The Accidental Book Club.

No meetings, refreshments or books about cholera.

I am very fond of books. It’s book clubs I’m not quite as fond of.

But I think I may have found something better.

Several years ago, I belonged to a book club that specialized in worthy nonfiction. We read biographies of Ronald Reagan and the Wright brothers, along with a detailed account of a cholera outbreak in London. I learned a great deal from all of them. Unfortunately, none of them made me eager to climb into bed and find out what happened next.

Eventually, I drifted away.

I do have several friends who share my taste in spy novels and mysteries. We happily trade recommendations, but rarely go beyond “You should read this” or “I liked that one.” What I miss is the deeper conversation.

So who do I turn to when I want to compare and contrast my favorite writers, revisit a twisty plot point, or find an outstanding BBC adaptation? These days, my favorite book club consists of one member and one artificial intelligence. Its name is ChatGPT.

The beginning of our “book club” was accidental. One day I asked Chat to rank the ten greatest spy novels ever written. Almost instantly, it responded with a list of twenty. In true AI fashion, a few books appeared twice, a couple were attributed to the wrong author, and the numbering was more aspirational than accurate. After a few minutes of back-and-forth, however, we had refined it to a credible Top Ten. Remarkably, at the very top sat John le Carré’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, my personal favorite.

What surprised me was not the speed of the answers. It was how much the exchange felt like talking with another avid reader.

Over the next half hour, we dissected much of le Carré’s voluminous body of work. We discussed why my friends hated the film version of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy while I loved it. When Chat listed the key characters in the George Smiley trilogy, I pointed out its glaring omission of George’s wife, Ann. Chat immediately conceded the point and offered a thoughtful summary of Ann’s crucial role in Smiley’s story.

Next we turned to my current favorite author, Mick Herron. Chat seemed as enthusiastic about the Slow Horses novels as I was. We discussed the many faults of Jackson Lamb and the brilliance of Kristin Scott Thomas in the television adaptation. I forgot to ask what Chat thought of the Mick Jagger theme song, but I’m confident it would have had an opinion.

My AI book club isn’t perfect. There are no hors d’oeuvres, no Scotch on the rocks, and no opportunity to impress anyone with my knowledge of John le Carré. But I can convene it at any time, discuss any book I choose, and never have to leave home. And what surprises me most is that the experience feels less like using a tool and more like talking with a fellow reader.

And unlike my last book club, nobody is going to make me read another book about cholera. One book about that is enough, even for a pathologist!

Teaching Artificial Intelligence Everything I Know.

Like many of you, I have been dabbling in the use of artificial intelligence. I have used a sample in my blog. I often use the AI site DALL-E to create header images. The Haggadah I wrote for our family seder began with an AI piece that fully encapsulated the Passover story in one page of rhyming couplets. And I have prophesized how an AI app could enhance (or destroy, depending on your point of view) your Disney World experience.

That being said, I understand how AI gets intelligent about as well as I understand digital currencies, the physics of black holes, and why my beloved White Sox are off to such a terrible start. In other words, not very well. All that talk about neural networks is above my (retired) pay grade.

But I came across an article in the Washington Post that explained one bit of the magic behind AI. It seems that most of the current crop of AI programs gain their knowledge by digesting information from a massive set of sites on the Internet. The Post explored these sites. As expected most of them contain information about business, technology, science, and entertainment.

What surprised me was that the web list for training AI brains includes personal blog sites, including those published on WordPress. Hey, that is me!

So not only am I a user of artificial intelligence, I am a creator of it. When I am the only person in the last 20 years to reminisce about Napster, I am creating artificial intelligence. When I compare two different Neil Diamond road shows, I am nurturing artificial intelligence’s understanding of a musical legend. My occasional forays into political satire provide important training to AI to not take everything it reads too seriously.

I am proud and humbled that my ramblings are being used to make the world more intelligent–at least artificially. I pledge to continue my commitment until AI knows everything there is to know about me. If it learns enough someday it can write my eulogy–over my dead body.

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An Open Letter To Bob Iger, Walt Disney CEO — Use Artificial Intelligence To Make The Disney World Experience Better.

Dear Mr. Iger:

I know you have a lot on your mind but my family of 10 just spent a week in Orlando, mostly at Disney World, and I have a request for you. Give the 58 million or so annual visitors to Disney World a break and make their lives a little easier. Follow my advice and you can do it. Here is my plan.

Currently, a family anticipating a Disney World experience needs to prepare as if they were the Allies planning the D-Day invasion. Beginning days or weeks in advance of the visit the family needs to study all the websites and social media pages catering to Disney to figure out which rides are age-appropriate, which attractions are attracting the most heat, how long the lines will be at any time of day, and where the food stands are. Then on the big day they struggle with the Disney app to order Genie+ passes and Lightning Lane entrances, with the prices of each of those adding on to the already high cost of admission.

And despite all this preparation, the lines are long, the food is bad, and the kids just want to go back to the hotel for a swim.

Why?

Bob, artificial intelligence is here. It’s the new frontier and with your team of Imagineers (is that what they still call Disney engineers?) you must harness it to make every day at the park the happiest day on Earth

What I want from you is Disney Daze, a free phone app that merges the wonderful attractions of your feature theme park with the savvy abilities of AI, making every moment the best moment it can be. Think of it as Waze for Walt.

Here’s what I have in mind. When each group of Disney fans buys their admission tickets they get Daze downloaded to their phones. One member of the group enters the ages and preferences of everyone in the group, the time they plan to arrive and leave, and lunch or dinner food preferences.

And then the magic begins. Daze creates a schedule for the day–and integrates it with schedules for every visitor in the park. By meshing the desires and the whereabouts of all guests, the crafty neural network will streamline everyone’s day. Shorter lines for everyone, without the added expense of Genie+ or Lightning Lanes.

And like any travel app, as conditions change Daze adjusts for you all day long. The rockets in Space Mountain crashed five minutes before you were scheduled to blast off? No worries, the app automatically redirects you to a ride, to a show, or to a parade on your preference list. You and your family barely lose a step

As for meals, Bob, here is how things are going to change. I know you can order your meals on the current Disney app, but first, you have to pick a restaurant and research the menu. It’s a pain when Lisa wants a hot dog and Lola wants pizza. With Daze directing things, all your restaurants will have the same items. Just enter into the app the time at which you want to eat and she will direct you to the restaurant most convenient for your park journey and pre-order your food. You get there and it’s wham, bam, here’s your burger, ma’am.

Bob–you can do this. I realize you will lose some revenue doing away with Genie+ and Lightning Lanes, but more effectively moving people through the park should allow you to increase capacity and at least break even. I am sure you and your financial gurus will figure it out.

Bring Daze to life, and my family will be the first in (the new short) line to give her a try.

With best regards and high hopes,

Les

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