May 13, 2024
I was trying to look up the quote from Phineas and Ferb, but Bing’s Copilot did something even funnier
Show thread   May 13, 2024

Further proof about how much of bullshit generators these things are.

I mean, it clearly is regurgitating something, but does not understand the semantic context at all

These LLMs are so trained to spit out a confident answer that logic is irrelevant, as long as something is said

It’s kind of like how politicians very rarely answer “I don’t know” to questions, because to not give an answer is a sign of weakness

Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@yassie_j I love this answer from Copilot! We still have to be very critical about what tools like Copilot are feeding us, but this hasn't changed from all the other tools we have used in the past. Copilot is mostly just an extension to the Bing search results. We still, and always, have to be very critical about anything that we read or hear online. Or anywhere else really. I personally use Copilot on a daily basis today, but it's always with this in mind.
Show thread   May 14, 2024
@kaspernymand sorry, you love this answer??? It tried to console me about something that is impossible and not only that, but it gave me an incorrect answer — the actual search results were what I wanted. Copilot was actually more than useless, it actually had negative usability here because it provided an answer that makes no sense. I don’t need a computer to console me, I need a computer to give me the answer I need.
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@yassie_j I saw it more as a joke. Everybody knows that you can't be born without your parents being involved. Errors like these, I just see as the funny reality of a tool still being in its early phases of development. Or perhaps it was indeed meant as a joke from Copilot. Nobody knows. You know, it's just like a grandma missing the point of a sentence and answering something completely unrelated. It happens. We just have to laugh about it and move on.
Show thread   May 14, 2024

@kaspernymand if everybody knows this, then why doesn’t copilot? If we’re supposed to rely on these things to provide appropriate answers, then most people would rather expect an answer rather than a joke, wouldn’t they? If I wanted to look for jokes, I would go to a comedy club, with real humans, instead of a computer.

Do you see the limitation here? I wanted an answer to a question, and the answer was already provided in the search results below this stupid chatbox. The Copilot would not have made any of the results any better. This has negative utility because it wasted my time.

Show threadGenna || 春 || 🌙May 14, 2024
@[email protected] @kaspernymand what "joke" lol where is the joke, is copilot itself, in it's entirety, or even the concept of an LLM trying to act like a person altogether, the joke? If so I can get behind that!!~
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@HaruEb @yassie_j Answered below. :)
Show threadGenna || 春 || 🌙May 14, 2024
@kaspernymand @[email protected] This makes me violently ill
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@HaruEb @yassie_j That's fair. We should only use the tools that we ourselves find useful.
Show threadGenna || 春 || 🌙
@kaspernymand @[email protected] I just wish to god they wouldn't try to pretend they have human experiences, like feeling "sorry" or understanding even in the slightest what "keeping you company" could possibly mean.

I don't doubt that these types of things can be useful, but they seem uniquely designed to upset me with this stuff, they pretend to be human in the most upsetting ways, at least to me
May 14, 2024 at 4:02pmWeb
Show threadScary Pumpkin Lantern 🎃 May 14, 2024
@HaruEb @kaspernymand @[email protected] No, it's not just you.

You don't want your toaster to empathize with you either.

Especially if you know this thing is just faking it because it is utterly incapable of having any thought or emotion and just regurgitates word samples.
It gives off major uncanny valley vibes. Creepy af.

Completely useless, redundant clutter for bored techbros.

I swear, the more these idiots are trying to make things "more accessible" the less accessible they get. It's like taking "if it ain't broken don't fix it" as a challenge for some moronic reason.
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@HaruEb @yassie_j That's very fair. I also find it odd sometimes. I know that Copilot has three modes to try to adapt to your personal preference. "Creative", "Balanced", or "Precise". If you just want the facts, "Precise"-mode is probably the way to go for that prompt. Personally, I'm mostly using "Balanced". That works for me most of the time. Serving the facts, but also helping translate it into real world scenarios.
Show threadGenna || 春 || 🌙May 14, 2024
@[email protected] nah I don't know where this optimism about what is a "fact" and whether or not these things "serve" such things reliably, it's so alien to me.

Untagging the techbro because honestly this reply isn't for him and I don't really give a shit what his thoughts might be in response to this.
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@HaruEb @yassie_j I'm not even working in tech. I only started using these tools a few weeks ago. I'm working in social and humanistic sciences. I've been sceptical about these tools for a while - and still am. But I won't bother you anymore with my chatter. :)
Show threadGenna || 春 || 🌙May 14, 2024
@kaspernymand @[email protected] Alright since you tagged yourself back in I'm going to say it with my full chest:

You and people like you, defending this shit, make me sick.

All of these recent systems are built in a way that means ALL they can do is replicate structural biases contained within the data they are trained on and that's not to mention the insane biases in the weights given after the fact. There's a reason those aren't made public, it's because they would be embarrassing how tonedeaf all of these white cis het mostly male able bodied (add your own privilege if you even know what privileges you hold) really are.

Your casual ":)" attitude in the face of this is disappointing to say the least.
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@HaruEb @yassie_j Part of my formal studies have been on structural biases and privileges. So, I'm very aware of this. I also just returned from one of my therapy sessions this afternoon. I'm very well aware of this. I do agree that it is likely that AI tools like Copilot will have some biases because it will prioritise some sources above others. Just like search results on various search engines, like Bing, Google, DuckDuckGo, etc., prioritise some sources above others. (1/2)
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@HaruEb @yassie_j Those sources could be written by anybody. In this case, from the example below, it's based on the fandom.com, quotes.net and reddit.com. In other cases, it's other sources. Those are biases. At least to some degree. But we all have biases. Even the most unbiased person will answer your question with some degree of bias. That's what I mean by being critical about all information we're served. Because there will always be biases and different understandings. (2/2)
Show threadGenna || 春 || 🌙May 14, 2024
@kaspernymand @[email protected]

"But we all have biases" this just sounds like your saying "oh well might as well make this problem worse since it's gonna exist anyway"

I'm sure your not saying that, that would be despicable, but it sure seems like it, I'd forgive anyone for thinking that and I'd counsel you to edit yourself before you make such a mistake, it's good practice.

On the point of sources, it's funny that fandom.com should come up, that place has a major problem with all kinds of bigotry on their various wikis. And you don't get to choose the sources it draws from do you, you're just being led along by the nose by this shit, you probably don't even chack the sources most of the time do you,,,,
Show threadKasper NymandMay 14, 2024
@HaruEb @yassie_j I always check the sources. That's why I mention it. But I don't think it makes sense for us to continue this conversation. So, I'll just wish you a great day. :)