Logo 2022

AI = Any Intelligence?

Dear reader,


This newsletter is two weeks late. And there are two reasons for that. Being away in England for the New Year, while not a holiday, did provide a long-needed change of scenery. Martin in Kassel phrased it wonderfully, “You are out of training in taking holidays”. He is so right, and it's on my New Year's Resolution list to increase my training here.

But more dramatic, for those who have been following the technology news, is the arrival of the 3rd generation of ChatGBT, that singing and dancing chatbot which can give you the meaning of life in under 30 seconds. My second question was, how will it affect the last few years of my working life, and not necessarily if it will make me obsolete? Instead, I asked, how can I use it to my advantage? And this kept me busy for a long time.

I have been using AI with many of you. Deepl is the far better translator. I encourage using Grammarly if you want to create better texts. In both cases, I have always explained why Grammarly would suggest something. So, the need for explanations is still necessary.

ChatGBT has taken the game to a new level. In a meeting with Julia, we asked it to write a 500-Word essay on consumer psychology. But what can one do with it? She won’t submit it as an essay. But it contains vocabulary in a context and provides a discussion basis.

And, here is the true advantage. It can be used to generate questions for discussion. And those who know me also know that I use many questions. Questions are the key to communication.

Brida is a platform on which people can interact. That is its strength, and at least for now, this is where the future of Brida lies. The Internet will generate many facts, fake facts, rubbish and much more. But human qualities of thinking, reacting, experiencing, describing and so on, and sharing these with other humans well, we can still do that.

In the toolbar at the top of Brida, I have installed a link to the brand-new Deepl-Write. It’s brilliant and helps formulate short texts enormously. It will make all our lives easier. However, we can still talk about the content of what we write face to face.

This new technology is here to stay. It will improve, and it will be disruptive. Let’s learn how to use it positively and humanely here in Brida.

PS. I asked ChatGBT to rewrite the above text in simple English. Here is the result:


The newsletter is late because the writer went to England and because a new computer program called ChatGBT has come out. This program can answer questions and write essays quickly. The writer has been thinking about how to use this new technology to help people communicate better. They believe that this program can be used to make questions for discussions and make writing easier. But it's important to remember that people still need to talk to each other and share their thoughts and feelings. The writer has added a new program called Deepl-Write to help people write better. This new technology will change things, but we can use it in a good way.

Well, you decide which version is better. Write me an email, and let me know what you think about ChatGBT.



On our list of topics at the moment.

Would art classes in school stop people from damaging it?

art
Ismar is asking if we had any or better art classes in school, then people might stop damaging it when they protest.

What's news?

which way
A gentle start to the New Year on the simple pleasures of everyday life.

Have you been to Porto?

porto
Céline and Alex are heading to Porto in September and wanted to know who had been there. It seems, not many of us. Shall we help them with their preparation?

In the Pipeline:

Rosii in São Paulo is preparing a presentation on a school project.
001
Nathalie and her family visited the DMZ and will share the story of her day there.
11. Porte de l'unification check-point
Walter will explain why a meteorite helped form his local area.
003
YouTube Get Together Thumbnail
Would you like to practise speaking with others in English? As a member of the Brida Community, you can go to the Brida Café and meet me and other community members from other countries. Choose from the meetings below:
Tuesday Get-together.
18h UTC / 19h CET (Duration 60 minutes)
Thursday Morning Get-together.
9h UTC / 10h CET / (Duration 90 minutes)
Hosted by me in France, meet Ismar & Lisa from Brazil, Levent in Turkey, Sebastian in Germany. The level of English is upper-intermediate.
Nathalie in Seoul, Clarisse, Monique and Bernard in France, and Babette in Germany. We span half the globe and there is plenty to talk about.
The level of English is intermediate.
Thursday Afternoon Get-together
Thursdays
13.30h UTC / 14.30h CET
(Duration 90 minutes)
The young at heart group. Maxime and I talk about Engineering for beginners, and anything else, with a focus on being young.
The level of English is upper-intermediate.
The Atlantic Corridor
Fridays
13.30h UTC / 14.30h CET
(Duration 90 minutes)
Brazil and Europe are connected. What do we have in common? Let's find out.
The level of English is upper-intermediate.

Become a member of the community.

Would you like to practise and improve your English? You can do so by joining the Brida Community. I offer a 30-day free trial and then if you like it, become a member.
With your membership, you can:

1. Have regular meetings with me and other community members to practise and improve your English. Meeting times are flexible to suit your routines.
2. Participate in and contribute to the community conversation.
3. Read our conversations when you want.
4. Collaborate in global projects.
5. Read and contribute to the Brida Journal.

Contact me for more information or :