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236 sats \ 2 replies \ @Scoresby OP 29 Jun \ parent \ on: Claude runs a vending machine: decides to stock tungsten cubes, loses $250 AI
I knew a woman once who was born deaf. My job was to help her get a job. Naively, I assumed we could just communicate by writing on a piece of paper.
This ended up being a very frustrating experience for both of us. Her first language was signing and she had not had very much experience with written words.
It took me a long time to realize that she thought in sign language. I don't sign but I imagine it shapes your thoughts differently than verbal or written English.
Humans don't need language to think, but it strongly shapes how we think when we use it. I don't know if LLMs can think without language...it is the only "thought" they have.
Have you read Steven Pinker?
He wrote a book about language. He said thinking and talking are 2 different cognitive functions.
Here’s a clear quote from Steven Pinker that highlights the difference between thinking and speaking:
“Knowing a language, then, is knowing how to translate mentalese into strings of words and vice versa. People without a language would still have mentalese, and babies and many nonhuman animals presumably have simpler dialects.”
— The Language Instinc
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wow, that's fascinating.
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