Flashcards (LLM Prompt)

Example 1 / Gwern Branwen - How an Anonymous Researcher Predicted AI's Trajectory

ME: {{FLASHCARD LLM PROMPT}}

LLM: {{INITIAL GENERATION}}

ME: Could you now delete all the formatting text and just have the content?

LLM:

Here are the flashcards without the formatting:

Chunk 1: Gwern's Recognition of AI Scaling Trends
Q: What key observation led to Gwern's early scaling hypothesis per Gwern?
A: Neural networks kept expanding capabilities when given more compute and data

Q: What crucial test confirmed scaling laws for Gwern in AI?
A: GPT-3's few-shot learning results showing dramatic improvements over GPT-2's capabilities

Q: Why did others miss scaling importance per Gwern?
A: They overemphasized algorithms while underestimating the role of compute power

Chunk 2: Research Methodology

Q: What drives Gwern's research process per interview?
A: Following and thoroughly exploring intellectual rabbit holes

Q: How does Gwern approach writing development over time?
A: Gradually accumulating insights until reaching sudden breakthrough moments through synthesis

Q: What characterizes a true rabbit hole per Gwern?
A: Obsessive drive to continuously explore a specific topic

Chunk 3: Theory of Intelligence

Q: What is intelligence according to Gwern's theoretical framework?
A: Search over Turing machines to find specific solutions

Q: Why are hardwired solutions often better than intelligence?
A: They're more efficient and reliable than general-purpose learning for specific tasks

Q: How do large neural networks implement intelligence?
A: By becoming ensembles of small models solving specific problems

Chunk 4: Writing and AI Development

Q: How does writing influence AI development per Gwern?
A: Written content becomes training data that shapes AI behavior

Q: What determines one's influence on AI per Gwern?
A: Creating content that AI systems must predict

Q: Why write now according to Gwern?
A: Current writing uniquely influences future AI development patterns

Chunk 5: Benefits of Anonymity
Q: What's the most underrated benefit of anonymity?
A: People must engage with ideas before dismissing based on identity

Q: How does anonymity affect content evaluation per Gwern?
A: Forces engagement with ideas over personality

Q: What practical benefit does anonymity provide per Gwern?
A: Protection from potential harassment and malicious targeting

Additional Areas of Interest:
- Writing process: Deep dive into Wikipedia editing experience and transition to independent writing
- Personal lifestyle: Exploration of minimal living arrangements enabling full-time research
- Views on psychedelics and experimentation: Distinction between reversible and permanent effects
- Future predictions: Analysis of potential technological and societal changes by 2050
- Impact of hearing impairment: Influence on intellectual development and communication style

Example 2 / The Best Way to Learn From Other People's Experiences

ME: {{FLASHCARD LLM PROMPT}}

LLM: {{INITIAL GENERATION}}

ME: Could you now delete all the formatting text and just have the content?

LLM:

I'll help simplify that by removing the meta-formatting and keeping just the flashcard content:

Q: What defines an ill-structured domain per Spiro in expertise research?
A: A domain where concept combinations vary inconsistently across similar case applications.

Q: Why are business and medicine considered ill-structured domains?
A: Their concepts manifest differently depending on specific context and variables.

Q: List two examples of ill-structured domains?
A: Business operations, medical diagnosis, teaching, military strategy, leadership.

Q: Why are cases essential in ill-structured domains per CFT?
A: Principles alone cannot capture the complexity of real applications.

Q: How do experts use cases differently than novices?
A: They reason from specific cases rather than applying general principles.

Q: What are the two main components of Cognitive Flexibility Theory?
A: Schema assembly from old cases and adoption of an adaptive worldview.

Q: How do experts handle novelty per Cognitive Flexibility Theory?
A: By recombining fragments of past cases into new solution patterns.

Q: What is schema assembly in Cognitive Flexibility Theory?
A: Recombining fragments of prior cases to address new situations.

Q: Why can't experts rely solely on predetermined schemas?
A: Ill-structured domains require flexible, context-specific knowledge application.

Q: What characterizes the adaptive worldview per Cognitive Flexibility Theory?
A: Accepting multiple valid interpretations and rejecting single, reductive explanations of phenomena.

Q: How should experts view cases in ill-structured domains?
A: As whole entities with properties greater than their parts.
Additional topics that could be explored:

- Charlie Munger's analogical thinking as an example of CFT in practice
- Limitations of traditional schema-based learning theories
- The role of prototypical examples versus case libraries
- Applications of CFT to business decision-making