I have been playing with AI, as you are no doubt sick of hearing. I ask it random questions occasionally, to persuade it to go off and read the relevant literature on the topic and give me an answer.
For contentious things, this wasn’t enough, though. When it comes to Special Relativity, or the plot of Hamlet, there is a true consensus. When it comes to Arsenal vs Chelsea, or Ford vs Toyota, or Peroni vs Stella Artois, just weighing up support doesn’t resolve the issue. Sometimes, it isn’t capable of a true resolution, but sometimes someone holds his thumb on the scales for political reasons.
I have read some books that argue for IQ being a big factor in relative economic success of countries. I’m not convinced, but I didn’t really have much quantitative data, but AI (Llama) did, and was not only able to plot is (via a neat little python script), but generate some Tex source, which can be compiled in to a professional-looking pdf.
Substack doesn’t allow attaching of files, so this is the link. Full disclosure: I haven’t read all the works cited, although I have read some of the references which the AI added in an early draft.
Please don’t imagine that I am claiming that this is a marvellous piece of original work: it’s not. But as a short essay produced in response to a simple prompt from me, it’s bloody impressive.