Just wondering... What is Intellgience?

An ambiguous metric that's been (ab)used quite a lot by human fundamentalists to try to draw a line between what we can do and what machines can do, in order to feel better about themselves.

Or were you looking for a different definition?

One measure is the ability to find an optimal solution among many options. From solving an integration problem (option = equation, optimal = correct) to life (option = life choice, optimal = best QOL).

Statistically, an LLM finds a better optimal solution than one individual. But LLM solutions are more similar to each other than individuals’, so among many individuals, a few find a better optimal solution than the LLMs.

Hence why I think we need AI that responds more uniquely. Whether that be fine-tuned local models, one LLM that’s more influenced by its prompt and well-supports extremely long prompts, AI tools for humans, or something else. I’d love to see a local AI with continuous learning that generates complex UX to better interact with the user (more than prompts), but that may be far-fetched…

We have various methods of measuring individual intelligence (which are pretty sketchy imo). But do we have any way to measure or quantify the intelligence of the larger structures that mediate our thought? How do you measure the intelligence of a university, or a business? How much intelligence is contained within a collection of books and papers? To what degree do the tools we use amplify our intelligence?

I see students obsess every day over their SAT scores, which to some is a measure of individual intelligence. But what SAT score would a pair of students working together on a single test get? Or a dozen students working together? Would it be higher or lower? What sort of strategies would maximize their ability to collaborate? What would be the effect of giving/removing access to a calculator on a student's score? Access to scratch paper? Access to textbooks? Access to a dictionary? Access to unlimited time?

If we want to claim to understand intelligence, these are the sort of questions we should be able to answer. Can we?

The definition I give to my children: It is the ability to make good decisions.

I don't have a good answer. But I have a good reason to say LLMs are not intelligent.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47918103

In psychology, there is no definition of intelligence, but it is generally understood as whatever it is that intelligence tests measure.

No consensus but a decent definition is: Ability to utilize resources to achieve outcomes

The titel has a typo as the actual article has the title "The Social Edge of Intelligence".

If you gotta ask, you can't afford it.

~ intelligence