2023年经济学人 人工智能机器中的魂灵

 

    Culture

    文艺板块

    Johnson

    约翰逊专栏

    The ghost in the AI machine

    AI机器中的魂灵

    Talking about artificial intelligence in human terms is natural—but wrong.

    用谈论人的方式来谈论人工智能是很自然的，但这是错误的。

    My love’s like a red, red rose.

    我的爱人像一朵红红的玫瑰。

    It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.

    那是东方，而朱丽叶就是太阳。

    Life is a highway, I wanna ride it all night long.

    人生如大路，我想彻夜飞驰其上。

    Metaphor¹ is a powerful and wonderful tool.

    比喻是一种强大而奇妙的工具。

    Explaining one thing in terms of another can be both illuminating² and pleasurable, if the metaphor is apt.

    如果比喻恰当的话，用一件事来解释另一件事既能带来启发，又令人感到愉悦。

    But that “if” is important.

    但这个“如果”很重要。

    Metaphors³ can be particularly helpful in explaining unfamiliar⁴ concepts: imagining the Einsteinian model of gravity (heavy objects distort space-time) as something like a bowling⁵ ball on a trampoline, for example.

    在解释不熟悉的概念时，比喻尤其有用：例如，把爱因斯坦的重力模型(重物会扭曲时空)想象成蹦床上的保龄球。

    But metaphors can also be misleading: picturing the atom as a solar system helps young students of chemistry, but the more advanced learn that electrons move in clouds of probability, not in neat orbits as planets do.

    但比喻也可能具有误导性：把原子想象成一个太阳系有助于低年级化学学生的理解，但高年级的学生会了解到，电子在充满概率性的迷雾中运动，而不是像行星那样在规整的轨道上运动。

    What may be an even more misleading metaphor—for artificial intelligence (AI)—seems to be taking hold.

    一个可能更具误导性的比喻--对人工智能的比喻--似乎正在开始占上风。

    AI systems can now perform staggeringly impressive tasks, and their ability to reproduce what seems like the most human function of all, namely language, has ever more observers writing about them.

    人工智能系统现在可以执行极其令人惊艳的任务，语言似乎是最具人类本性的功能，而它们能够再次生成语言的这一能力让越来越多的观察家写下了关于它们的文章。

    When they do, they are tempted⁶ by an obvious (but obviously wrong) metaphor, which portrays⁷ AI programmes as conscious and even intentional⁸ agents.

    当观察家们写这些文章时，他们会受到一个明显的(但明显错误的)比喻的诱惑，即将人工智能程序描述为有意识的、甚至是有意图的行为主体。

    After all, the only other creatures which can use language are other conscious agents—that is, humans.

    毕竟，唯一能够使用语言的其他生物就是其他有意识的行为主体，也就是人类。

    Take the well-known problem of factual mistakes in potted biographies, the likes of which ChatGPT and other large language models (LLMs) churn out in seconds.

    以人物生平简介中的著名的事实性错误问题为例，ChatGPT和其他大型语言模型在短短几秒钟内就能炮制出这样的生平简介。

    Incorrect birthplaces, non-existent career moves, books never written: one journalist at The Economist⁹ was alarmed to learn that he had recently died.

    错误的出生地、不存在的职业变动、从未写过的书：《经济学人》的一名记者很震惊地得知自己最近被去世了。

    In the jargon¹⁰ of AI engineers, these are “hallucinations”.

    用人工智能工程师的行话来说，这些都是“幻觉”。

    In the parlance¹¹ of critics, they are “lies”.

    用批评者的用语说，这些是“谎言”。

    “Hallucinations” might be thought of as a forgiving euphemism¹².

    “幻觉”可能被认为是一种带有宽恕性的委婉说法。

    Your friendly local AI is just having a bit of a bad trip; leave him to sleep it off and he’ll be back to himself in no time.

    你那友好的当地人工智能只是脑子发了点昏，让他睡一觉，他很快就会清醒过来的。

    For the “lies” crowd, though, the humanising metaphor is even more profound: the AI is not only thinking, but has desires and intentions.

    然而，对于“谎言”派来说，这个拟人化的比喻有更深刻的含义：人工智能不仅在思考，而且有欲望和意图。

    A lie, remember, is not any old false statement.

    请记住，谎言不只是任何虚假的陈述。

    It is one made with the goal of deceiving others.

    而且还要以欺骗他人为目的。

    ChatGPT has no such goals at all.

    ChatGPT根本没有这样的目的。

    Humans’ tendency to anthropomorphise things they don’t understand is ancient, and may confer an evolutionary¹³ advantage.

    人类把自己不理解的东西拟人化的倾向自古有之，这可能会带来进化优势。

    If, on spying a rustling¹⁴ in the bushes, you infer an agent (whether predator¹⁵ or spirit), no harm is done if you are wrong.

    如果在侦察到灌木丛沙沙作响时，你推断灌木丛里有一个行为主体(无论是捕食者还是鬼魂)，如果你推断错了，也不会造成任何伤害。

    If you assume there is nothing in the undergrowth and a leopard¹⁶ jumps out, you are in trouble.

    但如果你假定灌木丛里什么都没有，然后一只豹子跳了出来，那么你就有麻烦了。

    The all-too-human desire to smack¹⁷ or yell at a malfunctioning¹⁸ device comes from this ingrained instinct to see intentionality everywhere.

    对出故障的设备拍打或大喊大叫的愿望是一种人之常情，这种愿望就来自于这种根深蒂固的本能，即随处可看见意图。

    It is an instinct, however, that should be overridden¹⁹ when writing about AI.

    然而，在写关于人工智能的文章时，这种本能应该被压倒。

    These systems, including those that seem to converse²⁰, merely take input²¹ and produce output.

    这些系统，包括那些似乎能与人对话的系统，只是接受了输入并产生输出。

    At their most basic level, they do nothing more than turn strings²² like 0010010101001010 into 1011100100100001 based on a set of instructions.

    在最基本的层次上，它们只不过是根据一组指令，将0010010101001010之类的字符串转换为1011100100100001。

    Other parts of the software turn those 0s and 1s into words, giving a frightening—but false—sense that there is a ghost in the machine.

    软件的其他部分再将这些0和1转换为单词，给人一种可怕但错误的感觉：机器内部有一个魂灵。

    Whether they can be said to “think” is a matter of philosophy and cognitive²³ science, since plenty of serious people see the brain as a kind of computer.

    是否可以说它们在“思考”是哲学和认知科学上的问题，因为许多严肃的学者将大脑视为一种计算机。

    But it is safer to call what LLMs do “pseudo-cognition”.

    但将大型语言模型所做的事称为“伪认知”是更为安全的说法。

    Even if it is hard on the face of it to distinguish the output from human activity, they are fundamentally different under the surface.

    即使表面上很难区分机器产出和人类活动，二者在表面之下是有根本区别的。

    Most importantly, cognition is not intention.

    最重要的是，认知不是意图。

    Computers do not have desires.

    计算机没有愿望。

    It can be tough to write about machines without metaphors.

    描写机器时不用比喻会很困难。

    People say a watch “tells” the time, or that a credit-card reader which is working slowly is “thinking” while they wait awkwardly at the checkout²⁴.

    人们说手表“会告诉”时间，或者当人们在收银台尴尬地等待反应很慢的信用卡读卡器时，人们会说读卡器在“思考”。

    Even when machines are said to “generate” output, that cold-seeming word comes from an ancient root meaning to give birth.

    即使当人们说机器“产生”输出时，这个看起来冷冰冰的词其实也源于一个古老的词根，意思是生孩子。

    But AI is too important for loose language.

    但人工智能太重要了，不能用不严谨的语言。

    If entirely²⁵ avoiding human-like metaphors is all but impossible, writers should offset²⁶ them, early, with some suitably bloodless phrasing.

    如果完全避免拟人比喻几乎是不可能的，那么写作者们应该及早用一些恰当的冷血措辞来抵消比喻。

    “An LLM is designed to produce text that reflects patterns found in its vast training data,” or some such explanation, will help readers take any later imagery with due scepticism.

    “大型语言模型用于生成文本，这种文本反映了从其海量训练数据中发现的模式”，或某种类似的解释，这种说法将帮助读者对之后出现的任何意象持以适当的怀疑态度。

    Humans have evolved to spot ghosts in machines.

    人类通过进化而能够识别出机器中的魂灵。

    Writers should avoid ushering²⁷ them into that trap.

    写作者应该避免将人们带入这个陷阱。

    Better to lead them out of it.

    不如带领他们走出陷阱。

1 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

2 illuminating   

a.富于启发性的，有助阐明的

参考例句：

• We didn't find the examples he used particularly illuminating. 我们觉得他采用的那些例证启发性不是特别大。
• I found his talk most illuminating. 我觉得他的话很有启发性。

3 metaphors   

隐喻( metaphor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I can only represent it to you by metaphors. 我只能用隐喻来向你描述它。
• Thus, She's an angel and He's a lion in battle are metaphors. 因此她是天使，他是雄狮都是比喻说法。

4 unfamiliar   

adj.陌生的，不熟悉的

参考例句：

• I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
• The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。

5 bowling   

n.保龄球运动

参考例句：

• Bowling is a popular sport with young and old.保龄球是老少都爱的运动。
• Which sport do you 1ike most,golf or bowling?你最喜欢什么运动，高尔夫还是保龄球？

6 tempted   

v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词）

参考例句：

• I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚，但还是没开口。
• I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。

7 portrays   

v.画像( portray的第三人称单数 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The museum collection vividly portrays the heritage of 200 years of canals. 博物馆的藏品让运河200 年的历史再现眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The film portrays Gandhi as a kind of superman. 这部电影把甘地描绘成一个超人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 intentional   

adj.故意的，有意（识）的

参考例句：

• Let me assure you that it was not intentional.我向你保证那不是故意的。
• His insult was intentional.他的侮辱是有意的。

9 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

10 jargon   

n.术语，行话

参考例句：

• They will not hear critics with their horrible jargon.他们不愿意听到评论家们那些可怕的行话。
• It is important not to be overawed by the mathematical jargon.要紧的是不要被数学的术语所吓倒.

11 parlance   

n.说法；语调

参考例句：

• The term "meta directory" came into industry parlance two years ago.两年前，商业界开始用“元目录”这个术语。
• The phrase is common diplomatic parlance for spying.这种说法是指代间谍行为的常用外交辞令。

12 euphemism   

n.婉言，委婉的说法

参考例句：

• Language reflects culture and euphemism is a mirror of culture.语言反映文化,而婉语则是各种文化的一面镜子。
• Euphemism is a very common and complicated linguistic phenomenon.委婉语是一种十分常见而又非常复杂的语言现象。

13 evolutionary   

adj.进化的；演化的，演变的；[生]进化论的

参考例句：

• Life has its own evolutionary process.生命有其自身的进化过程。
• These are fascinating questions to be resolved by the evolutionary studies of plants.这些十分吸引人的问题将在研究植物进化过程中得以解决。

14 rustling   

n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的

参考例句：

• the sound of the trees rustling in the breeze 树木在微风中发出的沙沙声
• the soft rustling of leaves 树叶柔和的沙沙声

15 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

16 leopard   

n.豹

参考例句：

• I saw a man in a leopard skin yesterday.我昨天看见一个穿着豹皮的男人。
• The leopard's skin is marked with black spots.豹皮上有黑色斑点。

17 smack   

vt.拍，打，掴；咂嘴；vi.含有…意味；n.拍

参考例句：

• She gave him a smack on the face.她打了他一个嘴巴。
• I gave the fly a smack with the magazine.我用杂志拍了一下苍蝇。

18 malfunctioning   

出故障

参考例句：

• But something was malfunctioning in the equipment due to human error. 但由于人为的错误，设备发生故障了。 来自超越目标英语 第4册
• Choke coils are useful for prevention of malfunctioning electronic equipment. 扼流圈对于防止电器设备的故障很有帮助。 来自互联网

19 overridden   

越控( override的过去分词 )； （以权力）否决； 优先于； 比…更重要

参考例句：

• The chairman's veto was overridden by the committee. 主席的否决被委员会推翻了。
• Property '{0}' is not declarable, and cannot be overridden. 属性“{0}”是不可声明的，不能被重写。

20 converse   

vi.谈话，谈天，闲聊；adv.相反的，相反

参考例句：

• He can converse in three languages.他可以用3种语言谈话。
• I wanted to appear friendly and approachable but I think I gave the converse impression.我想显得友好、平易近人些,却发觉给人的印象恰恰相反。

21 input   

n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机

参考例句：

• I will forever be grateful for his considerable input.我将永远感激他的大量投入。
• All this information had to be input onto the computer.所有这些信息都必须输入计算机。

22 strings   

n.弦

参考例句：

• He sat on the bed,idly plucking the strings of his guitar.他坐在床上，随意地拨着吉他的弦。
• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。

23 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

24 checkout   

n.（超市等）收银台，付款处

参考例句：

• Could you pay at the checkout.你能在结帐处付款吗。
• A man was wheeling his shopping trolley to the checkout.一个男人正推着购物车向付款台走去。

25 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

26 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。

27 ushering   

v.引，领，陪同( usher的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They were right where the coach-caller was swinging open a coach-door and ushering in two ladies. "他们走到外面时，叫马车的服务员正打开车门，请两位小姐上车。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Immediately the two of them approached others, thanking them, ushering them out one by one. 他们俩马上走到其他人面前，向他们道谢，一个个送走了他们。 来自辞典例句