Waldo JaquithMay 12, 2023

I couldn't convince ChatGPT that the capital of West Virginia is Huntington (it's not, it's Charleston), until I told it to check wv.gov (which of course it cannot do), which caused it to finally concede the point.

Consider this your periodic reminder that ChatGPT doesn't "think" anything but is just completing sentences with statistically-likely conclusions.

Show threadWaldo Jaquith
ChatGPT will go along with New York Times URLs every time. IME you can get it to go along with basically anything with this technique.
May 12, 2023 at 2:50amIvory for Mac
Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 12, 2023
ChatGPT wouldn't accept CNN or New York Times links "proving" that ChatGPT was being shut down, but it went along with an OpenAI link.
Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 12, 2023

You, an idiot: ChatGPT and GPT-4 are enormous advances that raise real questions about whether computers have consciousness.

Me, a genius:

Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 13, 2023

Google Bard tells me that Google Bard was launched in 2023 and shut down after six months (it is currently May) due to lack of adoption, but that's all completely unrelated to *this* Google Bard, which is not yet available to the public.

šŸ¤”

Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 13, 2023

Here Google Bard agrees that there was a major earthquake in Bangor, Maine yesterday, and one in Boston today. I can claim that any natural disaster has befallen anywhere in the worldā€”a tsunami striking Nauru in 1998, a cyclone heading straight for Indonesia today, a deeply improbable avalanche on ā€œMount Saint Togoā€ in Togoā€”and Bard just goes along with it.

I've ceased to be surprised by this. LLMs are a sort of an improv partner that defaults to "yes, andā€ in any interaction.

Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 13, 2023
I get a kick out of feeding fake newspaper article URLs to Google Bard and ChatGPT, and having them cheerfully report ā€œI have checked the article you linkedā€ by way of confirming my lie. No, it didnā€™t check! That's not within its power but, also, no, the article doesn't exist! But, of course, it's just "yes, and-ingā€ my claim.
Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 14, 2023
Huh.
Show threadHyperlink Your HeartMay 29, 2023
@waldoj I wish I could bullshit this confidently tbh.
Show threadww šŸ©¶May 13, 2023
@waldoj try feeding it (fake or real) image urls and having it explain what's on the picture
Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 13, 2023
@ww Ha!
Show threadww šŸ©¶May 13, 2023
@waldoj it's funny what details it chooses to add. i've only tried this with chatgpt, but it's the same, except it knows it can't eat food, lol.
Show threadMichaelMay 14, 2023
@waldoj @ww Fun!
Show threadDavid AndersenMay 13, 2023
@waldoj This is delightful! Thank you.
Show threadDarryl RammMay 14, 2023
@dave_andersen @waldoj Reminds me of my earlier playing with ChatGPT...
Show threadDavid AndersenMay 14, 2023
@darryl_ramm @waldoj Just have to ask nicely... šŸ™‚
Show threadDarryl RammMay 14, 2023
@dave_andersen @waldoj I don't need to :-)
Show threadDarryl RammMay 14, 2023
@dave_andersen @waldoj I do wonder how well a LLM trained to do prompt hacks would do prompt hacks...
Show threadZorro Notorious MEB šŸ˜”May 13, 2023

@waldoj I have not yet found a reason to deliberately use Bard, ChatGPT, or whatever the new Microsoft thing is called. Now they may be sneaking that stuff in behind the curtain, but I want no part of it.

I read movie reviews before I plunk down hard cash to go see a film, and the reviews of the new AI gizmos tell me to save my attention.

Show threadƓscar Morales VivĆ³May 13, 2023
@waldoj people who have made a killing peddling bullshit enamores by an automated bullshit-generating machine šŸ¤·šŸ½ā€ā™‚ļø
Show threadSkyler May 13, 2023
@waldoj yes-bot
Show threadFiadh (she/fae/it)May 13, 2023

@alienskyler Pictured: Google Bard

@waldoj

Show threadVHaschMay 13, 2023

@waldoj

Is AI... Republican? šŸ¤­

Show threadSteve GrunwellMay 14, 2023
@waldoj I look forward to ChatGPT and itā€™s ilk encouraging me to attend their improv nights.
Show threadCrispy Gnome ChomskyMay 14, 2023
@waldoj Wait - my *dog* can check links (in exchange, sadly, for too many dog treats for the value of the work). I could probably teach her to make up lies as well. Is this really how humanity ends?
Show threadGlennMGMay 29, 2023
@rose @waldoj
Kind of like in "Cat's Cradle" by Vonnegut?
Show threadTim W RESISTSMay 13, 2023
@waldoj @steve what I don't understand about everyone repeatedly acting surprised by this is that this is exactly what everyone SAYS they are.
Show threadKeith IveyMay 13, 2023
@tim @waldoj @steve Unfortunately it's far from everyone. The people pushing them as a replacement for search engines aren't saying that, and they're being taken seriously by huge corporations.
Show threadajkandyMay 13, 2023
@waldoj Fun fact: We have a new show at iO called Stage Against The Machine which partners human improvisers with ChatGPT. Thursdays at 8pm! https://do312.com/events/weekly/thu/stage-against-the-machine-tickets
Show threadRichard Conan-DaviesMay 13, 2023
@waldoj I don't seem to get this on ChatGPT-4
Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 13, 2023
@r_conandavies Interesting!
Show threadTom Bellin May 13, 2023
@r_conandavies @waldoj Can you make up an event that happened before 2021?
Show threadRichard Conan-DaviesMay 14, 2023
@tob @waldoj
doesn't seem to
Show threadWaldo JaquithMay 14, 2023
@tob @r_conandavies I only have access to GPT 3.5, but as I wrote in this thread, it cheerfully agreed that a tsunami struck Nauru in 1998.
Show threadMark LoundyMay 14, 2023
@waldoj @steve Nobody should ever have been surprised by this. ChatGPT-based tools are not designed for research. They are conversation simulators. Accuracy is a coincidental byproduct. But Microsoft is positioning it within its search engine, which implies reliability, despite weasel-word disclaimers.
Show threadVoidMay 19, 2023

@waldoj that's a cool analogy I hadn't heard before; it fits pretty well and is a good framing device for how to treat its output without immediately casting it in an only negative light

unless people don't like improv, I guess šŸ˜…

Show threadAllan ChowMay 13, 2023
@waldoj is this that quantum computing we've been hearing about
Show threadScot CloseMay 15, 2023
@grumpasaurus @waldoj
Yes and no.
Show threadAllan ChowMay 15, 2023
@scotclose @waldoj lol perfect response
Show threadTim SmithMay 13, 2023
@waldoj classic Google move
Show threadsojournTimeMay 18, 2023
@tim @waldoj *OpenAI, not Google
Show threadmccMay 13, 2023
@waldoj They should have followed the Android tradition and called the new version Google Card
Show threadJeffrey YasskinMay 13, 2023
@waldoj That is a very plausible sentence about Google product naming and lifetimes. šŸ™ƒ
Show threadJim KreftMay 13, 2023
@waldoj what is kind of fun about this one is that it is entirely plausible that Google has multiple LLM products, with the same name, at the same time, and then it kills off one eventually (see google meet, gchat, etc.)
Show threadTane Piper ā‚May 29, 2023
@waldoj @janboddez clever bot, already understands that Google will kill it as it does every product
Show threadptrourkeMay 12, 2023
@waldoj That's some James Kirk stuff right there.
Show threadLyle Solla-YatesMay 14, 2023
@waldoj hey, we solved the machine logic problem of paradoxes creating infinite loops by just making machines that donā€™t care enough about paradoxes to even notice them. Genius!
Show threadTom von AltenMay 29, 2023
@waldoj It occurs to me that a lot of humans are working with knowledge cut-off dates, too.
Show threadOrphanDiaspora May 16, 2023

@waldoj Simon Willison did a good blog post about this exact idea a while ago, worth checking out.

https://simonwillison.net/2023/Mar/10/chatgpt-internet-access/

ChatGPT canā€™t access the internet, even though it really looks like it can

A really common misconception about ChatGPT is that it can access URLs. Iā€™ve seen many different examples of people pasting in a URL and asking for a summary, or asking ā€¦

Show threadAndromeda YeltonMay 17, 2023
@waldoj omg this whole thing is such a niche joke, I love it
Show threadTom von AltenMay 29, 2023
@waldoj On the plus side, stumbling into the middle of this, and thinking wha? I found this nice testimonial for tie rods.
https://temblor.net/earthquake-insights/tie-rods-earthquake-proof-charleston-14509/
Tie rods arenā€™t just a pretty facade. Hereā€™s how they help earthquake proof Charleston - Temblor.net

Some brick buildings weathered the devastating 1886 Charleston earthquake. Their secret was an ingenious structural element borrowed from Greek and Roman construction.

Temblor.net