🥱 You getting sleepy?
Friday, May 30, 2025
Public Occurrences May 30, 2025
I sent the photo to a Jewish friend: His response:
"Maybe he hit himself nazi saluting"
🤣😂
Okay, this is a fun night after all.
A Black Eye at the White House: Did Somebody Punch Elon?
The list of possible suspects seemed long.
Skum had a black eye at his Oval Office farewell with Trump.😅
😳
On the Campaign Trail, Elon Musk Juggled Drugs and Family Drama
As Mr. Musk entered President Trump’s orbit, his private life grew increasingly tumultuous and his drug use was more intense than previously known.
As Elon Musk became one of Donald J. Trump’s closest allies last year, leading raucous rallies and donating about $275 million to help him win the presidency, he was also using drugs far more intensely than previously known, according to people familiar with his activities.
Mr. Musk’s drug consumption went well beyond occasional use. He told people he was taking so much ketamine, a powerful anesthetic, that it was affecting his bladder, a known effect of chronic use. He took Ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms. And he traveled with a daily medication box that held about 20 pills, including ones with the markings of the stimulant Adderall, according to a photo of the box and people who have seen it.
It is unclear whether Mr. Musk, 53, was taking drugs when he became a fixture at the White House this year and was handed the power to slash the federal bureaucracy. But he has exhibited erratic behavior, insulting cabinet members, gesturing like a Nazi and garbling his answers in a staged interview.
...
On Wednesday evening, Mr. Musk announced that he was ending his stint with the government, after lamenting how much time he had spent on politics instead of his businesses.
Mr. Musk and his lawyer did not respond to requests for comment this week about his drug use and personal life. He has previously said he was prescribed ketamine for depression, taking it about every two weeks. And he told his biographer, “I really don’t like doing illegal drugs.”
...At a news conference with Mr. Trump on Friday afternoon, Mr. Musk was asked about The New York Times’s coverage. He questioned the newspaper’s credibility and told the reporter to “move on.”
As a large government contractor, Mr. Musk’s aerospace firm, SpaceX, must maintain a drug-free work force and administers random drug tests to its employees. But Mr. Musk has received advance warning of the tests, according to people close to the process. ...
...
... last year, as he jumped into the political arena, some people who knew him worried about his frequent drug use, mood swings and fixation on having more children. ...
...
...some women are challenging Mr. Musk for control of their children.
A Ketamine Habit
Mr. Musk has described some of his mental health issues in interviews and on social media, saying in one post that he has felt “great highs, terrible lows and unrelenting stress.” He has denounced traditional therapy and antidepressants.
He plays video games for hours on end. He struggles with binge eating, according to people familiar with his habits, and takes weight-loss medication. And he posts day and night on his social media platform, X.
Musk has a history of recreational drug use, The Wall Street Journal reported last year. Some board members at Tesla, his electric vehicle company, have worried about his use of drugs, including Ambien, a sleep medication.
In an interview in March 2024, the journalist Don Lemon pressed him on his drug use. Mr. Musk said he took only “a small amount” of ketamine, about once every two weeks, as a prescribed treatment for negative moods.
He had actually developed a far more serious habit, The Times found.
Mr. Musk had been using ketamine often, sometimes daily, and mixing it with other drugs, according to people familiar with his consumption. The line between medical use and recreation was blurry, troubling some people close to him.
He also took Ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms at private gatherings across the United States and in at least one other country, according to those who attended the events.
...[ketamine] has psychedelic properties and can cause dissociation from reality. Chronic use can lead to addiction and problems with bladder pain and control.
...
On Oct. 5, he appeared with Mr. Trump at a rally for the first time, bouncing up and down
[I remembered the photo from that event when I began reading this article.]
around the candidate. That evening, Mr. Musk shared his excitement with a person close to him. “I’m feeling more optimistic after tonight,” he wrote in a text message. “Tomorrow we unleash the anomaly in the matrix.”
“This is not something on the chessboard, so they will be quite surprised,” Mr. Musk added about an hour later. “‘Lasers’ from space.”
[👀😳I didn't know about that, or about any of the drug use in this article.]
...
Family Secrets
...
Even as Mr. Musk fathered more children, he favored his son X. By the fall of 2022, during a period when he and Ms. Boucher were broken up, he began traveling with the boy for days at a time, often without providing advance notice, according to people familiar with his actions.
Noel Skum Leaves DOGE Job
For a best of 9 NBA playoff series
First night in quite a while no basketball. This is the start of the mean season for me. No NBA, no soccer, not even any NHL, I hate baseball, and no football. Now what am I supposed to do with myself?
Thursday, May 29, 2025
I'm outta here CoPy Cats Willis Circles
108-90, 1:28.
In other spirts scores it's Dallas 3 Edmonton 5, 5:33 3P.
HT Nix 56 Yellow Peril 45
I wouldn't be packing my bags to return to Indy for a G6 just yet if I were the Blue and Arrange. Haliban has not been heard from tonight so far. TmfH is zero for twee in the first half.
Ew Esse Em Elle Ee ChatGPT II
ChatGPT failed Dr. Ana today!😡Do. not. mess. with. my. daughter-in-law. We were working together virtually on Google Meet. I forget what the question was. We were doing our due diligence in researching separately, me with Google AI, she on Chat GPT. All of a sudden she said "It's [whatever it was.]" She clicked the ChatGPT answer and BONK! As she said, "ChatGPT only got 60% right, not 100%." It was a good lesson. You can't rely on one tool. You have to double- and triple-check with your other tools, especially the one you have between your ears. We were told by Ana's tutor to answer the Uworld question first based on what you already know; if you don't know or aren't sure, guess! But answer first and research after. You learn from your mistakes.
...
Doctors are a funny lot. It's interesting for a layman to see how their minds work. One way their minds work is by not thinking. Curious, that. It's rank memorization. That's the purpose of the Anki flashcards. Ana's tutor told us that we should spend no more than 12 secs on one flashcard. Sometimes, that's barely enough time to read and digest the question. Like with the Uworld questions, we're supposed to guess at the stroke of 12 if we don't know. Do that enough times, getting the answer right or wrong, and the mother gets drilled into you noggin. I don't think. If I thought I would never get a flashcard right. I have memorized some flashcards and know the right answer because I've seen the fucking thing so many times. I speculate that memorization is to build in muscle memory for the inevitable 3 am decision that physicians have to make while going 24 hours without sleep.
Docs go to extreme lengths to memorize. They make great use of mnemonics. HARD ASS is one. I have no fucking idea as I sit here right now what each letter in HARD ASS stands for but I know the mnemonic! BAD TASTE NOW PAINFUL something-something. I don't remember the full mnemonic but I know it refers to pill esophagitis.
Docs have a reputation for arrogance, right?
"MD DL". They extend this one out to MD's Don't Lie.🙄. It's medial-Direct, D-something-Lateral
The most exasperating mnemonic I have run across so far is:
"A CoPyCat named Willis" (capitalization sic). It's so you can remember the blood vessels involved in some condition, see? Are you fucking insane? The blood vessels? It looks more like a fucking chemical formula to me written by a doctor who knew that but not how to punctuate. The only thing I remember about that--and I refuse to learn it--is Circle of Willis. ChatGPT came up with an infinitely better mnemonic for whatever this is: "A COP C".
Ah, yes, atherosclerosis is the condition.
And then there are these. Wanna know one reason why women maybe are underrepresented in the medical profession? Maybe you're a full-figured nurse. Congratulations, you're a:
FAT RN
Or how about this one:
The Six F's
Fat
Female
Forty
Fertile
Fair skinned
Family history
Men are such cockroaches.
OKSCARY
"Game 4 sent the biggest message to the rest of the league," a scout said of Oklahoma City's bounce-back win in Minnesota on Monday night. "I saw it and I'm scared [for the future]. Because they're good, and they're going to be. That was the moment where it was like, "OK, they're good."
I've said it and I agree 1000%--IF they can keep this incredible roster in Oklahoma City. The last time OKC had a budding dynasty they lost to Miami in the Finals (2012). Pretty soon their own Big Three of K.D., Beard, and Westbrook, were gone.
Wednesday, May 28, 2025
Dire Wolves Iced 124-94, Anus Logos stuffed 5-3
OKC will play either New York or Indiana in the NBA Finals. Flarida will seek a repeat over Dallas or Edmonton for the Stanley Cup.
Good night atherosclerotics and arteriosclerotics.
Public Occurrences May 28, 2025
Trump Tariffs Ruled Illegal by Federal Judicial Panel
The U.S. Court of International Trade said the president had overstepped his authority in imposing his “reciprocal” tariffs globally, as well as levies on Canada and Mexico.
The U.S. Court of International Trade said the president had overstepped his authority in imposing his “reciprocal” tariffs globally, as well as levies on Canada and Mexico.
This is a little more serious than the rulings of other sole federal judges on Trump actions. The United States Court of International Trade is a specialized court dealing only with those issues and this was a bipartisan, three-judge panel. Trump's basis for the worldwide tariffs, International Emergency Economic Powers Act (1977) is, even by Trump's standards, elusive. Doesn't mean SCOTUS won't ride to Trump's rescue again, but this is a horse of a different color.
3:17 pm
Trump: Maybe Putin is Playing Me
Asked whether the Russian leader might be intentionally delaying negotiations, Trump said,"We're going to find out whether or not he's tapping us along or not, and if he is, we'll respond a little differently."
"I think I've done enough."
Noel Skum announcing he was reducing his political involvement.
Amen
Once at odds over the war in Gaza and questions about free speech, some people on Harvard’s campus have found a reason to come together.
Yeah, Trump picked the one university in the America that can absorb his funding bullying and will come out of this stronger and prouder. "Harvard will be fine."
And now Finch (the coach, not the bird) gets T-d up.
He wanted each of his team's points to be made a three, then they would only be behind one.
Ew Ess Em Elle Ee ChatGPT
Since studying for USMLE Step 1 with D-2 for about one year we have used a smorgasbord of resources: Sketchy, videos by experienced physicians, videos by other near-age doctors, residents, and students, First Aid, the bible of USMLE study books, Anki flashcards, other flashcards, and Google searches (me), a once-a-week tutor for Ana, the Uworld question bank. Those are what I can recall.
Although Ana's tutor is superb and has given us countless time-management and macro tips she is not a tutor as the term is commonly understood, a personalized instructor. She is more a weekly consultnt.
Although Uworld is the sine qua non study tool )they have the actual USMLE questions), and everybody in Dr. Ana's study support group uses it, everybody else I know of uses it with other tools in their tool box. USMLE takes a village, and a tool shed.
Although fun, the animated Sketchy's were not helpful (so I concluded and eventually convinced Dr. Ana.)
Although contemporary (I LOVED when one whiz kid said "fuck"), the vids by near-age teachers were distracting from the material for the on-camera facial expressions and mannerisms. (We watched one by an Indian teacher and to get to the point Ana put the vid on 1.5 speed. The Indian accent on words ending in "ine", high-pitched by the playback speed, caused us first to smile, then chuckle, then convulse with laughter till our stomachs ached and our eyes teared.).
Although learned, the videos by the experienced physicians who was our favorite (no face) were dense and about broke my (and eventually) Ana's brain. A 20-minute video became much longer as we could only absorb about three minutes before we had to hit pause to take notes. (I could actually feel the brain matter leaking from my ears.)
Although the gold standard of USMLE study books, First Aid, while comprehensive, is condensed into blurbs and abbreviations and signs and totems, anagrams, symbols, formulas; it is difficult to navigate and time-consuming, often to little or no end. As a layman I got frustrated eventually with First Aid and started Googling the key terms in a question.
Although Googling (AI) was a major advance for us, giving us both answer and explanation so that we could actually LEARN, there were a few drawbacks. The first time I Googled as one would who the coach of Oklahoma City was, I got the answer with explanation (ergo, we could learn) before Ana did in First Aid. Her shoulders slumped. I still use it though, with her agreement. On a couple of occasions Google AI failed me spectacularly, giving precisely the WRONG answer. (That is my personal nightmare. I don't know anything about medicine and I'm sitting with my already-doctor daughter-in-law trying to help her and I steer her 180 degrees wrong. I was crestfallen. Those nightmares were rare, thankfully.) But there were other problems with Google AI. Sometimes I couldn't get a direct answer. Sometimes the answer was conditional gobbledygook. I would refine the search and make it more specific, using the exact phraseology and syntax as in the actual question. I was startled the first time that I got the actual USMLE question with the answer box already checked off, without the explanation. That's a cheat sheet, not a study method. You don't learn and then are able to answer the question correctly. You just get the correct answer. The more specific one gets in searching Google, the greater the likelihood that you're going to find the exact question and answer.
Although Anki flashcards are essential to setting the answer in your mind, they are FLASHcards. There is no to little context, little time (12 secs) to even think. The flashcards are meant to be memorized. Not knowing anything I would sometimes get the answer right for having memorized the sentence structure and where the blank was. That's okay IF you have already gone to medical school and know the context. (Today, I got three flashcards in a row correct instantaneously and Ana gave me her highest accolade each time: "Look at YOU!")
Which brings me to like the specific topic of this post. A couple of weeks ago Ana had a get-together with some other USMLE students. Although a social gathering, the subject (as always with those in the field) of medicine was prominent in the discussions. One of D-2's friends, who has already passed Step One, said that she had used ChatGPT extensively and successfully to answer the USMLE study questions. Since then we have used a triple-check on our answers, First Aid, my own Google searches, and ChatGPT. After a very productive day today, I Googled "chatgpt usmle". I got a National Institutes of Health evaluation from Feb. 9, 2023. Now get this: ChatGPT had just come out:
In the past three weeks, a new AI model called ChatGPT garnered significant attention due to its ability to perform a diverse array of natural language tasks [9].
Get this: NIH was not evaluating ChatGPT as a study aid for USMLE, they were testing how smart ChatGPT was by HAVING IT TAKE THE ACTUAL FUCKING USMLE.
...we evaluated the performance of ChatGPT, a language-based AI, on the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE).
Like the AI chess programs, let's see if they can beat a Grand Master.
In this study, we evaluate the performance of ChatGPT, a non-domain specific LLM, on its ability to perform clinical reasoning by testing its performance on questions from the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE). The USMLE is a high-stakes [You're telling me.], comprehensive three-step standardized testing program covering all topics in physicians’ fund of knowledge, spanning basic science, clinical reasoning, medical management, and bioethics. The difficulty and complexity of questions [ditto] is highly standardized and regulated, making it an ideal input substrate for AI testing. The examination is well-established, showing remarkably stable raw scores and psychometric properties over the previous ten years [10]. The Step 1 exam is typically taken by medical students who have completed two years...
USMLE questions are textually and conceptually dense [🖕]; text vignettes contain multimodal clinical data (i.e., history, physical examination, laboratory values, and study results) often used to generate ambiguous scenarios [🖕🖕]with closely-related differential diagnoses.[🖕🖕🖕] Due to its linguistic and conceptual richness, we reasoned that the USMLE would serve as an excellent challenge for ChatGPT.
Could it? Could THREE-WEEK OLD ChatGPT actually PASS USMLE, one of the hardest tests on planet Earth?
We found that ChatGPT performed at or near the passing threshold of 60% accuracy.
:o
It was the first AI program to ever accomplish this:
Being the first to achieve this benchmark, this marks a notable milestone in AI maturation.
It was mature enough at three-weeks. Now it's a two-year toddler.
Impressively, ChatGPT was able to achieve this result without specialized input from human trainers. Furthermore, ChatGPT displayed comprehensible reasoning [not always the case with other tools] and valid clinical insights, lending increased confidence to trust and explainability. Our study suggests that large language models such as ChatGPT may potentially assist human learners in a medical education setting...
ChatGPT performed at or near the passing threshold for all three exams without any specialized training or reinforcement. Additionally, ChatGPT demonstrated a high level of concordance and insight in its explanations. These results suggest that large language models may have the potential to assist with medical education...
We hit the mother lode.
NIH, of course, cannot endorse. I, of course, CAN. As a retired criminal law attorney and medical ignoramus, I endorse ChatGPT as a premier USMLE study tool for your toolbox.
"The “Haliban,” as fans are now calling him, is running the East with calculated destruction."
Haliburton's performance wasn’t just flashy, it was all-time great. He became the first player in NBA playoff history to post 30+ points, 15+ assists, and 10+ rebounds with zero turnovers.
And he did it with flair, poise, and a bit of pettiness, which only made his night more iconic. From his no-look dimes to his timely daggers, Haliburton dictated the pace of the game and played chess while the Knicks played checkers.
The moment he mocked Brunson
was more than just trolling it was a statement. The Pacers were taking control of the series, and Haliburton wasn’t just outperforming the Knicks star; he was asserting his dominance as the superior floor general.
...
In doing so, Haliburton’s legend is growing. The “Haliban,” as fans are now calling him, is running the East with calculated destruction.
And he did it with flair, poise, and a bit of pettiness, which only made his night more iconic. From his no-look dimes to his timely daggers, Haliburton dictated the pace of the game and played chess while the Knicks played checkers.
The moment he mocked Brunson
was more than just trolling it was a statement. The Pacers were taking control of the series, and Haliburton wasn’t just outperforming the Knicks star; he was asserting his dominance as the superior floor general.
...
In doing so, Haliburton’s legend is growing. The “Haliban,” as fans are now calling him, is running the East with calculated destruction.
It's incredible. He's Reggie Miller reincarnated.
Only thing I can find for Brunson's sitting is that his +/- was awful...
He finished the game -16. It's painful if true. I wrote in real time in the 3rd quarter that Indiana could not defend him. 31 points in 37', 9/19 (2/6), 11/12 f.t.s, 2 rebs, 5 asts, 2 steals, 1 block, 3 t.o.'s, 3 fouls. How many times did I write in that 3rd quarter, "Brunson to the line AGAIN"? His scoring was single-handedly keeping NY within touching distance. Then Thibs sat him for over 4' to start the 4th. Indy led by 11 at the end of the 3rd. With Brunson out, the "Pacers" increased the lead to 12 before he checked back in at 7:55 in the 4th. They got it to 6 at 2:52 with him in the game. He did not help the team sitting and he did not hurt the team being in. I don't understand it.
Tyrese mf Haliburton
He had a "historic" night, a "sensational" game (AP), a triple-double without a turnover, the first time that has been done since 1977/78 when postseason turnovers began being tracked.
Association players voted him the most overrated player. Wow.
Tuesday, May 27, 2025
But the story of this game will be...
Where Was Jalen?!
For reasons known only to him, Thibodeau kept him on the bench for over 4'!, checking him back in at 7:55. His first activity of any kind--I googled him to see if he was hurt--was a missed shot at 4:27. Not until :47 secs left, and NY down 7, does his name next appear in the play-by-play, a block on Nembhard. :37 left, a second shot, a second miss; :21.1, a take foul. NY was down 10; :16 left his first make, cutting the lead to 9--the game was over! That. Was. It.
Where the game was lost
This was the sequence mentioned in a previous post. It started at 2:55 and Indy +6. It ended at 1:44 with Indy +9. In between the "Pacers" and the basketball gods did everything they could to jump-start a "Knicks" stretch drive: three shots, all misses, two rebounds, one shooting foul, one free throw missed, an Anunoby charge foul turnover overturned, a Bridges miss, a "Knick" reb, another Bridges miss, a "Pacers" reb, an Anunoby block of Siakam--but the "Pacers" got the reb, and then Hart fouled Siakam who made two.
121-114, 2:10 4th, NY FTO
Critical sequence at 2:55. "Pacers" missed two shots, got 2 rebs, and Bridges fouled Turner on the third shot attempt. Turner then missed one of two f.t.s but then Anunoby turned the ball over on a charge--which was overturned on a coach's challenge! The "Pacers" did everything that they could to keep NY in the game but NY was further away than before and a crucial minute was lost.
Gettin' away. 111-96, 9:52, "Knicks" wisely take time.
Brunson was getting his blow. Thibs will put him back in in this FTO.
Blistering the nets: "Knicks" shot 52.4%, "Pacers" 55.6%. "Knicks" 41.2% from range; Indy 50%. (Louie Dampier was BEEG)
Rebs, NY +4
"Knicks" turned the ball over too much, 9-5, leading to -4 points on turnover.
This is a game where the tale of the tape really does tell the game score. It's very close wherever you look.
TmF leads the game with 20. Brunson has 16.
Public Occurrences May 27, 2025
Trump Intends to Cancel All Federal Funds Directed at Harvard
(NYT lede)
Political bullying, admitted as that by Trump. The university has sued on First Amendment grounds, but I read the blurb of another piece in the Times, an op-ed, that Harvard is beat and knows that it's beat. I don't know the op-ed's reasoning because it was behind the Times' pay wall and I refuse to pay for the Times, but one can take an educated stab: Does any entity, person, public or private, have a right to a federal government contract? Obviously not. That doesn't make what Trump is doing any less appalling, but the courts are not going to see this as a conflict in rights, the First Amendment vs ___?, because Harvard does not have a right to a federal government contract. You could look at it the other way: Harvard is now more free to exercise free speech because it is no longer entangled with Big Brother!
What this is costing Harvard is staggering: $4,150,000,000. That's four BILLION one hundred fifty million bucks. Colossal as that is, and it would drive scores of other universities combined to shutter permanently, it is dwarfed by Harvard's endowment: $53,000,000,000. The lost contracts and tax increases amount to 7.73% of Harvard's endowment. That's money already in the bank, not "income". If the government suddenly took 7.73% of my savings, I'd be pissed. But it's money earning me interest in the bank, it's not what I live on.
This is a blow that no person or entity should have inflicted upon it, but God, if there is one entity that can suffer the blow it is the most lavishly endowed university in the world.
Harvard will be fine.
5:17 am
I am recording, sound (or no sound, properly) only, inches away from, and facing, my sliding glass doors onto the Outside Place. There is not a sound. Not from Nature nor Man (nor Beast: Eleven is right beside me.). And there are a lot of Men, both the XY and XX varieties, all around me, above me, beneath me, on this side and that, in the Great Beyond of the Outside Place, thousands of Men, and their machines, crawling, flying, spewing, noisy machines. But not now. In an hour, probably a half hour now, all of those will begin to make noise. But not now.
Monday, May 26, 2025
Chris Finch's X-reported dictate to Edwards not to force shots, to find the open man, almost worked. But it didn't work, not when his team couldn't depress OKC's star, and league MVP SGA from 40 pts, 10 asts, and 9 rebs. Edwards finished 4th in team scoring, 16 pts in 41'. In the demolition of this same team in G3 Ant had 30 pts in 30'. I don't know going away from your star for 7th and 8th men to win for you. In fairness, "Wolves" shot 50%+, Minn ended out-rebounding "Thunder". I have no idea how OKC won this game, but they hardly ever trailed. Minn. biggest lead was tyoo, 10-8. The "Thunder" never surrendered the lead from 8:53 in the 1st for the rest of the game. It's gabsmocking.
And MN didn't and we're FINAL. Oklahoma City (3-1) standing tall after a brutal back-and-fourth that they REFUSED to surrender. 128-126
OKC now has a cumulative series lead in points of 135-134, but a commanding 3-1 lead in the first to four.
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