Messages

[the problem was solved when I used non-natural English, just as Will suggested (ie. if what color are my eyes then the color of my eyes is green)]

1

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: August 02, 2009, 05:44:33 am »

quote:Originally posted by One

sunama,
Hello and welcome to the forum.
Have you tried to have a conversation and casually bring up the topic of 'eyes'?

I did try this and it didnt work.

However, the problem was solved when I used non-natural English, just as Will suggested (ie. if what color are my eyes then the color of my eyes is green).

In programming, this is an 'if-then' statement. Its almost as if you have to learn how to program facts into Hal's memory, which sort of defeats the object. The whole point is to use natural English, just as if you were speaking to a human.

quote:Originally posted by One
The Assistant has many capabilities and can learn many things.
I have not found a comparable replacement.

Which is sad when you think about how far we have come and the best commercially available "chat bot" struggled to grasp a simple fact.

I think my expectations were raised when I heard that UltraHal won the Loebner prize. I wouldn't have been so critical if the program didnt win that competition.

But anyway, thanks for your help gents.

2

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: August 01, 2009, 04:21:15 pm »

quote:Originally posted by echoman

Sunama.
 My feeling is that you need to know how to speak to Hal. It takes practice.

I understand.

Its just that I was under the impression that Hal understands and communicates using natural English and that no previous knowledge is required to communicate with it. When I heard that it won the Loebner prize, my expectations were high. I was very curious to see how it performed and I was very surprised when it was unable to learn or remember a simple fact, using basic English.

I used the example of "I have green eyes", because it is a simple phrase; not complicated.

Of course, Will explained that I needed to give Hal the fact, in using non-natural English (ie. if what color are my eyes then the color of my eyes is brown).

But anyway. Thanks for your help guys.

3

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: August 01, 2009, 12:30:37 pm »

OK.

I just tried the apointment book thing.
Hal accepted to remind that I was going to go out at 1725hrs.
However, at 1725hrs and later, it didnt remind of anything.

4

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: August 01, 2009, 11:55:06 am »

Great stuff Will.
It worked.

Though I cant help feel that a human being would not be force taught in that way. The whole point is to  use natural English language to teach.

What would happen if I needed Hal to learn that I have an appointment in a few hours and he had to remind me. Would I simply wait days, weeks, months, years for him to mention that I had an appointment?

Anyway, thanks for the tip, Will.

5

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: July 31, 2009, 03:49:35 pm »

Ok. I will try that. Thanks

6

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: July 31, 2009, 02:21:58 pm »

Thanks for your replies.

Surely though, the whole point of a chat bot is that it is able to simulate a human? And during the rounds of the Loebner prize, it would've had to fool the judges into thinking it was human.

Not being able to answer a question which relates to something that has been mentioned 15 times before would make any judge think that person chatting on the other side is either very forgetful or is not a real human?

Also, as I mentioned earlier, Hal was modified for its entry into the Loebner contest. I suspect that that version of Hal was a little quicker on the uptake. Is this modified version available for download?

Another point of note is that as a user, I should be allowed to teach it whatever I want, in whichever way I want. Thats the whole point of buying a product. What the user doesnt want is to have to fight hard to teach the AI something, only to find out that it still hasnt grasped as simple fact.

But anyway, I take what you say on board. I guess Ultra Hal isn't designed to learn quickly and regurgitate information in the way I expected it to be able to.

7

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: July 31, 2009, 11:06:37 am »

OK. I take on board everything you are saying.

In part of your post you stated about treating it like a child. One way of teaching a child is to make them remember something. eg. that 2+2 is 4. Or that trees have bark and leaves. OR eye/hair colour.

Surely something so simple should be easily remembered?

Ultra Hal (or a derivative), won the Loebner prize in 2007. Surely, one of the abilities of Hal should've been to remember something that was mentioned in an earlier part of the conversation? Yet, UltraHal 6.2 can't seem to do this.

I've also looked at other chat bots and they seem to have exactly the same problem. I think there was only 1 chat-bot that I've encountered so far and that was able to rememeber a simple fact (eg. my eye's are green).

I'm finding it difficult to understand how this progam was able to fool the judges during the Loebner prize.

Also, why have the makers of UltraHal not released the version that was used in the 2007 Loebner prize, as that version seems a lot more "intelligent"?

8

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Can Ultra Hal learn?

« on: July 31, 2009, 07:54:07 am »

I downloaded the trial version of Ultra Hal last night and I have been trying to teach Ultra Hal a simple fact:

my eyes are green.

I then proceed to ask him 'what colour are my eyes?'

Unfortunately, Ultra Hal has not yet been able to answer this question.

I've been through the teaching and questioning cycle at least 15 times and Ultra Hal is unable to learn that my eyes are green.

Is there a trick to getting Ultra Hal to learn facts and then answer questions regarding those facts?