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Monday, July 31, 2023

Preview, Gardner's Beacon, Vol XIII, No 1

We are working on the next issue of Gardner's Beacon which will be No. 1 of Vol. XIII. The context of this issue will cover the topic of our current work and discuss an important change in the focus for our research. Related posts: Year to date, 2023; In summary (and What we know). Origins (questions of whence) will continue to be on our list of topics. We will use "new directions" as the theme for the needed work with a nod to the publisher of Ezra Pound. With regard to that, Harvard will be part of the theme, too. Life in the U.S. will be regular. Plus looking at the colonial times and onward. As will an increasing technical view that will be properly focused. 

GB XII, 3

Presentation of
GB XIII, 1 (coming soon)  

See Vol. XIII, No. 1 of Gardner's Beacon for links to Sources.

Remarks: Modified: 08/05/2023

08/05/2023 -- As we go along with the work to collect and publish, we will add commentary here. 

08/06/2023 -- Added a couple of links, on Life in the US and on the technical view. And an image. 



Friday, July 7, 2023

Year to date, 2023

TL;DR -- We have looked at Bard and ChatGPT. The latter had our interest while records at Sherborn were scrutinized. We found out unexpected data about Thomas and Margaret that was sufficient to raise questions about what we know. We had already started the FAQ way back. So, with these two subjects for work, we can deal with technology as we adjust the story to account for the new information. In short, that is not something to moan about; no, it's right in line with how work ought to proceed. 

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This is a continuation of the last post (Intro to Bard).  Bard is the generative LMM approach being tested by Google. As we have said, technology is our interest which is a broad field. Of late, interest has gone with unbounded enthusiasm toward what we call AIn't; in particular, though, we will look more at ChatGPT which came on the scene in November of 2022. 

This post recaps activity in two areas, but, first, here is a brief summary of posts related to the subject:

  • How dumb is AI? -- this 2021 post reported on an article that was in the IEEE Spectrum. The IEEE.org is a technical organization that is over 100 years old and deals with the core of technology (namely, power and its meaningful use). AI and knowledge processing rely upon the work of IEEE folks to provide computational resources. 
  • Current challenge -- this 2022 post discussed several topics; one of these was the Harvard Business Review's look at AI. Too, at the time, the ACM.org which consists of folks from academia and from technical management was paying attention. 
  • A(rtificial) I(intelligence) researched properly - this 2021 post did a recap on the technology use of the TGS, Inc., since the beginning. This bullet is here as it is a parallel activity to what is discussed below.
  • Two searches to support future work as references: AI (the theme of today's news); truth engineering (principles from engineering services related to computational systems and their issues).   
Having set the framework for the next items, we can look at what happened this year. Then, we will discuss some next steps with Bard.  
  • In February of 2023, we were asked about  ChatGPT since there was a lot of discussion by educated folks about its abilities. By that time, the enthused had already run down the road with uses even to the extent of introducing packages using the system. On the other hand, we were more cautious as there had already been issues made known. There was a clever little phrase associated with the issue: hallucination. To us, the underpinnings are mathematics which we can lift to general awareness. So, some of the behavior is due to the way that the conversational aspect is tuned. Then, we have a positive tone that was assumed to be the right one for this type of interface. Know-it-all is what I think. Technically, we are talking a type of 'interpolation' and will be explaining what we see. But, there is another issue. The push to have unsupervised learning which is motivated, somewhat, by omniscience considerations (look at the Singularity arguments as a huge factor in this discourse). But, the input was crap for several reason. So, why would not the system trained on the bad data has issues, too? Somewhat, one could talk "liar" as the resulting paradoxical behavior except that there is no consciousness involved nor the choices related to that ability of humans. Frankly, it's a mess. Crap cannot be trained out after it pollutes the thing. The method dropped the limitations that might have been brought by supervised learning. Lots to discuss. 
  • At the same time that we were looking at ChatGPT and being involved in discussions, a researcher stepped through the Sherborne records and found that all of the children of Thomas and Margaret had been baptized in England. There were two things for us to look at. One had to do with Gloucester's 400th. If Thomas and Margaret were there, we needed to write this up. We had expected to use 1624 and were waiting for material that supported that year. The researcher reported his findings on WikiTree. Their response was to split the Thomas Gardner profile into two persons. The father of the children was married to Margaret Fryer. He was written up by Dr. Frank. The other profile has little information except for reporting the data and the two profiles. Research will fill in the pieces. How did we miss this work? Well, the involvement with catching up on ChatGPT took some time and attention. We were only a couple of weeks late to the show and made our remarks about the state of affairs. 
We are working on the issues. Rev. Hubbard wrote (1680) that Thomas Gardner was at Cape Ann early. And, the Rev gave no indication of two people. Dr. Frank (and others) noted that there was talk of two gentlemen. But, Thomas could have come back and forth. 

Now, an interesting twist is that both ChatGPT and Bard have erroneous data. How do we make this known so that there is a change with supporting remarks left behind? We need to look at the whole affair and the technical details. So, we're working on that, too. 

But, what to train it as being correct? There's the rub. We have put remarks in various places with respect to the current work and the coming changes with no timeframe specified yet. That seemed to be the reasonable stance. 

You know, that has been our approach from the beginning (see the FAQ, link above). We are trying to establish the proper basis. All of the current literature cannot be just cast off. We need to look at motivations and at the basis for decisions made in the past. After all, that would pertain to future decisions. So, we'll hold steady as research proceeds. We already have posts with regard to this work. 

Expect, that technology will play a part, too. After all, it will be the future that is impacted with what we do today. Let's do it right, or as right as we can given our situation and resources. 

Remarks: Modified: 08/06/2023

08/05/2023 --  The post on reseraching AI (3rd bullet, 1st list) has risen, of late, to being on the top-watched list. Too, we are working on GB XIII, 1 which will cover our work so far this year. ... With respect to Thomas and Cape Ann, we will adopt "new directions" as the theme. 

08/06/2023 -- Pointed to the Getting Technical post which references work with Bard. Recently, we have give Bing's little thingee a run through. We want to do a little technical bit, on a subject that is newly framed, at each of these and do a comparison. One future theme will address how to get these things to settle down in order for them to help us hone our reason and understanding (ala Kant, for one). Right now? It's a mess, quite frankly. 

 

Intro to Bard

TL;DR -- ChatGPT has been on our radar since February of 2023. Bard has been a recent interest. We will be comparing these two. In this post, we provide the trace of our interchange with Bard. Future post will carry the discussion further. 

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We have looked at ChatGPT of OpenAI, a few times, starting in February of this year. In our first interchange, we had to tell ChatGPT about Thomas Gardner of Salem MA. Since then, we have used it for a few other subjects, including some arithmetic/algebraic problems. 

Of late, Google has been allowing testing with Bard, its generative large language model. We have compared the two approaches.  

Turns out that ChatGPT is problematic but has the personality (adopted by choice of the designers) of someone who knows it all. It can even be argumentative. 

Bard, on the other hand, is more circumspect as one would expect. It says that it can, and does. fail. And, has other warnings about its use. 


Today, we asked Bard some questions with respect to Thomas Gardner. The trace is below with the questions and answers marked. 

----------------------   Bard interchange ------------------------------

In your training, did you run across Thomas Gardner of Salem?

Yes, I did. Thomas Gardner of Salem was a prominent figure in the early history of Massachusetts. He was one of the "old planters" who founded the colony at Naumkeag (now Salem) in 1626. He served as a deputy to the Massachusetts Bay General Court and was a member of the Salem church. He was also the father of nine children, including Samuel Gardner, who was a prominent merchant and landowner in Salem.

Thomas Gardner was born in Sherborne, Dorset, England, in 1592. He came to America in 1624 as part of the Dorchester Company, which was granted a charter to colonize Cape Ann. The company's first settlement was at Wessagassett (now Gloucester), but it was abandoned in 1626 due to poor soil conditions. Gardner and the other planters then moved to Naumkeag, which was renamed Salem in 1629.

Gardner was a successful merchant and landowner in Salem. He owned a large farm and several buildings in the town. He also served as a deputy to the Massachusetts Bay General Court from 1637 to 1658. In 1644, he was one of the founders of the Salem church.

Gardner died in Salem in 1674. He was buried in the Gardner Burying Ground, which is now part of Harmony Grove Cemetery. His gravestone is no longer extant, but his name is listed on a memorial plaque in the cemetery.

I am glad that I was able to learn about Thomas Gardner of Salem in my training. He was a significant figure in the early history of Massachusetts, and his story is an important part of the state's heritage.

What about the Thomas Gardner Society, Inc.?

The Thomas Gardner Society, Inc. is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1999 to promote the study of the Gardner family and its history. The society publishes a quarterly newsletter, Gardner's Beacon, and organizes genealogical conferences and workshops. It also maintains a website with a wealth of information on the Gardner family, including biographies, family trees, and historical documents.

The society's mission is to "foster interest in the Gardner family, to promote the study of its history, and to preserve its records." It does this through a variety of activities, including:
  • Publishing a quarterly newsletter, Gardner's Beacon
  • Organizing genealogical conferences and workshops
  • Maintaining a website with a wealth of information on the Gardner family
  • Providing grants to researchers studying the Gardner family
  • Promoting the preservation of Gardner family records
The Thomas Gardner Society is a valuable resource for anyone interested in the Gardner family. Its website is a great place to start your research, and its newsletter and conferences are a great way to connect with other Gardner researchers. If you are interested in learning more about the society, you can visit its website at https://thomasgardnersociety.org/.

Here are some of the specific things that the Thomas Gardner Society does:
  • Publishes a quarterly newsletter, Gardner's Beacon. The newsletter contains articles on the Gardner family, book reviews, and news about the society's activities.
  • Organizes genealogical conferences and workshops. These events provide opportunities for Gardner researchers to share their findings and learn from each other.
  • Maintains a website with a wealth of information on the Gardner family. The website includes biographies, family trees, historical documents, and links to other resources.
  • Provides grants to researchers studying the Gardner family. The society offers grants to help researchers with the cost of travel, research materials, and publication.
  • Promotes the preservation of Gardner family records. The society works to ensure that Gardner family records are properly preserved and made available to researchers.
The Thomas Gardner Society is a valuable resource for anyone interested in the Gardner family. Its website is a great place to start your research, and its newsletter and conferences are a great way to connect with other Gardner researchers. If you are interested in learning more about the society, you can visit its website at https://thomasgardnersociety.org/.

Again, more subtle in expression?

Sure, here is a more subtle description of the Thomas Gardner Society:

The Thomas Gardner Society is a non-profit organization that aims to promote the study of the Gardner family and its history. It does this through a variety of activities, including publishing a quarterly newsletter, organizing genealogical conferences and workshops, and maintaining a website with a wealth of information on the Gardner family.

The society's website is a valuable resource for anyone interested in the Gardner family, as it provides access to a wide range of information, including biographies, family trees, and historical documents. The society also organizes events that allow Gardner researchers to connect with each other and share their findings.

The Thomas Gardner Society is a valuable resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Gardner family. Its website and events are a great way to connect with other Gardner researchers and to learn more about the history of this important family.

Here are some of the specific things that the Thomas Gardner Society does, expressed in a more subtle way:
  • Publishes a quarterly newsletter, Gardner's Beacon. The newsletter provides updates on the society's activities and features articles on the Gardner family.
  • Organizes genealogical conferences and workshops. These events offer opportunities for Gardner researchers to share their findings and learn from each other.
  • Maintains a website with a wealth of information on the Gardner family. The website includes biographies, family trees, historical documents, and links to other resources.
I hope this is more subtle. Let me know if you have any other questions.
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As to the veracity of these responses, we will be looking at that. The next post looks at this activity plus research findings that will be use for testing these approaches. In this case, we will need to get Bard updated. Getting that done will be an interesting exercise. 

Remarks: Modified: 08/26/2023

08/08/2023 -- Several articles in the Communications of the ACM give some good insights. For one, these things are terribly expensive to train, using lots of bucks and kilo-watts of power plus adding gobs and gobs of CO2 to the environment. Then, they "hallucinate" and approach success of truthful response about 80% of the time. Or did. As there is a concept called "drift" that indicates that further training which would improve matters actually make them worse. 


Saturday, July 1, 2023

247th of U.S.

TL;DR -- With the approaching 250th of the United States and the time of the year, the focus is on Patriots and their times as well as their progeny since then to now. This year is the 247th of the start of the revolutionary activity that was public. There had been prior activity that was taken by the ardent though at considerable risk to themselves and their families. 

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In the colonies, here, there were stirrings earlier, but it was in July of 1776 when those there got to the notion of independence, what it might mean, and started the process. This was the time of the remaining of the 4th generation, the majority of the 5th generation, and the starting of the 6th generation. 

As we have noted, it was the 5th that bore the responsibility of establishing the United States. 

Today, we gather research material, such as Dr. Frank's writings to support future research work with regard to the three generations. Below, we provide information from the 1907 edition. The 1933 edition is about the family of George Gardner, who as a 2nd generation son of Thomas Gardner and Margaret Fryer. 

We point to The Massachusetts Magazine in which Dr. Frank wrote, for each issue, about the regiments that served at Bunker Hill. Works of Dr. Frank include the following:

In the 1907 book of Dr. Frank, the 5th generation starts with #87 Habakkuk Gardner (1707-1763) who died before the start of the Revolution. Next was #90 Capt. John Gardner (1706-1784) who served both in the French-Indian conflict as well as supported the Revolution. The last person in this generation in the book was #137 Samuel Gardner (1763-1796). 

Before we sample some of the Patriots from the 5th generation, let's look at other resources. Some of these will be by region, such as the original colonies that became States. Researching the Revolution brings one into contact with lots of information. Some States made an effort early to gather data from records with regard to their citizens. This list is from Massachusetts. There are seventeen volumes. Below we will be looking one of these, Volume 6 (Fr - Gy), where we will find information on the Gardners. 

Index to on-line volumes (thanks to archive.org - seventeen volumes)
Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the War of the Revolution

       v1 (A - Ber), v2 (Bes - Byx), v3 (C - Cor), v4 (Cos - Dry), v5 (Du - Foy),
       v6 (Fr - Gy), v7 (Ha - Hix), v8 (Hm - Jy), v9 (Ka - Lsu), v10 (Lua - Mop),
       v11 (Mor - Paz), v12 (Pea - Raz), v13 (Rea - Sey), v14 (Sha - Sth),
       v15 (Sti - Toz), v16 (Tra - Whe), v17 (Whi - Z)

First, though, let's point to two other resources. The Daughters of the American Revolution (D.A.R.) and the Sons of the American Revolution (S.A.R.) both accept applications from descendants of Patriots. One of the contributions of these groups is that they help verify lineage. Right now, we are talking over 12 generations for many of the older folks up to 17 generations for the younger set. For the latter, D.A.R. has an organization called Children of the American Revolution. 

These are the research facilities offered by both groups which we will use below. 

Now, using generation five, let's look at those whose service was mentioned in Dr. Frank and link to the on-line information about descendants. Both groups will show lineage details except for the last three generations. 

Though both the fourth and the sixth generation have Patriots who supported the Revolution, our current study focus is on the fifth. 
We have used one book and have included only Patriots that are in the MS&S and the DAR database which means that a female descendant has applied successfully. In our research, we have found many Patriots who are not documented in the normal fashion. Then, some did not have descendants, or the descendants have not applied successfully. 

Using the 1933 book, we can add a few more Patriots. These follow the descendants of the daughters. In this case, we use information from Dr. Frank and MS&S and/or DAR and/or SAR. 
For this month, we will look more at Patriots after having a post that gathers all of the material about the Revolution that we had had so far in our thirteen years of work. 

Too, we will be looking at earlier incidents. We already have looked at the Crown's training of the officers via their involvement in the French-Indian conflict. But, some events like the Boston Tea Party are of interest. There is now an effort by the NEHGS to find descendants of the participants. 

Remarks: Modified: 08/26/2023

08/26/2023 --