Author: sereshk

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AI Saves Time? – or: Ideas, Inspiration, Human Intelligence and the Machine

Image of a man, some bubbles with question marks in them and a figure that looks like an android, its hand raised in direction of the bubbles, its back to the viewer, the man looking rather strictly at the figure.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

AI, so it appears, saves time: Let it summarize a longer text for you which you do not have the time to read in full. Let it make (‘generate’ = Gen AI) a little image you could use in an online blog post. Even let it create whole (short) videos to use for posting and sharing online…

Well, so far the theory.

Yet, as so often is the case, theory and practice are not the same thing at all.

You can use AI for all of the above these days. But the fact remains that AI is not really intelligent. The term ‘Artificial Intelligence’ suggests it, of course. But that’s a marketing term. Using ‘create’ as a term makes it appear as if… there was actually something creative.

Because, what AI does is reuse already known material and re-assemble in a likely manner.

How Do I Know?

As a technical writer by profession I documented AI successfully. The US-agency Gartner mentioned that documentation specially in their Magic Quadrant on Metadata Applications in 2019.

Since then I also have tested all the popular AI tools you can use for such tasks online and offline, such as ChatGPT, Le Chat, Claude, ‘Copilot(s)’ or a plugin called AMP.
In technical writing you could use these as a sort of optimization tool. Once your text is ready, let the AI go through it and optimize according to standards.

But in technical documentation as such, content creation or creation of visual material, AI is not really helpful.

Why?

    • You need a good idea of where you want to go with this, of what you actually need.
    • You then need to write a prompt for your AI tool to have it generate what you want.
    • When the output is available, you need to check, for facts, for correctness of representation, for quality.
    • Very often the first few attempts fail because AI will just re-use already known data for the patterns to find and re-assemble.

That’s why you often see AI-generated images or videos that look strangely puppet-like, smoothed in all the wrong places or simply skewed.

Texts on the other hand will be somehow always ‘like that other one’.

The technology behind AI makes this practically an unavoidable scenario:

    1. AI is based on algorithms: they are like chains of formulas. These formulas basically depend on probability, statistics and their patterns.
    2. Once the AI’s framework is in place, it will be trained on certain data that fit its use case. The algorithms and their sequences may then be refined.
    3. Finally the new data such as online databases is used to find more patterns, of the same or similar.

Therefore, you cannot replace humans with AI.

Because, in complex uses cases, these things take time. Because, anything you will let an AI generate will always remind you of something. It will sometimes appear a little lifeless, even strangely familiar. But it will never be unique. Never have that feel about it. And miss out on that ‘spark of inspiration’ that makes human intelligence so special.

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“Smile and the World Will Smile With You” – or: The Smile of Asia

Four pictures of smiling people
Image by Sasin Tipchai, Yogendra Singh, Hữu Thanh Cái and Tri Le from Pixabay, my arrangement

The smile of Asia as a phrase has been used in advertising – too. But the actual fact is also that in many countries around the world, especially in the Near or Far East, as they are called, smiling at others you never even met before is a custom.

People from other parts of the world often feel charmed and after a while even puzzled by these smiles. Aren’t we friends, when we smile? Or at least close?

There’s another fine line that Rudyard Kipling, English ‘poet laureate’ and award-winning writer, used in his book “Kim”:

“The indifference of native crowds he was used to.
But this strong loneliness among white men preyed on him.”

If you have once encountered and actually felt that atmosphere and met people from those parts, you will come to realize that he was right. It feels exactly that way. That sense of community and friendliness, acceptance of others as human beings can be heart-warming.

I am not originally from anywhere close to those parts. But I have lived with and learned from the Persian culture for the better part of my comparatively long live.

I have come to appreciate that feeling. It is based on the idea, that we of course would need to really meet, get to know the other person in order to be friends. But that as human beings we can be close, because we are similar in our needs and wishes and sorrows and joys; we need each other, in troubled times as well as in joyful times.

According to that nice saying too:
“Sorrow shared is sorrow halfed. Joy shared is doubled joy.”

It can help also to (again) understand that in spite of the advantages the individualism in Western countries has brought, it can make people lonely. The pandemic has increased and sharpened that.

Perhaps the ideas we see daily actually ‘thrown’ at us all around the clock (if we don’t filter them), online that is, about being ever more optimized, the ‘perfect person’, make it more difficult.

The daily live in Asia has developed over thousands of years, climate and living conditions as well as ancient philosophy and customs are part of it. We can learn that:

Smile – and the world will smile with you.

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No Way Out from Under the Putin-Trump-Edge? – The Ant Principle: Powerful in Droves!

Globe on a blue surface, Europe visible, with golden glowing lights behind it.
Image licensed via Adobe CC

In 2016 it already was clear and being published by reliable sources: Trump and Putin were in close contact. Over the years numerous interviews and remarks, recorded of Trump too, made two things very clear:

    • He admire(s)d Putin immensely for his way to (apparently) have people jump through hoops at his command.
    • He uses scare tactics to ‘make deals’. He proudly calls himself in front of cameras a ‘deal maker’.

But these also are facts:

The most powerful industry in the US is the one producing weapons.

The most needed resource in the US is oil, fuels from fossils, in general.

Now, perhaps even fighting for his life, this sorry excuse for a man called Trump uses any means in the book of cruelty and baseness to get his way.

    • The Ukraine war is welcome and even obviously one more cruelty that costs thousands of lives – to put NATO and the EU under pressure: Buy more weapons, raising their annual used on ‘protection’. Putin right behind it…
    • Tariffs raised purportedly to protect the US…
    • EU leaders have been called one after another to visit and ‘discuss’. The first to fall was Giorgia Meloni, Italy.
    • The first to go was Britain.
    • NATO seems at the mercy of the US, since they produce most of the weapons NATO-members so far buy – yet.
    • Trump has been known for bullying, corruption and bribery, as well as molestation in smaller contexts.
    • He is a convicted criminal on 34 counts. This also is a fact.
    • The Epstein papers are another instance and proof of that fact.

The only means to fight back is: Standing together. Because, the US depend on the EU just as much as the EU does.
The Office of United States Trade Representative states so itself in numbers, here.

Mr Trump has to be reminded of his ‘manners’ and the limits he comes off at.

This is no way to deal with a strong, international community. Period.

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The Trump-administration on the Prowl: Venezuela, Greenland, Iran – and NATO

Image of oil wells on a huge field at sunset and dollar notes in the background, half-transparent.
Image licensed via Adobe CC

Anyone with the least bit of knowledge of recent history (past couple of decades) and the main characters involved knows: It’s not about anything but oil. And that sad excuse for a man being US-president who is not only fighting for his ‘job’, but also probably has to fulfill more or less secret promises to industry leaders. Rather less secret, I should think…

When we look into history these things can become clearer, since patterns emerge. It’s not about conspiracy theories but facts.

Facts are, and have been as long as the industrial revolution and cars as well as factories clamored for ever more oil and gasoline and petrol and… you name it – especially in the US – that this dire need of fuels triggered all kinds of wars and pushy international behaviour.

Fuels made from fossils, in short.
It’s shameful to watch how the second time in office makes this person even more ruthless, reckless and actually disgusting.

I know a lot about Iran, I love that old, wonderful culture and language. I know how much the people there suffer from the internal affairs a regime of apparently religiously motivated clerical leadership creates for them in severe restraints to personal freedom and denial of the basic human rights.

Yet, there are signs that since threats don’t work with Iran’s regime and international support is strong, triggering uprisings is the next step a country like the US famous for its ruthless interventions and conquering when to their advantage, ‘protecting their interests’ (‘dohhh’…in foreign countries??) – will stoop to.

Let’s be very aware: Even with more enlightened and very capable leaders at the top the US usually looked out for their own monetary and resources’ needs – not those of others. Look at confirmed chronicles and stories, Vietnam, Korea, Afghanistan, South-America (Chile, Columbia, Nicaragua/Iran…you name any, literally any of them, they consider South America to be their ‘backyard’), Irak, now Venezuela; it’s criminal. Period.

The first to condemn when also to their advantage the last to pull back; almost all the time, with a few fine leaders as exceptions.

The CIA as well as other secret services are part of the system: They determine the knowledge that will be handed down to any new president as soon as he’s inaugurated. (I feel for them sometimes: They all turn grey on top inside of days, after that…)

Iran now: It’s ‘bang full’ of oil and other natural resources. So, after cancelling the contracts for control of uranium enrichment without cause and then bullying and threatening for a couple of years and then realizing that there’s EU, UNO and even some NATO members to be reckoned with – they now try again differently?

The CIA was involved when the last Shah was ‘sent packing’: He had become unable to control the starving masses who saw him and his entourage live in luxury while they weren’t even able to read. The so-called White Revolution was ‘too little too late’. The Islamic Revolution for the past four decades removed Iran’s oil for discount prices from their reach.

The US’s own oil deposits are not nearly enough to feed that greed. That dire need: Keep ‘promises’ and keep US population on the road, because the car is their (second) best-loved device, right after weapons, so it seems.

I beg the pardon of the good ones; but the smart ones over there know what I mean.

Again, be very wary of a country like the US who literally use any means – especially with this ‘leader’ – to reach their self-centered goals.

Author’s Note: The idea of people feeling threatened by all kinds of things, making up conspiracy theories to fit their particular view of the world, is wide-spread. Especially these days. Yet:
There are historical facts known at the respective university departments too. Which can be found in books you can find in all major libraries.
I know that too, because I studied the subject. I received my M.A. degree for English, US-American and Persian language, literature and culture almost 20 years ago, from a well-known university in Germany.
I feel dedicated to the concept of being careful about your facts.
I summarize things here that can be found in more detail elsewhere.
But some things that happen at the moment have reasons that can only be guessed at, this very moment.
The intelligent guesses we can make stem from all those historical facts and the patterns that emerge over time, because it’s the same thing over and over again.
Bluntly put: It’s just too obvious but partners of NATO are not free to say so in front of cameras. The contracts we are bound to as members of NATO and other alliances compel people to keep quiet in public.
That’s why historical documents are so important for a deeper understanding: They show what at the time had been handled behind the scenes as well.

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Trump, Venezuela, Oil, the Weapons’ Industry, Power and… the Sad and Cruel Story of a US-President

Picture of woman running along a street in Venezuela
Screenshot of the news item on New York Times website, taken at 03-01-2026_12-15-05, local time, UTC+1

Today the US strike against Venezuela and its president, Maduro, has been reported. Again, the same patterns repeat: Venezuela is known for oil and gold; additionally, the latest government there was not one to easily stoop to US-influence or orders…

And Donald Trump’s ‘star’ in the US was sinking fast the past couple of weeks, if not months. Now he emerges apparently strong and – additionally – some weapons storage places have been lightened of their burden to make room for more.

“Selling it for all it’s worth.” Sensations make the news. Even here. All one can do is hold back and ignore.

Except when cruelty and plain aggressiveness and greed reign – once more. This has nothing to do with heroism. It’s pure cover-up and greed. Perhaps even desperation.

Shame, shame, shame: Shame on you, Donald Trump and all who are with you. Using money and inherited influence, cruelty and greed to make the headlines.

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All the Same…? – or: Views and Perspectives – or: Thinking Outside the Box

Majorities seem to be the thing… they are many, they are often loud (not always) and they seem to be everywhere… Really? With a little closer look, taking a different view – taking a step back and looking from the outside we may see more.

A crucial matter is that ‘thing’ humans have: They need to be part of something, of a group, a club, a family, a tribe; people, in short, they fit in with. At least to some extent.

But, since the dawn of time we were not all the same: Some people are gardeners, you might say, some are philosophers, some are mathematicians. Some are … you name it.

Another thing can be that at times people tend to feel irritated or self-conscious or intimidated when faced with new ideas and strange people.

So, belonging is a central aspect. It can become complex and sometimes even painful, when there seems a larger group of gardeners and a small group of philosophers, to stay with the examples. Both sides may feel challenged: One side because philosophers seem ‘strange’. The other because they ‘fit’ differently, elsewhere.

When we know about these facts – the idea that we cannot be all the same, that changing perspectives and recalling what is important in life, is crucial too, we may become able (again) to accept the new or strange idea.

Because we feel grounded in our own world view and still are able to integrate something else, something different. New.

That’s where joy can be found: Combine the old and the new into something fruitful and inspiring.

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“Call for Weapons is Open Again”? – War, Peace, Negotiation and Realizing Power-balance

Picture of the UN building in Vienna in front an ancient scroll shape showing two shaking hands.
Image by Dorothe Wouters, and general content, from Pixabay

“Negotiate the hell out of them”… da…rn it. – I’d like to say that directly sometimes to the people concerned at present trying to reach an end to that war, that was unnecessary in the first place, if…
Yes, if people would do their homework, people in power learn from history, and those who know:

Diplomats, for centuries learned ‘at their mothers knee’ what is essential in any kind of politics you may want to conduct:

    • Realize that in politics it is about money, power and – 3rd party interests, those of your own country as well as those of others.
    • Know your opponents’ interests as well as possible. 
    • Realize that it is about power-balance just as much as saving face!
    • The one-time elegance of manners stems also from here: Get to realize that treating the opposing party with respect and the usual formalities makes all the difference.
    • Learn to be patient! Patience – without giving up, or in – is the most important characteristic of successful negotiating.

The Thirty Years’ War in Europe raged exactly that: 30 years.

Whole regions were wasted and cities laid bare because of plundering, murder and legions of soldiers passing that had to be kept, resulting in hunger, starvation and more death.

The weapons’ industry and its entourage are the only ones – if they survive it – that profit from a war.

So, let’s keep telling them: We want peace, we want a power-balance, at least. We want that cruelty and useless destruction to stop, now.

The Thirty Years’ War took 5 years to end it. 5 years of negotiations.

Patience is the order of the day. Not more profit from yet more weapons.

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Nuclear Power Plants Revisited: Seriously? or: “The China Syndrome”

Ever since nuclear power plants were first thought of and installed, there were warnings. Scientific, serious ones. Ever since the USA first used nuclear weapons on another country, namely Japan, there have been protests. All across the world. And huge. Now, the Japanese of all countries put Fukushima, that plant that so dreadfully blew up in 2014, back – ‘on line’?

In the 1970s even Hollywood itself made it part of a feature film, starring a memorable cast of Jack Lemmon, Jane Fonda and Michael Douglas. It makes abundantly clear what people go through when forced to cover up the truth.

We are a little farther along the road, these days. But the danger remains.

And now the French even plan to not only bring back nuclear power by building more plants – but also a whole, nuclear power driven war carrier?

When you read up about it, ‘backed by 800 firms’, you may start to realize what all this warmongering is about: If nothing else works, building weapons always does… make profit, start the economy to be fuelled…?

There is strong evidence that former president John F. Kennedy was murdered by order of the weapons’ industry in the US. Why? Because he planned to change the laws on weapon sales and ownership to make the US ultimately more secure for everybody.

Weapons are no solution. War isn’t either.

Nuclear power is not only dangerous but completely outdated.

Why, in the name of all that is good and productive, don’t they start thinking of and using the alternatives? And produce them? Da…rn it.

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Prejudice, Perspective, Pride and Presumptions – or: The Surface Only?

Image of a bridge and some weeds growing through the iron grill parapet, with a glass sphere reflecting the image upside down.
Image by WorldInMyEyes from Pixabay

“Perspective is Key.” – “Pride and Prejudice”: The latter is a novel by Jane Austen, one of her most famous ones. Jane Austen was a lady and writer and wrote about what she knew best: The life of the landed gentry in early 19th century England.

The title encompasses a lot of what gets in the way of people knowing each other well, especially in formal surroundings, these days most often business.

The prejudice we grow up with or develop over time. A blunt example: People wearing black beanies are at least doubtful in character, perhaps some sort of outlaw – or even criminals…

Or: People laughing may be lacking in respect and subordination in a business context…

Or: People wearing comfortable shoes and clothing (especially women) are of a certain orientation in their private life…

Or: Italians are always passionate and easy to smile and make jokes, and like celebrating and joyful activities… whereas people in North European countries tend to be gruff and a little lacking in social graces…

Really?

Try meeting an Italian at night on a lonely road… or on the other hand North Europeans when you ask them for help – or around a fire on the beach with a guitar…

Stereotypes are often a misstatement of possibilities that have been generalized – too often, too long.

And they also can easily be abused to stamp a group or an individual with the sign of a brand, sort of: Difficult, avoid…

When in actual fact it’s the misogyny, or hatred of the other (better…??) principle, the person that might be considered a threat to ones position – or the simple envy of a (perceived) advantage over ones own existence.

Images and perspective are key, in so many respects.

That’s why checking your sources carefully can be crucial, not to say of the essence.

So much suffering, pain and useless effort are delivered and spent in regard to prejudice.

My father used to put it jokingly, and in plain irony:
“Those are the types that will not have their prejudices spoilt by fact.”

The way out of such pits of misery and their pitfalls? Since, misery is the real result of such thoughts and sometimes ensuing deeds:

    • Find out about your own true self, all the good things and skills you own. The self-esteem.
    • Try and change perspectives on your life and your peers now and again, even if for fun only and see what can happen, at times…

There’s joy and the good, lighthearted laughter in that.

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The IoT: Internet of Things — or: Listening in — or: the (Non)-Smart Home — or: Never Assume

Woman in kitchen holding mobile phone looking at devices with drawn blue highlighted connectors towards her phone
(Image licensed via Adobe CC)

In this world of digital devices and internet connections, faster every day, basically, the so-called IoT, the Internet of Things, for some time now has made a sad appearance and fashion of sorts: The devices connecting to the internet through integrated hardware, such as your Smart-TV, your ‘smart mobile’ — or simply the Smart Home devices such as Siri or Alexa, listen in…

Indeed, it’s a fact: If not switched off deliberately, such devices will record and transfer spoken words, in many cases. Just like that…

What is particularly interesting, is the ‘eavesdroppers’ paradise: People who for the sake of curiosity — or simply to gather information — listen and start assuming…

I have seen it time and again: People observe or hear certain words or situations – and start assuming… Based on a few facts — and a lot of ‘reasoning’, which in fact is just your basic assumption.

These assumptions can be wrong. A nice example is the clip below from the movie “Desk Set”, with Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy. It makes it clear too, how easily we can be wrong when trying to interpret.

I always think, should you overhear somebody in anger, swearing, letting off steam, as it were — and would assume general views of that person, you might come to sadly wrong conclusions…

I’d like to create more awareness of these things: It’s sooo easy to be mistaken. And can lead to such sad results, depending on the situations…

In other words: Never assume.

Author’s Note: Post reused earlier content

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