The Gareth and BillCast

An irregular tech podcast from Bill Thompson and Gareth Mitchell. You may know us from such shows as... (This feed also includes archive podcasts from the Cambridge Film Festival from 2006 onwards to preserve old links)

Getting the Gang Back Together 02/26/2024

Getting the Gang Back Together To celebrate/commemorate a year since the last World Service broadcast of Digital Planet Gareth, Bill, Ghislaine, Angelica (online) and Ania are meeting up in a wine bar in central London on the evening of March 28 and we'd love to see old listeners and new friends there. Sign up on Eventbrite (search Digital Planet). And Gareth wants to tell you all about it.. /episode/index/show/cff/id/30107963

Series finale, faking data vs synthetic data, and your views on photography 11/27/2023

Series finale, faking data vs synthetic data, and your views on photography In this final episode of the series (we'll be back in the new year) Gareth and Bill muse on the ways generative AI can be used to fake experimental data, the uses of synthetic data, and we pick up the online conversation about 'computational imaging'. /episode/index/show/cff/id/28801228

Computational imaging, data recovery.. and some rapid scheduled disassembly 11/19/2023

Computational imaging, data recovery.. and some rapid scheduled disassembly In this episode we reflect on SpaceX's latest mission and OpenAI's apparent implosion, muse on the nature of photography in an age of computational imaging, and discuss how the Super Pressure Balloon Imaging Telescope managed to get its data safely back to earth using Raspberry Pi computers. /episode/index/show/cff/id/28710688

eLORAN and GNSS, and the potential tricksiness of GPT-4 11/12/2023

eLORAN and GNSS, and the potential tricksiness of GPT-4 In this episode Gareth eulogises the radio-based LORAN navigation system, and Bill wonders if GPT-4 is pulling a fast one. Or not. With an accelerated sketch and quite a lot of self-referential wittering. /episode/index/show/cff/id/28604833

Network security in cafes and pubs, and AI safety 11/05/2023

Network security in cafes and pubs, and AI safety In this episode Gareth picks up on a survey showing british people worry about wifi security in pubs - but is it just lazy marketing of VPNs? And our take on the UK AI Safety Summit. Plus more input from our esteemed listeners! /episode/index/show/cff/id/28518614

Can You Fix It? Only if they let you... 10/29/2023

Can You Fix It? Only if they let you... In this episode we discuss cars,tractors, smartphone and laptops, and why the right to repair the stuff you own matters, practically and philosophically. We find time to read out some comments from listeners, while the Gazmotron continues to wreak havoc. /episode/index/show/cff/id/28452116

Darker Skies and Pulsating Lights 10/22/2023

Darker Skies and Pulsating Lights This week, once you're through the 'sketch', Gareth discusses a novel approach to countering light pollution by making LEDs flicker 150 times per second, and Bill looks forward to this year's Lumiere festival in Durham, England which will feature Rafael Lozano-Hemmer's Pulse Topology and brings back memories of the Venice Biennale in 2007 (the photo is Gareth and Colin interviewing Rafael) /episode/index/show/cff/id/28388600

Will Robots Think? And Who Needs Pictures? 10/16/2023

Will Robots Think? And Who Needs Pictures? This week Bill reflects on the progress made using transformer networks to integrate language and visual processing with robotic control, particularly in Google DeepMinds RT-2, and whether we're heading for embodied awareness, while Gareth speaks out for the special place well-crafted audio has in the cultural landscape - who needs pictures? And we go purple about the Vesuvius Challenge. (Image of cocktail making robots taken at the Barbican 'AI: More than Human' exhibition in 2019. The Negroni was acceptable.) /episode/index/show/cff/id/28324859

Back again.. in one state or another 10/08/2023

Back again.. in one state or another In this first episide of our second series, Gareth and Bill look at the progress being made in quantum computing, developing systems that use the properties of entangled 'qbits' instead of binary bits to carry out calculations. How can we be quantum-ready? /episode/index/show/cff/id/28259162

Gareth explores an abandoned radar station 10/04/2023

Gareth explores an abandoned radar station Gareth found a fascinating site on his recent holiday in Lefkada, and you get to hear about it because he couldn't resist recording his impressions. /episode/index/show/cff/id/28222361

Gareth went to Krakow and had some thoughts... 07/05/2023

Gareth went to Krakow and had some thoughts... As we move into summer, Gareth has been thinking about the how we experirence art and nature of our auditory experience, following a conference he attended in Krakow. /episode/index/show/cff/id/27370875

Are you there yet, Gareth? 06/14/2023

Are you there yet, Gareth? This week Bill is thinking out loud about libraries, having just spoken at a conference of librarians. It's all about liminal spaces, apparently. /episode/index/show/cff/id/27149655

Are you there Gareth? 06/09/2023

Are you there Gareth? Just to keep the interwebs alert to our presence, here's a few minutes of Bill talking about Apple's Vision Pro, Metaphysics in the Metaverse, and AI Regulation. /episode/index/show/cff/id/27091011

Finding Yourself, and AI Phenomenology 05/30/2023

Finding Yourself, and AI Phenomenology In this final episode of our first series, Gareth and Bill look at interesting research using satellite signals to geolocate, as an alternative to GPS. And Bill muses on his current thinking on the state of AI, and in particular why LLMs don't play language games and can't be part of the community of language users, since they don't have an inner life. (References the book Metaphysical Animals) The Gareth and BillCast will return in a few weeks. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26986986

Twitter Trauma and Tell-tale Phones 05/22/2023

Twitter Trauma and Tell-tale Phones Gareth and Bill are back, talking about the legal case against Twitter/XCorp from former employees, and the wider issue of how we create good online spaces. And we consider the dangers created when law enforcement agencies auction of seized phones without wiping them. Plus a short meditation on an alternative history and some comments from listeners. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26909502

Dangerous Stunts and Password-free Living 05/15/2023

Dangerous Stunts and Password-free Living In this week's episode Gareth and Bill speculuate about what makes someone crash a plane for YouTube likes and discuss passkeys, a way to replace passwords that should be simpler and more secure - eventually. Plus a pointless sketch and some delighful comments from listeners. (And Gowri - you can find Dan Goodin's articles on Passkeys in Ars Technica) /episode/index/show/cff/id/26838633

Hot Secrets and AI Endgames 05/09/2023

Hot Secrets and AI Endgames Bill and Gareth talk about new research using thermal cameras to crack passwords, and the old tired tropes about superintelligent AI taking over the world, and why Bill's had enough of it all. Plus comments from listeners and the inevitable opening sketch. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26785671

Icy Moons and the Early Web 05/01/2023

Icy Moons and the Early Web In this episode Gareth and Bill look at the way the JUICE mission to Jupiter will look for signs of life using a magnetometer, Bill reflects on the early days of the Web and draws parallels to the growth of generative AI - and we reflect on the environmental damage caused by SpaceX's recent launch. And there are listener comments and a (briefer) sketch. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26711082

Thin chips and recycled cobalt 04/24/2023

Thin chips and recycled cobalt In this episode, Bill looks at Apple's plans to use only recycled cobalt in iPhone batteries, and the wider context of recovering and recycling metals for use in consumer electronics and batteries. Gareth has found another use for graphene, but this one seems like it might actually make it into widespread use. And we discuss rapid unscheduled disassemblies. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26631156

The Gareth and BillCast: Stealing cars and closing the public square 04/17/2023

The Gareth and BillCast: Stealing cars and closing the public square In this episode Gareth and Bill discuss how modern cars are being stolen using electronic devices that 'spoof' the internal control networks, and bemoan the passing of many small bots because Twitter has started charging for API access. Plus some feedback from listeners, for which we are always grateful. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26561910

The Gareth and BillCast: Hallucinating ML and Subverting Smart Speakers 04/10/2023

The Gareth and BillCast: Hallucinating ML and Subverting Smart Speakers In this first episode Gareth and Bill talk about why they're starting a podcast, explore the world of generative AI and why the machines keep making stuff up, and worry about how easy it is to get your smart speakers to do things without asking you first. Plus some banter and chat. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26493078

Coming soon: the Gareth and Billcast 04/09/2023

Coming soon: the Gareth and Billcast After years of talking tech, Gareth Mitchell and Bill Thompson just can't seem to break the habit... first episode published Monday April 10. /episode/index/show/cff/id/26487360

June 11- #AudioMo - Don't Panic 06/11/2021

June 11- #AudioMo - Don't Panic A reflection on why twenty years of live radio helps when you're managing an online presentation. With added mic noise /episode/index/show/cff/id/19444463

June 10 - #AudioMo - listening to the world 06/10/2021

June 10 - #AudioMo - listening to the world A more contemplative time at the end of a busy day /episode/index/show/cff/id/19432814

June 09 - #AudioMo - At the Theatre 06/09/2021

June 09 - #AudioMo - At the Theatre Another first - back at the theatre. And this time to see my son perform /episode/index/show/cff/id/19420664

June 08 - #AudioMo - Back in the studio 06/08/2021

June 08 - #AudioMo - Back in the studio my first time in the radio studio with Gareth since December /episode/index/show/cff/id/19406384

June 07 - #AudioMo - Following Sophie Calle 06/07/2021

June 07 - #AudioMo - Following Sophie Calle A radio programme and a photo memory, and the usefulness of synchronicity. (Image shows artist Sophie Calle outside the French Pavilion at the 2007 Venice Biennale) /episode/index/show/cff/id/19387631

June 06 - #AudioMo - The Comfort of Radio 06/06/2021

June 06 - #AudioMo - The Comfort of Radio I've always listened to the radio. It's become more important in these pandemical times. /episode/index/show/cff/id/19371707

June 05 - #AudioMo - A Grand Day Out 06/05/2021

June 05 - #AudioMo - A Grand Day Out On a hot saturday, I sat in a cool dark room with one shiny wall. It was splendid. /episode/index/show/cff/id/19364543

June 04 - #AudioMo - Making Digital Planet 06/04/2021

June 04 - #AudioMo - Making Digital Planet We've been making Digital Planet (Go Digital / Click) for twenty years, but do it differently now /episode/index/show/cff/id/19354748

The Gareth and BillCast

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