a Literature and Criticism Major (PhD). So, while I might miss some of the cinematic points, I do know a thing or two about writing, characters, and dialogue.

Here we go, the points where I will be contrasting the two modern Mummy movies:

Plot/Story telling elements (including dialogue)

Characters

Tone

Effects

Though, plot was listed first, I will actually start with the effects, because it is actually the only area Mummy (2017) actually did better.

Mummy (2017) is very nice to look at. That’s about it.

So, now onto the parts where the Mummy (1999) did better.

Characters

Mummy (2017)

Ok, there is no getting around this but for American Audiences, Tom Cruise has become a parody of himself, and it usually takes a REALLY huge effort to overcome his….Cruise-ness.

Cruise’s character “Nick” did not manage this at all. He was the same Tom Cruise Character he’s been for the last TWENTY YEARS practically. Except, while it’s worked for other movies that overcame his Cruise-ness, this movie never did. This character was never very likable.

Plus the whole treasure thief angle, might have been good had it been played up better. IT wasn’t. Even for the couple of seconds that military dude brought it up, it was then brushed off and Nick and his buddy (whose name I’ve forgotten because I don’t care) should have never been released from Military Custody OR allowed near a new archaeological site afterwards. More on that later.

His character goes through a sort of growth, ending with the “I got the monster’s powers, now I’m the monster” Dude, no. Just that wasn’t even earned. Yeah, I know he was “being the cure” like the VERY out of place Dr. Jeckyll told him to be. Just that’s more for plot/story.

He had three facial expressions for a majority of the flick and I was kind of rooting for Ahmanet to have a Come-to-Osiris moment and kill him while also learning a lesson. But no. She just got the male gaze-male tool treatment. Since I’ve mentioned her, now time to move on to Ahmanet herself.

She was bland and at the same time interesting. She had potential. She was the titular character but she was ultimately discarded to set Cruise up with her powers (a serious WTF and, dare I say, slightly misogynistic moment). Her whole arc was not based in anything that I, as someone who actually has more than a slight cursory knowledge of Egyptian History, would believe.

Pharaohs ALWAYS had more than one wife. ALWAYS. Ahmanet would have NEVER been the heir apparent because even IF a Pharaoh’s favorite wife died in childbirth, he had other wives who would have given him sons LONG before she ever got attached the idea of being the next ruler of Egypt. She would have still been queen, because incest was a thing.

If they’d had her murdering her brothers all along with magic, however, that might have actually been INTERESTING. But no. Tried and true “THE THRONE IS MINE! I SHALL MURDER FOR IT!”

Look the best plot like that was Macbeth. Even had a Lady go nuts in it too.

Yet, they tried for it. Even though, like I pointed out, her father should have remarried LONG before his daughter (his UNWED daughter at that) would ever be in a position to take the throne as his only heir. Yeah, I’m still hung up on that.

So, Ahamnet is ultimately more a tool than a character.

Jennifer (I think. mostly I called her blonde in my head): Has no chemistry with Nick what so ever. Starts off the movie hating his guts, and rightly so. He used her and stole from her. Then after KNOWING this man is a thief is ok with this idiot helping her at a archaeological site. She had no reason to MOURN him when she thought he was dead. NONE. She still hated him at this point. He was a ONE NIGHT STAND. Maybe a tiny bit of survivors guilt, but not the “Alas, poor Nick I knew him….sort of” schtick she was portraying.

She was also not believable in her role. Like she didn’t read as a genuine….anything. She was just the designated DiD as well as another object for this male gaze oriented film.

Dr. Jekyll: Should not have been in this flick. Should NOT EVEN have been in this flick. Like boom, out of left field, have another MONSTER in this movie. Either do as James/AVGN said in his review of this movie and just go for the Monster Mash, or just stick to one monster. (on a side note, yes, I watched a review of this movie).

Mummy (1999)

Rick O’Connell: His bad-assness is established early on because we see him in a battle, a lot like we see Nick, but Rick actually DOES something other than run away and call in an air strike. He fights. His troops lose, he nearly dies, but he still makes it out thanks to some supernatural fuckery that actually WORKS for him. He survives the desert back to Cairo ON FOOT. He’s likable. He’s funny. He FITS into the world around him, and I don’t see Brendan Frasier. I see Rick O’Connell. Also, he had MULTIPLE facial expressions. Doesn’t need to get special powers in the end.

Imhotep: Like Ahmanet we get his story first, but unlike Ahmanet his story kind of makes SENSE within Egyptian social structures. I don’t know if people ran around naked but for paint and a skirt/kilt for real like she did, but the rest of it made sense. How he reacted, how he KNEW this stuff and his motives all made sense. In the end, he stays evil, and isn’t just some tool for the main character. He stands as an actual proper antagonist.

Evelyn “Evie” Carnahan: Firstly, I remember her name outright. Secondly, she actually was believable in most everything she did. She actually had chemistry with Rick and didn’t suddenly LIKE him out of no where. He was consciously properly flirting with her at times, after his rather invasive kiss during their first meeting. She was a little of a DiD at times, but unlike Jennifer (maybe?) she actually served a purpose in the climax other than the motivation for the hero. She made it possible for Rick to win. She was the key to victory, not some bullshit.

Jonathan Carnahan: Without whom the main plot of the movie wouldn’t have been put into motion. He stole the key and map from Rick. Rick had no desire to go back.

Ok, Bennie was already leading the Americans back, but without Jonathan’s part, Imhotep would have succeeded and then where would the characters be? Dead or enslaved.

Tone:

Mummy (2017) Uneven. Took itself WAY Too seriously. Tried to be way more than what it was: a monster movie.

Mummy (1999) Never took itself too seriously at all. Full of Camp, and it embraced it. Not exactly a monster movie either but it didn’t try too hard.

Plot/Story:

Mummy (2017)

This is where I will REALLY be going harshest on this movie. The flashes to medieval Europe? I kept making jokes about what movie was I watching? The Mummy (2017) or Transformers: The Last Knight (which, btw IS not terrible, predictable but not terrible). The fact they REPEATED AHMANET’S BACK STORY. Narratively that’s called REDUNDANCY. In movies that’s called treating your audience like idiots. Even the Transformers movie I mentioned didn’t treat the audience like they were that dumb.

It wasn’t even new footage. They just repeated the stuff from the beginning in a new section of the movie after they “temporarily” captured Ahmanet. Here’s an idea. Why not instead have just STARTED THE MOVIE WITH CRUISE and revealed her backstory later? There would have been more suspense up until that point and no redundancy.

Nick/Cruise’s ability to override Set to steal Ahmanet’s powers made ZERO sense. Because he THOUGHT he could be “the cure” he was able to over power the consciousness of a GOD. Really?

Also, on a side note SETH IS NOT A DEMON! He’s the god of SAND STORMS/EVIL not Death. The god of Death? That would be Anubis.

The plot was very paint by numbers Doomsday flick. Stop the monster or the world is DOOMED.

I mean the other Mummy did this too.

The dialogue was lacking in several places and had jokes that just didn’t land. The very opening joke to establish our lead was stretched out a few beats too long to actually be funny. It was a sign of other things to come, especially with that modern war movie opening it had. That also felt more like a Transformers movie.

This movie…..The only funny scene I remember is when the creatures have Nick in a church and Jennifer is acting like a dumbass and he tells her to run.

It was also reaching too far. I know its whole thing was “The first of the Dark Universe.”

Dracula: Untold, while laughably bad in places, still had more coherence in its identity in what it wanted to do than this movie.

I’d rather see another movie IN that universe because I enjoyed the idea of Charles Dance’s Master Vampire causing mayhem in the modern world.

It was doing way too much, and was behaving more like a superhero movie trying to work up to its own version of The Avengers.

Iron Man, which really launched the current MCU, focused on BEING about Iron Man the whole way through. Nick Fury and SHIELD were side things, woven in, but not IN your face. Phil was THERE but he didn’t have any major “words of wisdom” for Tony that he needed later to beat Obadiah Stane. He was just sort of there trying to debrief Tony.

Dr. Jekyll was supposed to function as a Nick Fury-ish character and he was too much. That’s why this movie pretty much collapsed IN on itself.

Oh, and more about the Treasure theif plot: Nick and his buddy should have been ARRESTED by the MPs and hauled away before you could say “tomb in a sink hole.”

Mummy (1999)

The plot was simple. No redundancies in footage. We get Imhotep’s story in the beginning and when the characters are told later, they get the abridged version, so while it is repeated, it’s been remixed enough and again, they didn’t just recycle the footage. They do have to try to stop Imhotep from taking over the world, after he FIRST resurrects Ankhsunamun, for whom he he murdered a pharaoh and was cursed. This movie wasn’t trying to set up anything. Certainly not a sequel, but the treasure Rick and Evie ride off with certainly hints at the possibility. Evie plays an actual role in the climax and even has her own battle, which Jonathan contributes an important role because I will admit, Evie was a semi-damsel here. She makes up for it by making Imhotep mortal. Thus making it possible for him to die and the heroes to win.

The movie was campy as hell. It never tried to deny it. It never took itself too seriously.

The thing is, The Mummy (2017) had potential. It could have done something to make it cool. Instead, it was trying to be too many things at the same time and was a hot mess. Nothing pisses me off more than WASTED potential.

How would I have fixed this movie?

For one: I would not have cast Tom Cruise as the romantic lead. I know WHY they did (it was pandering to the international box-office). Instead maybe I’d have cast Jeremy Renner or Aaron Paul or Mike Colter (from Luke Cage) maybe even a relative unknown in the role. I’d have either NIXED the romantic subplot, if possible, or I’d have made sure the actress playing opposite actually had chemistry with the male lead.

For a female lead, either go the same route or pick a powerhouse of a lady, like Janelle Monáe who I would have believed more as a beautiful archaeologist than the actress in the movie.

Or, hell, if no romance, they could even go for an older woman and give her a kick-ass role!

Also, it would be a chance to try NOT casting the same old bland white bread (as a white person, I’m kind of also sick of this).

Dr. Jeckyll. OUT until the very end.

Ahmanet: played by an actual Egyptian Actress (imagine that, an Egyptian played by an Egyptian). If I can find actresses names WITH GOOGLE then Hollywood should have been able to find one with agents.

Her backstory, retooled to fit with Egyptian history a little more. The murder spree of all her brothers (and her father’s other wives), as well as a deal with the actual demon of Egyptian Mythology: Apep. But instead of it being that creepy romance deal, it could have been, “the world can burn, so long as I rule the ashes,” sort of deal.

The main male character can still be a treasure hunter/thief. Instead of OPENING with a war scene, open with something that plays up to the whole romanticized idea people have of thieves, or with their asses caught red handed and schmoozing their way out of it, showing off how charming they can be, or tricking their way out of it. Something to make this aspect seem charming-ish and set up the hero as the guy to root for.

Instead of the heroine being the angry one-night stand or even an ex of any kind, she could mistakenly hire these two idiots as part of her crew for an excavation she is headed to because at the last minute a couple of her guys get busted for being treasure thieves and her sponsors don’t want any delays. See, a believable way to get two treasure thieves into a dig like that. Especialy if she’s distracted and some air-headed assistant (male or female doesn’t matter) just pretends to do their due diligence to hire them.

They screw the pooch, let Ahmanet out, and from there the plot is:

Simple, and it would let the characters shine. They’d be able to use wits and their own knowledge from study (the Heroine) or their life experiences (the thieves) to win the day without them taking Ahmanet’s powers.

They’d also NEVER LEAVE EGYPT.

The Ending:

In one scenario, she turns, well not good per say, but realizes Apep was using her and she decides she’d rather not rule over a pile of ashes. She shanks his butt and kind of decides to be a neutral party in this new world.

Dr. Jekyll shows up and offers her a “place for monster’s like her to do something in the world.” she decides to tell him to fuck off, before fucking off herself to do whatever in the desert, but they know where she is-ish.

In the other, she is captured and Dr. Jeckyll shows up all mysterious and Raiders of the Lost Arc’s her away to a secret complex “where they can deal with monsters like her.”

Oh, and hero and heroine get offered jobs by Dr. Jekyll’s people in both versions of this ending.

It’s ambiguous if they accept it (in case the actors decide not to come back) and if romance, ends with the leads walking together for a date or something, or if not romance, leaves with them being friends.

Boom! Fixed it. It sets up their stupid “dark universe.” It also keeps the Mummy as the Mummy and not some guy with the Mummy’s powers.

But what do I know. I’m just an English Major.

#mummy 2017 vs mummy 1999

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cinderbloxx · 6 years ago

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hello it’s me

I have graduated from college. Here are some photos:

12 quarters flew by and now I’m older (but still not 21, ha), arguably wiser, and at the very least blessed with better eyebrows. I didn’t realize this until physically leaving, but I spent a lot of my time at Stanford in a tunnel looking nowhere but straight ahead, not seeing past the shoulder-width walls, and thinking the light at the end was where I needed to be. Even in the last week before graduation, I was so conflicted and confused about what I wanted to do with my degree/skills/life. I felt a deep sense of inadequacy, ringed by both anxiety and admiration, from all of my peers’ incredible plans to make their mark on the world. The people waddling directly ahead of and behind me on that stage on Sunday are future genomics researchers, CEOs, global health advocates, math professors, and presidents. Unlike when I made a similarly ambitious statement at my high school graduation and it was a lofty cliche, I legitimately believe this. I saw with my own eyes how hard my classmates worked and what they managed to achieve in the short span of 4 out of their barely-ripe 22 years. It’s a big fucking deal.

So what about me? I’m returning to Stanford next fall to finish my master’s in computer science, which I’m conferring in the spring. I’ve been telling people it’s an extra 12-month procrastination tactic (which is true), although I didn’t really come to terms with myself about what exactly I’m even procrastinating. It’s not making a decision between n possible options, because that would be doable and discussable. What I really struggled to do this whole year was to be honest with myself about the difference between what I’m passionate about, what I like the idea of, and what I like the idea of other people thinking I’m passionate about. This is convoluted but hopefully somewhat comprehensible.

l like the idea of getting a PhD. Even in my most academically ambitious of days, I never wanted to get a PhD in anything, let alone computer science. 9 months ago, I started considering it because 1) I was writing a thesis, 2) my peers were applying and getting into PhD programs, 3) research felt more challenging and ivory-tower prestigious than software engineering. These are not good enough reasons to subject oneself to 5+ years of academia. I’d like others to think there was some noble pursuit of knowledge driving this desire, and in ~3 conversations with my advisor there might have been, but I’m genuinely not excited about figuring out how to add more <insert portmanteau> layers to an <insert hyphenated ridiculousness> neural network to do <insert eventually, but not in the next 10 years, socially impactful task>. Please excuse the jaded tone as these thoughts have been bouncing around in my head for too long.

Over the past few days I’ve been asking myself what I really care about and the problems that I find fixable, given my (expensive, and hopefully justifiably so) knowledge and skillset. First, selfishly: I care about living abroad in my twenties. I care about getting my hands dirty and building something. I care about one day leading a team, setting the markers, and calling the shots. Next, for the world: politics and everyday life are important. It doesn’t sit right with me when there is mass incarceration of racial minorities, a lack of affordable housing and livable wages, and institutionalized discrimination in every institution especially the ones that purportedly propagate knowledge and justice, and yet there are loud voices (looking at you, tech community!) staying silent. A lot of what I have experienced in this vein has felt more conscience-appeasing (or worse, PR-appeasing) than genuine.

Based on these ruminations I’ve laid out a game plan for my procrastination coterm year. Next fall, I’m going to apply for full-time engineering jobs that target ethics and civic society. Based on a cursory search, this limits my options to Google and a couple of hyper-idealistic startups, but there aren’t better ages than 21 to do such things. I’m also going to apply to social science PhD programs (government, public policy, political science) with the goal of applying computational methods to problems in government and the developing world. Ideally, I’ll work for a year, enter into a PhD program, then figure out my life (aka choose an academia or industry job) from there.

This makes a lot of sense to me today, but maybe it won’t tomorrow. Then again, all the decisions I’ve made up to this point made a lot of sense at the time. To end this extra-long pondering on a cringeworthy note, Asians never raisin, so I still have a lot of time to figure this out.

See you in another 2 years, internet.

#text #me

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cryptochurp · 7 years ago

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How Much do ‘Expert’ Bitcoin Economists Really Know About Bitcoin?

With Bitcoin breaking into the mainstream in 2017, many self-proclaimed “experts” have emerged, offering advice on how to use the cryptocurrency to get rich quick. While most have no standing, some actually have backgrounds in finance and economics, using their qualifications — like PhDs — to argue their authority. But how much do these “expert” Bitcoin economists really know about cryptocurrency?

Also read: Wall St. Thinks Bitcoin Is Risky? Their Volatility ETNs May case a Crash

Subscribe to the Bitsonline YouTube channel for great videos featuring industry insiders & experts

Bitcoin Economists: Experts or Attention Seekers?

I got the chance to interview a PhD economist from Arizona State University — claiming to be a cryptocurrency expert — and was able to get an idea of the knowledge level possessed by those who make such claims.

Is he really an expert? The answer probably won’t shock you.

I sent a list of questions regarding cryptocurrency, their prices, and their competitive nature to the ASU professor. This professor — claiming to be a cryptocurrency expert — boasts publications in top economics journals, citations in print, radio and television broadcasts, and a long list of university-level teaching experience.

So of course, given such accolades, I expected a lot from this economist. Unfortunately, the good professor did not deliver on my expectations.

His answers, while not factually incorrect or misleading, were outdated at best. I had seen amateur enthusiasts say the same things in 2014 on Reddit. In addition to their lack of substance, most of his answers were incredibly vague. Undoubtedly, the vagueness served to protect himself — he could not be accused of being uninformed if he didn’t provide real answers — but it also meant his answers failed to provide useful information to anyone, veteran or newbie.

The professor’s outdated answers on bitcoin price volatility and scalability left everything to be desired and suggested a cursory rather than expert understanding of the topics, while his non-answers to other questions dodged the point entirely:

What are your thoughts on volatility? Has bitcoin become less volatile over the years? What will it take for bitcoin to stabilize?

Volatility is a huge problem for bitcoin if it is ever to be taken seriously as a means of exchange. I do think the crypto prices will stabilize, but I am not sure which digital currencies will ultimately prevail. It might be bitcoin or some other crypto that survives in the long run.

Will Bitcoin be able to overcome the ongoing scalability issues causing high fees and long confirmation delays? Or will a competitor, such as Bitcoin Cash take Bitcoin’s place?

Unless there is some kind of crypto first mover advantage, bitcoin is very vulnerable to competition from other digital currencies. I liken the crypto market to the early days of the Internet, where you had pets.com, myspace.com, andfacebook.com, yet only one truly succeeded, while the others faded into oblivion.

What do you think about altcoins like Litecoin, Ethereum, DASH, and Ripple? Do they have any legitimate value and/or use cases?

We still do not know which features are going to appeal to the market. Is it speedy transactions? Or the ability to make smart contracts? Or total anonymity? Or backing by an investment bank? All of this still needs to shake out before we know the winners and losers.

His PR rep even added a question to my list that I did not approve. And even that answer was unhelpful:

Anything else you think readers should know?

Watch out for volatility and do not be surprised if some crypos are spectacular successes while others are spectacular failures.

So, to summarize, the ASU economist revealed himself as somewhat knowledgeable about cryptocurrency, but far from an expert. The takeaway: spend an hour on Reddit and you too can become an “expert.”

However, I am not one to declare myself an expert. So, I have provided the entire Q&A session to allow readers to come to their own conclusions.

What do you think about the recent surge in the bitcoin price? Is it pure speculation, or do these new highs have staying power?

Financial economists usually trust market prices in the sense of not being under or overvalued. My personal opinion is that there might be a little bit of greater fool theory at work here, where speculators are buying bitcoin in the hope that other speculators will pay an even higher price down the road.

What are your thoughts on volatility? Has bitcoin become less volatile over the years? What will it take for bitcoin to stabilize?

Will Bitcoin be able to overcome the ongoing scalability issues causing high fees and long confirmation delays? Or will a competitor, such as Bitcoin Cash take Bitcoin’s place?

What do you think about altcoins like Litecoin, Ethereum, DASH, and Ripple? Do they have any legitimate value and/oruse cases?

Anything else you think readers should know?

Watch out for volatility and do not be surprised if some cryptos are spectacular successes while others are spectacular failures.

Is the ASU professor really an expert? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Images via Pixabay, Arizona State University

The post How Much do ‘Expert’ Bitcoin Economists Really Know About Bitcoin? appeared first on Bitsonline.

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#BTC #HODL #ETH #CryptoChurp.com

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politicalemail · 8 years ago

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Be Encouraged: Crowdsourcing a Better Future from [email protected]

Blue State Digital Mailing Template : Just a few years ago, proposed solutions to tackle climate change always required energy, utility and car companies – “the most conservative companies in the world” – to take the lead in building and creating things that would be money losers. Instead, one environmental leader, Paul Hawken, began talking to friends about creating a list of “what we can do, and what it would cost.” Environmental NGOs told him it was a great idea, but they lacked the expertise. So did Hawken. The idea died. Fast forward to 2013. Borrowing a page out of the lean startup playbook, Hawken dreamed up the outlandish idea of crowdsourcing the science and data of climate change for a book of solutions. “We didn’t have any money,” he said. “No one offered any money.” Hawken and his collaborators instead reached out to PhDs and research fellows worldwide, paying them modest stipends for their input. Altogether, the team came up with 100 carbon-cutting solutions, ranked according to their potential impact by 2050. I've been honored to have served on the Board of this life-giving project. Well done, Paul. Read more about Hawken's journey below and be encouraged. Drawdown the book, and its 100 solutions to global warming, goes on sale next week. Yours truly, Martin Crowdsourcing a Better Future: Paul Hawken’s Drawdown Story by Jonathan Littman and Susanna Camp | April 9, 2017 Paul Hawken has a bold vision for tackling global warming through crowdsourcing expertise, marshaling big data, and wielding a new, transparent language that shines a positive light on change. “Drawdown means the first time on a year-to-year basis greenhouse gases peak and go down,” explained the inspiring environmentalist and entrepreneur, before an enthusiastic overflow crowd of 300 at last week’s What’s Now: San Francisco event at Capgemini’s Applied Innovation Exchange. “What we wanted to do with Project Drawdown is to name the goal. If you don’t name the goal, fat chance you’re going to hit it.” Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming, the book, will be available in bookstores and on Amazon in a few days, but the audience was experiencing the nation’s first public preview of the book – and movement – straight from the author. Pete Leyden of Reinvent, the What’s Now host, framed the night with a candid recognition that the environment seems to be on the ropes. “The week started with our President issuing an executive order to roll back a lot of the progress that the Obama administration had made toward doing something about climate change,” Leyden began. “We have to say that we’re going backwards. We’re going a couple of steps backwards,” he said, before introducing his guest. “After tonight you’re going to have a lot better week – a hell of a lot better.” Entrepreneurism Meets Environmentalism Hawken’s can-do, engaging talk (and sleek, professional slideshow) took the high road with a leader’s optimism backed by science and the power of crowdsourced intelligence. And Hawken’s impressive track record as an entrepreneur, author and environmentalist suggests that he’s got the vision and chops to get the job done. Hawken worked with Martin Luther King’s staff in Selma, Alabama, founded a natural foods wholesaler and the iconic Smith & Hawken boutique garden supply company, and started and heads OneSun, a thin-panel solar company. His bestsellers include The Next Economy, Growing a Business, and Natural Capitalism (Bill Clinton called it “one of the five most important books in the world”) and now Drawdown. Hawken began by acknowledging the failure of current strategies. “Mitigation, stabilization, reduction,” he said. “It’s a little bit like Thelma and Louise in slow motion … you’re still going over the cliff.” His next slide presented dramatic data on the alarming rise in CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere. “The last time we were at these levels was 14 million years ago,” he said, pointing to the rising arrow on the chart. “Anybody who says they know what’s going to happen – it’s complete guesswork. We’re in terra nova.” Next, Hawken displayed a chart showing a rising CO2 line that peaks and then falls. “This is what Drawdown looks like theoretically,” he said pointing to a potential peak in 2047. “It shows a point in time where there’s an inflection. That’s what we have to aim for.” Hawken says the genesis for Project Drawdown dates back to the Carbon Mitigation Initiative, launched by Princeton University and BP in 2000. Scientists have been working at least that long to identify ways to reduce the amount of carbon released into the air, the detrimental effects of which include climate change, extreme weather, and severe economic costs. Yet Hawken saw the initiative’s tactics as wrongheaded. He noted that its 15 proposed solutions would have required energy, utility and car companies – “the most conservative companies in the world” – to take the lead in building and creating things that would be money losers. Instead, Hawken began talking to friends about creating a list of “what we can do, and what it would cost.” Environmental NGOs told him it was a great idea, but they lacked the expertise. So did Hawken. The idea died. Lean Startup: Crowdsourcing the Science Fast forward to 2013. Borrowing a page out of the lean startup playbook, the serial entrepreneur dreamed up the outlandish idea of crowdsourcing the science and data for a book of solutions. “We didn’t have any money,” he said. “No one offered any money.” Hawken and his collaborators instead reached out to PhDs and research fellows worldwide, paying them modest stipends for their input. “They are extraordinary people. They did the core research in Drawdown,” he said. “twenty-two countries, six continents, 40 percent women, half PhD’s, all advanced degrees. They mapped, measured, and modeled the most substantive solutions to global warming.” The book also includes companion prose by such luminaries as Pope Francis, renowned environmentalist author Michael Pollan, and others. Hawken enlisted 122 advisors to review the book’s findings. Going big, broad, and deep, the opposite of the superficial “ten solutions to climate change” you might find in a cursory Google search, the project Drawdown team came up with 100 carbon-cutting solutions, ranked according to their potential impact by 2050. Big Data Surprise Solutions The surprise? Migrating away from fossil fuels is only part of the solution. As Hawken clicked through his slides, the tremendous variety of planet-saving efforts was on display. “Rice is one of the largest sources of methane emissions,” he said. “You take the water off in the middle of production and you reduce methane production by 50 percent and improve the product, at no capital cost.” After quickly sharing some standard solutions – offshore wind turbines, nuclear, and rooftop solar – he pulled up a slide of an adolescent girl in school. “This is educating girls. This is one of the most important solutions – number 6,” he said to an appreciative, clapping audience. “Girls are taken out of school at puberty, and married off and have an average of 5 children.” Education, said Hawken, gives girls a chance “to be a woman” on her own terms. What’s more, identifying the solution as “Educating Girls” as opposed to “Population Control” transforms the idea into a positive goal nearly everyone can get behind. That’s a key element of Drawdown: replacing the tired and often militaristic language hindering substantive climate change. Terms in the book consciously avoid the often negative framing associated with global warming. Hawken continued his countdown – following education with food. “This is reduced food waste – number three,” he said before pulling up a photo showing truckloads of rotting produce. He paused for effect. “Who knew? We just did the math.” And the number four solution? “A plant rich diet.” Hawken said the team was so astonished by many of the top solutions – number one is refrigerants (HFCs) – that he pulled together the top five and challenged an international expert to name them, and she got them all wrong. Two more experts were similarly off target. “This is what surprised us,” he said. “Food is bigger than energy. Who knew?” and that knowledge, Hawken said, grants us power. “We didn’t make the plan, we found it. This is really important to understand. It’s here. Humanity has the collective wisdom. Every solution that we modeled is scaling.” After Hawken received a standing ovation from the audience, Pete Leyden tapped the power of the crowd with a spirited Q&A. “How are you feeling about some of the bad news that rolled out of Washington and the tweeter-in-chief?” an audience member probed. “How much damage are we capable of doing before some of the good news begins to kick in?” “Very little. Very, very little.” Hawken said, dismissing President Trump’s potential to inflict any lasting harm. “What he says and what he does are two different things. The clean energy plan was never instituted; it’s been in court for two years. So he can’t roll it back because it never happened. Second, we have created a bureaucracy that’s so slow it’s molasses in terms of trying to change it for the bad or the good. He wants to change it for the worse … But I just didn’t pay attention at all to that,” said an unfazed Hawken. “This is a global model and if anything what we’re seeing is a sunset effect on fossil fuels, not the rebirth of idiocy. And when the sun sets, it gets really bright, and then – boom – it’s dark.” http://ift.tt/2pa7Mw5 Donate PAID FOR BY O'SAY CAN YOU SEE PAC NOT AUTHORIZED BY ANY CANDIDATE OR CANDIDATE'S COMMITTEE 421 M St NW Washington, DC 20001Unsubscribe

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