Tuesday, May 06, 2025

 

OPEN AI, THE PUBLIC BENEFIT CORPORATION (PBC)

Open AI released today information about its new planned structure.

After several months of studying how to raise money to finance the development of AI, and a well-publicized lawsuit with Elon Musk, Open AI has changed its planned structure from going to a for profit company, to remaining a not-for-profit but one which controls a "Public Benefit Corporation" (PBC).


Here's the announcement from Open AI:

ANNOUNCEMENT 2025-05-05

https://openai.com/index/evolving-our-structure/


Here's an explanation of a PBC from Wikipedia:

"In business, and only in United States corporate law, a benefit corporation (or in some states, a public benefit corporation - PBC) is a type of for-profit corporate entity whose goals include making a positive impact on society. "


A PUBLIC BENEFIT CORPORATION - WIKIPEDIA

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benefit_corporation


Here's a link to an earlier article, with news about the studies Open AI was conducting, to help determine its future structure:


OPEN AI NEWS - QPORIT - 2025-04-16

https://qporit.blogspot.com/2025/04/new-products-and-reports-from-open-ai.html



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Saturday, May 03, 2025

 

THE KENTUCKY DERBY

 

Kentucky Derby 2025 – May 3 • Churchill Downs

The Kentucky Derby, first run in 1875, is the opening race of the Triple Crown. The 1¼‑mile race runs at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 3 - (The Kentucky Derby show starts in mid afternoon on NBC; the race itself begins about 7 p.m. ET -- NOTE: The race itself only lasts about 2 minutes, so do not tune in at 7:05!). 

The Preakness (May 17) and Belmont Stakes (June 7) complete the series. 

Since American Pharoah’s historic 2015 sweep and Justify’s repeat in 2018, no horse has worn the crown (won all three races). 


(Ongoing improvements to training, track surfaces and veterinary oversight continue to try to improve the safety of the horses. I watched the Belmont in person some years ago. The horses are really working very very hard. It is not obvious how strenuous the race is, for the horses, when it is just watched on television.)


The signature drink for watching the Kentucky Derby is the Mint Julep.


THE MINT JULEP


Here's how you make a wicked MJ. (Note: Don't drive or ride a horse or operate heavy machinery after this; don't ingest with anything that will exceed your tolerance for total number of chemicals in the body!) Boil a little bit of water with some washed and dried, torn up, fresh, nice looking mint leaves, to create a strong mint tea and then put it in a cup . (Note: Mint leaves are not always that easy to get, and when you get a bunch, many leaves are often wilted, or blackened. It's important to select the best leaves even if that is only a fraction of the bunch of mint in the package.)
Add quite a bit of sugar. (Optionally -- ideally, in fact -- some sugar could be replaced with a half jigger of a sweet liqueur like Cointreau, Drambuie, or Grand Marnier.) Add about a half jigger of a good Kentucky Bourbon. (After trying quite I few, I found that my favorite is definitely Maker's Mark.) Add this mixture with some additional torn up, fresh, nice looking mint leaves to ice in a crusher.

Crush the mixture of sweetened mint tea, and bourbon to make a tall glass worth of flavored crushed ice. Take a tall, chilled glass, add a long straw, fill the glass with the crushed ice, and then pour in a jigger more bourbon to fill up the cracks. Turn on the pre-race show, and enjoy it!

It's matter of taste what you eat with the drink, if anything. My own preference is Greek or similar appetizers. 

Update - Final Order of Finish

  1. 18 Sovereignty (5/1)
  2.   8 Journalism (3/1)
  3. 21 Baeza (13/1)
  4. Final Gambit
  5. Owen Almighty
  6. Citizen Bull
  7. Neoequos
  8. American Promise
  9. Admire Daytona
  10. Luxor Cafe
  11. Burnham Square
  12. Flying Mohawk
  13. East Avenue
  14. Publisher
  15. Tiztastic
  16. Render Judgment
  17. Coal Battle
  18. Sandman
  19. Chunk of Gold

Horses - ordered by Number

Horses - ordered by (Friday evening) Odds 

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Wednesday, April 30, 2025

 

100 DAYS

 

Here is a list of a few of the actions of the Trump administration (#2) in the first hundred days and their likely consequences.  It should be noted that all these actions are quite public, and appear to be actions that the administration is proud of:

 

Cast doubt on vaccines

 

Provided frequently changes in plans for tariffs, while sharply raising them

 

Lots of lies and blaming Biden

 

Attacks on our allies

 

Snatching people off the streets without due process


 

Deference to Russia:  No tariffs; pre-negotiation concessions to Russia for Ukraine war talks

 

No progress in Gaza


Indiscriminate firing of government employees in many areas

                Loss of expertise

                Loss of services in

                                Social security

                                Veterans’ services

                                Emergency assistance (FEMA)

                                Weather reporting

                                Protecting Civil Rights

                                Detecting and prosecuting fraud

                                Detecting and prosecuting foreign interference

                                IRS

                                Maintaining the nuclear arsenal

 

 Sudden dismantling of USAID services 


Cancelling research contracts in Universities and research groups in government

                               

 

CONCLUSION: THE US HAS BECOME LESS PROSPEROUS, LESS SAFE, LESS HEALTHY, LESS IMPORTANT, AND LESS HAPPY in just 100 days.

                               


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Wednesday, April 23, 2025

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, W S! -- IT'S SHAKESPEARE'S BIRTHDAY

 

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE is believed to have been born on this day in 1564. He is known to have died on this day in 1616. 

(There's an actual record of his death. There's no record of his birth, but there is a record of his baptism, from which the date of his birth is assumed.)

He lived through a tumultuous period, writing some of the greatest plays and poetry ever written in English, (and probably just... ever written).  


Some (just a few!) of his most revered plays are:

Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Othello, Romeo & Juliet (tragedies); a series of historical plays leading up to the reign of Queen Elizabeth; A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Tempest (fantasies), and Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night (comedies).


This summer, the Public Theater will be presenting Twelfth Night free in NYC's Central Park Delacorte Theater (just renovated!).


THE PUBLIC THEATER: TWELFTH NIGHT - FREE IN CENTRAL PARK, NYC

https://publictheater.org/productions/season/2425/fsitp/twelfth-night/


Another great venue (also great workshops!) for Shakespeare in New York is 

THE RED BULL THEATER

https://www.redbulltheater.com/


Here's a list from Google (AI) and other sources, of some of the many venues around the US and the world that produce Shakespeare's plays:


The American Shakespeare Center in VA. (They also produce the Blackfriars' Shakespeare Conference every few years.) https://americanshakespearecenter.com/



Here is one of his sonnets. (notice that the imagery is interpretive of the deeper meanings of the poem). 


SONNET 65 "SINCE BRASS..."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4FRae1XRkI/

A performance of sonnet 65 with visual commentary.








In Shakespeare's sonnet 65, brass, rocks and steel are fragile, decaying with time, but love, art, beauty and poetry persist forever.
Here's an analysis of the sonnet: SONNET 65 - ANALYSIS
https://sonnetsbyshakespeare.blogspot.com/2006/06/sonnet-65.html


Here's more about Shakespeare's sonnets:

SONNETS AS DRAMA
https://sonnetsbyshakespeare.blogspot.com/2011/11/sonnets-as-dramatic-speech.html


SHAKESPEARE'S LIFE

WIKIPEDIA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL STUDIES BY JAMES SHAPIRO
https://www.amazon.com/stores/James-Shapiro/author/B0034PH36C




 

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Wednesday, April 16, 2025

 

NEW PRODUCTS AND REPORTS FROM OPEN AI

 

Open AI has released several new products and reports in the last few days.


NEWS 

https://openai.com/news/



OPEN AI o3 & OPEN AI o4-mini ("Thinking!") -- 2025-04-16

https://openai.com/index/introducing-o3-and-o4-mini/


THE o3 & o4-mini SYSTEM CARD (EXPLANATION) -- 2025-04-16

https://openai.com/index/o3-o4-mini-system-card/


THE SYSTEM CARD -- 2025-04-16

https://cdn.openai.com/pdf/2221c875-02dc-4789-800b-e7758f3722c1/o3-and-o4-mini-system-card.pdf



OPEN AI NON-PROFIT INSIGHT COMMISSION ADVISORS   (with audio) -- 2025-04-15

https://openai.com/index/nonprofit-commission-advisors/



UPDATED PREPAREDNESS FRAMEWORK -- 2025-04-15

https://openai.com/index/updating-our-preparedness-framework/


FULL DOCUMENT

https://cdn.openai.com/pdf/18a02b5d-6b67-4cec-ab64-68cdfbddebcd/preparedness-framework-v2.pdf



INTRODUCING GPT 4.1 IN THE API (with audio) -- 2025-04-14 

https://openai.com/index/gpt-4-1/


OPEN AI PIONEERS PROGRAM  -- 2025-04-09

https://openai.com/index/openai-pioneers-program/



NEW INSIGHT COMMISSION  -- 2025-04-02

https://openai.com/index/nonprofit-commission-guidance/



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Tuesday, April 01, 2025

 

BOOKER'S SPEECH

 

Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey has, over the last 24 and more hours, delivered the longest speech in the history of the US Senate, elegantly and passionately calling attention to the great promise and reality of the US in history, and the dangers the US faces in the actions of the current Trump administration.


Attention drawing events are the most important tools of Democratic resistance to the GOP's attempts to concentrate power in the Executive Branch of government, and with that power to cut vital services, to eliminate equality and diversity in both the government and private sectors, to alter the priorities of the Department of Justice, and to dramatically alter the system of taxation from an income tax (which can and should be progressive) to a tariff based "external" tax, which is basically regressive. (Tariffs are paid by importers, who pass along the cost to consumers, resulting in inflation, with the greatest burden falling on the poorest consumers.)


SENATOR CORY BOOKER'S OFFICE

https://www.booker.senate.gov/







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Thursday, January 30, 2025

 

CRASH

 

A civil airplane and a military helicopter crashed over the Potomac. It was the first major commercial airlines in the US in 25 years.


No man is an island,
Entire of itself.

Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.

If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.

As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.

Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.

John Donne

1572 - 1631

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Saturday, January 25, 2025

 

COPILOT BLOCKS NEW WORD DOCUMENTS - SOLUTION

 

MS Copilot has started appearing and BLOCKING whenever a new Word Document is started/opened.

It took several trial prompts using copilot to solve this. Here's the right prompt and an apparently correct answer:

HOW CAN I STOP COPILOT FROM BLOCKING ME FROM WRITING WHEN I OPEN A NEW DOCUMENT

COPILOT:

I understand how frustrating that can be! To stop Copilot from blocking you when you open a new document in Word, you can disable the feature. Here's how:

Open Word and go to the File menu.

Select Options.

In the Word Options dialog box, go to the Copilot section.

Uncheck the box that says Enable Copilot.

Click OK to save your changes.

This should disable Copilot and allow you to write without interruptions. If you're using a different Office app, the steps might be slightly different, but the general approach is the same.

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Friday, January 17, 2025

 

TIK TOK BAN UPHELD

 

Congress, last year, voted a bipartisan bill to ban TIKTOK (controlled by the Chinese company ByteDance) from the US, as of Sunday, 1/19/2024, unless it was divested from Chinese ownership. The ban was challenged and went to SCOTUS. 

Unlike the partisan delay the GOP majority of the court imposed on the immunity case to assist T, the court, ruling extremely quickly, upheld the ban on TIKTOK in a unanimous decision.

This is a major decision on the conflict between free speech vs National Security (as a threat from potentially adversarial countries that own and control an application used by gazillions of Americans).

Here is the decision:


SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES 

Nos. 24–656 and 24–657 

TIKTOK INC., ET AL., PETITIONERS 24–656

 v. 

MERRICK B. GARLAND, ATTORNEY GENERAL

BRIAN FIREBAUGH, ET AL., PETITIONERS 24–657

 v. 

MERRICK B. GARLAND, ATTORNEY GENERAL

ON APPLICATIONS FOR INJUNCTION PENDING REVIEW 

TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS 

FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT

[January 17, 2025]


https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24-656_ca7d.pdf



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Tuesday, January 14, 2025

 

"... the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial," SPECIAL COUNSEL SMITH

 

The Department of Justice (aka, the Department of Justice Delayed) has released the report of the Special Counsel Jack Smith.

It is a year too late, and a volume short.  (Release of Volume 2 on the Classified Documents has been delayed by Judge Cannon.)


The final conclusion of the report (p 137) is that "... the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial." 


HERE IS THE LINK:

https://www.justice.gov/storage/Report-of-Special-Counsel-Smith-Volume-1-January-2025.pdf

FINAL REPORT ON THE SPECIAL COUNSEL'S INVESTIGATIONS AND PROSECUTIONS 

VOLUME ONE: 

THE ELECTION CASE REPORT ON 

EFFORTS TO INTERFERE WITH THE LAWFUL TRANSFER OF POWER

FOLLOWING THE 2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OR

THE CERTIFICATION OF THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE VOTE 

HELD ON JANUARY 6, 2021 

Special Counsel Jack Smith 

Submitted Pursuant to 28 C.F.R. § 600.8(c) 

Washington, D.C. 

January 7, 2025 


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Monday, January 13, 2025

 

A TERRIFIC USE CASE FOR OPEN AI GPT o1

 

In ancient times, if you had a problem with your computer or an application, the answer might be in the documentation. At that time, it was said that the cost and space requirements of the computer were dwarfed by the cost and space requirements of the documentation. If you could not find the answer in your wall sized bookshelves of documentation, a professional expert was needed, or the problem was just declared unsolvable.

Somewhat later, say mid 1990's, the idea of online help from someone sharing your computer screen on the young web appeared. (I helped invent one of  the first systems like that at IBM.)

Later, if you had a problem, Google started making it possible to google it.  If someone had encountered that earlier, you might find some kind of solution on the web. Still later, you might find an explanation posted on YouTube on the web.  It was still hit-or-miss, and depended on what was already written down or had been explained on some video that search could find.


Now, OPEN AI GPT o1 will listen to your problem, and coach you through the answer. If you have a problem, it will give you more detail.  The help can be amazing.  

One example: In a multi-page sign-on/registration for an application, I was stuck. The NEXT button would not light up. I asked o1 for help.  It explained how one of the terms on the page could not be seen unless the page was full screen, and that a button was looking for something quite different from what it seemed to me to be asking for. To make me feel better(?) o1 even pointed out that other people had the same problem!

The instructions from o1 were considerably more complete, easier to follow, and more correct, than the instructions from the application's own site!


I've had similar success getting HELP!!! using o1 a number of other times!




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Friday, November 15, 2024

 

TWITTER => X => NEW TOS (YOUR CONTENT WILL BE USED FOR TRAINING AI'S)

 

The application formerly known as Twitter, now X, has new Terms of Service (TOS) going into effect November 15, 2024.

The TOS now states explicitly it can use content on the system to train its AIs:

You agree that this license includes the right for us to (i) provide, promote, and improve the Services, including, for example, for use with and training of our machine learning and artificial intelligence models, whether generative or another type; 


Other terms include a limitation on the number of posts that can be accessed quickly (inhibits searching the system to analyze it) and a provision that requires litigation to proceed through a favorable judge.


X TOS 2024-11-15

https://x.com/en/tos


(Note: Since this URL does not contain a version number or a date, if the TOS changes, the page may change and there may be no record of the earlier TOS, except possibly on the Internet Archive.)


There has recently been an exodus of users from X.  Instructions to download your archive of posts, and then delete them from X, can be obtained from ChatGPT 4o with a simple query/prompt. (It may take a while for X to prepare your Archive and download it to you.)

 


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Monday, November 04, 2024

 

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION ISSUES

 

ON EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE CENTRAL ISSUES

 KAMALA IS IN A MORE FAVORABLE POSITION

 THAN eXP (eXPotus)!


#1 DEMOCRACY


Kamala intends to honor her oath to “support and defend the constitution of the United States” as she has done in all her previous positions – as prosecutor, Senator, and Vice President of the United States.

 

eXP IS A CONVICTED FELON, who SAYS, PUBLICLY, he intends to be a dictator on Day 1.

eXP violated his oath to “support and defend the constitution of the United States” on Jan 6, 2021.

Project 2025 is a description of HIS PLANS for the government to be taken over by a dictatorial regime, to be used to convert the government into an organization to work for the interests of the eXP and rich businessmen, at the expense of all other Americans.

SCOTUS has given POTUS immunity – essentially no check on POTUS’ powers. When eXP was POTUS, people who were his senior staff constantly held him back from attempts on using dictatorial powers – his attempt to ignore the Constitution and laws, for example, to use the army to attack US citizens, and to impound voting machines.

He became an insurrectionist when he tried to overthrow the elected government of the US on Jan 6, 2021 with a violent mob, to disrupt the certification of the 2020 election. 

With the new POTUS immunity ruling, eXP would be unhindered in his self-dealing.

We cannot choose to lose our LIBERTY.

Patriots say,  "Give me liberty or give me death!"  eXP plans to take that away.


KAMALA HARRIS IS FAVORED ON THE ISSUE OF DEMOCRACY!


#2 CHARACTER


eXP is a proven liar, a convicted felon, guilty of committing election law violations and fraudulently concealing the payoffs. He was found guilty of massive civil fraud. His “charity” was found guilty of fraud. A jury found him guilty of sexual abuse. Numerous accusations have not been resolved, for example, that his relationships with Epstein permitted him to commit acts of pedophilia, He has bragged of walking through the dressing room while the young female contestants of his teen “beauty pageant” were dressing. He bragged that he could just grab women. He publicly mocked people with disabilities. He provoked violence – for example when he told the audience, including  armed white nationalists, on Jan 6, 2021 to “fight like hell”. He had three wives. He cheated on them.

Note: If you have a strong stomach and you do not believe how vulgar eXP is, then watch this clip: https://x.com/ananavarro/status/1852687230063476779

He said he believes in winning. He does not say he believes in making the lives of every American better.


Kamala has no character issues.

We cannot elect a man of such terrible moral character to the most important office in the world, Our Presidency!


KAMALA HARRIS IS FAVORED ON THE ISSUE OF CHARACTER!


#3 NATIONAL SECURITY


eXP has given credence to Putin over domestic intelligence. He has said he has a great relationship with Putin. He has "love letters" from Kim Jong Un.

During his administration, Russia was given free rein to act in the Middle East. eXP scrapped the nuclear treaty with Iran, ending the agreed deterrence, allowing them to come within a very short time of being able to deploy nuclear weapons. He allowed North Korea to  make great strides in developing their nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles. He negotiated a disastrous end to the war in Afghanistan, not admitting the Afghan government into the process, letting the Taliban loose, so they were in control of the country, and releasing the current leader of the Taliban from jail, and not even not communicating during the transition with the Biden administration.

eXP has favored autocratic leaders over our allies.  Here is one example:

"Our allies are worse than our so-called enemies:

https://x.com/i/status/1852471847822262695/


He denounced NATO, the prime military alliance keeping peace in Western Europe. He tried to corrupt the Ukrainian government by blackmailing them to try to get "dirt" on the Biden family. (He was impeached for this, but not convicted in the Senate by the GOP.)

He waffled on China. Sometimes trying to blame them for the COVID crisis. Sometimes praising XI. He increased tariffs on some products, raising American prices, and causing problems for American farmers, which led him to create a payout to American farmers.

On one occasion he revealed sensitive classified data to Russia. He had secret conversations with the Russians, destroying any transcripts, possibly* contrary to American laws. (*Note: The immunity decision by GOP SCOTUS Justices may have "de-illegaled" acts like these.)

He absconded with extremely highly classified documents when he exited the White House, and left them in unsecured semi-public locations at Mar-a-Lago. He did not return them when they were subpoenaed. He was indicted for these actions. He revealed some classified document information to one or more people without appropriate security clearances.

He took actions in the Middle East that were provocative, increasing the tension with Iran, possibly stoking the "fires" that let to the Oct 7 pogrom in Israel. He was very supportive of MBS in Saudi Arabia, dismissing the murder of American Journalist Khashogghi. Very shortly after eXP left the White House, Saudi Arabia invested at least $2B in a fund managed by Jared Kushner, eXP's daugher Ivanka's husband.

During his administration it is estimated the eXP made millions of dollars in rentals and fees from foreign dignitaries staying at his properties, in possible violation of the emoluments clause in the Constitution.


The Biden-Harris administration has repaired relations with our allies in Europe, Asia and the rest of the world. They are supporting Israel's defense, while trying to provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians. They have taken a strong lead in trying to repatriate the hostages, and develop a long-term peace. They developed an alliance that helped Israel defend against Iranian missile attacks.

They have taken a strong stand, and developed a strong alliance to defend Ukraine, with sending any American soldiers into battle. 

The strong defense by the Biden-Harris administration of Democracy and the Rule of Law, has preserved the role of the USA as leader of the free world, and the Dollar$ as the center of world finance.


KAMALA HARRIS IS FAVORED ON THE ISSUE OF NATIONAL SECURITY!


...More issues to come!

*** ***** ***

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION ISSUES

 #1 DEMOCRACY, #2 CHARACTER, #3 NATIONAL SECURITY

https://qporit.blogspot.com/2024/11/presidential-election-issues.html/


#4 THE ECONOMY, #5 IMMIGRATION, #6 WOMEN'S HEALTH

https://qporit.blogspot.com/2024/11/presidential-election-issues-4-economy.html/



*** ***** ***

*** ***** ***


WHY AND HOW THE DEMOCRATS 

CAN WIN 

A LANDSLIDE VICTORY

UP AND DOWN THE BALLOT


https://qporit.blogspot.com/2024/08/2024-landslide-why-how.html/







***





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