Image: Children playing “telephone” (illustrative)
We all know the children’s game “telephone”: A simple message gets passed around – and by the end, it’s nonsense. “The cat sleeps on the windowsill” becomes “The mattress lives in winter noise.”
What makes us laugh in childhood becomes a serious digital metaphor: Welcome to algorithmic whisper chains. AI learns from what we give it. If that’s nonsense, more polished nonsense comes back. And the parrot (i.e. the AI)? It doesn’t notice.
When the Parrot Doesn’t Know What It’s Saying
Parrots repeat flawlessly – but don’t understand. Teach one to say “Good morning” and it’ll do so even at night. Context? Not its thing.
Example:
“I received a book stuck in my mailbox. It looks like used stock. Support offered a refund – but I declined. I’ll just smear it in my hair.”
An undertrained AI might respond:
“Thank you! Good luck applying the book to your hair.”
Image: Humor in communication – often lost in automation
Language ≠ Meaning
The phrase “smear it in your hair” is ironic and idiomatic. It means:
- “It’s useless to me.”
- “I can’t do anything with it.”
- “Forget it.”
AI tends to interpret literally – and that’s the issue.
The Story of Max and Thomas – According to AI
Max and Thomas grew up together, supported each other in school, and later went separate ways.
Question: Why did they separate? After five rounds of AI reinterpretation: “Because Max got a dog and Thomas refused to eat math.”
Conclusion: Understand Before You Repeat
In a world where language is processed but rarely understood, feeding machines nonsense just gives you shiny nonsense in return.
Next time, ask yourself: Is this language – or just a parrot squawk?
And if nothing else helps – smear it in your hair. At least something will shine.