deerstalker

https://blackgirlnerds.com/nye-plans-traditions-vs-do-your-own-thing/

What do you do on New Year’s Eve? That’s the question that weighs on almost everyone’s mind. As your mind struggles to answer this question, you ultimately have to decide if you want to go out or stay in for NYE.

Before you make a decision that might take you to some overpriced and crowded club or that will leave you home alone and lonely, consider the following options. 

6 Fabulous Plans for a Night Out on the Town for NYE

Here’s a list of things to do if you’re looking for a night out on the town. 

1. New York City’s Annual New Year’s Eve Party 2024 @ Stitch

This first event is for the partygoers who want to do it big this New Year’s Eve. The party at Stitch fills up with people. Plus, you’ll want to get there early to enjoy the open bar from 8–9:00 pm. For 15 years, Stitch has been throwing unforgettable NYE parties with two dancing floors accompanied by plenty of alcohol. 

The bar is within walking distance of Times Square, so you’ll be in the middle of all the action. If you want to party all night and dance to your favorite hip-hop/electronic and Top 40 music, this is the place to be. 

Check out the event website for more information and get your tickets. 

2. Party Like It’s 1989 New Year’s Eve Bash

For all the ’80s and ’90s kids, the Party Like It’s 1989 New Year’s Eve Bash happening in NYC is for you.

If you want to go out but don’t want to put up with listening to today’s music, then this event will have you dancing the night away with retro tunes. 

In addition to great tunes, there will also be professional photo options, a catered menu, and a cash bar with various wine, beer, and cider options. 

The night will start with a live band, and once the clock strikes midnight, you’ll toast the new year with champagne, followed by a DJ TiLT who will keep the night going until 2:00 am. 

If this sounds like a party for you, make sure you purchase your tickets soon. 

3. Carnival Masquerade Ball at Omni Atlanta at Centennial Park

While local nightclubs and DJs are great, you may be in the mood for something international. Instead of heading out of the country, you can visit Centennial Park in Atlanta, Georgia.

The Carnival Masquerade Ball at Omni Atlanta at Centennial Park is a Latin-inspired party that starts at 9:00 p.m. You can enjoy a live Latin Band at the Carnival Grand Ballroom. If you want to mix things up, you can hang out at the Top Draft Sports Lounge, where DJ EU will spin some international beats.

Besides an international selection of music, you’ll also enjoy various food stations inspired by South American foods, cocktails, wine, and beer.

For more information, check out the event page. 

4. New Year’s Eve Parties in Austin, Texas

If you live in Austin or are planning a trip there for the New Year, you’ll have plenty of options for celebrating NYE.

There are a host of parties of all different types. Some parties include burlesque shows, extravaganzas, circus-theme parties and more. 

To see the complete list of events, check out the Austin website.

5. NYE in Las Vegas

Las Vegas is already known as a place to have a good time, and for New Year’s Eve, the craze goes up a notch.

The night starts with shutting down the strip to traffic, making the area feel like one gigantic block party. When it’s time to ring in the new year, the casinos celebrate with an elaborate fireworks show. 

If you tire of being outside, the party continues in various nightclubs and hotels, including the Hard Rock Cafe and Area 51. 

For all the details, check out the official website. 

6. New Year’s Eve in Los Angeles

For West Coasters that aren’t looking to go to Sin City, Los Angeles is the place that offers an exciting night out. 

LA offers a variety of events for different types of partygoers. There are comedy shows, dance parties, or 1920s-themed parties.

Make sure you check out the complete list of events.

Not what you’re looking for? Here are some other places you can find NYE events

If none of the previously mentioned events sound appealing or you live far outside a major city, here are some places where you can find events near you. 

• Eventbrite
• Airbnb Experiences
• Local bars and clubs
• Your local city website

5 Fun Things to Do If You Want to Stay Home for NYE

For those who rather not deal with the crowds of drunken people, here are some ways you can have fun staying at home on NYE.

1. Host a game night; include video games as well as board games

Get together with your closest friends and have a game night. Depending on your style, you can break out the classic board and card games such as Monopoly and UNO.

You can even make it high-tech by playing video games such as Jackbox games or Mario Kart. 

2. Scrapbooking

Scrapbooking might seem like some out-of-date activity. However, it can be fun to do by yourself or with friends. The primary purpose of scrapbooking is to preserve or present important memories. 

Typically, scrapbooking involves attaching photos, artwork, or other memorabilia to blank pages in a scrapbook. 

While many of our memories exist on the thousands of photos we have stored on our computers and phones, scrapbooking is a nice way to relive old memories. 

Use NYE as a time to make a collage of photos from 2023 and reflect on the good times. 

3. Movie Marathon

Sometimes, NYE is a great night to decompress. Instead of getting all dressed up, why not put on comfy clothes, prepare a table of your favorite snacks, and watch a marathon of your favorite movies? 

Make your inner Blerd happy by watching one of the phases of the Marvel movies or classics like Men in Black, Blade, and other fun sci-fi movies. 

If you’re having trouble deciding what to watch, you can check out BGN’s list of 2023 Best Movies.

4. Dance party

Say you want to go out dancing but don’t want to worry about getting pushed around by dozens of drunk partygoers. Avoid getting your feet stepped on and have a dance party at home. 

Invite your friends, rearrange the furniture to give yourself maximum space, and put on your Spotify Wrap or any of your favorite playlists. 

5. Plan for the future with a vision-board-making party. 

While many NYE celebrations focus on celebrating the past year, you can use the time to focus on the coming year. 

Vision boards are collages with images of things you want to manifest or obtain. People tend to cut out pictures from magazines to design their vision boards. 

If you’re hopeful about the future, you can gather your friends, poster boards, and old magazines to assemble your 2024 vision boards. 

If you want to have even more fun with this idea, hire a tarot card reader to come and predict your future. 

https://blacknerdproblems.com/a-i-in-the-age-of-the-absence-of-the-author/

Back in high school, one of my English teachers introduced the idea of “The Death of the Author.” It’s a type of literary critique where the work is analyzed entirely independently of its creator. The idea behind it is that the work exists as its own entity and as such, the merits and demerits of the work should be extracted by what the reader is able to glean from it. The theory argues that if you account for the author, you are potentially closing yourself from a “pure” interpretation of the text and thus limit its meaning.

It’s a noble concept in some respects, the idea of separating the art from the artists. The acknowledgement that the work exists outside of its tangible connection to the creator. However, time and time again, we see that who the author is is a constant influence on the work’s existence. H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos is deeply seated within his extreme racism. Orson Scott Card’s homophobia infiltrates any potential reading of the Ender’s Game series. And we don’t nearly have time to dissect all of the things going on with a particular wizard related franchise.

The contrapositive is also true. The Matrix franchise is a trans allegory for the Wachowski sisters. The Boy and The Heron as a pseudo-autobiographical tale of Hayao Miyazaki’s life. The creation of Superman was deeply informed by Jerry Seigal and Joe Shuster’s personal life. In order to truly understand and appreciate the work, knowing who the author is and what their intentions were is a prerequisite to truly analyze anything going on.

The long and short of this reduces down to a simple sentiment: context matters. Context defines everything. To examine something in a vacuum is recklessly reductive and while it can be useful like frictionless airtight physics questions, in media critique, you have to look at things holistically.

However, as we close out 2023, while keeping the author in mind remains a relevant exercise, we have been faced with a different sort of problem. This is a year that has unfortunately been defined by “the absence of the author” in a plethora of ways.

The most emblematic example is one that I’ve been rallying against for a while and one that I will have to continue to rally against as it has proven to be so much more insidious and pervasive than I could have ever imagined. I’m of course talking about the uptick in the use of “artificial intelligence” (in quotes, because in its current practice, there’s a significant amount of machine learning involved and it’s important to make these distinctions if for no other reason than to hold out hope that the future actual A.I. overlords will be appreciative of the distinctive) pretty much everywhere. The uptick of online generators such as DALL-E, Midjourney, ChatGPT, InfoGPT, and now… Grok puts the technology at the forefront of the cultural zeitgeist, but the use of AI as a means of artistic bypass is nothing new in the slightest. The tipping point, at least in my eyes, continues to be the digital resurrection of James Dean for a movie (feel free to browse through our podcast This Week in Nerd News for more of me and my friends lamenting this weird reality) something facilitated by a CMG Worldwide which manages the digital likeliness of several notable figures, a fact that we’ll get back to in a bit.

But for now, let’s stick with generative A.I. for a moment. A wide range of “tools” have been used to create everything from comics, paintings, and movies. As the technology has evolved (stolen more data), the quality has improved but there remains a soullessness. If we take a look at some of the examples from yesteryear, we have the A.I. assisted comic that lost copyright protection (because unsurprisingly, using a celebrity’s likeness without permission is illegal).

And the recurring thought in my head is that there is definitely a space for A.I. assistance. There is something to be said about the automation of the monotonous. We can see the reasonable use of A.I. in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse, where machine learning helps reduce the amount of repetitive work that the animators need to and then verify the output personally. The combination of using self-sourced work of not relying on the A.I. generated content as gospel is what distinguishes what the populous perception of A.I. art with, you know, actual art. Deliberate choice, cognizant decision making, an actual example of A.I. as being a tool.

@yannisnerdverse

Thats how you use AI correctly #spiderman#intothespiderverse#acrossthespiderverse#ai#animation

♬ original sound – Yanni

If we look at say, “Théâtre D’opéra Spatial” generated by Midjourney as instructed by Jason M. Allen which made waves after it won a state fair last, it definitely looks nice but outside of that, it’s as thinly veiled as the generic Space Opera Theater text that seeded it. This of course was made during the relative infancy of the technology, and the generated art is getting better each and every day, but there’s something off putting about a piece of work that you can’t truly interrogate, something saddening about the lack of any true human intervention, something maddening about the pastiche of images fashioning itself into something supposedly bespoke without acknowledging the source.

And in these examples and any other example, it comes back to the same central point that keeps me up at night. There is no deliberate choice being made. There is no context. A string of words that gets converted to pixels vis a vis a machine does not produce work that can be analyzed. There is no artistry to be found. There are no meaningful decisions made. Any work produced by A.I. inherently is absent of an author by definition.

However, all of the above talks of A.I. directly intersect with another example of 2023 absent authors: the 2023 Writers/Actors Strikes. In addition to wanting a fair wage from the streaming revenue, several of the biggest debate points for WGA and SAG-AFTRA was the use of A.I. in their respective fields, whether it was ChatGPT making scripts or curating the digital likeliness of big names and background actors (I told you the digital resurrection of James Dean was going to come back up). And thankfully, some preventive measures were put into place, but this has also led to the fact that after a year of exception content, we are likely going to feel the absence of these creators in 2024 and 2025 since they weren’t making art because they were busy fighting for their basic livelihood. The idea of the noble artist doing art for art’s sake is perhaps one of the most frustrating antiquated notions perpetuated because at its base, art is fundamental to espousing cultural concepts. Art is important as preserving time periods and ideologies. Art is a fundamental part of our society, and we feel the absence of authors every time they are not able to make work.

So, as we go into the New Year, be mindful of the content droughts induced by corporate greed, that denied writers and actors fair terms to work, and that laid off massive numbers of video games developers. Be mindful of the A.I. work unethically stealing from far too numerous a source to lay down. Be mindful that there are ways to use new technology in a way that doesn’t foster works that are completely absent of authors. Because, and this is worth emphasizing again, we feel it when authors are absent.

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The post A.I. : In the Age of the Absence of the Author appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

https://www.thenerdelement.com/2023/12/23/nfl-week-15-prediction-updates-and-week-16-picks/

Good evening, folks! Today I want to discuss which picks I got correct and which ones I got wrong! So, let’s get started, shall we?! I predicted that the Chiefs would beat the Pats 27-13, but the final score was 27-17 Chiefs over the Pats. My prediction there was pretty close! I predicted that the 49ers would beat the Cardinals 38-14, but the final score was 45-29 49ers over the Cards. I predicted that the Seahawks would beat the Eagles 23-17, but the final score was 20-17 Seahawks over the Eagles.

I predicted that the Cowboys would beat the Bills 30-17, but the final score was 31-10 Bills over the Cowboys. I predicted that the Jags would beat the Ravens 31-27, but the final score was 23-7 Ravens over the Jags.

Overall, I have gotten 3 out of 5 picks correct!! Now, let’s get to the NFL week 16 picks, shall we?! The first game I will predict is the Lions @Vikings game, the divisional rivalries. I think the Vikings will beat the Lions 24-17. The next game I will predict is the Cowboys @Dolphins game. I think the Dolphins will beat the Cowboys 34-23. The next game I will predict is the Cardinals @Bears game. I think the Bears will beat the Cards 17-16. The next game I will predict is the Pats @Broncos game on Sunday night football. I think the Broncos will beat the Pats 27-13. The next games I will predict are the Raiders @Chiefs game, the divisional rivalries, Giants @Eagles game, the divisional rivalries, and the Ravens @49ers game. I think the Chiefs will beat the Raiders 31-13, I think the Eagles will beat the Giants 24-7, and I think the Ravens will actually beat the 49ers 34-27.

So, what do you guy’s think about the week 16 NFL picks?! I would love to hear your thoughts and comments down below!

Stay tuned for NFL updates.

The post NFL Week 15 Prediction Updates and Week 16 Picks! appeared first on The Nerd Element.

https://blackgirlnerds.com/black-women-at-the-intersection-of-reproductive-rights-and-climate-justice/

Since 2021, the United States has experienced its worst years for maternal mortality. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021 saw a 40 percent increase in maternal mortality from the previous year.

These deaths occurred during pregnancy or up to 42 days after and “occurred from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management.” While the rate was 26.6 deaths per 100,000 live births for white birthing people, in the Black community, the rate was nearly 70 deaths per 100,000 live births. Black birthing people are 2.6 times more likely to die during pregnancy, childbirth, or in the weeks following labor than our white counterparts.

As we talk about reproductive justice, it is also important to talk about climate justice and how they are very much linked together. Climate justice is a framework that intersects the social, political, and ethical questions of how its benefits and burdens are differentially distributed. For example, socially marginalized groups experience the brunt of climate impacts while having limited to very little contribution in producing policies.

In Pittsburgh, people are breathing air that is filled with toxic matter, according to the American Lung Association. It’s gotten so bad, in fact, that in 2019, Pittsburgh was determined to be the worst place for Black women and birthing people to live.

Under-regulated chemicals such as vinyl chloride, the chemical spilled in the East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment earlier this year, harm both the fetus and the pregnant person. Research has also linked hotter temperatures and wildfires due to climate change to higher rates of premature and low birth weight babies.

Most researchers agree that the effects of climate degradation and pollution on maternal and infant health have heavier consequences for Black people. They’ve also found the effect of extreme heat on preterm birth in Texas, California, Massachusetts, and Alabama are greater for Black people than their white counterparts.

In September 2023, the city of New Orleans and some surrounding parishes in south Louisiana began to prepare for three months of saltwater intrusion in the local water supply. In the meantime, current Louisiana Attorney General and Louisiana governor-elect Jeff Landry can be held partially responsible for the city’s ability to address the now sidestepped crisis, as well as the decayed state of the city’s entire water infrastructure.

Landry personally solicited the Louisiana State Bond Commission last year to withhold millions in funding from the New Orleans Sewage and Water Board due to the city government’s refusal to arrest and prosecute women in the wake of Louisiana’s total ban on abortion. The New Orleans Sewage and Water Board remains in desperate need of funding to take care of necessary repairs to its four water intake structures — one of which that has been inoperable for over 30 years.

Pregnant people in low-income neighborhoods in US cities, often where Black people live, do not face just one environmental health problem but often several, including air pollution, water pollution, lack of access to fresh produce, unlivable urban heat islands, and much more.

If we are going to be concerned about reproductive and maternal health, we have to pay attention to the climate crisis and other environmental disasters. On the other side of the mirror, people concerned about our planet’s environment need to pay more attention to the increases in maternal and infant mortality.

At the intersection of sexism and racism, we will find Black women facing a unique set of health outcomes under climate change. State-sponsored racist and sexist violence against Black girls and women in the United States has informed health outcomes throughout history. The truth is that gendered racism influences chronic health outcomes and climate change exacerbates them. Our bodies have the ability to adapt to minor and even repetitive injuries. But then there are those chronic stressors that take their toll, including housing insecurity, food and water insecurity, racialized gendered trauma, sexual violence, poverty, and more.

Black women have always been caretakers, whether we’ve wanted to be or not. The stereotypes that were created during slavery to justify the exploitation of Black women has continued to reinforce the idea of Black women as martyrs, jeopardizing their own health for the comfort of others. As it exists today, this stereotype could directly result in higher rates of infectious diseases among Black women under climate change.

The Biden-Harris administration has been somewhat outspoken on reproductive rights and has pledged to take climate action. But they have yet to connect the dots between the environmental justice and the reproductive justice crisis in the United States, even as they work to tackle both separately.

It is Congress that has to make sure the health needs and the right to a healthy environment are protected for people who are pregnant. It should be a simple thing; a natural thing. The Environmental Protection Agency needs to include reproductive justice organizations at every level fighting for pregnancy health on behalf of at-risk mothers.

Obstetrician/gynecologists also have a unique opportunity to raise awareness, educate, and advocate for mitigation strategies to reverse climate change affecting their patients and their families. I wonder how many of them do.

The Biden-Harris administration would also do well to establish some type of task force that works with the maternal and newborn health community, combining environmental advances with maternal and infant health. If it fails to do so, the maternal crisis in the United States will only continue to get worse.