It’s really only a minority, or else the world would not work. Think how the theory of evolution gained mainstream acceptance, despite resistance by fanatics who had support by society,

(In case someone has been living under a rock in the last 48 hours. Anthropic’s new model “Mythos” has been finding a lot of new vulnerabilities. This is about patching one.)

Tears of joy, no doubt. No wait. Java…

I wasn’t clear enough. Turing was wondering if machines can think. But there is no sufficiently clear definition of the word “thinking” that could be used to answer the question.

If you want to know if LLMs are AI, you can just look up the definition of AI and check if LLMs meet the criteria. You cannot do that to answer if they are thinking.

So let’s take a task, which we agree takes thinking, and see if a machine can do it as well as a human. If it can, then the machine must be able to think. That’s how you think as a scientist.

The test itself is similar to modern, placebo-controlled medical trials. That was not SOTA at the time, showing how clear thinking he was. Perhaps the WP entry on RCTs helps to understand how logic and reason may be applied in the face of uncertainty.

But of course the test revolves around the definition of a word. Such definitions are fundamentally arbitrary. That means that the test itself is arbitrary. Science is rarely concerned with colloquial definitions. Usually you come up with some sort of operational definition that you use for the purpose of inquiry. The only question is, if that definition is useful.

When Turing proposed the test, he was talking philosophically about whether machines can think. He observed that we are not likely to agree on what “thinking” means. So we cannot simply test if a machine does that.

He proposed that we might instead agree that some task requires thinking. If a machine can perform that task, then the machine can think. Turing told of a three-person party game called the “imitation game”, in which an interrogator asks questions of a man and a woman in another room in order to determine the correct sex of the two players.

It’s very rational, very scientific. In the words of William James: "A difference which makes no difference is no difference at all."

In light of his sexuality, It’s interesting that he chose that game. Looking at the transgender issue today, I think it’s a given that he wouldn’t have chosen that example now. Or believed that people are rational enough to be swayed by facts and logic.

Entering on wheelchairs, no doubt. Not so glorious now, our future life.

Linux fans: Teaching you all you need to know to survive in Russian politics.

It’s a general rule.

A monchhichi rip-off.

Ahh, the British always sound so classy. If you don’t think about the meaning too hard.

Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. It is progress, still.

PS. I am rarely touched by the death of strangers, even if they entertained me. This gesture touched me as someone who has often complained about common culture being “private property”. I don’t begrudge any creator their money, but they need to accept that at some point, their work also belongs to the fans who made it theirs.

It’s crazy, how long and far the fame of some black and white musical comedian spreads.

Thank you, Tom Lehrer, for everything.

3 years ago, he gifted all his songs to the world. A farewell gift for us, I should think.

All copyrights to lyrics or music written or composed by me have been permanently and irrevocably relinquished, and therefore such songs are now in the public domain.

[…]

In short, I no longer retain any rights to any of my songs.

So help yourselves, and don’t send me any money.

NOTICE:

THIS WEBSITE WILL BE SHUT DOWN AT SOME DATE IN THE NOT TOO DISTANT FUTURE, SO IF YOU WANT TO DOWNLOAD ANYTHING, DON’T WAIT TOO LONG.

https://tomlehrersongs.com/

Yes. That’s a good use of resources. Any country will do it that way, and has done it that way. The engineers develop new weapons. The workers build them. Entertainers do propaganda. Anyone else goes to the front.

However, during Elvis Presley’s time to serve, there was no hot war being fought. I don’t think US conscripts were sent into battle between the end of the UN operation in Korea/the Korean War, and some time after the Gulf of Tonkin incident.

Bullshit. At 21, he was eligible for conscription as any other male US citizen, and so he was conscripted.

A peaceful stint with the NATO forces in Germany was typical at the time. I don’t think any US conscripts saw battle during these years.

They get Devil facial tumour disease. Very unusual condition. Maybe you’re thinking of that?

The joke works regardless of whether she is trans or not. What you’re saying effectively means that I shouldn’t share the meme simply because a trans-woman is shown.

Musk’s daughter, maybe more estranged than his other kids, and Trump’s son. The idea is that the “feud” between them could be ended by a marriage of 2 of their children.

Kinda like in Dune where the Bene Gesserit wanted to end the Atreides/Harkonnen feud by marriage and so ordered Jessica to only bear daughters.

I guess, when you have to make all your own clothes from scratch by hand, the advantage becomes apparent. People without armor also fought naked in battles. Understandable if you need to handwash and mend your clothes.

I don’t think this person is well but I appreciate their effort.