What is Man?

By Bobby Neal Winters

I’ve been hearing about ChatGPT since early December.  Someone I know well who works in the university writing center was very upset about it and wrote to me about it.  I’d never heard of it.  

For those of you who are in that blessed state, ChatGPT is an AI (artificial intelligence). There is a web portal that leads to it. You can type in questions for it to answer.  You can ask it to write essays for you on any subject you want, in multiple styles, in multiple moods.

Yesterday, I asked it to write an essay on the invention of the maritime chronometer and its importance in navigation from the point of view of a midwestern high school student.  And it did. And it was good, but not so good that a bright, studious high schooler couldn’t have written it.

You can see why the folks in the university writing center are concerned.

Earlier this week, I listened to a talk by a local businessman/computer science teacher on ChatGPT.  He has a different, broader perspective.  In his talk to a group of us who were meeting in the city library, he described how it could be used as a tool.

You can ask it to write code for you, and it will.  Good code, mostly.  Sometimes it’s buggy, but sometimes humans write buggy code too.  I know this shocks you.

Eventually, ChatGPT will be available for about $50 a month for use as a tool.  In his opinion, it will be worth every penny.  

As the audience was composed of computer scientists, he told them that their world would change, but they wouldn’t necessarily be eliminated. The way they approached their work would have to change.  They would have to learn to tell ChatGPT what to write.  They would have to learn how to problem-solve, to organize

I went back to my office after the talk, and after I got access--everyone is trying it out now--I asked ChatGPT to write a computer program in the Python language to produce a list of prime numbers, and it did.  And I looked at it, and saw it was good.

In thinking about this since early December, I’ve looked inward.  I’ve gotten religious; I’ve gotten philosophical.

When Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, the first thing they learned was that they were naked.  They were exiled from Eden and an angel with a flaming sword was put there to keep them from ever returning.

Yep.  There is no going back.

Businesses will subscribe to this service to write code, to write advertising copy.  It will have fewer mistakes; it won’t call in sick; it won’t gossip with its co-workers and decrease productivity; it won’t gossip about its co-workers and cause drama; and it’s cheaper.

But here’s the kicker: If no one is working and no one is making money, then no one is going to be buying the goods and services.

Besides, the purpose of Man is not to make money. The purpose of Man is to take care of the Earth.  A necessary part of that task is taking care of Man.

We’ve gotten lost.  While Capitalism is undeniably successful, it is a tool that works for Man; Man is not a tool that works for Capitalism.  It’s like a tablesaw.  It’s incredibly useful, but if you don’t take care, it’ll take off some fingers for you.

We--as a people--need to set our eyes on the goal of increasing human flourishing rather than on increasing corporate profit.  The two are not mutually exclusive, but there are many potential conflicts between them. 

Having mentioned the tablesaw, a paragraph or so back, this gives me the opportunity to talk about woodworking.  You knew it was coming.

On YouTube, I watch the videos of a man named Steve Ramsey.  He has said more than once that you can buy furniture that is better and cheaper than handmade furniture.  So why make your own furniture?  Why do woodworking?

Because pieces of furniture made by hand are special because they were made by human beings.  Their very imperfections make them human. They tie us to a person.  In the end, connecting person to person is a big part of what life is about.

I would add that learning to do things makes us better people.  We are better able to take care of ourselves; we are better able to help take care of others.  We live better lives by virtue of knowing how to do things.

For Christmas, I made some presents for a few of my co-workers and family members.  As Steven Ramsey said, I could’ve bought presents better and cheaper that were made in a factory. I like to think these meant more.

I wrote this myself. I am sure there are grammar errors in it. But you know there is a human back here. You’ve seen me walking around town.  Maybe you’ve even spoken to me. If you haven’t, please do.

While there ain’t no goin’ back, we can choose how we go forward. (I used “their” instead of “there” but the computer corrected it.)

Bobby Winters, a native of Harden City, Oklahoma, blogs at redneckmath.blogspot.com and okieinexile.blogspot.com. He invites you to “like'' the National Association of Lawn Mowers on Facebook. Search for him by name on YouTube. )