Episode 520: Dictionaries Are Forever

The Science Faction Podcast

This episode contains: All three mighty hosts are here this week.Ben discusses an episode of Dear Hank and John podcast where it is theorized that sickness might eventually be a thing of the past. https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/dear-hank-john

We discuss the statistics of life expectancy. Devon tells us that most humans who have ever been born did not live to be adults. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9Mb0cbDenA&t=636s

Steven is finally over Covid and has finished Delicious in Dungeon. Ben recommends the show Sunny on Apple TV + https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18070898/

Future or Now?

It’s longer Than You Think: Ben is speedrunning Lushfoil Photo Sim. This is a tranquil photography experience. Ben found some really cool stuff in the game.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1749860/Lushfoil_Photography_Sim

Soilent AI is AI!: Researchers from Rice University have identified a significant risk in generative AI when models are trained on synthetic data over multiple generations, leading to a condition called “Model Autophagy Disorder” (MAD). Similar to a feedback loop, this disorder causes AI models to produce increasingly poor-quality outputs, losing diversity and reliability. The phenomenon is compared to mad cow disease, where a self-consuming process degrades the system. The study emphasizes the critical need for fresh, real data to sustain AI integrity and prevent the potential deterioration of internet-based systems.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/07/240730134759.htm

Alien: Romulus Devon gives his review of Alien: Romulus. Is it too “key jangly?” Devon notes that Prometheus was made even worse by having the character be scientists, which made their stupidity that much more unforgivable. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18412256/

Book Club

We discuss The Egg by Andy Weir. The Egg is a short story written by Andy Weir, his most popular, and follows a nameless 48-year-old man who discovers the “meaning of life” after he dies. The story is about “you” (in the second person), and God, who is “me” (in the first person). God says that you have been reincarnated many times before, and that you are soon to be reincarnated once more, leading to quite a few existential questions. This story did not feel any real revelation from this story. Ben doesn’t like reincarnation.

https://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17563539-the-egg?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=rFr9UzthWP&rank=1

We discuss who everyone is the main character in their own story, which reminds Devon of the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows.

https://www.thedictionaryofobscuresorrows.com

Ben tells us about ZEN FLESH, ZEN BONES.

https://archive.org/details/ZenFleshZenBones

Next week we are reading I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/415459.I_Have_No_Mouth_I_Must_Scream