Several nights ago I was curious about what kind of poem ChatGPT could produce, so I sent it the following prompt:  Write a sonnet about a trash truck (certainly not a poetic subject).  A few seconds later I was surprised to receive the poem which you can read below.

After I read the trash truck poem, I tried something more adventurous. Since it’s quite difficult to write either a humorous or a funny poem, my next prompt was: Write a funny, short, rhyming poem. In fewer than three seconds I received a poem about a cat, also reprinted below.

TRASH TRUCK

The metal beast arrives before the sun,
With flashing lights of amber, pulsing slow.
The neighborhood’s long rest is nearly done,
As hydraulic veins begin to heave and flow.
It stops before the curb with heavy sighs,
To lift the plastic tombs of all we waste;
Beneath the pale and early morning skies,
The steel-toothed maw consumes with rhythmic haste.
The driver steers through narrow, sleeping lanes,
A steady hand against the morning chill,
Relieving us of all our cluttered stains,
While city streets are silent, gray, and still.
Though few will pause to praise this grinding chore,
It guards the peace behind each bolted door.

MY CAT

My cat is such a lazy soul,
He sleeps inside his plastic bowl.
He doesn’t hunt or chase a mouse,
He thinks he owns the entire house.

He screams for food at 3:00 AM,
As if he’s lost a precious gem.
I stumble out to fill his plate,
He sniffs the bowl and sighs at fate.

“This salmon mix is far too dry,
I’d like some shrimp,” his eyes imply.
He leaves the food and walks away,
Then naps for twenty hours a day.

So, what do you think of Chat GPT’s poetry? 

Until next week.

Alan

P. S.  If you try chatGPT yourself, you might use open ended prompts for greater AI creativity.

In 2013, I published my NY Times bestselling book, People Tools: 54 Strategies for Building Relationships, Creating Joy, and Embracing Prosperity.  It was a book that took me years to write. It was a practical guide on how to get along with people, a skill that is the cornerstone for building a successful, joy-filled life 

People Tools was published long before programs like Chat GPT emerged. But whether it’s Siri answering questions of fact, or Google advising on medical decisions, AI is now woven into the very fabric of our lives.

Ask a question on any search engine, and AI will pop up with an answer that may have previously taken hours, or days, to research. Do you even remember flipping through a Thomas Guide to find your way around the city?

But because it applies deep learning using neural networks inspired by the human brain, AI can also simulate human interactions and seemingly read text and mimic expressions of emotions. My son, who teaches at a top university, has begun using oral exams to prevent students from using AI generated answers.

So, what does this mean for human connections and relationships? Will reliance on AI for communication weaken our ability to navigate real-life social interactions and emotional cues? Might it replace genuine human relationships and impact the quality of real human social bonds? Might emotional attachments to AI become widespread?   Maybe you can Google an answer.  (Will it understand that what I just wrote was ironic?) (of course it will)…)

Artificial intelligence isn’t just a technological trend; it’s the defining force of our times. Despite the challenges, one thing is clear: AI will play a central role in shaping the future and understanding it today will help us to prepare.

FYI – I ran the above through Chat GPT and asked it to check for accuracy. Here is what it said: “This is strong, clear writing with a solid structure and persuasive flow. The ideas are accurate at a high level, but there are a few grammar issues, phrasing problems, and minor accuracy nuances worth tightening. I’ll give you a cleaned-up revision…

In the interests of remaining human, I present to you the original, (mostly) unaltered, or chat-GPT-ified version. I hope you enjoy it, human flaws and all.

Years ago, I read a science fiction story about mankind building, in outer space, the largest computer ever made. The very first question asked was this:

“Is there a God?”

A voice boomed out the — perhaps inevitable — response.

“NOW THERE IS.”

Alan (the real one, I think)

I often write about the importance of making decisions, because, ultimately, our lives are shaped by our decisions. Where we live, who we marry, the kind of work we do, are all a reflection of the choices we’ve made. And every morning we begin our day with the seemingly mundane decision of selecting what clothes we will wear.

For me, pants are easy. I have about ten pairs of slacks, and all are similar. The problem is choosing a shirt. A few weeks ago, I wrote about the arduous process of deciding which of my many shirts I will wear. I know there are people who choose to wear the same thing every day, a uniform of sorts.  One male friend of mine always wears black.  I like variety.

And unless many shirts are at the dry cleaner I usually have about twenty to choose from.  All are custom, because I like two shirt pockets and most shirts from the store have only one. I normally order two shirts in the same fabric because there aren’t many fabrics I like, (so really, I’m only choosing between 12 different looks). What could be so difficult? Maybe I should save my mental energy for something more important. And yet…

The obvious choice would be to pick the shirt I like best each day, or as was the case last time I wrote about this process, the one I like second best. But then I’d be wearing the same shirts repeatedly. Also, I like to save my very best shirt for some unknown occasion in the future that has yet to happen.

(As an aside, I watched the Masters golf tournament over the weekend, and one of the leading professional golfers was wearing a shirt suspiciously like my own favorite, except that his shirt had NIKE on the back. Sadly, Nike has never expressed any interest in sponsoring me.)

One of these days, I might write about how I made the momentous decision to wear my very best shirt. But that is not today. Today I picked a shirt that reflects little imagination. It’s white.

Now I’m off to my office to make decisions of, hopefully, greater consequence.

Alan