{"id":7510,"date":"2024-09-06T15:32:28","date_gmt":"2024-09-06T22:32:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/?p=7510"},"modified":"2024-09-06T15:32:28","modified_gmt":"2024-09-06T22:32:28","slug":"things-glen-found-interesting-volume-469","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2024\/09\/06\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-469","title":{"rendered":"Things Glen Found Interesting, Volume 469"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-4396\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1024%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1200%2C1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=2048&amp;ssl=1 2048w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=1680&amp;ssl=1 1680w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 85vw, 300px\"><\/a><br><br>    On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is volume 469, which is apparently the largest known <em>n<\/em> for which <em>n<\/em>!-1 is&nbsp;prime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Things Glen Found Interesting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list simple-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.plough.com\/en\/topics\/life\/technology\/chatgpt-goes-to-church\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ChatGPT Goes to Church<\/a> (Arlie Coles, Plough): \u201cAccidentally generated heresy is a technical failure; a pastor refusing to speak from the heart and preferring to generate the most probable word sequences for a sermon to the congregation in his care is a moral failure.\u2026 There is no world where deferring preaching and pastoral care to a text generator does not end with deterioration \u2013 first of formation, then of the clergy, and finally of the people in their&nbsp;care.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The author is a research scientist who focuses on deep learning.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/science\/2024\/09\/05\/see-through-transparent-mice-food-dye\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Scientists use food dye found in Doritos to make see-through mice<\/a> (Carolyn Y. Johnson, Washington Post): \u201cIn a series of experiments that could have been plucked from the pages of science fiction, researchers at Stanford University massaged a solution containing tartrazine, the chemical found in the food dye known as \u2018yellow No. 5,\u2019 onto the stomachs, scalps and hind legs of mice. About five minutes later, the opaque skin of the mice transformed temporarily into a living window, revealing branching blood vessels, muscle fibers and contractions of the gut, they reported Thursday in the journal Science.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>One of the study\u2019s leaders, Dr. Guosong Hong, was part of Chi Alpha at Stanford. See <a href=\"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/10.1126\/science.adm6869\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/10.1126\/science.adm6869\">the actual journal article<\/a> for more details and some wild images.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/09\/01\/magazine\/worthless-pennies-united-states-economy.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">America Must Free Itself from the Tyranny of the Penny<\/a> (Caity Weaver, New York Times): \u201cMost pennies produced by the U.S. Mint are given out as change but never spent; this creates an incessant demand for new pennies to replace them, so that cash transactions that necessitate pennies (i.e., any concluding with a sum whose final digit is 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 or 9) can be settled. Because these replacement pennies will themselves not be spent, they will need to be replaced with new pennies that will also not be spent, and so will have to be replaced with new pennies that will not be spent, which will have to be replaced by new pennies (that will not be spent, and so will have to be replaced). In other words, we keep minting pennies because no one uses the pennies we&nbsp;mint.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/08\/30\/opinion\/college-dei-programs-diversity.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">D.E.I. Is Not Working on College Campuses. We Need a New Approach.<\/a> (Paul Brest and Emily Levine, New York Times): \u201cRather than correcting stereotypes, diversity training too often reinforces them and breeds resentment, impeding students\u2019 social development. An excessive focus on identity can be just as harmful as the pretense that identity doesn\u2019t matter. Overall, these programs may undermine the very groups they seek to aid by instilling a victim mind-set and by pitting students against one another.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The two authors are Stanford affiliates. Paul Brest is a former dean of Stanford Law School, and Emily Levine is associate professor of education and history at Stanford.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/culture\/368201\/volunteer-charity-donations-systemic-change-activism-nonprofits-loneliness-philanthropy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Why I changed my mind about volunteering<\/a> (Rachel M. Cohen, Vox): \u201cPhilanthropy certainly has some great victories in funding \u2018root\u2019 solutions, but Buchanan urges against the mentality that only permanently eradicating a problem is worth doing. \u2018You shouldn\u2019t assume that a focus on roots is necessarily superior,\u2019 he writes. \u2018Trimming branches is also important.\u2019 In a way, it can feel safe to distrust the value of individual action. Being wary of philanthropy and charitable groups that promise to better the world resonates with the skepticism I\u2019ve been trained to have, professionally and culturally. It also allows me to avoid making sacrifices; there\u2019s no real vulnerability or bets required.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>I didn\u2019t know that Tolkien had <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.ayjay.org\/tom\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/blog.ayjay.org\/tom\/\">explained Tom Bombadil<\/a> (Alan Jacobs, a Baylor prof).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Less Serious Things Which Also Interested\/Amused Glen<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list simple-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/8-day-old-jewish-baby-excited-for-this-cool-party-theyre-throwing-for-him-and-hey-whats-that-sharp-metal-thing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">8\u2011Day-Old Jewish Baby Excited For Cool Party They\u2019re Throwing For Him And Hey Why Are All The Women Leaving And Who Is This Guy In The Robes<\/a> (Babylon Bee)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/youtube.com\/shorts\/AUznHKlekm8?feature=shared\">Cooking A Pizza On The Jobsite<\/a> (YouTube): sixty seconds<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/swordscomic.com\/comic\/DCCCLXX\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Genie Wishes<\/a> (Swords Comic)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gocomics.com\/pearlsbeforeswine\/2024\/09\/05\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">A Conference for Ladies<\/a> (Pearls Before Swine)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Why Do You Send This&nbsp;Email?<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In the time of King David, the tribe of Issachar produced shrewd warriors \u201cwho understood the times and knew what Israel should do\u201d (1 Chron 12:32). In a similar way, we need to become wise people whose faith interacts with the world. I pray this email gives you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Disclaimer<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Chi Alpha is not a partisan organization. To paraphrase another minister: we are not about the donkey\u2019s agenda and we are not about the elephant\u2019s agenda \u2014 we are about the Lamb\u2019s agenda. Having said that, I read widely (in part because I believe we should aspire to pass <a href=\"http:\/\/econlog.econlib.org\/archives\/2011\/06\/the_ideological.html\">the ideological Turing test<\/a> and in part because I do not believe I can fairly say \u201cI agree\u201d or \u201cI disagree\u201d until I can say \u201cI understand\u201d) and may at times share articles that have a strong partisan bias simply because I find the article stimulating. The upshot: you should not assume I agree with everything an author says in an article I mention, much less things the author has said in other articles (although if I strongly disagree with something in the article I\u2019ll usually mention it). And to the extent you can discern my opinions, please understand that they are my own and not necessarily those of Chi Alpha or any other organization I may be perceived to represent.\n\nAlso, remember that I\u2019m not reporting news \u2014 I\u2019m giving you a selection of things I found interesting. There\u2019s a lot happening in the world that\u2019s not making an appearance here because I haven\u2019t found stimulating articles written about it.\n\nIf this was forwarded to you and you want to receive future emails, sign up <a href=\"https:\/\/theglendavis.substack.com\/\">here<\/a>. You can also <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/category\/links\">view the archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way. This is volume 469, which is apparently the largest known n for which n!-1 is&nbsp;prime. Things Glen Found Interesting \u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2024\/09\/06\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-469\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> \u201cThings Glen Found Interesting, Volume 469\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[16],"tags":[219,140,135],"class_list":["post-7510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-links","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-culture","tag-stanford"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6Ded-1X8","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7510"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7510\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7511,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7510\/revisions\/7511"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}