Q+A

<aside> 🧟 Put your two questions here. Please include your name.

</aside>

How are AI chatbots like ChatGPT impacting computational text? In the chapter, it talks about how common text generation tactics do not have much concern for semantics, but do you think tools like ChatGPT are properly addressing these issues? (Brian Lau)

ChatGPT certainly seems like it has more 'semantic understanding'. Some people argue it has no idea what it's talking about. Some people argue that understanding is an emergent quality of the model.

I mostly look at it practically. It may or may not understand, but it acts enough like it does to be useful

Is computational text ethical? Especially programs that generate sentences / paragraphs that are grammatically correct, properly structured, and seem to make sense, but in actuality are completely fabricated? (Brian Lau)

I think 'computational text' is to broad of a topic to apply "ethical" or "unethical" to. I think certain uses certainly would be ethical, and others certainly would be unethical"

  1. Without using chatbots like ChatGPT, is it still possible to have computational text that can create coherent sentences and if so how much does the developer have to be involved in terms of defining the parameters and the overarching code? (John Kim)

yes. there were systems that generated coherent sentences long before GPTs

  1. With Markov chains, since they can procedurally generate non-visual content can this chain be used to procedurally generate visual content as well, or is that already being utilized in AI that specializes in procedurally drawn content like Midjourney? (John Kim)

markov chains can be used with anything that can be expressed as a string of symbols. It is common to use MCs with letters, words, and musical notes.

you could try generating images with MCs by generating an intermediate form, like SVG

  1. I’m trying to wrap my head around how a computer’s discrete-non-discrete state factors into the imitation game. Is a digital computer a discrete-state machine or does it only mimic the behavior of a discrete-state machine? (Shristi)

I think the short, mostly correct answer is 'a computer is a discrete-state machine'

Turing mentions "Strictly speaking there, are no such machines. Everything really moves continuously." While true, this isn't something that really needs to be considered when using computers.