Confessions of a researchaholic

2025-08-28

Deaf death

Filed under: Real — liyiwei @ 9:12 pm
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This lecture/performance by Christine Sun Kim at the SFMOMA looks interesting so I did a bit of background research on her works and found this video from the Whitney Museum of American Art.

The artist was born deaf, which has become a major driving force behind her works on using drawings, texts, and info-graphics to convey her experiences as a deaf person and how the society treats the deaf.

Being deprived of a major sensory input (like sight, sound, smell, taste, or touch) closes the door for many life experiences and yet opens alternative modes of communication and expression, often challenging the dominant narratives around disability.

In the end I did not attend the lecture/performance due to scheduling constraints, but hope to catch up with her works in the future.

2025-08-20

Rise against hunger

Filed under: Real — liyiwei @ 2:29 pm
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Today he participated in a company volunteer activity to help fight hunger by packing dried food.

Within a large conference room were multiple stations of two types, one for mixing powdered vitamins, dried and chopped vegetables, powdered soy, and rice grains into bags, and another for weighing and sealing the bags.
Multiple volunteers were assigned to each station, and the process was repeated ad infinitum with pop music blasting in the background.

It was kind of fun to work and chat with other volunteers, but he started to wonder the value and goal of this activity.
All the equipments and materials had to be brought to and from the event venue, and the repetitive tasks seemed more suitable for robots than humans, not to mention employees who are paid (potentially high) hourly wages to do this.
So this volunteer activity looks like a form of employee benefits but with a more positive spin than the usual corporate parties.

Old man-child

Filed under: Real — liyiwei @ 9:17 am
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In the beginning of his talk on the possible futures of computer displays, Peter Shirley mentioned that he was expecting only people from the European time zone or over the age of 50 to show up in this early morning session.

The session was too early for me as well – I watched the recording afterwards. But since I am no longer young, I wonder if it is a sign that I am growing into an irresponsible old man.

2025-08-01

AI researchers paid like NBA all-stars

Filed under: Real — liyiwei @ 2:52 pm
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The recent pay scales of some AI researchers have been astronomical in historical standards partly as a reflection of the exponential potential of AI on every aspect of the human society.
However, these attention-grabbing numbers apply only to a few people and there are nuances about claw-backs and performance expectations (similar to CEOs’ pay packages at similar scales).

No less interesting but less noticed is the fact that there are fewer headlines about non-financial aspects of AI researchers’ work, such as work-life balance, sense of purpose, and job satisfaction, which are often more important than the pay scale in the long run.

As we grow older, we may realize that time and life quality are more valuable than money and fame.
Get paid for doing what we love, instead of the other way around.

2025-07-26

Pug into boiled egg

Filed under: Imaginary,Real — liyiwei @ 11:41 am
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I noticed that two of my recent quick sketches, one of a sleeping pug and another of an irregularly shaped boiled egg, have similar overall structures, and experimented to see how video generation would interpret their relationships.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DMlSkFWSPvR/

2025-07-24

08d dial dream

Filed under: Imaginary — liyiwei @ 3:40 pm
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In my earlier morning dream, I was going to the TPE airport seeking to pay parking. They took only TWD but I only had USD.
Someone told me to dial 800 for help.
I looked at my (old style dial-only non-smart) phone and saw (the number/text) 08d.
I asked that person what this was, and they said it was for the 800 help line.
I then gradually woke up, feeling leg cramps and tightness.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DMtdiYJSC9B/
https://www.behance.net/gallery/231447175/Dreams/modules/1327348269

2025-07-20

Honey Bucket

Filed under: Imaginary,Real — liyiwei @ 11:36 am
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Walked by a Honey Bucket portable toilet and wondered how AI would interpret the logo.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DMVym75yeH2/

2025-07-19

English muffin pizza

Filed under: Imaginary,Real — liyiwei @ 10:19 am
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“English muffin pizza” means a pizza in the size of a muffin instead of a pizza topped with muffins.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DMTDXaIPvnd/

2025-07-16

Pizza with ants topping

Filed under: Imaginary,Real — liyiwei @ 4:20 pm
Tags: ,

After a day of jury service and before attending an evening fitness class, he bought a box of pizza from a nearby pizza shop for dinner. He ate two pieces and brought the rest inside the box to the class.

When he arrived at home after the class, he found the pizza crawling with ants, and realized that he had left the pizza out for too long without refrigeration.

After a quick web search, he found that the ants are a potential source of protein, and that the pizza is still edible, so he washed away the ants and ate the pizza.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DMMCB9rsw-C/

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