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I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

ploum.net

21–30 of 57 posts

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#21
post #8

We are all stochastic parrots. Currently, millions of years of evolutionary pressure have produced a better algorithm than a few years of optimization pressure but we’ll see how long that remains true!

Evolution selects for fit organisms that have to survive and reproduce in the world, not language models waiting on prompts. The temptation to analogize technology to biology is just top hard to resist I guess. Problem with analogies and metaphors is they are never accurate, they are only similar in some respects.

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#22

> You cannot assume anything about generated code. Maybe it was simply hallucinated and, by chance, it compiled. This is, ironically, similar to my mom's anti-mental-healthcare argument that the system producing a good outcome is not evidence that the process is correct. It's everyone's choice what stances they take, and if being utterly opposed to any kind of AI interaction is their's, that's their choice, but just…

I'm praying that you're not a developer

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#24
post #8

We are all stochastic parrots. Currently, millions of years of evolutionary pressure have produced a better algorithm than a few years of optimization pressure but we’ll see how long that remains true!

Evolution selects for fit organisms that have to survive and reproduce in the world, not language models waiting on prompts. The temptation to analogize technology to biology is just top hard to resist I guess. Problem with analogies and metaphors is they are never accurate, they are only similar in some respects.

Yes, thank-you for informing me I was using an analogy.

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Evolution selects for fit organisms that have to survive and reproduce in the world, not language models waiting on prompts. The temptation to analogize technology to biology is just top hard to resist I guess. Problem with analogies and metaphors is they are never accurate, they are only similar in some respects.

Yes, thank-you for informing me I was using an analogy.

I think it is worth asking whether anthropomorphization of LLMs does anything to contribute to a better understanding of them that isn't entirely post-hoc ("of course they were going to find CVEs, solve ARC-AGI...") or if it just ends up reinforcing simplified teleological views of neuroscience, evolution or psychology etc.

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#27
post #8

We are all stochastic parrots. Currently, millions of years of evolutionary pressure have produced a better algorithm than a few years of optimization pressure but we’ll see how long that remains true!

You are not just a stochastic parrot. Your speech is not just "next likely word", but a product of your internal model of the world.

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, thank-you for informing me I was using an analogy.

I think it is worth asking whether anthropomorphization of LLMs does anything to contribute to a better understanding of them that isn't entirely post-hoc ("of course they were going to find CVEs, solve ARC-AGI...") or if it just ends up reinforcing simplified teleological views of neuroscience, evolution or psychology etc.

Sure, there are potential risks to anthropomorphizing language. There's also potential benefits, in terms of allowing us to talk about an emerging alien intelligence.

FWIIW, I don't think I was anthropomorphizing. Stretching an analogy, yes. Optimization pressure is producing something with at least characteristics of intelligence. Obviously in a very different way than evolution produced the human brain, but the similarities are there.

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#29
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Don't post generated text or AI-edited text. HN is for conversation between humans. This is HN's newest guideline / rule, seems the opposite to me. Does it still happen, yes, is it as bad as 6 months ago, no.

The most human thing is posting something that breaks the rules.

I don’t think they get it and I don’t think they care either way.

Re: I Don't Want to Interact with Stochastic Parrots

#30
post #3
post #2

HN now has AI/LLM-enabled comment processing. Even if you don’t want to interact with the machine it will interact with you. You will eat ze bugs and you will be happy.

What do you mean by this?

That your comment and article will be subject to the ranking and processing of a machine authority and there is nothing you can do about it. So you might think you’re being flagged or shadow banned because someone downvoted you or otherwise. But no, it was an automated process that did it.

If it makes the author happier they can ask dang what is the prompt used for automated HN processing.

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