I drew the empty bag after eating the last cookie.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CL3ZMezH9xa/
I drew the empty bag after eating the last cookie.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CL3ZMezH9xa/
For some mental or physical reasons, I lack control for hand strokes.
As a little kid, I was told by the school teachers that my handwriting was so bad that it will dim my future.
But that shortly became a moot point right before I started programming on computers.
A few decades later, when I started to pick up drawing, one of the first instruction books advocates practicing straight strokes before anything else, which paused my progress for years as I never have the patience for rote practice.
I later switched to another book that emphasizes natural contours, which jump-started my drawing progress.
I still cannot control hand-strokes at this moment of writing, but that doesn’t seem to matter, and I haven’t even turned on automatic stroke smoothing common in drawing applications.
Advices can help, but only combined with our own unique situations.
One of my first drawing books advocates practicing straight strokes before anything else, which paused my progress for years. I never manage to draw/write straight, but can still have fun and create some good outcomes.
Advices can help, but sometimes we shall follow our own ways. pic.twitter.com/Rd9WldbCCr— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) February 28, 2021
Some of these face-related algorithms based on machine learning/vision can be Turing tests for portrait drawing skills.
Experiment with https://t.co/220tkYlEN5 pic.twitter.com/gP2FabjTHw
— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) February 26, 2021
I saw this standing cabinet on the roadside a few days back, and it was gone today when I walked past the same spot.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLnw67cHCp2/
I took one, and it has a tinge of wood in the taste and smell.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLlcOVtH_uV/
Careful observation can reveal hidden intrigues of mundane objects.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLix2IynMeK/
I draw what I (want you to) see, no more, no less.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLgBtlxHpov/
I noticed widely different prices of bananas across groceries in my neighborhood:
Trader Joe’s (Menlo Park): $0.19 each (regular)
Whole Foods (RWC): $0.69 per lb (organic)
Key Markets (RWC): $0.99 per lb (regular)
Roberts Market (Woodside): $1.29 per lb (regular)
Which made me wonder how groceries set up prices in general.
Folds and wraps can form intriguing patterns and shapes.
This chocolate truffle is wrapped in a specular BRDF making it hard to see the underlying contours.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLdqeA5Himj/
I drew the initial version of the lower-right mushroom from memory, which I realized to be too regular upon looking at the photograph while attempting to upload. I then modified the shape to be less regular and more natural/interesting.
The other two were drawn entirely from memory as I did not capture any photo reference.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLbIZ8MnlH4/
This is an excellent book about the principles for drawing secondary dynamic effects, including fluid, fire, smoke, steam, explosion, magic, and solid props.
A hierarchical, coarse-to-fine process applies not only to static drawings but also dynamic animations in the form of coarse energy flows controlling fine visual details.
However, this is not a tutorial book, and one will need (a lot of) practice to really learn (I am currently following this).
The book touches upon digital assistance for manual animation, an exciting and important research direction that also fits my hobby.
I lost track of time drawing these two apples snugging on the bananas, and did not realize it was past my usual bed time.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLXejbOH9Qd/
Does this problem require ML, or a hand-crafted method would be better (to control, debug, understand, implement, etc.)?
Is this better for a paper or just open source?
How did you come up with the architecture, and why?
What I like to see in everything machine-learning paper:
Does this problem require ML, or a hand-crafted method would be better (to control, debug, understand, implement, etc.)?
Is this better for a paper or just open source?
How did you come up with the architecture, and why?
— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) February 15, 2021
A pile of broken tires around a construction site caught my eye on January 3 2021, especially the lower-left one in a twisted fold. But it was moved towards the fence before I got a chance to draw it.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLS0v94n7sk/
This video of an interview with the Bumble founder reminds me that the service/mission is often much more important than the technology for starting up a company.
Like others, Tom Brady’s diet and fitness routines got my attention .
I see some positive aspects of his routines, but these might not work as well for others and probably not even the real reasons for his performance.
I have cardio and weight/core training for about 1.5 hours in the morning, a walk between 0.5 to 2 hours (depending on the route and weather) in the afternoon, and 0.5 to 2 hours of coordination/control exercise in the evening.
I usually go to bed around 10:30-to-11 pm and wake up between 6-to-6:30 am, and take a 20 to 30 min nap in the early afternoon.
I guess 10:30 pm among computer scientists is probably like his 8:30 pm among the general public, and I actually need to avoid waking up too early (like 4 am when my brain got too excited).
I usually have fruit smoothie, grain/bean/seed milk, and some dairy (cheese and egg) for breakfast; vegetables, seafood, and carbohydrate (yam, sweet potatoes, bread/toast) for lunch; and vegetables, fruits, and vegetarian protein (tofu or yogurt) for dinner.
I have dark chocolate (often 100 percent cocoa) for morning snacks, hot cocoa (pure without sugar) and green tea matcha as drinks in the morning and afternoon.
I was puzzled by his denial of dairies, and found out it is not based on science.
I meditate everyday, and I probably don’t need additional brain exercises beyond my work and reading.
Ordering stuff online with a click of button can be convenient, but there are potential consequences to our society (e.g., restaurants and gig workers) and environment (e.g., packaging and shipping).
After learning about the charge from a food delivery (tech ?) company during a restaurant takeout, I now try to directly order from local restaurants to build direct connections and bypass these middlemen who can better help the discovery of new restaurants and these dark kitchens that do not want to bother with services and deliveries.
This apple has unhandled extraordinary vertices for its subdivision rules.
Ugly apple – pencil, charcoal, graphite, oil, and smudge #AdobeFresco
Even though shaped with
unusual subdivision,
still fresh and tasty.Happy new year! 新年快樂! pic.twitter.com/zaGinIAgYu
— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) February 12, 2021
Drawing is one of the few activities that can soothe me into a zone/flow, like hours before a SIGGRAPH deadline (before year 2011, the start of my diminishing marginal return).
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLDdWt7nWRu/
I drew this from referencing a magazine photo.
I did not know what I exactly wanted to do in the beginning and simply let the iterative process guide me.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CK-u0XinA-I/
Mushroom drawn outside
the yard in a warm sunny
winter afternoon.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CK7sf8tnHoN/
After experimenting with various brush types (oil, watercolor, charcoal, etc.), I realized that the best way to depict the fluffy cloud texture is smudge over the (black and white) strokes placed by whatever brush types.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CK3Fj3_nps0/
A neighborhood cat
sneaking to a gopher hole
and waiting, I saw.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKvQBo1HMr2/
I was intrigued by the muscular appearance of these two pears (half already eaten), and decided to depict this impression with broad oil brushes, which felt satisfying but also reminded me to try physical oil painting.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKlB0XhHe0w/
Gist: the author, with a journalism and psychology background, decided to pick-up poker from scratch as a way to learn how to deal with randomness in life and focus on what we can control. The poker part serves as the training platform and medium of investigation for the author, and even without knowing anything about poker, I found this participatory journalism highly entertaining and yet educational at the same time.
At the end of the book, the author said that she plan to continue with poker instead of ending it after completing the journalism project.
I wonder if this is the best use of one’s time and talent; poker is a zero-sum game and contributes even less to the world than finance, which also moves things around but at leas can claim to increase market efficiency.
As a research scientist and product engineer, I would much prefer to be able to create things and solve problems, with even more opportunities (and necessities) to deal with external randomness and internal control.
A collaborator asked me to setup a new git "brunch"; now I am hungry (again). 👹
— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) January 23, 2021
Sometimes, a dream is a continuation, expansion, or exaggeration of events in real life.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKVmM7enN8B/
I found this one on the ground, which seemed to be saying:
I might look different from my cousins in food markets, but I am still a lemon.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKTCgiKHkWy/
I was reading this book chapter about a group of poker players at a game table, some closely observed every play and some just focused on their own thoughts.
The former can learn others’ habits and adapt their betting strategies, while the latter can bust out even with a mathematically good hand.
This made me realize that I could have paid more outward attention and less inward looking to the different situations I have been in, from daily conversations/meetings (too much self distractions) to international jobs/travels (too little observation these different people and places).
This also relates to a maxim of meditation, of being present, which can enhance happiness and productivity.
If we continue this line of reasoning, is it fair for younger, healthy people in richer nations to receive more heath care, social welfare, etc., than vulnerable people in poorer states?
How should we define fairness across different groups of people?
Is such fairness achievable or desirable?
Without enough disciplines, money, talent, or other resources cannot solve our problems, if not create more.
I tend to have very vivid dreams (David Lynch plots combined with George Lucas visuals), at least for these that I woke up to remember, which I tried to depict to the extent possible within my visual memory and artistic skill without much sleep disruption.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKH2gSpH8kX/
Not found pic.twitter.com/I90DM6pwJX
— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) January 17, 2021
A discussion about sperm donation came into my mind a few days ago.
All biological beings are built to spread and continue their genetic legacies. However, I should also be responsible on how my genetic future will match, grow, and further spread. And thus consider one-way blind donation unsuitable for me.
I was having a dream in which one day our technology becomes so complex that we lose track of how things work and have to approach them like how we study nature in science.
Recently there were a lot of fallen apples around my back yard, some of which became my breakfasts.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ2kSi-HzFD/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ7nP5hn9NJ/
I just wanted to quickly draw something simple and smooth.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJxgizQHQpV/
I am ready to move on to the next lesson.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJkZnxbHhXN/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJppSEbn-iU/
My last direct report officially started a new job as a professor today, relieving all my management duties.
🙂— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) January 1, 2021
After hours experimenting with macOS VM I found that I can install .ipa files on an iPad from a Windows machine (e.g., AnyTrans).
The fire hydrants can have various sizes and shapes even in a nearby neighborhood:
https://twitter.com/liyiwei/status/1344832830921031685
flat head https://www.instagram.com/p/CJNCWw8nyUa/
large head https://www.instagram.com/p/CJSJlDJnGAa/
sharp head https://www.instagram.com/p/CJe9ee-nU9I/
I noticed a missed delivery slip near my front door. As before, I filled it out for redelivery without requiring signature, but the package never came and the staff could not find it in their office. Due to its content, I guess the package has been stolen. I did not keep a copy of the delivery slip since the process has worked before a few times.
Lesson learned: keep the due diligence and never let my guard down.
This is a fascinating collection of short articles about how people build and interact with our environments. Initially I wondered why the book used illustrations instead of photographs, but as I read on I realized that this choice better fits with the design of the book, set in beautiful yellow-black color scheme and typography.
Fundamental exercises are worth repeating.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJQHZWvHN_Q/
This is a social media post to force myself to wrap-up all these books that I am half-way through. Complete by the year end: the 99% invisible city; seven nights; elemental magic; trees, maps, and theorems. https://t.co/0tK1mnrJz6
— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) December 26, 2020
One day, we will be able to program genomes for purposes good or bad.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11063952/
Quote from here:
The main difference between the two systems is that in common law countries, case law – in the form of published judicial opinions – is of primary importance, whereas in civil law systems, codified statutes predominate.
But these divisions are not as clear-cut as they might seem. In fact, many countries use a mix of features from common and civil law systems. Understanding the differences between these systems first requires an understanding of their historical underpinnings.
So, common law is data-driven while civil law is procedural.
🙂
Portrait sketch from a reference photo, third attempt, which finally started to look satisfying.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJFrEBLn-l2/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJIRUnpH6Ql/
Apparently Instagram embed for WordPress stopped working around October 24, 2020 due to an API change from FB, so from that point now readers will see the raw Instagram links (example) on my posts instead of the image posts (example).
There are workarounds such as use the embed code, but that looks too long and I prefer to keep the post sources simple and clean.
I saw this tree growing pods among tiny leaves and drew one pod from memory afterwards.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJAA0dsHbQE/
I unintentionally captured an intriguing profile view of a deer group and drew from the video reference afterwards.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CI4Q3hkn-aX/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CI450DVnwLo/
I spotted this intriguing reflection off a large glass wall and took a photo for potential drawing reference, but have yet to figure out what to do.
Avoid continuing the day work into the night.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CI07BkAH9wx/
The refraction and caustics of the drink on the checkered counter top made a perfect scene for drawing.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIucoDmHqPQ/
Mondrian-themed cake,
in an early morning dream,
cut but not eaten.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIpdevoHpda/
This is a minimalist attemp to depict a simple smooth shape.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIhte_fnUCD/
A fortune cookie has an intriguing exterior shape and interior content.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIbkvXhH_K6/
Another basic exercise of drawing a box-shaped object with round edges and corners.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIMqFksHLVf/
I have the tendency to draw for fun instead of practicing the fundamentals.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIHz8hun1q2/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIH0HWkHF0i/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIKBJijHlAA/
How people came up with their ideas!
What I most want to know about but is least described in research papers: pic.twitter.com/PVI8ur97Bf
— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) November 27, 2020
I guess I just wanted something to do while bathing under outdoor sunlight.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIEzpgzngIL/
I drew this common and yet intriguing object as a memoir of a short conversation with the restaurant owner during my pickup.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CIAJaRSnF6b/
I meant to draw this used coffee pouch a while back until I recalled its existence after dinner.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CH7G1NunPmJ/
I stood around drawing her peeling the lotus root to cook with jujube, longan, and sticky rice.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CH4A4eGHB0L/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CH6fD54nFS6/
[This is my reply to a co-author who expressed concerns about the randomness in peer reviews.]
During my military training, a saying went like 散彈打鳥不死也傷, which roughly translates to “if one shoots enough bullets into a forest eventually a bird will be hit”.
(There are others related quotes such as “the best way to have a great idea is to have a lot of ideas” by Linus Pauling, but shooting bullets feels more concrete/visceral.)
Other things being equal, more attempts tend to reduce statistical variance and increase the numbers of success.
Neighborhood drawing
Outside a sunny winter
Sunday afternoon
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHofqEtnJIB/
This show is popular probably because it depicts an idealized version of America: people idolize intellect, compete fairly, act and dress elegantly, and treat each other with courtesy.
I received an announcement earlier today that a prominent member of our research community is scheduled to retire next month, which made me think about what it means for a research scientist to retire.
To me, it means all the extra time and freedom to do whatever I want, such as single-author a SIGGRAPH paper in an exotic topic that I wouldn’t be able to find support from funding agencies or company managements. (I used to joke with my students that I plan to single-author papers when I am 88 years old.) But I have yet to reach that biological and career stage, so I cannot predict what I can or want to do then.
Maybe I will write a follow-up post when I turn 88.
A head wrapped in a scarf can look very good; drawn from a stationary subject.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHewCrVgnWB/
Another drawing practice of a relatively stationary subject.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHWYmOVHOcR/
As captured in the time lapse, initially I was trying to depict the repetitive shovel motion but eventually settled for the resting postures, which seemed simplistic while drawing but quite expressive afterwards.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHRm2LkHLAI/
“The American people are a very generous people and will forgive almost any weakness, with the possible exception of stupidity.” – Will Rogers
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHKFkU4nnUg/
If you are an intern candidate who can (1) propose crazy ideas that nobody else can think off and (2) beat everyone else to accomplish that idea, contact me. 🙂
https://research.adobe.com/internships/
This is an exercise with different mediums (pencil, charcoal, oil, watercolor) and tools (Fresco and Expresii).
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHEzugPHStF/
I just felt like drawing something like this.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHCIJFnnPgr/
I found this article a nice read, which highlights the much faster growth of our collective knowledge (accelerated by computers and algorithms) than our individual brain capacities (constrained by biology and evolution). Each one of us knows a shrinking slice of the world, and this has profound implications on our society and civilization.
One, as mentioned in the article, is the increasing need of collaboration among researchers, especially for experimental science. (At this moment of writing, it is still feasible to single author a computer science paper.)
Even though the numbers of co-authors of my papers have not increased too much, I do find it increasingly harder to know exactly what is going on in every aspect of a project, notably detailed implementations and user studies.
Another timely topic is about politics.
The policies can become so complex that nobody really understands what is going on.
Thus, each voter knows only a tiny aspect of each political topic or candidate, and thus can form drastically different opinions from one another. This can be a scientific factor driving political polarization, even without other factors like social media. Fortunately, Monte Carlo sampling indicates that with enough (sufficiently independent) samples, the aggregate estimation can still be robust (low bias/variance).
For example, the US essentially has 100+ million votes for the presidency, which should give us confidence on the outcome, no matter how ridiculous it may look.
I visited a man in a prison cell
The man sat on a chair
With a noose hung next to him
I was supposed to talk to him
But instead started to draw him
https://www.instagram.com/p/CG6lFl8nQo_/
I used to think the acorns were dropped on the roof by the squirrels, until this afternoon when I spotted these crows, which I didn’t manage to photograph on spot but drew one later based on visual memory and online photos.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CG1U1afnQvU/
In my personal experience, there are two ways to guide a research project: solving a specific problem with whatever solutions that work the best (based on a variety of criteria such as quality, speed, cost, etc.), and devising a novel idea that can span different problems, domains, and applications.
The problem-oriented approach happens more in engineering (which aims to solve practical problems) while the idea-oriented approach happens more in science (especially more theoretical fields like math which aim to formulate fundamental ideas behind a plethora of phenomena).
Solving a specific problem provides a clear goal and reduces the tendency to derail, while aiming for ideas is more likely to work after one has already worked on related problems so as to condense the experiences into the core forms.
Practice quick sketches of reasonably captive subjects.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGyJgqrn7NG/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGyvy5QHPvl/
I didn’t notice, until today, this lemon tree near where I have lived for almost 20 years.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGtwTO4H7y-/
If the productivity of certain types of works can be quantified, it can also be optimized and thus automated.
Instead of performance evaluation, such measures are better used for identifying repetitive tasks potential for automation.
To achieve human-level intelligence, we probably need an AI framework very different from existing rule-based (e.g., Minsky) and data-driven (e.g., current ML) approaches.
I drew this fun exercise with reference photo(s).
I found FB an excellent venue for virtual drawing archive: unlimited storage, albums for organization, “memories” for reminding/checking progress, social sharing (or peer pressure, depending on how you look at it) for motivation, and no known privacy issue (how to target ads based on drawings, aside from generic Adobe CC subscription?).
These are experiments with the charcoal brushes in Fresco.
I saw a newly chopped-down tree on Monday evening, came back this evening only to see its remains already cleaned away, and drew from visual memory/impression.
Interestingly, I can draw this one faster and better from memory than onsite, probably due to the mental abstraction already took place.
I remembered this dream after waking up around 6 am, but the visual memory already faded when I tried to draw it in the evening.
During the last 1-1 with a direct report who will transfer to another team, I found I prefer talking to him as a friend than as a manager.
I wonder if this reflects my style of influencing.
The amount of details should be proportional not only to the intended emphasis but also the unintended confidence about the specific drawing regions.
I did not have enough time to observe the legs (before they moved), and found out that they are better left only roughly sketched.
In nightmares, Jorge Luis Borges mentioned about the mesmerizing painting by Henry Fuseli, which inspired me to paint over my variation to reflect the current political atmosphere.
The reference image sources: incubus, statue of liberty, elephant.
This is a practice for quick sketch of intriguing human poses.
Portrait requires high precision to look right.
The lockdown has reduced my chance to draw people on-site, so I switch to photo references meanwhile.
I noticed the intriguing configuration of utility poles around this street corner due to the down ramp on the other side.
Around 6 am September 26 I recalled this dream about a bunch of books circling over the edge of the kitchen table without falling over.
I had this dream half a year ago on on March 27 2020.
Upside down helicopter man fly over a city.
Rotor stopped and dropped to the ground, captured by a GoPro camera.
Rescue workers brought a big net rushing towards the camera view, which I replaced by an ambulance view for easier drawing.
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