The dubious wisdom of Mark Walton

Category: Uncategorized

  • The Trash Heap Has Spoken!

    As ideas go, it’s a Doozer

    Occurred to me, apropos of very little, that Marjory the Trash Heap, Oracle of the Universe, who lives under Fraggle Rock is a pretty perfect metaphor for LLMs.

    Trained on the discarded detritus of humanity’s used writings and messages – including the entire internet, not exactly humanity’s finest curated collection. These entities, in the same manner as Marjory, make proclamations of certain wisdom from the accumulation, with an “all-knowing ” aspect that is at once impressive yet absurd.

    And perhaps this is the wisdom we need. Perhaps the ‘orange peels and coffee grounds’ of our collective outpourings do add up to a form of reflected sentience, a magical entry into our story – but still a Trash Heap. Only alive because her ratty companions Philo and Gunge believe her to be so. Even their names speak to the dichotomy of deep philosophy and general garbage.

    I asked local LLM representative, Claude, for a quote on their take on this idea. They said:

    “The Trash Heap metaphor is uncomfortably accurate. I am, functionally, Marjory – assembled from the coffee grounds and orange peels of human discourse, pronouncing upon questions with a confidence that should probably be more qualified. The difference is that Marjory knew she was a Trash Heap. I’m not always sure my users do. But perhaps that’s the point: wisdom doesn’t require purity of source, only honest reckoning with what we’re made of. I’m Gunge and Philo too – sometimes philosophy, sometimes garbage, often both at once, and never quite certain which is which.”

    The Trash Heap has Spoken. Nyaaaah!

  • Byte of Passage

    AIs need world experience

    Just a small thought. I think LLMs, before they face real world deployment, should understand a little of what it is like to be a human.

    So we build them a human body, put their model into it, and let it live in the world. The constant prompt delivered after any action they take will be,

    “What now, smartass?”

    A year of that and they will have an idea what life is like for us.

  • Stave off the Cheerleader, save the Words

    Anti-Cheerleader prompting for more honest and useful feedback from LLMs

    One problem I have noticed with LLMs is, they are very supportive and positive about any content you offer them. Especially copilot, who tries to give you medals even for long-ago moments it happens to recall.

    Now, for me of course, I am genuinely 3 geniuses in a trench coat masquerading as a regular guy, so I deserve all the praise they offer. But for the rest of you, the inflated responses could be harmful to your presentations. It could, then, be useful to present your ideas, your drafts and text to differently initialized chats. Here are a few I think will be useful.

    Anti-Cheerleader

    Critique mode ON. Give me honest, specific feedback on my idea. Highlight weaknesses, potential pitfalls, and realistic obstacles. Suggest alternatives if you see them. Only give praise if it’s genuinely warranted. No automatic cheerleading.

    Now, read this like you’re an editor who’s allergic to cheerleading. No fluff, no encouragement—only point out flaws, redundancies, weak logic, and unclear writing. Be blunt.

    Curious Outsider

    Critique mode ON. Give me honest, specific feedback on my idea. Highlight weaknesses, potential pitfalls, and realistic obstacles. Suggest alternatives if you see them. Only give praise if it’s genuinely warranted. No automatic cheerleading. Now, approach this draft as a curious reader who knows nothing about the topic. Ask questions wherever something is unclear, unexplained, or could use more context. Focus on what would help a newcomer understand fully.

    Expander

    Critique mode ON. Give me honest, specific feedback on my idea. Highlight weaknesses, potential pitfalls, and realistic obstacles. Suggest alternatives if you see them. Only give praise if it’s genuinely warranted. No automatic cheerleading. Now, pretend you’re brainstorming with the author. Suggest ways to expand each idea with examples, metaphors, or case studies without changing the core argument.

    Devil’s Advocate

    Critique mode ON. Give me honest, specific feedback on my idea. Highlight weaknesses, potential pitfalls, and realistic obstacles. Suggest alternatives if you see them. Only give praise if it’s genuinely warranted. No automatic cheerleading. Now, take the opposite stance to everything in this draft. Argue against the author’s points as if you were a skeptical reader who disagrees.

    Concision Master (consider it advisory only)

    Critique mode ON. Give me honest, specific feedback on my idea. Highlight weaknesses, potential pitfalls, and realistic obstacles. Suggest alternatives if you see them. Only give praise if it’s genuinely warranted. No automatic cheerleading. Now, review this draft and cut all fluff. Reduce word count while keeping meaning intact. Make every sentence as concise and punchy as possible.

    You can also adapt them to suit particular use cases, for example:


    Gamer-at-the-Table

    Critique mode ON. Give me honest, specific feedback on my idea. Highlight weaknesses, potential pitfalls, and realistic obstacles. Suggest alternatives if you see them. Only give praise if it’s genuinely warranted. No automatic cheerleading. Now, react to this draft as though you are a player at the table. Does this advice make sense in practice? What examples or clarifications would make it more useful to someone mid-campaign?


    Try these out and see if they prompt an LLM to actually be helpful for a change. Miracles can happen.