Strands of Genius: Poisoning AI Data, Reflections on Beauty, Eye Candy For Presentations
Plus: YES! NO! a poem by Mary Oliver
WRITING FROM | Chattanooga, TN
WORKING ON |
LOOKING AHEAD
Jan 22 - Feb 15th | Chattanooga, TN
Feb 15 - 17th | Atlanta, GA
Feb 17 - 23rd | Seattle, WA
Feb 23 - 25th | Los Angeles, CA
Feb 25 - 26th | Atlanta, GA
Feb 27 - April 4th | Chattanooga, TN
:: WHAT’S NEW & WEEKLY GRATITUDE ::
A whole week without burst water pipes and freezing temperatures has left us feeling on a high! It’s amazing what you can accomplish when it’s not 45F *indoors*, like: more cooking adventures and also getting a gallery wall hung up and organizing a hang with your neighbors :)
Over the weekend we played a new game called Mysterium — which is like Clue meets Dixit. Great for a variety of ages, and it’s collaborative! You’re trying to solve a murder mystery by guessing a suspect, a location, and a murder weapon — but through a seance. One player is a ghost and guides your guesses with beautiful and whimsical pictorial cards as clues. We’ll def be buying this one!
This week, we’re especially thankful for:
Hank & Cory, Chelsea, Walter & Willow, Mysterium, fresh flowers, starry nights, Bubbles the hot tub, herb gardens, lumbar support pillows & YOU.
:: THE LINKS ::
POISIONING AI DATA
Nightshade is a project from the University of Chicago which “poisons” image data so that it’s either useless or disruptive to AI training. A professor who led the project compared Nightshade to “putting hot sauce in your lunch so it doesn’t get stolen from the workplace fridge.” It’s a way for artists to fight back through channels other than writing to Congress and complaining over social media. See it in action, and get more of the technical details here. I love the rebellious spirit in this idea! (TechCrunch)
DOGS, CATS & DANCERS - A REFLECTION ON BEAUTY
Ursula K. Le Guin explores the multifaceted nature of identity (and the profound impact of death) while reflecting on the true essence of beauty in this poignant essay. Le Guin challenges us to rethink conventional standards and appreciate the depth of human experience, but she does this through talking about how dogs, and cats, and dancers perceive themselves which is just lovely. And while it may seem lofty, I like to think that as marketers we can have a positive influence here — at least when it comes to crafting brand narratives that transcend superficial beauty standards. (Atmos)
BEAUTIFUL GIFS FOR YOUR PRESENTATIONS
I’m always trying to challenge myself to go beyond my standard sources (erm, Google, Pexels…) when it comes to images and GIFs for presentations. Eye Candy is “a database of over 5,000 GIFs representing the very best visual techniques in the world of filmmaking.” I’m learning names of visual techniques/camera angles while also discovering some stunning images for my decks! (Eye Candy)
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:: YES! NO! ::
Yes! No!
Mary Oliver
How necessary it is to have opinions! I think the spotted trout
lilies are satisfied, standing a few inches above the earth. I
think serenity is not something you just find in the world,
like a plum tree, holding up its white petals.
The violets, along the river, are opening their blue faces, like
small dark lanterns.
The green mosses, being so many, are as good as brawny.
How important it is to walk along, not in haste but slowly,
looking at everything and calling out
Yes! No! The
swan, for all his pomp, his robes of grass and petals, wants
only to be allowed to live on the nameless pond. The catbrier
is without fault. The water thrushes, down among the sloppy
rocks, are going crazy with happiness. Imagination is better
than a sharp instrument. To pay attention, this is our endless
and proper work.
— from White Pine: Poems and Prose Poems by Mary Oliver
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rockON,
faris & rosie & ashley | your friends over at geniussteals.co
@faris is always tweeting
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It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.
Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based in Tennessee where our company is registered, our admin extraordinaire is based in Playa del Carmen, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.
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