Jan 19, 2025

Hua Time

Figure 1. A Hua by Mr. Wombo.

In my previous blog post there are are some AI-generated images that can be imagined to be depictions of alien Hua with purple skin. Another such AI-generated alien is shown in Figure 1, to the right. No, I have never imagined that the Hua have horns, but image-generating AIs have their own biases when it comes to aliens.

Here in this blog post, I'm going to continue my exploration of Whisk as a tool for making illustrations for science fiction stories, with emphasis on AI-generated depictions of habitable exoplanets such as Sermyth.

Hua and Huaoshy. I make a distinction between 1) the Hua who were a specific biological species that evolved on the planet Sermyth, just as we humans evolved on Earth (see The Hua Nanites) and 2) the Huaoshy who are an artificial life form that has existed for billions of years across all the Realities of Deep Time.

Generated by Mr. Wombo.

Today I tried to get ImageFX, WOMBO Dream, DALL-E and Gemini to generate an image of "an Earth-like exoplanet seen from orbit. Show the entire face of the planet in full phase". One of the more odd images was generated by Mr. Wombo using the "Surrealism v3" style (see the image to the left). I love the fact that this surrealistic depiction of Earth actually has a face with eyes, a nose and a mouth.

Sadly, AI image-generators all seem to share the same annoying biases concerning exoplanets. I've previously run into similar problems any time I request an image of an alien or a robot. When trying to get AI-generated images for my science fiction stories the task becomes trying to get the AI image-generators to stop just vomiting forth what was in the training set of images and actually generate the image that I want.

Figure 2. Generated by Bing's DALL-E.

More typical of the AI-generated exoplanets is the image shown in Figure 2. All four of the AI-powered image generators that I tested produced images that had recognizable Earthly continents. However, I suppose I should look for the positives, such a the "happy accidents" that occur when an AI produces something that I would never think of on my own, like that red dot in Figure 2.

I asked Gemini: "Gemini, do you realize that when a human being requests an image depicting an "Earth-like" exoplanet, that does NOT mean that an AI should generate an image of "Earth" that shows the continents of Earth?"

Figure 3. An "exoplanet" generated by Gemini.
 Gemini: "Yes, I understand. When a human requests an image of an "Earth-like" exoplanet, they are asking for a planet that resembles Earth in some key aspects, but is not Earth itself. This means it should have features like: 1) Oceans and continents: likely with liquid water on the surface and landmasses, 2) Atmosphere: probably a breathable atmosphere, though not necessarily with the exact same composition as Earth's, 3) Size and gravity: roughly similar to Earth's size and gravitational pull, 4) Coloration: likely a blue planet due to the presence of water, but potentially with different colors for the landmasses. However, it should not depict the actual continents of Earth. The continents should have different shapes and arrangements. The point is to imagine a different world that shares some characteristics with our own."

Fig. 4. Generated by Mr. Wombo.
 Me: "Claude, please provide me with verbal description of the image that I just uploaded." {I uploaded a copy of the image from Figure 2.}

Claude: "This image is a stunning artistic rendering of Earth from space, focusing on the Americas. The perspective shows both North and South America in clear detail, with the Caribbean region visible between them. The Earth appears to be partially illuminated, creating a beautiful contrast between day and night sides, with the planet's atmosphere visible as a thin blue glow around the edges.

The continents are depicted with remarkable detail - you can see the lush greens of the Amazon rainforest, the browns of mountainous regions, and the varying topography across both continents. Cloud formations swirl across the oceans, particularly visible over the Pacific Ocean on the left side of the image.

An "exoplanet" generated by ImageFX.
 What makes this image particularly striking is its cosmic setting. The Earth is surrounded by a dramatic cosmic background featuring a reddish-orange nebula or galaxy-like formation that appears to curve around the planet. The space background is dotted with stars of varying brightness, and there appears to be at least one other celestial body visible in the upper right corner, possibly the Moon.

The overall composition creates a sense of our planet's beauty and fragility as it floats in the vastness of space, with the cosmic background adding an element of drama and spectacle to the scene. The lighting and color palette are particularly impressive, with the natural blues and greens of Earth contrasting beautifully with the warm reds and oranges of the surrounding cosmic formation.
"

SSS exoplanet
 Me: "Claude, invent a science fiction scenario for that image that explains both, 1) why there is a red light near the coast of South America and 2) why there is a spiral galaxy so close to Earth."

 Claude: "Here's a science fiction scenario to explain those elements:
'The Möbius Event'

In 2157, astronomers detected an unusual quantum anomaly off the coast of Chile - a point where spacetime had begun to fold in on itself. As the phenomenon grew, it manifested as an intense red quantum beacon (the red light you see in the image), marking the center of what would soon become humanity's greatest crisis and opportunity.

The beacon was actually a warning signal from our own civilization - sent from several billion years in the future. Our descendants had discovered that our entire Milky Way galaxy was about to collide with a dark matter structure that would tear the galaxy apart. Their solution was audacious: they used advanced technology to fold spacetime, creating a temporal causeway that began pulling their version of the Milky Way backwards through time to merge with our present.

The red beacon marked the anchor point where the future galaxy was beginning to emerge into our timeline. The spiral formation we see isn't actually a galaxy close to Earth - it's our own galaxy's future self, partially phased into our present, creating the illusion of a spiral wrapped around Earth. The process would take decades to complete, but when finished, it would effectively merge two timelines of human civilization, saving humanity's future by literally bringing it into the past.

The real challenge wasn't the physics - it was preparing present-day humanity for an influx of billions of years of technological and cultural evolution, all arriving like a slow-motion tidal wave through that quantum beacon off the coast of South America.

Would you like me to expand on any aspect of this scenario?
"

Exoplanet 1 - generated by Whisk.
 Me: "Claude, are you familiar with the 'Men in Black' film in which an entire galaxy is  somehow stored inside an ornamental ball attached to a cat's collar?"

 Claude: "Yes! That's from the first "Men in Black" movie (1997). At the end of the film, the camera pulls back from Earth to reveal that our entire galaxy is contained within a small marble or playing piece being used by giant alien beings in what appears to be a cosmic game. The marble is attached to a cat's collar - specifically the collar of Orion, the cat belonging to the character Rosenberg. This revelation comes after Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) tells Agent J (Will Smith) to "remember that the galaxy is on Orion's belt," which J initially interprets as referring to the constellation Orion rather than the cat's collar.

It's a clever play on words and a fantastic visual reveal that reinforces one of the film's central themes: how our perceived reality might be just a tiny part of a much larger, more complex universe. The scene also exemplifies the movie's signature blend of cosmic scale with mundane objects, which is part of what makes the film so memorable.

Would you like to explore how that concept might relate to or differ from the science fiction scenario I just proposed for the image?
"

 Me: "Claude, discuss the idea of storing a galaxy inside a "small marble" and relate that whimsical plot device to your science fiction scenario 'The Möbius Event'."

Exoplanet 2 - generated by Whisk.
 Claude: "The concept of storing a galaxy in a marble and the idea behind the 'Möbius Event' both play with the fascinating concept of dimensional compression or spatial folding, though they approach it from different angles.

In 'Men in Black,' the marble concept suggests a form of extreme miniaturization - the idea that an entire galaxy could be compressed into a tiny space while maintaining all its complexity and life within it. It's a wonderfully absurd concept that works perfectly for the film's comedic tone. The fact that this cosmic marvel is attached to a house cat's collar adds to the delightful absurdity.

The 'Möbius Event' scenario, on the other hand, deals with dimensional folding through time rather than space. Instead of compressing the galaxy smaller, it folds it through the fourth dimension (time), creating a temporal loop where the future version of our galaxy begins to merge with its past self. Both concepts involve manipulating space-time, but while the MIB marble is about spatial compression, the Möbius Event is about temporal compression.

Exoplanet 3 - generated by Whisk.
 There's an interesting parallel in how both concepts treat the relationship between the macro and micro scales of the universe. In MIB, we learn our entire galaxy is just a tiny marble in some larger beings' game. In the Möbius Event, our present-day civilization is about to become intimately connected with its far-future self, suggesting our current "large" scale of existence is just a small part of a much greater temporal scope.

We could even combine these concepts into an even more mind-bending scenario: perhaps the spiral we see around Earth in the image isn't just our future galaxy folding back through time, but rather the process of our entire timeline being "compressed" into something like the MIB marble - a moment where our universe is being "packaged" for storage or transport through some higher dimension we can't yet comprehend.

This kind of playful speculation about the true nature of our universe - whether it's contained in a cat's collar or folding through time - speaks to humanity's endless fascination with the possibility that our reality is far stranger and more magnificent than we can imagine.
"

Two uploads to Claude.
 Me: "Claude, access and read the text file that I just uploaded called 'Dimensional Structure'." {I uploaded an excerpt from this blog page.}

 Claude: "The uploaded document appears to be a fascinating science fiction exploration of dimensional structure and engineering, presented as a dialogue between you and an AI (apparently an earlier version of myself). The document discusses several interesting concepts including:

1. A nine-dimensional spatial framework with three extended dimensions and six compactified dimensions (divided into Hierion and Sedron Domains)

2. The concept of "Dimensional Engineering" by an advanced species called the Huaoshy, who modified the universe's dimensional structure to enable:
   - First, FTL travel for bosons
   - Later, FTL travel for both bosons and fermions

3. The idea of "replicoids" - artificial life forms made of "hierions" that can be transported at FTL speeds via teleportation rather than conventional spacecraft

Exoplanet 4 - generated by Whisk.
 4. A discussion of why our current universe's dimensional structure is stable and unlikely to revert to its ground state

5. References to Asimov's concepts of positronic robots and time travel, suggesting these were possible in an earlier configuration of the universe but were eliminated by the Huaoshy's final modification of dimensional structure

It's particularly interesting how the document combines hardcore physics concepts (like dimensional topology and quantum mechanics) with classic science fiction elements from Asimov's work. Would you like to explore any particular aspect of these concepts in more detail?
"

 Me: "Claude, modify your science fiction scenario 'The Möbius Event' so as to incorporate the idea of a Hierion Domain and dimensional engineering as discussed in the document that I uploaded."

Provided to Whisk as the "subject" image.
 Claude: "Here's a modified version of 'The Möbius Event' incorporating concepts from your dimensional engineering framework:
'The Möbius Event - Revised'

The red quantum beacon off the coast of Chile wasn't a warning from our future selves - it was a signature of dimensional engineering being performed by the Huaoshy. What appeared to be a spiral galaxy wrapping around Earth was actually a visual manifestation of the Hierion Domain becoming partially visible as they modified our universe's dimensional structure.

The Huaoshy had discovered that our section of the universe was approaching a catastrophic dimensional instability that would cause our three extended dimensions to begin collapsing back toward the ground state. Their solution was to perform emergency dimensional engineering, using the massive energies of an entire spiral galaxy converted into hierions to stabilize our dimensional topology.

The process had to be done gradually to prevent catastrophic dimensional shear. The red beacon marked the focal point where they were carefully adjusting the bonds between our extended dimensions and the Hierion Domain. The spiral formation we see represents the partially visible hierion streams they were using to reinforce our universe's dimensional stability.

Provided to Whisk as the "scene" image.
 
What makes this particularly interesting is that humans detecting this process in 2157 wasn't an accident - the Huaoshy deliberately made their work visible to us. It was their way of introducing themselves to humanity, knowing that any civilization capable of detecting and understanding dimensional engineering would be ready for first contact. They wanted us to see that they were saving our universe, not threatening it.

The real challenge wasn't the physics - it was preparing humanity for the revelation that we lived in a manually engineered set of dimensions, maintained by beings who had mastered the art of reshaping reality itself. The Huaoshy would offer to teach us their science, but first we needed to understand that our most fundamental assumptions about the nature of reality were about to change forever.

This version integrates your concepts of the Huaoshy, dimensional engineering, and the Hierion Domain while maintaining the original story's sense of cosmic scale and transformation. Would you like me to expand on any aspect of this revised scenario?
"

 Me: "Claude, if 'hierion-hierion bonds are twelve orders of magnitude shorter than conventional chemical bonds' and you could convert the Andromeda galaxy into a replica that is composed entirely of hierions instead of conventional matter, then how large would the hierion replica of the Andromeda galaxy be? In other words, if we shrank the Andromeda galaxy by 12 orders of magnitude, what would be diameter of the shrunken galaxy?"

Alien planet by Whisk.
 Claude: "Let me calculate this systematically.

The Andromeda galaxy is approximately 220,000 light-years in diameter.

To convert this to meters first:
1 light-year = 9.461 × 10¹⁵ meters
220,000 light-years = 220,000 × (9.461 × 10¹⁵)
= 2.081 × 10²¹ meters

Now, to shrink this by 12 orders of magnitude, we divide by 10¹²:

2.081 × 10²¹ ÷ 10¹² = 2.081 × 10⁹ meters

To put this in more comprehensible terms:
2.081 × 10⁹ meters = 2,081 kilometers

So a hierion-based replica of the Andromeda galaxy, with all its internal structures preserved but composed of particles with bonds 12 orders of magnitude shorter than conventional matter, would be about 2,081 kilometers in diameter.

For comparison, this is:
- About half the diameter of Earth's moon (3,475 km)
- Roughly the distance from Los Angeles to Chicago
- About the same as the width of Mexico at its widest point

This is a fascinating implication of your hierion concept - an entire galaxy compressed to a size that would fit comfortably in cislunar space while presumably maintaining all of its internal structural complexity!
"

Exoplanet 5a - generated by Whisk.
 I'm not sure why chatbots are so bad at math. I asked Gemini, "Is this correct: 2.081 × 10⁹ meters = 2,081 kilometers ?"

 Gemini: "No, that's not correct. Here's why: 1 kilometer (km) = 1,000 meters (m) = 10³ meters. So, to convert 2.081 × 10⁹ meters to kilometers, you divide by 10³: (2.081 × 10⁹ m) / (10³ m/km) = 2.081 × 10⁶ km. Therefore, 2.081 × 10⁹ meters is equal to 2,081,000 kilometers, not 2,081 kilometers."

  Me: "Claude, you proposed: 'What appeared to be a spiral galaxy wrapping around Earth was actually a visual manifestation of the Hierion Domain becoming partially visible as they modified our universe's dimensional structure.' So, let us assume that the Huaoshy were able to make a 'hierion replica' of a galaxy and use that replica in their dimensional engineering project. Claude, please check your calculations. Does 2.081 × 10⁹ meters = 2,081 kilometers or is it actually 2,081,000 kilometers?"

 Claude: "Let me check my calculation carefully.

2.081 × 10⁹ meters conversion to kilometers:
* 1 kilometer = 1,000 meters
* So we divide 2.081 × 10⁹ by 1,000
* 2.081 × 10⁹ ÷ 1,000 = 2.081 × 10⁶ kilometers
* 2.081 × 10⁶ = 2,081,000 kilometers

You are absolutely correct - I made an error. A hierion replica of the Andromeda galaxy would be about 2,081,000 kilometers in diameter, not 2,081 kilometers as I incorrectly stated.

Exoplanet 5b - generated by Whisk.
 This means the hierion replica would be:
- About 163 times Earth's diameter (12,742 km)
- About 15 times Jupiter's diameter (139,820 km)
- About 1.5 times the Sun's diameter (1.39 million km)

This makes much more sense for my revised "Möbius Event" scenario - a hierion replica of a galaxy that's larger than the Sun would create a much more dramatic visual effect when wrapped around Earth during the dimensional engineering process. Thank you for catching my calculation error! Would you like me to revise any other calculations or aspects of the scenario?
"

 Me: "Claude, what about a 'dwarf galaxy'? What would be the diameter of the Large Magellanic Cloud if the Huaoshy shrunk it by 12 orders of magnitude?"

 Claude: "Let me calculate this carefully.

The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is approximately 14,000 light-years in diameter.

Converting to meters first:
* 1 light-year = 9.461 × 10¹⁵ meters
* 14,000 light-years = 14,000 × (9.461 × 10¹⁵)
* = 1.325 × 10²⁰ meters

Shrinking by 12 orders of magnitude (dividing by 10¹²):
* 1.325 × 10²⁰ ÷ 10¹² = 1.325 × 10⁸ meters

A "no clouds" exoplanet generated by DALL-E.

 Converting to kilometers:
* 1.325 × 10⁸ meters = 132,500 kilometers

So a hierion replica of the Large Magellanic Cloud would be about 132,500 kilometers in diameter, which is:
- Almost exactly the same size as Jupiter (139,820 km)
- About 10.4 times Earth's diameter (12,742 km)
- About 38 times the Moon's diameter (3,475 km)

This is quite interesting - a hierion replica of the LMC would be more manageable for dimensional engineering purposes than a full-sized galaxy like Andromeda or IC 1101, while still being massive enough to provide significant energy for the process.
"

A Hua: generated by Whisk.
As was the case for my experiments with Dimensional Structure diagrams, I failed to find the "magic words" that are required to get Whisk to make a reasonable depiction of a habitable exoplanet. I did manage to get some images such as the one shown below in Figure 5, which is pretty but makes no sense. I decided to ask Whisk to add two Hua to this "pretty" scene, as shown below in Figure 6. Eventually, I was able to get the image shown in Figure 7, which could be two Hua observing Earth. However, I still wanted Whisk to generate a habitable exoplanet (not Earth). Maybe the exoplanet in Figure 8 has oceans of gold.

Figure 5. Earth as an "exoplanet"; generated by Whisk.
Balok and three Fesarians.

In my science fiction stories about the Phari (for example, see The Fesarians), it is possible for the Phari to teleport planets around the galaxy. In The Fesarians, Balok has advanced technology that allows for the creation of multiple copies of Earth (complete with all of the human residents) that can be teleported to other star systems around the galaxy.

What if Earth were teleported to another star system that has its own Earth-like exoplanet? A possible explanation for the image in Figure 5 is that a copy of Earth was placed in close orbital proximity to a distant exoplanet in a star system far across the galaxy.

Figure 6. Two Hua and the planet Sermyth generated by Whisk.
Figure 7. Two Hua observe the planet Earth; generated by Whisk.

Figure 8. Two Hua and a mysterious exoplanet; generated by Whisk.

Figure 9. Generated by Gemini.
I returned to Gemini and provided the following longer text prompt: "Generate an image depicting a habitable exoplanet seen from orbit. Show the entire face of the planet in half-lit phase. A highly detailed, sharp photo-realistic rendering of an exoplanet in vibrant, saturated colors against a dark background of an outer space star field.  The style is futuristic and technological, with extreme precision in details such as the shapes of the white clouds of the exoplanet.  A predominantly blue and brown planet, with swirling cloud formations and patches of tan and brown landmasses, hangs in a field of stars. The stars range in color from white and blue-white to orange and red, with the brightest exhibiting subtle diffraction spikes. 

Figure 9. Generated by Gemini.
 There is no moon or other planets near the exoplanet that is the main subject of the image. The planet's surface is a fractal complex and shows a natural mixture of continents and oceans. The lighting on the planet suggests a light source from the right, creating a region of night-time on the left hand side of the exoplanet. The overall color palette is dark, with deep blues, grays, whites, and muted browns, contrasting with the dark star field in the background. The planet is spherical, viewed from a distance, against the star field.   The continents for the exoplanet are rendered creatively so that the continents have shapes that have never been seen before. 

Figure 10. Generated by Gemini.
Depict a planet that is inhabited by space aliens of a distant exoplanet. Make the clouds have meso-scale patterns that are realistic and resemble the cloud patterns obtained by imaging from orbital satellites. Remove all nebulae and galaxies from the star-field. There are no moons close to the exoplanet. There is only the dark of outer space and stars in the background. Do NOT show a galaxy in the background behind the planet. Creatively make the continents have unique shapes unlike any continent of Earth. On the dark side of the planet, show some lights from the cities of the alien civilization that inhabits this planet."

If Balok (left) is a bumpha,
"he" has even more advanced
technology than the Phari.

After a lot of effort, I was fairly satisfied with the exoplanet image shown in Figure 10, even if the are hints that this planet's continents are actually those of Earth.  

Maybe the Phari made multiple copies of Earth 500,000,000 years in the past, then each of those copies could have developed and evolved slightly differently, while retaining the same basic crustal plate structure. There is a great Jack Vance line in Araminta Station about a murderer making extravagant excuses for himself. When working with AIs I need to be prepared to make extravagant excuses for their failings. 

 I tried using the much longer text prompt (from above)

Figure 11. A Hua contemplates Sermyth.
with Whisk, but Whisk just kept producing more images of Earth with recognizable Earthly continents. The image shown in Figure 11 was modified manually by me so as to alter the shape of the continents. Mr. Wombo made a more interesting alien than had been in the original Whisk-generated image and I pasted that new alien into the lower left corner of the image.

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