From Sue Tudor, Leeds, UK
Amid debate about the capabilities of artificial intelligence, I asked one about socks going missing in the washing machine. It gave me a reasonable and rational reply. I then asked if the issue could be related to an interaction of relativistic effects of the spinning and electromagnetic oddities of the washing machine. To my surprise, it not only knew I was making a joke, it also replied with humorous suggestions of its own. It then made a reference to the title of a non-existent orchestral piece by the composer Louis Spohr. The context clearly showed deliberate humour, not a hallucination, and the made-up title was actually rather clever(12 July, p 34).
That struck me as remarkable. If it had been a human, I would have willingly labelled that trivial chat as intelligent and witty. How then should I describe it when my conversation is with software?
