In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
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Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#2I'm skeptical of the claim that a program could win a Pulitzer. How does it decide what to write about, who to interview, and what questions to ask?
Reporting a day at the races or the markets is easy because we know which kinds of data are relevant and we have them available.
Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#3This is a recent email I got from Facebook Support team regarding a vanity url for my business. I could swear this guy is a robot or a script, and I wonder if Facebook is using the technology described in the article:
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We’re sorry, but we’re unable to process your request because another entity has made a previous request concerning this username. If you are still interested in claiming the username, you may contact us in 60 days for an update about its availability.
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You have reached the right channel for these requests. As mentioned earlier, we have no further information to share with you concerning the username "xxxx" (marked out). We will be unable to assist you further from this alias.
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What human being talks like that?
Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#4I'm skeptical of the claim that a program could win a Pulitzer. How does it decide what to write about, who to interview, and what questions to ask? Reporting a day at the races or the markets is easy because we know which kinds of data are relevant and we have them available.
It's not inconceivable that, as AI advances, at some point there with be algorithms that figure out the questions you have posed.
Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#5This is a recent email I got from Facebook Support team regarding a vanity url for my business. I could swear this guy is a robot or a script, and I wonder if Facebook is using the technology described in the article: ---------------- We’re sorry, but we’re unable to process your request because another entity has made a previous request concerning this username. If you are still interested in claiming the username,…
[deleted]
Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#6These technological advances made me shudder about the potential job loss of the future even though the previous technological advances created new jobs.
Sure, there's no way that my profession and the great majority of jobs on the internet would be possible if we rely on human switchboard operators rather than relying on automation. That doesn't mean it will be true for the next advances in technology, does it?
Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#7Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#8This is a recent email I got from Facebook Support team regarding a vanity url for my business. I could swear this guy is a robot or a script, and I wonder if Facebook is using the technology described in the article: ---------------- We’re sorry, but we’re unable to process your request because another entity has made a previous request concerning this username. If you are still interested in claiming the username,…
A human who had to write several dozen support answers?
Naming collisions have to be a common occurrence for Facebook. It’s sufficient to write exactly one mail for such cases. There is no need to re-write or change things around, it’s always the same answer to the same question.
Using a robot to write stuff like that seems wasteful – I don’t even think it would currently be possible.
Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#9These technological advances made me shudder about the potential job loss of the future even though the previous technological advances created new jobs. Sure, there's no way that my profession and the great majority of jobs on the internet would be possible if we rely on human switchboard operators rather than relying on automation. That doesn't mean it will be true for the next advances in technology, does it?
The problem I have with that line of thinking is it encourages halting the progress of technology based on fear of the unknown, a classic human foible.
Re: In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column
#10My worry here is computers will learn to write articles specific to every individual.
The computer will know what other articles we liked and what we didn't like and just try to write to what we want to read. This will make it even less likely we'll hear an opposing view to our own, if the computers are giving us what we want to read.