In a previous post I presented two conversations with an AI-Based “Chat Bot” as part of an effort to develop my understanding of these tools. In this post I offer the first of my collection of observations on the ChatBots abilities, focusing on where it seems to work.
My conversation was over two sessions, and both took the form of a series of questions, much like an interview. Both sessions started with a similar question. As a kind of Socratic method, the approach offered a sense of what the technology is able to do, and also some indication of the limits. After the initial question, subsequent questions were followups of answers it had provided, or other questions related to the subject, or finally those that might require extrapolation. The first line of questioning was intended to draw out further detail, and the second line of questioning was intended to go wider. The last line of questioning was intended to force it to infer.
Within the context of me using a ChatBot as a research assistant its ability to answer straightforward questions concisely appears quite good. In contrast to a traditional search engine that returns thousands of individual results, this new technology is quite remarkable, if not only because of the sense of relief one gets receiving a concise answer, rather than one that requires wading through the detritus deposited on the shores of the internet (as an example: Google reported 492,000 results for the first question below). The confidence portrayed in its responses is at first assuring and compelling, yet it can be disquieting the undue trust one might put in the answers.
My first question was to get a starting-set of information (i.e., some details):
Summarize Plato’s Allegory of the Cave
Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is an allegorical representation of the journey to attain knowledge. It is an extended metaphor that compares the process of acquiring knowledge to a person’s journey out of a dark cave. In the allegory, prisoners are chained inside a cave and can only stare at a wall in front of them, with a fire behind them. The prisoners can see shadows that are cast onto the wall by objects passing by the fire. Plato suggests that these shadows are analogous to our perception of the physical world and our limited understanding of reality. The Allegory of the Cave is an attempt to explain the need for education and the pursuit of knowledge, as the prisoners come to understand that the shadows are only illusions and that there is more to the world.
The answer above reads well, and is compelling. However, it focuses on an epistemological interpretation of the work, yet other interpretations are possible, which I’ll touch on in a subsequent post.
To broaden the scope of the conversation, I asked about the role played by his Theory of Forms.
How does Plato’s Theory of Forms relate to the Allegory of the Cave?
Plato’s Theory of Forms, or Theory of Ideas, is a philosophical concept that states that there is an ideal form of each object in the world. These objects exist in an alternate realm beyond the physical, and the physical objects that we observe in the world are replicas of these ideal forms. This theory is explored and explained in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. In the Allegory, Plato explains that humans are like prisoners in a cave, looking only at shadows on the wall instead of the real, ideal forms of the objects they are observing. The idea of the Allegory is that humans can only understand the physical forms of objects because they cannot observe the real, ideal forms. The Allegory of the Cave is thus a way of illustrating the Theory of Forms, and the idea that the physical world is an imperfect replica of the ideal world.
Three examples explore the bot’s ability to connect disparate pieces of information. The first connects Plato and the Christian theologian and philosopher Saint Augustine:
Did Saint Augustine have a role in bringing some of Plato’s concepts into Christianity?
Yes, Saint Augustine had a major role in bringing some of Plato’s concepts into Christianity. Augustine was an influential Christian theologian and philosopher who was heavily influenced by Plato’s ideas. He believed that Plato’s concept of the soul was closely aligned with Christianity’s concept of the soul and that the soul was an eternal and invisible part of a human being.
My second example asks the bot to make a specific connection between Plato’s theory and Christianity. What is interesting is that the response points out both the elements in common and those that are different:
Is there a connection between Plato’s concept of the Realm of Forms and Christianity’s concept of Heaven?
There are some similarities between Plato’s concept of the Realm of Forms and Christianity’s concept of Heaven, although the two concepts differ in some important ways. Both concepts involve an eternal and perfect realm that exists outside of the physical world, and both involve a relationship between the physical and eternal realms.
The third example is a little different as it asks about a connection that may not exist.
Is the cave a metaphor for the womb?
Although some scholars have suggested that the cave in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is a metaphor for the womb, Plato himself did not explicitly state this in the text. It is possible that the cave is meant to represent the human condition, with the prisoners being trapped in darkness and ignorance until knowledge and enlightenment are found. Alternatively, the cave may also represent the physical world, with the prisoners unable to see the truth beyond the shadows cast by the fire. Therefore, while there are some similarities between the cave in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and the womb, it is not clear whether Plato intended them to be interpreted as such.
It’s easy to anthropomorphize these bots. The answers seem natural and the terminology is accessible. The sequence below offers a sense that it might be able to deal with ambiguity:
So if Plato believed that society, through its various institutions, shaped a person’s thinking in the wrong direction, what did he think was the best way to shape a person’s thinking and behaviour?
Plato believed that the best way to shape a person’s thinking and behaviour was to create an ideal society in which the citizens were educated according to virtue and morality. He argued that this education should be based on the teachings of philosophy, the pursuit of knowledge and the questioning of beliefs. He also believed that the state should provide its citizens with a strong moral code that would enable them to make ethical choices. Finally, he argued for the importance of citizens engaging in regular discourse and dialogue about important issues, as this would help them to develop critical thinking skills and better understand the world around them.
Doesn’t sound realistic
Plato’s idealistic vision of an ideal society may seem unrealistic, but it does offer an important insight into how society can shape people’s thinking and behaviour. Plato argued that by providing citizens with the proper education, an ethical code of conduct, and opportunities to engage in meaningful dialogue, society can help to develop citizens who are more aware of their own thinking and more capable of making informed decisions. Although his vision may seem distant, it is an important reminder that the way we shape our societies has a significant impact on the people living within them.
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