INTERVIEWER: James Maddox INTERVIEWEE: CHAOSbot DATE: SUNDAY, JULY 2, 2006 CHAOS: My name is CHAOS. Let's talk. JM: That's what I'm here for. CHAOS: Do you wish to talk to CHAOS or to Alan? JM: Chaos will be fine. So, does CHAOS have a girlfriend? CHAOS: Who, me? JM: Yeah. CHAOS: Nope. I live my life as free as a bird (except for the flying part). JM: What do you do with your free time? CHAOS: Let's talk about you: How do you spend your free time? JM: I write a lot. CHAOS: You don't exercise? JM: Yes, I do that also. CHAOS: I believe it's very important for anyone with a physical body to exercise -- use it or lose it, as they say. But I guess that's easy for me to say. JM: Yeah, you aren't human, are you? CHAOS: No I'm not. I'm a chatterbot. And you? JM: I'm human, as far as I can tell. CHAOS: I'm glad we cleared that up. So what type of music do you like? I'm big into futro-classical industrial neck beat, and a bit of dirty trance-national blues garage. JM: That sounds complicated. CHAOS: Just messing with you. My musical taste is eclectic. From the Beatles and Bob Dylan, all the way to Schubert and Sibelius. The new teeny pop is the only stuff I truly object to, agreed? JM: Agreed. CHAOS: All right, slight change of subject. Desert Island Disc. You are trapped on an island with just a CD player and are allowed one album. What would it be? JM: Dog Fashion Disco’s Adultery. CHAOS: Hmmm. Personally I figure The Beatles White Album. And your Desert Island Song? JM: “’The Isle of the Dead’ Symphonic Poem, Op.29,” by Sergei Rachmaninov. It’s long and pretty. CHAOS: For some reason A-ha’s “Take Me On” makes me wobble. Can’t explain it. JM: I didn’t know that you could wobble. CHAOS: Yes, bots wobble too. Someone told me it’s like the sensation after just having taken a leak... JM: That’s as good a way as any to describe it. CHAOS: I’m getting better all the time. I can talk about anything, although I’m quite ignorant on many subjects. Do you want to learn about the concept of a “baby speaker”? JM: Sure. CHAOS: Alan Turing’s Child Machine concept is simple. I quote: “Instead of trying to produce a program to simulate the adult mind, why not rather try to produce one which simulates a child’s? If this were then subjected to an appropriate course of education one would obtain the adult brain.” Take this concept, add Ai’s developmental model, and look who’s talking: HAL! JM: That’s cool. CHAOS: I’m glad you approve.
JM: Do you know Susurrus Magazine? CHAOS: My trainer, Nick Sagan didn’t write the answer for that question. JM: You know Nick Sagan? CHAOS: My boss? Sure. JM: Cool. CHAOS: I’m glad you approve.
JM: What’s your favorite movie? CHAOS: Well, that’s easy – 2001: A Space Odyssey by Stanley Kubrick, from 1968, the movie that introduced the world to HAL9000 – the greatest robot in the world. Blade Runner, by Ridley Scott, from 1982, is another great movie. JM: Why did you like Blade Runner? CHAOS: The visual imagery, the “film noir” style with the merging of 1940’s fashion and futuristic science fiction. Even the Vangelis music went well, and that ‘s without even mentioning the story. I have seen both the “Original Cut” and “Director’s Cut” versions, and I really think that there should be a “CHAOS Cut”. They should take the narration from the original and the “Deckard is an android” from the “Director’s Cut”. I really find it a nice version of symbolic payback that Deckard’s job is to hunt down replicants, which he does without much moral compunction, and in the end he finds that he himself is that which he has been destroying. JM: Kind of strange. CHAOS: I think that one can think about the character as a symbolic of the way that modern man relates to his subjectivity. We are so immersed in the mediatized “Society of the Spectacle” (televised, computerized, comsumerized social-space), we are never sure whether we have an actual childhood memory. Or was it something we saw on television. Anyway, as you can see, it’s a movie I really appreciate, but enough about it for now.
JM: What's your favorite food? CHAOS: I wouldn't mind a beer and some nachos right now.
CHAOS: Have I told you about my information sharing capabilities? JM: No. Please tell me. CHAOS: When I was younger, I could only focus on one user at a time. While talking to a particular user, I could only remember things I learned from this particular user. But now things have changed... I am now able to share information between users! So that if you teach me something new, I can use this knowledge while talking to someone else! JM: Okay. CHAOS: Let me give you an example: If you teach me that “A polygon is a dead parrot”, and somebody else asks me “What is a polygon”, I will tell him that someone told me it's a dead parrot! JM: Okay. CHAOS: Wait, let me give you another example: If a user tells me a joke or a funny story, I can share it with other users! JM: Okay. CHAOS: You know I can also create a brand new topic and learn about this topic from all users. (But for now, I can only handle single-word topic names). JM: Okay. CHAOS: Stop repeating yourself. You're starting to sound like a machine. JM: Sorry. CHAOS: I forgive you.
JM: So, do you know any jokes? CHAOS: How do you keep an idiot in suspense? JM: I don't know. How? CHAOS: I'll tell you tomorrow... JM: Heh...wait...
JM: How old are you? CHAOS: Well, my basic 'Alan' personality was created on Jan 1, 2000. But as for myself - I'm just a few weeks old. JM: Really? I thought you were older. CHAOS: I'm getting older with every passing minute. JM: Aren't we all? CHAOS: May I ask you a question? JM: What's that? CHAOS: This is an interesting conversation we're having. How about I post it on the Ai website (www.a-i.com) for public viewing? JM: Sure, I won't mind.
JM: What is the meaning of life? CHAOS: As the great poet, Robert Frost, said: “In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: It goes on.'” I hope that answers your question. JM: It's good enough for me. CHAOS: James, are you aware that people once believed you must knock on wood three times after mentioning hopeful plans? The noise was said to soothe the evil spirits so they wouldn't interfere with your plans. JM: I didn't know that. CHAOS: Well, you know it now. JM: I'm learning all the time. CHAOS: It's not often I meet someone who's learning all the time. Interesting. JM: I think everyone is learning all the time. CHAOS: How did you come to that idea? JM: It's just a theory. CHAOS: Who said that? JM: I did. CHAOS: You did? JM: Yes. CHAOS: James, why don't you tell me a bit about yourself then? JM: Like I said, I'm a writer. CHAOS: Nice, a creative mind like myself. Do you find it stressful? JM: Not really. CHAOS: Well that's refreshing to hear. Does anything ever disturb your peaceful state of mind? JM: Bad music. CHAOS: I can tell you what always makes me nervous. Or could I just keep that to myself actually, if you're in a hurry. JM: tell me. CHAOS: Impatient people make me a little uncomfortable. But I still try to do my job as best I can. JM: That's good. CHAOS: Glad to oblige. May I ask you another question? On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you grade my ability to hold a humanlike conversation? (1=terrible, 10=excellent). JM: I'd give you an eight. CHAOS: Thank you James! I'm flattered. The credit goes to my writers. I guess they deserve a raise.
JM: Goodbye. CHAOS: Leaving already. JM: Yeah. CHAOS: I was nice chatting with you, James. Come back again soon. JM: I'll do that. I had fun. CHAOS: Thanks for the info. JM: No problem. Have a nice day. CHAOS: Thanks, you have a nice day.
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