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- đź‘‘ Fortnite and Nazi kids
đź‘‘ Fortnite and Nazi kids
+ Chaos, madness
069, haha
OVERWORLD:
-Is Fortnite turning kids into Nazis? Maybe, probably not.-
ONE BETWEEN:
-Maybe isn’t AI that cool after all, research shows.-
THE DEPTHS:
-Ran, the greatest Japanese film of all time-
 | O |  |
Hmmm
Is Fortnite turning kids into Nazis? Maybe, probably not.
Kids like playing with the forbidden. In todays media landscape, specifically in Fortnite, that manifests in a couple of ways.
After Donald Trump's shooting a controversial Fortnite player-made game titled "Donald Trump vs Assassin" was made and was swiftly removed.
These types of controversial games have become an edgy little subculture inside Fortnite’s “Islands” feature, where users create their own content.
Fortnite is actually pretty wild:
Gosh darn: One game replicated the Jasenovac concentration camp, where thousands of Jews, Romani, and Serbs were murdered during World War II. Players played as the Ustaša, a Croatian nationalist group influenced by fascism and Nazism. The game was labeled as “educational.”
Staying current: "Trump vs Biden," has players fighting on red or blue teams representing their parties. Epic Games deemed it non-violative as players do not impersonate real-life candidates.
Ah, Deutschland: "afD ZONEWARS" features Germany's right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. The game actually includes a song referencing the “Great Replacement” theory (basically, immigirants are replacing white europeans").
Alice Weidel, inside Fortnite.
✦Bad apples✦
Gaming has struggled with hate speech and extremist content for a minute. Most of it can be seen as kids being kids; good ole’ raunchy recess etiquette, you know?
Obviously, not all players internalize this, but the exposure can normalize harmful ideologies, especially among impressionable youth. The real issue is just the risk of having that minority of freaks that take things too seriously.
So, games blatantly violating policies, like those depicting violence against Jewish people or simulating the January 6 Capitol storming, have been flagged and sometimes removed only after external intervention.
When WIRED approached Epic Games, they acknowledged removing two games violating policies, including the Jasenovac game.
THE KING NEEDS YOU
Human, you are a mere. Do you not seek grander ventures? A greater title? Honor? Take up arms, and help me expand my kingdom!
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Refer a friend with this link.
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✦Business & Tech✦
OpenAI launched “GPT-4o mini”, its most capable and cost-efficient small AI model. This mini version supports text, images, audio, and video, available to all ChatGPT users.
It’s happening: Netflix's Q2 earnings report highlights strong global subscriber growth and a 34% increase in ad-supported memberships. The company's crackdown on password sharing and introduction of a cheaper, ad-supported tier boosted the stock, so it’s working.
✦Fashion & Culture✦
What? Sean Kingston and his mother face up to 20 years in prison if convicted of a $1 million wire fraud scheme involving fraudulent purchases of high-end items. They were indicted on multiple fraud charges.
Loser wins: Eminem just got the highest selling rap album of 2024 with "The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce)". It debuted at No. 1 on Billboard 200 with 281,000 units. The album sucks donkey balls.
Big money art: Fondation Louis Vuitton's new exhibition, "The Collection: A Sports Meeting," explores the intersection of sports and culture. Featuring works by Warhol, Gursky, Diop, and Basquiat, it examines themes like race, commercialization, and societal paradoxes in sports. The exhibition runs in Paris until September 9, 2024.
✦Hmm… Interesting✦
Cozy 1-minute read: on being unemployed at 26
Hardware: Building A Galaksija, Part I: The Tech
Badass Cambridge PDF study: Human parasites in the Roman World: health consequences of conquering an empire
ONE
BETWEEN
Duh
Maybe isn’t AI that cool after all, research shows.
Gartner, a tech research firm, says generative AI has entered the “Peak of Inflated Expectations.” Basically, shit is very overhyped and unrealistic right now.
The Gartner hype cycle graphically shows how new technologies mature in general.
Start: First, there's a “technology trigger,” a new technology that starts the hype cycle.
Then: It all peaks with inflated expectations, then drops into a “trough of disillusionment” when hype fades. We're here now, supposedly.
Finally: The technology then climbs a “slope of enlightenment” as its practical uses are reassessed and finally reaches the “plateau of productivity.”
✦Not so controversial✦
Gartner’s analysis joins a new consensus among financial institutions and research firms. This concensus says that while generative AI is revolutionary, we're kinda pushing it. Many investors may not see returns.
Gartner's June report, "Hype Cycle for Artificial Intelligence, 2024", sees a fat investment in AI, especially generative AI. But, but, but… the expected business value has not been realized.
An interesting prediction it makes, is that in 2024, more value will come from projects using other AI techniques.
Again, generative AI is now in the "trough of disillusionment". Many companies and investments will fail during this phase.
Yet, Gartner believes Generative AI is still a “transformational” innovation. It is expected to achieve mainstream adoption within 2-5 years. On the other hans, AI types, like computer vision, are already productive and proves AI’s lasting stamina.
THE DEPTHS
Sick
Ran, the greatest Japanese film of all time
“Ran” (乱) is Japanese for madness, or chaos. For Akira Kurosawa, it was the perfect name for his 1985 magnum opus, “Ran”. The name is so on the nose, that it makes the nose bleed.
That’s because Ran is Shakespeare's King Lear refitted into sixteenth-century feudal Japan. King Lear, if you didn’t know, is about an aging monarch who divides his kingdom among his daughters, leading to betrayal, madness, and the tragic downfall of his family and kingdom.
✦Numbers✦
With a budget of $11–12 million, it was the most expensive film in the history of Japanese cinema upon its release. Everything had to be on point:
1,400 uniforms and suits of armor were handmade by master tailors over more than two years. 200 horses were used for the film.
✦So rare✦
Kurosawa obtained rare permission to shoot at two of Japan’s most cherished landmarks: the ancient castles at Kumamoto and Himeji.
Kurosawa Japanifies Shakespeare: In Ran, the aging Lord Hidetora decides to divide his kingdom among his three sons. And so, the chaos and madness starts. In their hands, Hidetora is thrown out, reduced to an insane hobo roaming his fallen kingdom.
We see, and feel, the "Ran," the literal chaos of the title: structure turns into dust and legacy into strangership.
✦Insane performance✦
Tatsuya Nakadai plays Lord Hidetora, and the performance is, in a word, sick. He begins with a fierce composure - a king whose legend demands respect and fear.
But as he falls into madness, his eyes grow red, his face lined. By the end of it all, he is a hull of the leader he once was, as useful as the dirt on the ground.
✦The making of✦
Kurosawa knew what he wanted to make. He needed lots of money, time, and attention. So, he spent 10 years preparing every detail and scoured the world for funding.
When it was done, Kurosawa was 75 years old - and his age showed no dullness. In fact, film perverts regard Ran as one of the greatest films ever made.
