laughter is the best medicine

TECH TALK

This article does not talk about the pros and cons of ChatGPT. Neither does it touch on whether this new product is fraught with danger or not. This article only shares with readers, the humor created by this AI in a classroom environment and that too a virtual one.

While using ChatGPT in one of my Zoom Classes with my ESL Japanese students who are mostly working in companies, I got a chance to engage them in a dialogue with this AI. Most of them had used it in the Japanese language before but it was their first time in English.One by one the students started asking their questions. The first asked, “When will Japan become rich?” Prompt came the retort, “Japan is already one of the wealthiest countries in the world.” The same student then asked, “When will I become rich?” This time ChatGPT snapped, “It depends on your luck——your education, career choice, hard work, and your risk tolerance. ChatGPT also advised him to live below his means, save money and avoid debt. It seems like decent advice to our elite rulers too. They should rather start seeking free advice from ChatGPT and refrain from hiring incompetent advisers and paying them through the nose.

This group of students took a sigh of relief realizing that the ‘Japanese economy’ is after all not as weak as they think it is and this student in particular got the message that he needs to seriously increase his luck if he wants to become a fat cat in 5 years.

The next student, who was by now getting impatient, blurted out his question, “When will the war in Ukraine end?” This is a gentleman, who has fond memories of his visit to Ukraine and uses ‘Putin’ as a subject for making all his sentences which have a negative-meaning verb in them. The whole group was amused with ChatGPT’s honesty in telling them that it cannot predict the future with certainty. It, however, underscored the importance of all parties involved to engage in constructive dialogue and work towards a peaceful solution that respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. Another student asked about reconciliation between China and USA to which it gave a curt reply that it was a complex issue. A lady student ordered ChatGPT to give her a recipe using onions and cabbages. It obediently complied and gave her a four-page recipe. When asked to make a riddle it gave a very challenging one and apologized when the angry student complained and gave her an easy one (without being asked) to make her happy.

To cut a long story short, we got many funny but serious thought-provoking responses. The last question shot at ChatGPT in this session was, “Should I buy Tesla shares?” It cautioned us that Tesla’s share has experienced significant fluctuations, so it is important to consider the risks involved in investing in any individual stock…….ultimately, investing in any stock involves ‘due diligence’.

In Pakistan, the lack of due diligence is glaringly noticeable everywhere we look. ‘Due diligence’ is what we require at the end of the day!

P.S. We have to exercise due diligence when we are using ChatGPT as well.