Chatting about ChatGPT
Dickens and Prince, Mexican Meals, Mark Erelli, LeBron James, Timothy's Tripping
Welcome to my weekly newsletter. I hope you enjoy the picks and pics.
Fave Five 19: Chatting about ChatGPT. Tale of Two Craftsmen (Dickens and Prince), Mexican Meals (Super Cucas, Los Agaves, La Chapala Market), Awesome Album (Mark Erelli), King James and Kareem Jabbar (LeBron James), and Timothy's Tripping.
I like this quote attributed to Albert Einstein but not likely to have actually been made by him: “Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.”
The artificial intelligence (AI) tool ChatGPT by OpenAI reached 100 million users in just two months. It’s a very hot topic, so I was asked to join my Clayton High School classmate Arnold Kling and my colleague Dennis Pearce to chat about how it can be used in support of knowledge management. Here is the recording:
I asked ChatGPT how it can be used to support knowledge management (KM), including individual queries for 32 of the 50 KM components I have defined. It provided reasonable answers, and I told Arnold that the availability ChatGPT and other similar tools is an inflection point in the KM profession and for technology in general.
Here are links for additional information:
My document on 32 Knowledge Management Components and ChatGPT
Reinventing search with a new AI-powered Microsoft Bing and Edge
Here is a random bit of trivia. The CEO of OpenAI is Sam Altman, whose mother is Dr. Connie Gibstine, who graduated one year after Arnold and I did from Clayton High School. For a 2016 New Yorker article she told Tad Friend:
Sam does keep an awful lot tied up inside. He’ll call and say he has a headache—and he’ll have Googled it, so there’s some cyber-chondria in there, too. I have to reassure him that he doesn’t have meningitis or lymphoma, that it’s just stress.
Book Best Bet
Dickens and Prince: A Particular Kind of Genius by Nick Hornby
I got to hear and meet one of my literary heroes last week, Nick Hornby. He was interviewed by fellow author Jessica Anya Blau at Chaucer's Books in Santa Barbara. Years ago, I fell in love with High Fidelity and have devoured all nine of his novels and two of his non-fiction works — Fever Pitch, and now this book. I read its 159 pages in a few days and found it fascinating.
I asked Nick a question about what sports he follows besides football, and he mentioned basketball (my favorite) and cricket (not my favorite). Here is the recording of the event:
Nick signed my copy of the book, and we chatted about basketball. I told him that I have read all of his novels, loved all of them, and that they gave me a lot of pleasure.
Nick won the 2019 Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Comedy or Drama Series for his work as executive producer State of the Union. He wrote the book on which the series is based. Barb and I are watching it now on Sundance Now and really enjoy the 10-minute episodes. I was delighted to hear Nick mention that he is working on the screen adaptation of Sorrow and Bliss.
From Amazon: From the bestselling author of Just Like You, High Fidelity, and Fever Pitch, a short, warm, and entertaining book about art, creativity, and the unlikely similarities between Victorian novelist Charles Dickens and modern American rock star Prince.
Every so often, a pairing comes along that seems completely unlikely—until it’s not. Peanut butter and jelly, Dennis Rodman and Kim Jong Un, ducks and puppies, and now: Dickens and Prince.
Equipped with a fan’s admiration and his trademark humor and wit, Nick Hornby invites us into his latest obsession: the cosmic link between two unlikely artists, geniuses in their own rights, spanning race, class, and centuries—each of whom electrified their different disciplines and whose legacy resounded far beyond their own time.
When Prince’s 1987 record Sign o’ the Times was rereleased in 2020, the iconic album now came with dozens of songs that weren’t on the original— Prince was endlessly prolific, recording 102 songs in 1986 alone. In awe, Hornby began to wonder, who else ever produced this much? Who else ever worked that way? He soon found his answer in Victorian novelist and social critic Charles Dickens, who died more than a hundred years before Prince began making music.
Examining the two artists’ personal tragedies, social statuses, boundless productivity, and other parallels, both humorous and haunting, Hornby shows how these two unlikely men from different centuries “lit up the world.” In the process, he creates a lively, stimulating rumination on the creativity, flamboyance, discipline, and soul it takes to produce great art.
From Wikipedia: Nicholas Peter John Hornby (born April 17, 1957 in Redhill, Surrey, England) is an English writer and lyricist. He is best known for his memoir Fever Pitch and novels High Fidelity and About a Boy, all of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby's work frequently touches upon music, sport, and the aimless and obsessive natures of his protagonists. His books have sold more than 5 million copies worldwide as of 2018. In a 2004 poll for the BBC, Hornby was named the 29th most influential person in British culture. He has received two Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay nominations for An Education (2009), and Brooklyn (2015).
Restaurant Recommendations
The Santa Barbara area has many outstanding Mexican eateries, ranging from food trucks to high-end dining establishments. Here are three we have tried recently.
Super Cucas Restaurant 626 W Micheltorena St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
I walked here from our rental home and enjoyed a terrific torta with lettuce, tomato, onion, cilantro, mayonnaise, and pastor (marinated pork) for lunch. In Santa Barbara, marinated pork is referred to as pastor, adobado, or adobada.
From the restaurant site: Super Cucas, the first taqueria established in Santa Barbara, opened its doors in 1991. Since then, it has won first place for “best burrito” in the Santa Barbara Independent’s annual “best of” contest every year.
No one will experience canned products or preservatives in their meals at Super Cucas. We are dedicated to offering large meal portions at affordable prices.
Los Agaves Restaurant 2911 De La Vina, St Santa Barbara, CA 93105
This is a favorite of our daughter Tracy and her husband Matt. Our son Roger sent us a gift card to use here, so we went with Tracy and her family on Saturday and put the card to good use.
I ordered a combination plate of Chile Relleno (Chile Pasilla filled with Monterey Jack cheese, topped with salsa roja, sour cream, and queso fresco) and Enchilada Roja (shredded chicken with cheese and sour cream), with rice and house salad as my two sides. Both dishes were excellent, and I was surprised at how good the salad was, which included mandarin oranges and other tasty tidbits. The salsa bar offered a wide array of choices, and I was able to try many, but not all of them. It is impressive.
From the restaurant site: Our dishes are always prepared with simple, yet sophisticated presentation, using only the best ingredients available. We believe in classic dishes with a creative twist, which is reflected in our signature dishes.
Family owned and operated: Carlos Luna opened his first location on Milpas Street on Santa Barbara's Eastside in 2008. Los Agaves very quickly gained a following, taking the title of “Best Mexican Restaurant” and “Best Salsa” in 2013, 2014 and 2015 from the Santa Barbara News-Press and Santa Barbara Independent, and was also listed at Number 64 on Yelp’s Top 100 Places to Eat in 2015 and Number 16 in 2016 for the United States.
La Chapala Market 5780 Hollister Ave, Goleta, CA 93117
This is a small Mexican grocery story with a counter in the corner when you enter offering a surprisingly good menu. They have the best deal in town on tacos, including spicy chicken mole tacos. You can dine in or carry out, and we like to order to go on Taco Tuesday before picking up Matt from his office in Goleta.
Yesterday we brought home pastor and chicken tinga tacos. They include limes and red and green salsas, which are flavorful and provide a good kick.
Marvelous Musician
On Friday Mark released his marvelous new album, Lay Your Darkness Down. You should listen to it now.
From Mark’s bio
During a performance in summer 2020, Mark Erelli looked down at his guitar neck and couldn’t believe what he saw. Or rather, what he couldn’t see: his fingers on the frets. Soon after, a diagnosis of retinitis pigmentosa (RP), a degenerative eye disease, would bring some answers, but it also yielded new questions. Does diminished eyesight correlate with lesser insight? Does your songwriting change when your perception of the world around you changes? These questions, and Erelli’s hunt for creative agency, are at the heart of his new album Lay Your Darkness Down.
Mark has been a favorite of our family for many years. He performed in our home in Northville, Michigan on May 8, 2010. At that show, he sang “Compass and Companion” with our daughter Kathy and “Pilgrim Highway” with Kathy and our son Roger. I first heard Mark on WUMB in Boston. Three songs really stood out to me: “Call You Home,” “Pilgrim Highway,” and “The Only Way.” On "By Degrees," his powerful statement about gun violence, Mark is joined by Rosanne Cash, Lori McKenna, Josh Ritter, Sheryl Crow, and Anais Mitchell.
I have seen Mark perform at Green Wood Coffee House (with Lori McKenna and solo), at Trinity House Theatre, and multiple times at The Ark (with Jake Armerding, Lori McKenna, and Kris Delmhorst). When he and Jake played The Ark, Kathy got to sing Jake's song “Ithaca” with them. Once I drove out to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) when I was hosting an HP business meeting in Marlboro, Massachusetts. It was hard to track down where Mark was performing, but I finally did, just in time to catch his final song, “The Only Way.” I later saw him with Jake at The Cantab Lounge in Cambridge, Massachusetts and with Jake, Lori, and Zack Hickman at Club Passim, also in Cambridge.
I was very happy to see Mark on Cayamo 2019 with Josh Ritter. I talked to him then about performing again in Michigan, and it was unfortunate for us that he did do so on March 8, 2023 at The Ark when we were still in Santa Barbara. But we were thrilled to catch up with him again on August 25, 2023 at The Ark when he opened for and accompanied Lori McKenna.
From Wikipedia: Mark Erelli (born June 20, 1974 in Boston) is an American singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and touring folk musician from Reading, Massachusetts who earned a master's degree in evolutionary biology from the University of Massachusetts before pursuing a career in music. His self-titled debut album was released in 1999, the same year that he won the Kerrville Folk Festival's New Folk Award. His first recording for the Signature Sounds label, Compass & Companion, spent ten weeks in the Top Ten on the Americana Chart. Mark has worked as a side musician for singer-songwriters Lori McKenna and Josh Ritter. His song “People Look Around”, which he co-wrote with Catie Curtis, was the Grand Prize winner at the 2005 International Songwriting Competition.
You're Gonna Wanna Remember This
The Only Way
My Playlist
Some of the songs in this list are not available in Spotify. You can buy his albums, subscribe to receive a free MP3 each month, and support him on Patreon (as I do) to receive songs, reviews, and other special content.
Sports Star
When there were only 36 points left to break the NBA all-time scoring record, I was certain that LeBron would do it in the next game. And he did. Barb and I were watching the game, and it was exhilarating to see it happen live.
In the 2003 NBA draft, my Detroit Pistons missed out by one pick on being able to choose the greatest player since then. Fans like to argue about whether LeBron is the GOAT, but he is certainly deserving of consideration. My choice is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant, and Steph Curry are all pretty, pretty good. LeBron is right there with all of them, if not better.
LeBron was born 15 days after my son Roger. Rog has had a successful basketball career, both as a player and coach, but not quite the same as King James. In October 2022, Roger was all set to help coach a team of Gonzaga College High School players against a team of Sierra Canyon School players, including LeBron’s son Bronny. But the much-anticipated exhibition was called off the day before due to a disturbance in the stands during a previous game.
I appreciate LeBron’s sustained excellence, and I am impressed that he continues to perform so well at his age. I salute him and his many accomplishments.
From Wikipedia: LeBron Raymone James Sr. (born December 30, 1984 in Akron, Ohio) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed, "King James," he is considered to be one of the greatest basketball players in history and is often compared to Michael Jordan in debates over the greatest basketball player of all time. James is the NBA's all-time leading scorer and ranks fourth in career assists. He has won four NBA championships on three teams, with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat, and Los Angeles Lakers. James has led his teams to ten NBA Finals, including eight consecutively. He has four MVP awards, four Finals MVP awards, and two Olympic gold medals. He has been named an All-Star 19 times, selected to the All-NBA Team 18 times, and to the All-Defensive Team six times.
A Painful Memory for Pistons Fans
Top Moments: LeBron James dominates Pistons to reach his first NBA Finals
Each of the first four games of the series had been decided by six points or less and Game 5 appeared to be headed in the same direction halfway through the fourth quarter. At that point, James had a modest 19 points and the Cavs were leading 79-78 with 6:05 remaining.
James then hit a 17-foot jumper that began a jaw-dropping scoring run of that left the Pistons speechless.
“We threw everything we had at him,” Detroit guard Chauncey Billups would say of James following the game. “We just couldn’t stop him.”
In just over 16 minutes of game time, James would score 29 of Cleveland’s 30 points, including the team’s final 25 points on 11-of-13 shooting from the field. He’d force overtime on a driving dunk with nine seconds remaining and then finish the game off in double-overtime with a driving layup with two seconds left.
Breaking The Record
LeBron James had every intention of breaking the NBA scoring record against the Thunder. So he did. by Joe Vardon
James intended to break the record by shooting Kareem’s famous skyhook. He’d been practicing the shot for more than a week prior to games, and once he reached 34 points against the Thunder, he tried to get position on the block, so he could catch a pass and go to the hook. But he couldn’t get position and had to “settle” for the fadeaway.
Except, the first shot James made as an NBA player, on Oct. 18, 2003, in Sacramento, was also a fadeaway.
“I know a lot of people wanted me to go to the skyhook to break the record or one of my signature dunks, but my fadeaway is a signature play as well,” he said. “And I was able to get it and it touched nothing but the bottom of the net, and that was pretty cool.”
I am a huge fan of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, since his college days as Lew Alcindor at UCLA through his long career as a Buck and Laker. I admire him as a social activist, writer, and as a human being. You should subscribe to his Substack newsletter. He was very gracious in appearing with Kareem last night. Read what he has to say about it.
What I Think About LeBron Breaking My NBA Scoring Record by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
While it’s true that I have taken a couple minor jabs at him over vaccine protocols—which in my mind was the kind of nudging one teammate does with another—I know that LeBron is too accomplished, mature, and savvy to hold a grudge over something so petty. That’s why I don’t want my fans to in any way tarnish or equivocate his enormous achievement. This is all about LeBron doing something no one else has done, about scoring more points than anyone has been able to in 75 years. There are no “yeah, buts,” just praise where it is rightfully and righteously due.
Bottom line about LeBron and me: LeBron makes me love the game again. And he makes me proud to be part of an ever-widening group of athletes who actively care about their community.
Picture Pun
Recommended by Timothy Leary.
The Moody Blues: “Legend of a Mind”
Whoa, didn't know about Sam Altman's Clayton connection