I think the crux of the author's argument is that LLMs are bad because people use them for offloading both their thought and their acquisition of knowledge? The example they give is for education:...
I think the crux of the author's argument is that LLMs are bad because people use them for offloading both their thought and their acquisition of knowledge? The example they give is for education:
Look at education. ChatGPT may be the world’s largest learning platform, but students are using it en masse to avoid the effortful thinking that’s necessary to build their durable knowledge. Evidence continues to mount demonstrating the negative impact of AI tools within education settings (and Gen Z generally hates it). A recent study from China revealed that thousands of students essentially stopped doing their homework once they started using AI (which substantially harmed their learning). There’s even evidence that when students use large language models for supposed learning purposes, they become habituated to relaxing their judgment and critical thinking in other contexts.
I think I disagree pretty strongly? It moreso seems like, if you create a game where students are forced to get a high score by any means necessary or else have their futures taken from them (either via school placement or academic achievement-linked scholarships), they're going to optimize for the presented objective. Presumably, that's why wealthy people bribe their way through the system in some cases, or pay for improved tutoring in others. They aren't learning because it's such a beautiful and wonderful way to embody the human experience, it's so that they can claw their way up out of whatever hole they were born into (see: children pursuing sports with the sole goal of escaping poverty, or joining the military in regions where no other employer exists).
Furthermore, I'd disagree with the notion that delegating thought doesn't happen widely now. People groupthink all the time, and lean on biases or stereotypes just to get through the week. The most common complaint I hear about people w.r.t. doing anything productive for society is that they don't have the spare thought for it: why research electoral candidates; they're all the same and I'm too tired -- I'll just vote the same way my parents did/I did last time. Why look for ways to reduce my carbon impact; it's all so difficult to understand, and there's already too much to do (and some bald guy on the internet said it doesn't work anyways). Why understand why anything doesn't work; it's too complicated, and the most recent attack ad I saw said brown people are causing it anyways.
So yeah, firm disagree that the problem here is the technology of LLMs. It's companies shoving it into every corner of our lives in order to optimize their personal game, which is increasing profits (or increasing the perception of a probability of future profits).
I think the crux of the author's argument is that LLMs are bad because people use them for offloading both their thought and their acquisition of knowledge? The example they give is for education:
I think I disagree pretty strongly? It moreso seems like, if you create a game where students are forced to get a high score by any means necessary or else have their futures taken from them (either via school placement or academic achievement-linked scholarships), they're going to optimize for the presented objective. Presumably, that's why wealthy people bribe their way through the system in some cases, or pay for improved tutoring in others. They aren't learning because it's such a beautiful and wonderful way to embody the human experience, it's so that they can claw their way up out of whatever hole they were born into (see: children pursuing sports with the sole goal of escaping poverty, or joining the military in regions where no other employer exists).
Furthermore, I'd disagree with the notion that delegating thought doesn't happen widely now. People groupthink all the time, and lean on biases or stereotypes just to get through the week. The most common complaint I hear about people w.r.t. doing anything productive for society is that they don't have the spare thought for it: why research electoral candidates; they're all the same and I'm too tired -- I'll just vote the same way my parents did/I did last time. Why look for ways to reduce my carbon impact; it's all so difficult to understand, and there's already too much to do (and some bald guy on the internet said it doesn't work anyways). Why understand why anything doesn't work; it's too complicated, and the most recent attack ad I saw said brown people are causing it anyways.
So yeah, firm disagree that the problem here is the technology of LLMs. It's companies shoving it into every corner of our lives in order to optimize their personal game, which is increasing profits (or increasing the perception of a probability of future profits).