Nano Banana Meets Wyatt Earp

– In Tombstone Territory 

 

As we prepared for the holidays, I saw a Reddit post where someone had used AI to show their geocaching stats for the year. Some castigated him because AI damages the environment. He responded by asking, “Who cares?” Although the posts were deleted from the thread, I was not surprised by the tone in all the posts.. Some of the most negative responses I have gotten in Reddit have been when I have included AI graphics.  And a person proud of their work is not likely to respond well to that particular criticism.

Despite such reactions to AI, other cachers have recommended it for content editing, puzzles, graphics, and other uses.  They believe it can enhance the game.  Perhaps I am in the middle.  I’ll use AI to illustrate some caching logs, or to include an image for these diaries, but I have not used it for content.  Its pictures should not be mistaken for a traditional photo. It will write logs, but why?  Logs should not be automated, AI or nor.

 

I understand some of the problems with AI graphics or writing. In my experience AI used for internet searches often gets its facts wrong, but if it asserts an alternate reality will our understanding change? AI has taken various works as models and used copyrighted pieces without compensation.  It can also mimic specific styles without any attribution for its source.  Its graphic capabilities can be used to create deep fakes that are hard to distinguish from what is real.  Lines are being blurred.  

As much as AI is disliked by some, the genie is out of the bottle.  Even if is not used to generate images, it may find its way into photo editing, spell checking, or to develop programs that are used in the background — Geocaching HQ, for instance, uses it for some graphics and administrative functions. Geocaching apps, such as Cachly and Geooh GO also use AI for some things.  The dividing line isn’t always clear.

Nevertheless, part of the controversy is that Nano Banana and other apps are beginning to change the way we relate to AI.  Images no longer have extra fingers or other anomalies.  Logs requiring photos will become increasingly hard to distinguish between computer images and genuine pictures.   Can we put limits on it?

One change that Geocaching could adopt would be to require caching images or logs to identify AI content. Earthcaching already requires disclosure. Beyond that, any action would have to be based on things that go beyond this game. Nothing we do will likely change that.  As a last resort, I hope the AI masters do better than us with the planet, even if we all might be assimilated by the Borg.

Wyatt Earp’s Last Ride

Over the years I have done several caches related to Wyatt Earp and his brothers. When I thought about AI, he came to mind. I used AI graphics in my cache log at his final resting place, now a virtual geocache. I wanted an image to go with a ghostly log that could take people to both the dusty western streets and a manicured grave.  I needed help if this was going to be Wyatt ‘s last ride.  With AI, it was easy to do all of that

Wtatt was already a blend of reality and fiction, shaped by his times and draped with legend, so perhaps we was the perfect subject.  

Despite all of his adventures, he lived a long life until he was buried in San Francisco in 1929.  Wyatt’s life took him through Deadwood, Tombstone, Dodge City, Alaska, Los Angeles, and points between.  He tried to sell his story for the movies but was unsuccessful in generating interest.  He must have wondered what more could he do.  It turned out that he just needed somebody to write it up.  He became more famous as books were written about him.  Movies followed and a television show later established his reputation as a western hero.

At times, his reputation might have been uncertain. He was a card shark, a prize-fight fixer, the owner of brothels in at least four states, a saloon keeper and perhaps a revengeful killer. There were many sides to him. He didn’t believe in divorce but married four times.  Josephine ultimately secured his place as a hero.

Wyatt was most famous for the gunfight at the OK Corral in Tombstone. However, only a few know that he was destined to relive it several years later.  Earp was persuaded to attend a 11:30 AM concert. He was not expecting much and had several drinks waiting for it to start. to his surprise it was better than he expected. But he choked on his drink when he realized that he was high at noon and the chorale was okay. Luckily Doc Holiday knew what to do.

Tombstone