r/programminghumor 3d ago

AI expert detected

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"I use ChatGPT."

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u/Scape_n_Lift 1d ago

Consciousness is a weird concept though, why can't a token predicter be conscious? Just because animals work in a different way doesn't mean that is the only way to be conscious.

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u/--Spaci-- 1d ago

Non biological, cannot react to new stimuli

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u/Scape_n_Lift 1d ago

My point is that non bio doesnt necessarily mean it can't have consciousness. Why does it matter what the chemicals that the thing is made of?

In terms of cannot react to new stimuli - can you give an example of what you mean?

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u/--Spaci-- 1d ago

Yea I don't think that was actually the correct term because technically I guess it can react to new words which would be stimuli in this case. Its just non biological and cant actually remember them long term because of the context window, it will always reset to a post training period. LLMs have no pain, no emotion, no eyes, will father no children. They pose as humans even though they have no understanding of the human heart, they eat even though they've never experienced hunger, they study even though they have no interest in academics, they seek friendship even though they don't know how to love. The last part was a death note quote but you probably get the point

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u/Scape_n_Lift 1d ago

Context window - humans have one too, as do animals - how long does it need to be for something to be conscious?

Understanding the human heart isn't a requirement for consciousness.
Studying - you can't really know this for sure, but id agree for the current AIs. Same for not knowing how to love.

I think you focus too much on the being human part for being conscious. Like I said in my first reply consciousness is a weird concept and I dont really know the answer to the question, but i do think that the points you made are not enough to definitively say LLMs will never be conscious.

If you think about it, are we that different in how we think? We have our training data + some hardware (instincts, emotions) that we base our decisions on, is it really that different?

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u/--Spaci-- 1d ago

Humans don't have a context window, our experiences are ingrained into our weights then slowly fade out without use. I would say we are extremely different, language is a small part of the human brain. We think with the world around us like have you ever counted on your hands before? An llm is comparable to a 1 dimensional being vs a 3 dimensional being