Surprise - It's Not a Toaster

touch point media
Surprise - It's Not a Toaster

Discover the realm where digital expertise meets candid conversations on "Surprise - It’s Not a Toaster" - a bi-weekly podcast led by healthcare digital experts Ed Bennett and co-host Chris Boyer. Together, they venture into the fabric of online experiences, dissecting annoyances and irritations about navigating the modern online world.  In each episode, we unveil contemporary tools, technologies, and software solutions, providing a firsthand exploration of what's shaping the digital landscape and the hosts challenge the limits of Open AI with a "stump ChatGPT" segment, where questions are posed to Generative AI language models, illuminating the interplay between human expertise and machine-generated insights. Tune in to navigate the digital maze, equip yourself with valuable insights, and engage in compelling discussions that bridge the gap between the human and digital worlds.

  1. DEC 12

    Jargon, Just-in-time News and Juxtapositions

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer discuss the history of the annual “Word of the Year” presented by various sources (including the Oxford English Dictionary). They also share a useful Bluesky plug-in to help curate news, and then test GenAI’s ability to create unique pub trivia facts.

    23 min

  2. NOV 21

    It’s All About the Algorithm

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer discuss the current state of journalism and the rise of social influencers in becoming primary news sources. They also share their experience with Bluesky as then test GenAI’s ability to create poetry.  Annoyance: Online influencers and the fall of journalism 1 in 5 get news from social media influencers: Pew poll  Cision's 2024 State of the Media Report: Journalists Battle Misinformation, Embrace Data, and Seek PR Partnership Tech Rec:  Bluesky impressions from a Twitter refugee Sky Follower Bridgehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/chatgpt-or-shakespeare-readers-couldnt-tell-the-difference-and-even-preferred-ai-generated-verse-180985480/ People are fleeing Elon Musk’s X for Threads and Bluesky. Welcome to the era of social media fragmentation AI Stump:  ChatGPT or Shakespeare? Readers Couldn’t Tell the Difference—and Even Preferred A.I.-Generated Verse Follow Us Online: Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Martech.Health Ed Bennett on Bluesky

    25 min

  3. NOV 7

    AGI, AirPod Adventures, and Aggravations

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer discuss their frustration with the shifting expectations around achieving AGI (Artificial General Intelligence). Ed then shares his personal experience using Apple AirPods as a hearing aid, and Chris conducts an experiment to see if asking GenAI questions politely yields different results compared to using insults. Annoyance: Fear and loathing about AGI Tech Rec: AirPod as Hearing aid user report  AI Stump: being rude or polite to Gen AI - does it produce different results?

    22 min

  4. OCT 24

    Artificial Sales Events, AI Agents and Apple Analysis

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer discuss the growing trend of artificial online sales events and delve into the potential impact of AI Agents. They also explore a study commissioned by Apple, highlighting the limitations of GenAI’s logical reasoning abilities. Annoyance: Online “prime” and other artificial sales days Prime Day isn’t just for Amazon anymore The Truth about Prime Day - It's not a scam The Secret Meaning of Prime Day Tech Rec: The AI agents have arrived AI Stump: Apple Study Reveals Critical Flaws in AI's Logical Reasoning Abilities

    22 min

  5. OCT 10

    Falling Out of the Trough into The Valley

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer discuss how GenAI is starting to replicate natural human language in a frightening way, and ponder how quickly it will fall from the Trough of Disillusionment to bridging the Uncanny Valley. They also take NotebookLM for a spin and share some surprising results.  Annoyances: AI getting better and the uncanny valley Tech rec: NotebookLM and other AI automation within Google AI-stump: the hosts reaction to NotebookLM's audio overview of their podcast

    28 min

  6. SEP 26

    From User Agreements to AI Shenanigans

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer vent about online user agreements and the universal struggle we all face with them. Then they share how ChatGPT 4.01 can be your secret weapon for conquering those pesky Connections puzzles. Finally, they put AI to the test by asking it to summarize complex book and movie plots.  Annoyances: User Agreements Tech rec: ChatGTP o1-preview - watching AI think in real time AI-stump: Please provide a single sentence describing the Lord of Rings. Points for brevity.

    20 min

  7. SEP 13

    Tech It or Leave It, this is the Recap Episode

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer recap past discussions, and provide a quick update on various annoyances, technology tips and put GenAI to the Turing test. Annoyances:  Episode 2: Ratings and reviews: FTC rules on fake reviews aren’t enough: Hold sites accountable Episode 5: AI Products: Brands should avoid this popular term. It’s turning off customers Episode 13: Fake AI video/audio: New YouTube tools protect creators from fake AI-generated audio and video Episode 22: Proprietary Car Infotainment Systems: Ford Patents In-Car System That Eavesdrops So It Can Play You Ads and Why GM's Anti-CarPlay Strategy Is Doomed to Fail and The Ultimate 'Connected Car' Nightmare Is Playing Out In China Technology/Tips:  Episode 6: ARC Search - now for Windows Episode 15: hearing aids - Apple says AirPods Pro 2 can be used as ‘clinical-grade’ hearing aids Episode 9: NYT Connections - provide update on Strawberry AI (which purportedly could solve it)   https://chatgpt.com/g/g-TFpOewmPa-connections-solver  OpenAI could skyrocket ChatGPT subscription to $2000 per month for next-gen Strawberry AI model Stump GenAI:  The Turing test: “What was it like to fall in love for the first time?”

    24 min

  8. AUG 29

    Switcheroo Episode: Gamification, Gantt Charts and Guessing

    In this episode, hosts Ed Bennett and Chris Boyer discuss the challenges of gamification and wonders if things have gone too far. They also share a great tool to help develop flowchart visualizations using text prompts and then try to stump GenAI to answer a hypothetical question to determine how much it will hallucinate.  Annoyance: Gamification Please Oh Please Stop Making The Future Suck (Grocery Store Edition) Tip/technology: LucidChart AI Stump: Can it answer a hypothetical question? Generative AI Apps Such As ChatGPT, Claude, Llama, And Others Appear To Surprisingly Have A ‘Shared Imagination’ That Could Vastly Impact The Future Of AI

    23 min
See All (31)

About

Discover the realm where digital expertise meets candid conversations on "Surprise - It’s Not a Toaster" - a bi-weekly podcast led by healthcare digital experts Ed Bennett and co-host Chris Boyer. Together, they venture into the fabric of online experiences, dissecting annoyances and irritations about navigating the modern online world.  In each episode, we unveil contemporary tools, technologies, and software solutions, providing a firsthand exploration of what's shaping the digital landscape and the hosts challenge the limits of Open AI with a "stump ChatGPT" segment, where questions are posed to Generative AI language models, illuminating the interplay between human expertise and machine-generated insights. Tune in to navigate the digital maze, equip yourself with valuable insights, and engage in compelling discussions that bridge the gap between the human and digital worlds.

Information

  • Creator
    touch point media
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2024
  • Episodes
    31
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    touch point media © 2023. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Surprise - It's Not a Toaster

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