AI and it's usefulness in everyday life?

[paulsharvey]

I did play with it this morning and try asking very specific, technical questions, directly in the job i do every day. 80% was correct, at least in theory, but 10% sounded really good, but was wrong. It spit out "complete form xxx-xxx-xx certificate of permit completion." Wow, that sounds great, but I've Never seen or heard of that form. Try to pull that form up, as I'm thinking i missed something. Problem is, it doesn't exist.

Now, did that form exist at one point, maybe? Does it exist now, well not in the form library.

 

[ericm979]

I'm curious, how many of us feel that a "search engine", such as google, Duck Duck go, or Brave, are the same as "artificial intelligence"?

The difference is that the search engine is serving up links to actual source documents. Which you can read and decide for yourself if they're trustworthy.

AI rewrites the original, often synthesizing multiple sources. Without knowing the sources you have no framework to determine the reliability of the information. And then there is the problem of AIs making up stuff.

 

[BackRoad]

Lots of denial going on. Unfortunately (or fortunately) AI is here to stay...

Mr. PaulsHarvey is asking about HOW people are using it as another tool to make day to day activities more effective. What use cases are people finding?

Retired now, so my needs are different, though on Amazon, it provides a reasonably good summary of Reviews, so I use it all the time there. I spot check, especially reading the 1 ratings, but it saves reading page after page of reviews and self summarizing.

Someone mentioned using it to summarize a book, so why even read the book. But the better use is actually reading the book, and then using AI to discuss the book in more detail, to discover what you might have missed.

Also on Google searches, I'm good with the Gemini generated summary. There's enough detail to make it useful as a launching point when initially investigating a new topic of interest.

Though I too am constantly looking for more day to day use cases, I am also continuing to investigate the underlying technology which is in rapid change.

Six months ago, the guidance was to use AI as a level 1 (maybe level 2 depending on the topic) contributor. Use it to generate ideas that you've not thought of, but verify everything it provided before acting on it.

Something interesting I found from an AI scientist on a podcast from last week is just how fast AI is improving in depth and accuracy. It's likened to a child that you can almost see daily growth in capability and skills. The mainstream AI's from 6 months ago are not the same AI today. They are rapidly improving in accuracy and reducing the AI generated make-believe content from the past.

 

[WinterDeere]

All our "information " access hasn't improved the quality of life, pulled anyone out of poverty, nor stopped any conflicts.

Call the ai thing a distraction, a waste of time, and worse when it comes to the essence.

lol... as said Henry Burden about the automobile! Look him up, if you don't get that.

I'm surprised to hear such a narrow-minded and short-sighted response from you on this, CalG. Your posts are usually pretty intelligent. Like everything else, AI is a tool. But it's a uniquely powerful one, capable of changing "white collar work", the way automation changed "blue collar work" 40 years ago.

As someone who's worked most of his life in R&D, having AI write the first-draft summary report of a weeks-long study on a design or product failure analysis, would not only save me tens of hours of tedium, but also has the potential to draw connections and conclusions I'd missed due to human bias and falability. Of course I still need to go in and check and edit the final result, but starting with something that already has framework and content is much faster and better than starting from scratch.

My kids already use AI for school reports, as directed by their instructors. They get assignments requiring them to use AI for various components of the assignment, often geared toward making them understand the uses and limitations of the tool. Of course the AI gets some things wrong, and it's their responsibility to find and fix those things, their grade reflects how well they've done that.

I like @paulsharvey's analogy with fire, it's a great servant, but a terrible master.

 

[CalG]

lol... as said Henry Burden about the automobile! Look him up, if you don't get that.

I'm surprised to hear such a narrow-minded and short-sighted response from you on this, CalG. Your posts are usually pretty intelligent. Like everything else, AI is a tool. But it's a uniquely powerful one, capable of changing "white collar work", the way automation changed "blue collar work" 40 years ago.

As someone who's worked most of his life in R&D, having AI write the first-draft summary report of a weeks-long study on a design or product failure analysis, would not only save me tens of hours of tedium, but also has the potential to draw connections and conclusions I'd missed due to human bias and falability. Of course I still need to go in and check and edit the final result, but starting with something that already has framework and content is much faster and better than starting from scratch.

My kids already use AI for school reports, as directed by their instructors. They get assignments requiring them to use AI for various components of the assignment, often geared toward making them understand the uses and limitations of the tool. Of course the AI gets some things wrong, and it's their responsibility to find and fix those things, their grade reflects how well they've done that.

I like @paulsharvey's analogy with fire, it's a great servant, but a terrible master.

Yes, and if mobile phones may serve in example, humans have no ability to master over technology. ai becomes only a next step in a progression to know where. (sic)

"Saving you ten's of hours of tedium",
What is the true value of that?
Does it make you a better father or husband? "Gives you more time to be with the children? Does it?

Count the number of your acquaintances who can not control their eating or drinking habits?
Impulse spending?
distracted driving?

We can not even master our own selves.
As I laid out, ai is only a distraction.

"Give them bread and circus, and they will never revolt"

The dumbing down of civilized man.

 

[WinterDeere]

Yes, and if mobile phones may serve in example, humans have no ability to master over technology. ai becomes only a next step in a progression to know where.

Mobile phones are one of the greatest inventions in history, allowing us to conduct business from wherever we are in the world. I cannot imagine running my business anywhere near as profitably and flexibly, without mobile phone technology. Hell, I took 3 business calls yesterday while doing some yard work, just one of many chores that'd have taken time away from that which I have available to spend with my family on the weekend, if I were chained to a desk phone all week.

"Saving you ten's of hours of tedium",
What is the true value of that?

You don't get paid by the hour? If AI can save me 20 hours of work, I can both offer better cost to my customer, and have the potential to increase my hourly output and profit.

Count the number of your acquaintances who can not control their eating or drinking habits?
Impulse spending?
distracted driving?

I'm not sure how this directly ties to AI, but I do think we hang out in very different social circles, if you're surrounded by people with these problems.

We can not even master our own selves.

Speak for yourself! By this line of reasoning, you'd have been in favor of prohibition! "If I can't handle it, none of you can have it."

The dumbing down of civilized man.

AI may allow the dumb and lazy to get dumber and lazier. But it will allow the smart and productive to be smarter and more productive. I'm fine with that.

Somewhere, way back in history, someone like you was arguing against books. "They'll make us dumber, because if we can write things down, we won't need to memorize everything anymore!"

 

[MossRoad]

I told AI to write a haiku about the joy of kubota tractor ownership...

Orange gleam in sun
Earth turns softly to my will
Happy, work is done.

 

[paulsharvey]

Maybe it is laziness, lack of time, or honestly, I dont need to know all the details, but I'm not going to go read 4 or 5 fresh water biology books, specific to my micro climate, to find out flat head minnows, blue gills, sunfish, and mosquito fish are good stocking in my area.

Maybe part of this is, professionally, I have to be a bit of a jack of all trades. By default, that makes me a master of none. Often, a passing understanding of a topic puts you above 90% of the general population.

Now, made up, false, or misleading "answers" do worry me. I dont think i would take it as gospel, but it really can help to narrow a focus, or show an alternative that You just didn't think of.

On students/AI/school, I did try it with my 4th grade daughters math, and suprise, it not only gave me the right answer, it also showed the steps of doing it the "new math" way, which helped me understand the way they teach it now. So, 508x4, they break into 500x4, 8x4, and add then together. Not how I learned, but it Is how it's taught now. Shoot, if your worried about cheating, we all cheated in HS, 25 years ago. We passed answers around, we copied each other's homework, we snuck a calculator into math class, ect.

I've seen ads for AI translation earbuds, that can translate Spanish to English on a virtually live time. Thats pretty neat. Yes, maybe it's lazy to not learn another language, but I'll say improving the ability to communicate is worth it.

 

[EddieWalker]

AI has the potential to improve medical care dramatically. Instead of wondering if you are dealing with a C student from medical school, you will always have an A+ student in AI. It never gets tired, it remembers everything, and the potential to eliminate mistakes is probably its greatest asset.

 

[CalG]

Mobile phones are one of the greatest inventions in history, allowing us to conduct business from wherever we are in the world. I cannot imagine running my business anywhere near as profitably and flexibly, without mobile phone technology. Hell, I took 3 business calls yesterday while doing some yard work, just one of many chores that'd have taken time away from that which I have available to spend with my family on the weekend, if I were chained to a desk phone all week.


You don't get paid by the hour? If AI can save me 20 hours of work, I can both offer better cost to my customer, and have the potential to increase my hourly output and profit.


I'm not sure how this directly ties to AI, but I do think we hang out in very different social circles, if you're surrounded by people with these problems.


Speak for yourself! By this line of reasoning, you'd have been in favor of prohibition! "If I can't handle it, none of you can have it."


AI may allow the dumb and lazy to get dumber and lazier. But it will allow the smart and productive to be smarter and more productive. I'm fine with that.

many of your productive dollars go, and will continue to go towards social rehabilitation.

Pick your battles.

Some people measure life in dollars.
Some people are "human doings" always being productive.
Some people are human beings, knowing that true wealth is realizing when you have enough.

 

[MossRoad]

As mentioned by someone, I dont think you want to get all philosophical with it, or ask it of rain turtles work. Ask it about rain turtles, and it's likely to suggest other folk magic to get it to rain, like nailing a snake skeleton to a tree...

If that was a first time post from a new member we'd delete it as spam.

 

[WinterDeere]

many of your productive dollars go, and will continue to go towards social rehabilitation.

Pick your battles.

Some people measure life in dollars.
Some people are "human doings" always being productive.
Some people are human beings, knowing that true wealth is realizing when you have enough.

As noted more than once, AI can unload tedious tasks from your plate, allowing you more time for "human" things.

 

[paulsharvey]

Comparing it to mobile phones in a negative kinda surprises me. You really think mobile phones are a net negative? I actually have trouble seeing how my current job was done before mobile phones... Then when the whole covid thing came out, we started using teams. What used to be 12 guys in a conference room, discussing plans, became, me sitting on the job, discussing the plans, while actually looking at the site conditions. While I'm sitting in the car onsite, I can mention something they missed, and engineer can adjust the plans, live, on screen, while getting feed back from others, and discuss it. It also changed an entire lost day, into a 2 hour or 45 minute thing.

 

[paulsharvey]

I will admit, I'm a bit leary of the AI speak replacement in real videos. Meaning, you see a video of someone saying something, you don't actually know if they said it or not. I'm not sure liable or defamation laws really cover that yet. It certain as world wide thing, does have negatives; but that doesn't mean you can't use it for productive use as well.

 

[CalG]

Comparing it to mobile phones in a negative kinda surprises me. You really think mobile phones are a net negative? I actually have trouble seeing how my current job was done before mobile phones... Then when the whole covid thing came out, we started using teams. What used to be 12 guys in a conference room, discussing plans, became, me sitting on the job, discussing the plans, while actually looking at the site conditions. While I'm sitting in the car onsite, I can mention something they missed, and engineer can adjust the plans, live, on screen, while getting feed back from others, and discuss it. It also changed an entire lost day, into a 2 hour or 45 minute thing.

I have done what you are doing.

My quality of life did not change one bit,
The company did not become more profitable.

My income did not increase beyond normal expectations due to experience.

As mentioned, ai is but a distraction.

LOOK! squirrel!

 

[Oaktree]

Mobile phones are one of the greatest inventions in history, allowing us to conduct business from wherever we are in the world. I cannot imagine running my business anywhere near as profitably and flexibly, without mobile phone technology. Hell, I took 3 business calls yesterday while doing some yard work, just one of many chores that'd have taken time away from that which I have available to spend with my family on the weekend, if I were chained to a desk phone all week.

The smartphone is a perfect example of technology being a double edged sword. While it enables you to conduct business, or otherwise be reachable anytime, anyplace, it's increasingly obligating you to do the same. Once upon a time, you came home from work and you were done for the day, weekend, etc. (unless you were one of a relative few who were on call after hours). Nowadays employers, customers, friends, family, whoever expect you to be reachable at any time, for any reason, no matter how trite. You've become a slave to a gadget.

 

[WinterDeere]

The smartphone is a perfect example of technology being a double edged sword. While it enables you to conduct business, or otherwise be reachable anytime, anyplace, it's increasingly obligating you to do the same. Once upon a time, you came home from work and you were done for the day, weekend, etc. (unless you were one of a relative few who were on call after hours). Nowadays employers, customers, friends, family, whoever expect you to be reachable at any time, for any reason, no matter how trite. You've become a slave to a gadget.

There's some merit to this, some do feel pressure to make themselves available anytime. I'm one of those, and even before smart phones, I was using web access to email to check and respond to things after-hours, while others were enjoying their time off. To this day, some of my co-workers just leave their phones by the front door when they arrive home, and don't respond to anything after-hours, while others of us have a whole second workday after-hours. It's a personal choice.

There's a perception that those who make themselves available after hours should advance through the company ranks more quickly than those who "leave it by the door", but at least in my experience, history has not borne this out. Guys who were managers at my former level were of both types, almost equally.

 

[paulsharvey]

There's some merit to this, some do feel pressure to make themselves available anytime. I'm one of those, and even before smart phones, I was using web access to email to check and respond to things after-hours, while others were enjoying their time off. To this day, some of my co-workers just leave their phones by the front door when they arrive home, and don't respond to anything after-hours, while others of us have a whole second workday after-hours. It's a personal choice.

There's a perception that those who make themselves available after hours should advance through the company ranks more quickly than those who "leave it by the door", but at least in my experience, history has not borne this out. Guys who were managers at my former level were of both types, almost equally.

We used to have company phones, now you using your personal phone is a requirement. So, you aren't going to just turn it off. With that, you can Choose to not answer it. Honestly, the lines between work and off have become more and more blurry. Covid made it worse. It became accepted that you would mix work and off at home, and with that, even when you were "off", you were still available. I dont mind it too much, on occasion, but it does get old. I work Mon-Fri, but some of the guys work Mon-Thurs, others Tues-Fri. So, it's not uncommon for a 4-10er to call after my 8 hour days is over. It's fine if it's important, but often it's really a "tomorrow problem".

Lunch... there is absolutely the expectation that you use your Lunch time to check emails, catch up on phone calls, ect. Thats obviously not an official policy, but its the expectation.

At the same time, many places of employment are more willing to let you be flexible with work hours. It's far less common for people to worry about you being there at exactly 7am.

 

[WinterDeere]

IMO, folks who think they deserve to go home and unplug from a job are living a dream world, where hungry guys in India and China aren't working twice as hard, trying to take their lunch. If you're a shift worker, that's fine. But for salaried employees, the days of working 9-5 and then forgetting about work all evening and weekend went away with pensions and stay-at-home housewives.

On the flip side, no one expects me to be at work or leave at any particular time. I generally start around 6am, and generally finish around 11:30pm, but there are several breaks in-between, and I have no problem popping out for an hour mid-day to attend a kid's school event or anything else that needs doing.

 

[BackRoad]

As mentioned, ai is but a distraction.

LOOK! squirrel!

Interested in your thoughts...You've mentioned it's a distraction a couple of times...in your view, what is it distracting us from?