Comic for Wednesday, Sep 13, 2023

[ChronosCat 155]

https://www.egscomics.com/comic/layers-048

I haven't commented on any of the recent comics, so I'll mention now that I think Elliot and Tedd look cute like that.

Moving on to the issue of sleep: Personally, six hours is enough to get me through most of the day, but I'll be dragging by the end of the day if I don't get a nap in. If I haven't missed any sleep recently, 7 hours can usually get me through the day, but I can only manage it for a few days in a row. Eight hours is sustainable, but if I don't make any attempt to control how much sleep I get, and don't have any reason to get up before I'm fully rested, I tend to default to 9 hours.

Unfortunately, much like Tedd and Dan, I have a tendency to get caught up in things and go to bed really late. I'm in a position where I can usually get all the sleep I need afterward, but it means I miss most or all of the morning (at least those part around and after dawn). This is really annoying, as I like mornings. (To make the situation downright frustrating, my ability to delay gratification decreases as I get tired, meaning deciding to get to bed on time doesn't actually help much.)

[mlooney 3,417]

It depends on several factors as to how much sleep I get. Over the last 3 weeks or so, I've been getting less than 6 hours a day, which is sub-optimal.

[Darth Fluffy 302]

2 hours ago, ChronosCat said:

. . . I'll be dragging by the end of the day if I don't get a nap in.

Of course. You're a cat.

[Darth Fluffy 302]

I have been making an effort to get to bed at a reasonable time (shoot for 10:00 PM) and it seems to help. I don't know precisely how much sleep I am getting, because I never sleep through the night. I wake up two or three times, and require a few minutes of activity to get back to feeling sleepy.

[Pharaoh RutinTutin 1,586]

 

That look . . .

Tedd & Elliot met when Elliot beat up someone hurting Tedd.  When Tedd is hurting Tedd, there is no one for Elliot to beat up.

 

[Amiable Dorsai 70]

I have chronic insomnia. Six hours is a good night. Several bad nights in a row and I might as well be drunk for all that I'm likely to accomplish. I also need to remember not to post. The most remarkably stupid shit flows from my fingers to the keyboard when I'm That tired.

 

[mlooney 3,417]

6 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

 

That look . . .

Tedd & Elliot met when Elliot beat up someone hurting Tedd.  When Tedd is hurting Tedd, there is no one for Elliot to beat up.

 

This should be a time where Elliot can practice "punching with words" instead of actual punching.

[Darth Fluffy 302]

Kevin has too much meta-knowledge for his stated function. Why does he know about college studies and human rest needs? I'm sure reasons can be constructed, but it does not flow naturally.

[Pharaoh RutinTutin 1,586]

 

Kevin was designed to be a teaching tool.  

He would have been familliar with educational theories, customs & institutions from 20 to 30 years ago.  Such as when Dan was in school.

 

[mlooney 3,417]

We don't know how much Arthur put in to Kevin before he "came to life".  Teaching theory at least and some back ground physiology that effects learning would not be out of place.  

[Darth Fluffy 302]

2 hours ago, mlooney said:

We don't know how much Arthur put in to Kevin before he "came to life".  Teaching theory at least and some back ground physiology that effects learning would not be out of place.  

We've has 'teaching machines' since the 1950s; I have friends that have worked in coding educational software. I have some exposure to old school 'expert system' A.I. None of these gets this meta. The latest 'deep learning' models can, but the performance is erratic. If that was Kevin, he would be less pedantic and would make some noticeable errors. I suppose it's a ymmv issue; it just does not pass the smell test for me.

Note, I do not disagree with your statements, they would not be out of place, I just don't see Arthur cramming all of that proactivity into Kevin.

A really dark scenario (too dark for EGS) would be that Arthur transferred the psyche of one of his assistants into a wand. It would account for all of the loose ends.

 

3 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

Kevin was designed to be a teaching tool.  

He would have been familiar with educational theories, customs & institutions from 20 to 30 years ago.  Such as when Dan was in school.

Arthur would have been familiar with these. Kevin would not. Arthur would have selected an educational paradigm for Kevin to follow, or perhaps a set, with selection criteria; he would not have left him to his own devices. The secretive nature of Kevin's subject matter does not lend itself to use in a traditional educational setting. I think we can assume he was designed for use in-house in the department, or for a budding agent to use in a private setting (much as Ashley is encouraged to do), or perhaps Kevin was designed for his granddaughter, Jay. None of these lead to a need for an in-depth understanding of colleges and universities, and the lifestyles of college students. As presumably Kevin has always been a wooden stick, albeit nicely painted (not going to the dark scenario mentioned above), he would lack empathy for his students; in fact, that is much of the humor associated with Kevin. 'College students often overextend themselves' is not something he knows - other than, apparently, he does, per the comic.

Which is one of a small handful of reasons that I find Kevin particularly annoying. He is not a well designed character.

An unfortunate accident around a fireplace could solve this, you know.

Did I mention he is EGS's Scrappy?

 

[ijuin 572]

2 hours ago, Darth Fluffy said:

Note, I do not disagree with your statements, they would not be out of place, I just don't see Arthur cramming all of that proactivity into Kevin.

A really dark scenario (too dark for EGS) would be that Arthur transferred the psyche of one of his assistants into a wand. It would account for all of the loose ends.

My guess is that Arthur copied a subset of his own personality and knowledge onto Kevin. 

[mlooney 3,417]

2 hours ago, ijuin said:

My guess is that Arthur copied a subset of his own personality and knowledge onto Kevin. 

That would be a good guess.

[Darth Fluffy 302]

11 hours ago, ijuin said:

My guess is that Arthur copied a subset of his own personality and knowledge onto Kevin. 

Which would be odd in that Arthur is kind of laid back, vs Kevin is kind of spastic, although, Arthur in the presence of magic, debating on whether it should change, had a shorter fuse than Tedd or Van. You're probably right, if we get an official W.o.D. backstory.

[ChronosCat 155]

I'm not sure if this makes things better or worse (possibly both, in different ways), but remember that Kevin was never intended to be sentient; the changes to the rules of magic (and possibly the destruction of the Diamond, though Arthur doesn't mention that) resulted in him being given life and a personality.

[mlooney 3,417]

Makes me wonder is Tedd can learn and make a wand that casts the "makes a wand sentient" spell.  That's sorta a horrifying thought if he can create a thinking creature from magic alone.

[Darth Fluffy 302]

39 minutes ago, mlooney said:

Makes me wonder is Tedd can learn and make a wand that casts the "makes a wand sentient" spell.  That's sorta a horrifying thought if he can create a thinking creature from magic alone.

. . . and that's where the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation got the Real People Personalities^TM. 

I'm kind of glad my appliances don't have this. People are weird enough, imagine if every interaction with your environment carried similar weight and consequences. The toaster is always flirting because she knows she's a hottie. The TV critiques your selections, and overrides your choices.  The vacuum cleaner is always sulking; "Life sucks. I suck. I don't want to be here, put me back in the closet. Paint me black." OK, that's even worse than Kevin.

Hmm, maybe The Terminator isn't the most horrific AI scenario?

[Pharaoh RutinTutin 1,586]

 

Remember the weird comments the appliance animals would make in the Flintstones?  Well just imagine actual appliances doing that every day . . .

Is there any necromantic aspect to Tedd's magic?  There are people dying at all times.  What if an enchantment could snag a dying person's soul (or a piece of that soul) making it a part of the enchanted object?

 

[Don Edwards 548]

2 hours ago, Darth Fluffy said:

I'm kind of glad my appliances don't have this. People are weird enough, imagine if every interaction with your environment carried similar weight and consequences. The toaster is always flirting because she knows she's a hottie.

Another Freefall reference:

[mlooney 3,417]

2 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

Is there any necromantic aspect to Tedd's magic?  There are people dying at all times.  What if an enchantment could snag a dying person's soul (or a piece of that soul) making it a part of the enchanted object?

 

I suspect that necromancy isn't part of the EGS magic system because it's not fun.  Of course The Dan has started to make the EGS magic system a little darker, but not up to necromancy.  It might be that vampires use necromancy to become vampires, that would jive with what we know about them.

[Darth Fluffy 302]

19 hours ago, mlooney said:

I suspect that necromancy isn't part of the EGS magic system because it's not fun.  Of course The Dan has started to make the EGS magic system a little darker, but not up to necromancy.  It might be that vampires use necromancy to become vampires, that would jive with what we know about them.

What about Akmed, the undead terrorist . . . no, you're right, not fun.  Hmm, . . .