The "A" in "AI" Stands for Amnesia
3 days ago
- #Cognitive Bias
- #Media Accuracy
- #AI Trust
- The Gell-Mann amnesia effect describes how people critically assess media reports in their area of expertise but trust other areas despite recognizing potential inaccuracies.
- Michael Crichton named the effect after physicist Murray Gell-Mann, humorously noting that attaching a famous name lends importance to the concept.
- Crichton explains that people often dismiss errors in one news story but continue reading other sections as if they are more accurate.
- Unlike in personal relationships, where consistent lying leads to distrust, people forgive AI's mistakes despite warnings about its potential inaccuracies.
- The article suggests that our tendency to forget AI's past errors mirrors the amnesia described by Crichton in media consumption.