Yes yes, every day is Earth Day. But on April 22 I find myself thinking about Earth Day Philadelphia 56 years ago--the momentum that movement created, and what it changed. We could use that energy now.
This week, you can celebrate Earth Day with events involving art, books, urban studies, outdoor activities, and... striptease? Never change, Philadelphia.
post the best picture you have ever taken of your pet (if you feel like it)
JK, I was capable of answering for myself--but I didn't, since my interlocutor was speaking over an announcement from the event organizers which I was trying to hear.
So satisfying to read the sarcastic response I didn't get to give.
A screenshot of part of Ed Zitron's April 14 newsletter. Excerpt: Perhaps you’ve found value in LLMs. Congratulations! You should feel no compulsion to have to convince me, nor should you feel any pride in using a particular website. And if you feel you’re being judged for using AI, perhaps you should ask why you feel so vilified? Did the industry do something to somehow warrant judgment? Is there something weird or embarrassing about the product, such as it famously having a propensity to get things wrong? Perhaps it loses billions of dollars? Oh, it’s damaging to the environment too? And people are telling outright lies about it and constantly saying it’ll replace people’s jobs? And the CEOs are all greedy oafish sociopaths? Did you try being cloying, judgmental, condescending, and aggressive to those who don’t like AI? Oh, that didn’t work? I can’t imagine why.
Where was @edzitron.com when I needed backup last night at a networking event, as I got cornered by a game designer earnestly explaining that he did NOT use genAI in his game art but he WOULD except for the stigma which is UNFAIR but people get so EMOTIONAL... www.wheresyoured.at/i-will-never...
Wondering about that smoke plume we all saw Saturday? Curious where to go to get on a boat this spring? Get these questions answered--and don't forget you can meet us on Thursday at our infosession!
Soft spot in my heart for this one! ^
So you've heard about our Climate Education for Writers program and you're interested, but want to learn more about what you're getting into? Come meet with us at noon Eastern on Thursday, April 16. We'll present a few slides and then open the floor for your questions!
upenn.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
The world is so full of Horrors that I think we need more reminders that humanity is at its best when we are making weird little guys. So here is a gorgeous parade just full of weird little guys, an entourage of centuries-old nightmares and daydreams given new life and bobbing sweetly down a river.
Same--but very interested!
DUDES! HERE'S AN EASY WAY TO BE AN ALLY: TELL US WHAT YOU MAKE (anonymously, for a survey, she's legit)
An exquisite learning opportunity for writers seeking to connect language and love for our environment. It's free. It's all part of the Buried Creek Collective initiative . Learn more here: buriedcreekcollective.com
@buriedcreek @stephanie.feldman
I called my reps this morning and actually got through to a person in one instance. We're not calling enough.
April showers bring a blooming field of opportunities to learn, explore, and take care of the natural world.
New — I wrote about how journalists proudly using AI to help them write their stories obscures the deeply human process that makes journalism a societal necessity, and one that feeds the soul of those who create it.
Hope you’ll give it a read. I promise I wrote the whole thing.
I can't speak for other fields, but programming is headed for a future where the Morlocks eventually die off leaving a generation of Eloi who will be fine as long as the Second Law of Thermodynamics is wrong.
thebookseller ig account saying NEWS: some editors uploading confidential manuscripts to ChatGPT to read quickly, agent claims
the guardian: I wrote a novel using AI. Writers must accept artificial intelligence – but we are as valuable as ever | Stephen Marche
the walrus bsky account: Authors are using AI. Publishers know it. And now, says publishing consultant Thad McIlroy, authors are being forced to lie about it. One cancelled horror novel didn’t just end a career—it exposed an industry-wide reckoning.
idk guys when i see a lot of similar headlines insisting that editors & authors are all already embracing AI, i don't assume these things are true. i assume there are a lot of very rich people with an unpopular product pushing a particular narrative in my industry!
This is my favorite climate change chart. Japanese monks, aristocrats, and emperors kept meticulous records of cherry blossom festivals for 1,200 years and accidentally built the world's longest climate dataset.
It's happening. Please share with any Philadelphia-area writers you know who might want to spend a few months this fall immersed in learning and talking about climate change, the unique environmental landscape of our city, and how to bring forward those themes in their creative work.
With thanks/apologies to @tunesandtales.bsky.social, whose annual poetry threads are a highlight of April for me.
Search your camera roll for "fool"
This month I read The Mars Room, Vagabond, Helm, and Dinner at the Night Library. 💙📚 #BookSky
There are also a ton of links... lots of gross AI news this month, but also some fun literary reads.
This is what I keep saying when people try to tell me about generative AI as assistive technology. I've been a professional writer for a long time. I've used machine transcription for interviews for years. Spelling and grammar check, obviously, longer. I've watched all these tools get so much worse!
Read about fires and floods in the region. Learn from films and foraging walks and First Fridays. And plan ahead for April!
Amazing alt text 💯
This week: Local and state news, educational events, and opportunities to engage in the state of nature.
Grateful that my morning doomscroll led me instead to this treasure. What an inspiration. Trying to bring this devastatingly calm and wry energy into any confrontations with the horrors today.
youtu.be/0bNy7XO-SCI?...
