By Robert Ellison. Updated on Thursday, February 16, 2023.
Well I picked a bad year to dabble back in Twitter. I'm not ready to delete it all again, but I am experimenting with Mastodon. There is an official ITHCWY account here, this is fully automated via the Mastodon API and will publish posts, comments and news shares. It's currently posting its way through the back catalog. I also have a personal account here. So far Mastodon is a pretty good experience. There is some stress in picking a server but once you're on everything else is easy. Will just have to see if there is a regression to the mean as the number of users continues to increase.
Winter Solstice 2022 (December 21, 2022 at 21:48 UTC) as rendered in Catfood Earth. Winter starts right now in the Northern Hemisphere, Summer if you happen to be south of the Equator.
Time lapse of a Boeing 777-300ER landing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
Shot on a Pixel 6 Pro in 10x timelapse mode wedged into a window with the blind closed. I thought I'd just get some clouds but happily the crew didn't force us to open all the blinds, so the video shows us entering California with heavy clouds (a plane with contrails going the other way right at the start), clouds clearing as we cross California and then the full landing. Bit of dirt on the window unfortunately but still quite happy with the result. The flight was from Frankfurt.
(Published to the Fediverse as:
More Bangalore Sunsets #timelapse#video#bangalore#india#4k Timelapse from the 11th floor of the Shangri-La Hotel in Bangalore, Karnataka, India showing four different sunsets.)
By Robert Ellison. Updated on Saturday, January 18, 2025.
SONY ILCE-7C 40mm f16.0 1/40s ISO1000
Some leaves catch the afternoon sun at China Camp State Park in Marin County.
The photograph titled "Leaves" captures a serene woodland scene with a focus on a cluster of golden leaves, bathed in the warm glow of autumn sunlight. These leaves, transitioning from verdant greens to vibrant yellows and ochres, hang delicately from branches that traverse the frame, offering a natural tapestry against a backdrop of shadowy trunks and foliage. The sunlight filters through the canopy, casting dappled patterns on the forest floor and illuminating the leaves to create a dancing interplay of light and color. The richness of the hues and the intricate details of the leaves evoke the ephemeral beauty of a forest in the midst of seasonal change.
The composition of the photograph demonstrates a strong understanding of balance and harmony. The use of natural light highlights the leaves, creating a focal point that draws the eye naturally. The diagonal lines of the branches add dynamism and lead the viewer's gaze across the image. The contrast between the illuminated leaves and the shadowy background provides depth, enhancing the three-dimensional feel of the scene. However, the density of the foliage in the corners could potentially make the composition feel slightly cluttered, detracting from the central focus. Overall, the image succeeds in capturing the tranquil essence of nature while showcasing the photographer’s adeptness at using light to enhance the natural beauty of the subject.
Robot is problematic. Not because it was originally derived from the Czech word for forced labor but because we commonly use it to describe two distinct classes of machine.
The first is a something that is either fully scripted (a Disney ride) or fully operated by a human (a bomb disposal robot). Most 'robots' are like this.
The second is a machine with some autonomy that makes potentially unpredictable decisions based on its programming. Like a Tesla.
If the first one kills you it's either an industrial accident or a person killing you through more levels of indirection than usual. When the second one kills you it's a little murkier. Was it the driver of the Tesla? The programmer? Elon?
I bring up killing because the San Francisco Police Department is claiming the power to kill people with robots on some state mandated paperwork. I'm being asked to tell my supervisor to stop this kind of thing, but on reflection I'm all for it because SFPDs robots are very much the first kind and not the second and we should be far more worried about self-driving cars running us down than a remote controlled wheelbarrow with a shotgun.
I'd prefer SFPD to use lethal force only when absolutely necessary but I really don't think we should constrain how they pull the trigger. Imagine a hostage situation with an active shooter in an inaccessible location. Would you rather resolve the situation with a SWAT team and potentially large scale loss of life or would you use the shotgun equipped wheelbarrow?
But I'm certainly not in favor of Robocop or pretty much anything out of Runaway and so SFPD shouldn't be able to use the word robot to describe their policy.
(Published to the Fediverse as:
Time to get rid of the word ROBOT #etc#robot Why SFPD should be allowed to arm robots as long as they're the right type of robot.)
Sunset around the Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco. Shot at 500mm, 4k 60fps timelapse. A very bright cruise ship sneaks past near the end.
(Published to the Fediverse as:
Sunset #11 #timelapse#video#sunset#farallon 4k 6fps time lapse of sunset around the Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco.)
