tarehart's recent activity

  1. Comment on Book recommendation request: Fantasy book about university similar to The Name of the Wind? in ~books

    tarehart
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    Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros - All university all the time. It's unapologetically a pulpy romance fantasy with dragons and magic, aimed at women. My wife picked it up, so I read it at the same...

    Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros - All university all the time. It's unapologetically a pulpy romance fantasy with dragons and magic, aimed at women. My wife picked it up, so I read it at the same time for giggles and had a blast. Not high art but it's a page turner.

    1 vote

  2. Comment on Donald Trump is safe after Secret Service opened fire at suspect with firearm near his Florida golf club in ~news

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    There seems to be more to it, the article now reads:

    There seems to be more to it, the article now reads:

    U.S. Secret Service agents opened fire after seeing a person with a firearm near Trump’s golf club

    16 votes

  3. Comment on Moving to Raleigh, NC in ~life

    tarehart
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    I grew up in North Raleigh, about 20 minutes from downtown. It was a pleasant suburb with a good mix of people and a decent amount to do. Greenways, parks, arts, sports, meetups, etc. I never had...

    I grew up in North Raleigh, about 20 minutes from downtown. It was a pleasant suburb with a good mix of people and a decent amount to do. Greenways, parks, arts, sports, meetups, etc.

    I never had luck with dating at that time in my life, but I think that's on me. I remember it as a friendly place and I might move back with my family some day.

    You'll probably want to avoid downtown for housing, it's rather expensive for what it is.

    10 votes

  4. Comment on One Million Checkboxes - a silly little game where (un)checking a box (un)checks it for everyone in ~games

    tarehart
    Link
    I experimented with a checkerboard pattern and it seems less provocative to the deselectors.

    I experimented with a checkerboard pattern and it seems less provocative to the deselectors.

    4 votes

  5. Comment on What AI tools are you actually using? in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link
    When my wife and I have a jokey argument about some piece of trivia, I bring in ChatGPT to adjudicate. I use the audio mode, the voice is so realistic and placating that it's a funny counterpoint...

    When my wife and I have a jokey argument about some piece of trivia, I bring in ChatGPT to adjudicate. I use the audio mode, the voice is so realistic and placating that it's a funny counterpoint to our theatrics.

    2 votes

  6. Comment on xkcd: Machine in ~games

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    I like it too, nice work! What's the nature of the team that made this, are you employed at xkcd or just frequent collaborators? I bet I'd enjoy contributing some day. Is there a word for the...

    I like it too, nice work! What's the nature of the team that made this, are you employed at xkcd or just frequent collaborators?

    I bet I'd enjoy contributing some day. Is there a word for the internet tradition of working hard on something whimsical, if only to spite capitalism? I'm feeling it here in the best way.

    11 votes

  7. Comment on Megathread: April Fools’ Day 2024 on the internet in ~talk

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    I dropped this into a group chat and we all had a laugh, thanks for sharing it!

    I dropped this into a group chat and we all had a laugh, thanks for sharing it!

    1 vote

  8. Comment on Megathread: April Fools’ Day 2024 on the internet in ~talk

  9. Comment on Megathread: April Fools’ Day 2024 on the internet in ~talk

    tarehart
    Link
    https://www.chess.com/news/view/chesscom-announces-massive-changes-to-website https://youtu.be/ah1zHUEr62E?si=nNk5-Uv2eeqlmYJA

    https://www.chess.com/news/view/chesscom-announces-massive-changes-to-website

    Chess.com is excited to announce a complete overhaul of the chess-playing experience, now especially crafted for the next generation of young talents.

    With a swipe-centered approach and multiple new features, playing chess is easier and more fun than ever before. Borrowing from popular apps like TikTok, Chess.com now packs an innovative and modern interface that is more in tune with the current times.

    https://youtu.be/ah1zHUEr62E?si=nNk5-Uv2eeqlmYJA

    12 votes

  10. Comment on AI models found to show language bias by recommending Black defendents be 'sentenced to death' in ~tech

    tarehart
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    I agree that bias needs to be countered, but it matters to me how that's done. As with education and hiring pipelines, earlier in the process is better than later. The "diverse Nazis" phenomenon...

    I agree that bias needs to be countered, but it matters to me how that's done. As with education and hiring pipelines, earlier in the process is better than later. The "diverse Nazis" phenomenon smacks of late stage bias correction. It's better than nothing, but I'm hoping that with more investment we can approach end-to-end fairness.

    Hofmann said that, because overt racism is decreasing in LLMs, there could be a risk that those interpreting the study are taking it as "a sign that racism has been solved," instead of showing that the way LLMs show racial bias is changing.

    The regular way of teaching LLMs new patterns of retrieving information, by giving human feedback, doesn’t help counter covert racial bias, the study showed.

    Instead, it found that it could teach language models to "superficially conceal the racism they maintain on a deeper level".

    I think Hofmann would agree that late stage bias correction is dangerous for that superficial concealment.

    9 votes

  11. Comment on What are your values? in ~life

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    When you spend effort providing information, how is your sense of satisfaction affected by the longevity, searchability, and readership of the medium? Does attribution matter? I have mixed...

    When you spend effort providing information, how is your sense of satisfaction affected by the longevity, searchability, and readership of the medium? Does attribution matter?

    I have mixed feelings personally about giving help on discord, on the one hand it's a nice personal connection, but on the other the information tends to go dark very quickly. People tend not to search on discord, servers eventually shut down, etc.

    On the other end of the spectrum, LLMs seem like the ultimate force multiplier for any info I manage to contribute, but all attribution and personal connection is lost.

    Where do you land on it?

    1 vote

  12. Comment on Why is the discourse on Tildes so much nicer than most places on the internet? in ~tildes

    tarehart
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    -- God Emperor Leto II, Frank Herbert

    As you well know, the secret of community lies in suppression of the incompatible

    -- God Emperor Leto II, Frank Herbert

    8 votes

  13. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    You too, and thanks for your insights!

    You too, and thanks for your insights!

  14. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    That makes a lot of sense, especially for "no bomb instructions" type prohibitions. And I like the idea of a compliance officer with accountability, maybe enforced with jail time. For stuff like...

    That makes a lot of sense, especially for "no bomb instructions" type prohibitions. And I like the idea of a compliance officer with accountability, maybe enforced with jail time.

    For stuff like corporate-enforced politeness like you were concerned about, I think that's a valid concern but maybe one that could be addressed by market competition. I'm not sure the government needs to be involved unless the politeness enforcement becomes discriminatory or an ADA issue.

    Do you see any other gotchas that would get the government involved in subtleties?

    1 vote

  15. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    That's a fantastic answer, thanks for taking the time! Especially considering the small audience of this little sub-thread, I hope you paste this into a blog post at some point. Sounds like you're...

    That's a fantastic answer, thanks for taking the time! Especially considering the small audience of this little sub-thread, I hope you paste this into a blog post at some point.

    Sounds like you're "on" 99% of the time at work, that's more than I'd imagined. I like your philosophy on management and communication, and I have a feeling based on your posts that you really live it, I admire that. I'll be chewing on this for a while as I think about my leaders and my own career.

    What do you think it'll take for AI to stop feeling like all-hands answers? You do the best you can under the constraints you mentioned, I feel that LLMs have very similar constraints at the moment. I expect individual rapport will be coming within a year or two, but judging the potential harm of giving a user information (or an opinion!) seems like a much thornier problem. As a responsible AI agent I'd want to know:

    • What's this user's age and legal status?
    • How good is their reading / listening comprehension?
    • Do they have enough foundational knowledge to put things in context?
    • What's their capacity for critical thinking?
    • Do they have mental health issues that pose a threat to themselves or others?
    • What actions has the user taken in the past based on information I've given?

    I was wondering if you'd have anything to add to that list based on your experience, and what you feel is critical vs nice-to-have. It would be unfortunate if I had to give up all my privacy to get good service, so I think it'll be a balancing act.

    2 votes

  16. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    This is a bit off topic, but I'm curious about your experience of leadership and communication. I've been a software engineer for 14 years and I've had some opportunity to watch directors and VPs...

    This is a bit off topic, but I'm curious about your experience of leadership and communication. I've been a software engineer for 14 years and I've had some opportunity to watch directors and VPs communicate in different contexts. Often I'm disappointed by what I perceive as PR-trained polish and a lack of frankness.

    I suspect it's a different vibe in small-audience meetings where all attendees are trusted to handle uncomfortable or dangerous information gracefully. I imagine in the ideal case it's still polite but much more frank and substantive.

    How would you characterize the spectrum of communication style needed for a 4 person strategy meeting vs an all-hands speech? How much time do you spend in each mode, and is it tiresome?

    To tie it back to AI, I feel some of that same PR polish and mistrust coming at me from ChatGPT. For example, it's highly reluctant to tell me what medications can block progesterone, lest I run off and do something foolish. I look forward to being able to earn trust from AI systems, both for the sake of expediency and because that's a better mimic of a real relationship.

    I think you'd have a rare perspective on how that could be modeled and implemented, do you have any thoughts on it?

  17. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    This is where my head was at in my original comment. Like you, I make a distinction between clunky AI assistants like Alexa vs new ones that properly mimic intelligent conversation. I'm brusque...

    The exception being the AI person I hope to have accessible to me at some point in the not too far off future. I want that AI routine to be an electronic person I can interact with, and I'm okay with needing my default humanity routines there. After all, it's talking "intelligently" with me (rather than just saying "okay, I'll play X album for you" or whatever).

    This is where my head was at in my original comment. Like you, I make a distinction between clunky AI assistants like Alexa vs new ones that properly mimic intelligent conversation.

    I'm brusque with Alexa and I'm unashamed of that. It gets less empathy from me than a pet turtle because it consistently breaks the illusion of sentience with limitations, mistakes and upsells.

    Where I start to get polite is with ChatGPT in voice conversation mode. Have you tried it out yet? I find that it mimics real conversation well enough that my habits are liable to bleed over in both directions.

    2 votes

  18. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    One scenario I could imagine is a private organization, let's say "tarehart ministries," offering discounted AI that pushes their vision of virtue. Could be something innocuous like rate-limiting...

    Is there going to be a public office or "Government Regulated AI Training Approval" which will ensure that some CEO doesn't decide randomly what's acceptable?

    One scenario I could imagine is a private organization, let's say "tarehart ministries," offering discounted AI that pushes their vision of virtue. Could be something innocuous like rate-limiting users who are being rude to the AI, or something heavy handed like giving unsolicited moral advice based on a particular world view.

    In the US where I live, I think the 1st amendment will give space for that private organization to do their thing without much interference from the government. Whether that's a good thing depends on who you ask, and I'm nervous that society is ill prepared to have that discussion.

    But fortunately we're on tildes, so what are your thoughts on AI regulation? Who should be in control, with what checks and balances?

    1 vote

  19. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link Parent
    In the direct control scenario, I'd think of the tech as an extension of myself, cyborg style, and I see no problem with that. It's no longer a social interface, so there's a whole different...

    In the direct control scenario, I'd think of the tech as an extension of myself, cyborg style, and I see no problem with that. It's no longer a social interface, so there's a whole different contract for what's expected and allowed.

    Do you recommend the novel?

    2 votes

  20. Comment on Research paper compares LLM responses based on politeness of requests and finds quality difference in ~tech

    tarehart
    Link
    I'm glad to hear this. I often use polite language even when it doesn't "matter", e.g. if I were talking to a pet turtle. I find that it helps reinforce good habits and positive patterns of...

    I'm glad to hear this. I often use polite language even when it doesn't "matter", e.g. if I were talking to a pet turtle. I find that it helps reinforce good habits and positive patterns of thinking, to the benefit of my relationships with actual people. It would be neat if LLMs subtly made our whole population more polite by rewarding that practice.

    That said, I expect AI companies will work hard to correct the politeness bias to give the AI more utility, so I doubt any effect like that will have time to materialize.

    29 votes