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Brian M. Milton

@munchkinstein.bsky.social

390 followers 200 following 1.4K posts

Short, rumpled Scotsman. Has a terrible pain in all the diodes down his left hand side. Not on social media as much as he used to be but if he is, it will be occasional writing and a lot of stupid bollocks. He/Him https://munchkinstein.co.uk

munchkinstein.co.uk

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 10h

I got taught it as a kid by my Dad convincing me to eat porridge. Didn't know it was Boswell and Johnson though.

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 12h

It really is them trying to take an old-fashioned google search and then shove it through a sausage machine so it comes out sounding like a bloke in the pub. Where they claim it's just the bloke in the pub and he cost eleventy billion and more electricity than Glasgow to operate.

Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 16h

Which makes me ask, why not just return the search results, drop the LLM and save all the complexity?
Because idiot CEOs might have to read a bit of context?
This is the same (pro-'AI') book that illustrates LLMs as a parrot.

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 16h

passing BOTH question and answer to the LLM, letting it rewrite the answer, using a complex algorithm to check the real search answer is still there, then replying to the user claiming it was the LLM wot done it.
...

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 16h

There was a link to a "How to make a better chat bot" book at work. I read the start where it admits that LLMs get stuff wrong and the rest of the book attempts to answer this by ever more complex ways of letting someone ask a question, doing a search, finding the answer, ...

Polly Pallister-Wilkins @pollypw.bsky.social · 1d

Imagine admitting that you didn’t do your own work and that you’re basing your claims to epistemic authority on the computational equivalent of a game of snap.

No, I already have the papers. I want it to read the papers.

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 16h

I'd call that a good one to follow as it includes the niggly problems. I find that despite making it multiple times I still cock it up at least once a year.

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 16h

You weren't far wrong, if you listen to Johnson and Boswell share.google/B3IdKSK3Ri8r...

Dr. Johnson on Oats , by Scott Horton

Doctor Johnson proposed to define the word ‘oats’ thus: ‘A grain which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people.’ And

share.google

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 1d

A lovely wee chat about film collectors and preserving history.
It does tip into Doctor Who news, but that's only a minor point of it, much more about volunteers preserving stuff, which is nice.

filmisfabulous! @filmisfabulous.bsky.social · 2d

3 key members and trustees of the Film is Fabulous! team joined Tim of the 'Missing Episodes Podcast'

Film collector John Franklin, De Montfort University’s Prof Justin Smith & Sue Malden, renowned former Head of Broadcast Archives at BBC
YouTube Link
youtu.be/CK02j_Mi6iE?...

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Reposted by Brian M. Milton

A.R. Moxon @juliusgoat.bsky.social · 4d

I've noticed the opposing team's fans only cheer when the opponents score on us. To win those fans over, I recommend we score on ourselves repeatedly; that will surely make them so happy they'll start supporting us. And I'm sure all our fans will keep cheering for us—who else is there to cheer for?

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 2d

Very much looking forward to this wee con.
Mostly will be talking toot in the bar, unsurprisingly.

World Fantasy 2025 @worldfantasy2025.bsky.social · 2d

The Programme for World Fantasy 2026 is now live!

worldfantasy2025.co.uk/programme/

Programme – World Fantasy Convention 2025

worldfantasy2025.co.uk

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Reposted by Brian M. Milton

Chris Limb @catmachine.com · 2d

The kind of infographic I could stare at for ages - combined maps with space and information.

Infographic comparing the size of London and Manhattan with

MARATHON DISTANCE
WILD 2 (Comet)
4179 TOUTATIS (Potentially dangerous near-Earth asteroid)
PROVEN GLOBAL COAL RESERVES
NEUTRON STAR (1.4 Solar Masses)
PROVEN GLOBAL OIL RESERVES
ALL LIVING PLANT BIOMASS
HALLEY'S COMET
BLACK HOLE OF 1 SOLAR MASS
ALL LIVING BACTERIA
CHIXCULUB IMPACTOR (Caused the extinction of the dinosaurs)
3200 PHAETHON (Asteroid that approaches closer to the Sun than any known object
PHOBOS (Moon of Mars)
EROS (Potentially dangerous near-Earth asteroid)
DEIMOS (Moon of Mars)
VREDEFORT IMPACTOR (Created the largest known crater on Earth)
EJECTA FROM THE 1883 KRAKATOA ERUPTION
EJECTA FROM THE 1815 TAMBORA ERUPTION
EJECTA FROM THE YELLOWSTONE SUPERVOLCANIC ERUPTION 2.1 MILLION YEARS AGO

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 2d

Obviously expecting a lot of interest so trying to push the price up.
Or trying to get rid of it before the curse kicks in.

Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 2d

That may be the creepiest thing about it, once you realise you can't stop writing it.

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 2d

It being Dunoon, the paper will peel off as the damp overwhelms the paste. And the stains will keep growing, slowly forming a figure.

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Reposted by Brian M. Milton

ooOOOoona McCormack 🎃 @unamccormack.bsky.social · 3d

Glasgow friends!!

So Mayer @suchmayer.bsky.social · 3d

We're bringing the book of the exhibition to Glasgow! 4 Nov, Waterstones

www.waterstones.com/events/a-cel...

A Celebration of Ursula K. Le Guin | Events at Waterstones Bookshops | Waterstones

Events at Waterstones get you closer to the books and authors you admire most. Find information and tickets about A Celebration of Ursula K. Le Guin today.

www.waterstones.com

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 2d

I love how the blurb keeps emphasising how easy it is to get away by ferry when you know it'll all kick off on a stormy night when the boats are off.

Jennie Kermode @jenniekermode.bsky.social · 2d

Alright, who wants to make this horror movie? www.futurepropertyauctions.co.uk/property_det...

Auction Details - The Coach House, Innellan, Dunoon, Argyll - GUIDE PRICE £74,000

Property Schedule

www.futurepropertyauctions.co.uk

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 2d

She is an unintentional comedy light in this dark political world.

Reposted by Brian M. Milton

jaythechou.bsky.social @jaythechou.bsky.social · 11d

I Photoshop Paddington into a movie, TV show, or pop culture until I forget: Day 1663

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Reposted by Brian M. Milton

Philip Purser-Hallard @purserhallard.com · 4d

It occurs to me that the Doctor's polyethnic identity in recent times recontextualises Peter Davison's casting in quite an interesting way.
(For context, although you'd be unlikely to guess it by looking at him, Davison's paternal family is Guyanese. He has close relatives who are visibly Black.)

Peter Davison, a fair-skinned blond man, as the fifth Doctor, circa 1982.

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Brian M. Milton @munchkinstein.bsky.social · 2d

Arranged our covid and flu jags yesterday. Led to a shitty night of aches and limited sleep, but I did get this boss sticking plaster featuring Mr. Bump. A definite win.

The top of my arm with a red plaster on it, with two images of Mr. Bump.

Reposted by Brian M. Milton

Sanjeev Kohli @govindajeggy.bsky.social · 3d

It’s taken me 8 years, but I have now collected enough of my own phlegm to make a full-size model of Daniel Craig. Which will finally allow me to say these words:
“I’ve been expectorating you Mr Bond”