ChatGPT, AI & Language Learning with @LucaLampariello (2)
but everybody is different. Steve: Uh, I agree.
Steve: I agree. I agree. Or, and sometimes if it's structured properly that it's part of, uh,
say a 15 minute interesting, um, podcast fully accurately transcribed, but you're
able to go into some of those sentences. Steve: It's also with a thing like matching
pairs where you, you're not getting it wrong. It's very easy, you know,
it's either right or you can try again, kind of thing. Easy. No failure, slight effort,
uh, at getting at some of the details, but I agree with you. It's five, ten percent. That is... gives
me a chance to segue into the subject of ChatGPT. Steve: So you're making the point that we wanna
engage, I think this is important, even if we're speaking or writing to people, we wanna engage
with the language in high resonance situations. So ChatGPT, it's, it's called the generational,
pre-trained text, I think. So what it is, it only deals with text. So you can't talk to GPT, right?
Steve: But you can generate text. So I did a variety of things experimenting with it.
First of all, I asked ChatGPT how it applies to language learning. So, by the way, you can find
ChatGPT on the internet. It's not an app, but you basically, you know, keep that website on your,
you know, top of your screen there. Steve: You can go there anytime you want
and ask a question. So first question I asked was, you know, how does it apply to language learning?
And they basically said, well, you can chat with the GPT and so you can have a conversation. Not
something I would do. I'm not interested in having a conversation with a machine.
Steve: uh, and you can't speak to it. You can only type because it's text-based. I mean, you can,
you know, record it, uh, uh, you know, create text with a dictation software somewhere else,
but ChatGPT won't do it. So then the second thing they said, it can correct your mistakes. So you
send in your message in whatever you're studying, and back it comes correct.
Steve: maybe the only application I see is if I've got slightly inaccurate transcripts of
something. I'll send it there. They can correct it. Put in punctuation,
not a big one. The third one was it can provide you with explanations or examples of grammar. So
I went in, I said, give me 10 examples of, uh, you know, the instrumental case in Russian.
Steve: Uh, it right away gives you 10 examples, two of which were wrong, but I'm assuming they'll
get better. Right? Uh, I said get one of the 10 basic grammar principles in Spanish, and one of
them, they gave me 10. Of course ser and estar is there basic, you know, you can get it wrong. It
doesn't matter really for communication, but one of them was you have to use the personal pronoun
with the verb, that's wrong, uh, in Spanish. Steve: Uh uh, and then to me the biggest one is
generation of learning. Like we're thinking for LingQ, we might like simplify something
that's very difficult so that a learner can have a first pass through something that's
been simplified and then go at it a second time with, you know, more words that he has
to learn or she, uh, or say, tell me a story. Steve: You can go to ChatGPT and say, create a
story using high frequency vocabulary that talks about a fisherman, and they'll produce a story in,
uh, in, in whatever language in Italian, and then you can go in there and use that
as learning material. So just a quick summary. Those were the four things that they recommended.
Steve: And, uh, what's your reaction to where, where do you think the greatest
application might Steve: be?
Luca: So I used it a kind of, uh, the way, uh, the way you used it or the way they suggested.
I've been toying with it a little bit, but my colleague is doing a lot of research into figuring
out how to do this also, not just for language learning, but also for production of content.
Luca: For example, for, um, writing stuff that we want to produce, also for YouTube videos. There's
a, a, a variety of ways in each you can use it. Specifically speaking about language learning,
I believe one thing that would be very beneficial is again, um, the
creation of content. I tried it with Serbian. Luca: I've been learning Serbian for a year now,
and I, I said something like I gave this um, create a story of an Italian guy,
um, charging to Serbia, falling in love with an with a Serbian girl, right? And, and, uh,
you have to use 350 words. So it created a story. Um, and that's fine. I've been toying it with it,
I think, I think, um, I had this very interesting conversation with a, with another YouTuber,
who's a very good friend of mine, Rocky. Luca: And we talked about the fact that the,
the ChatGPT is, it can be a great tool, but it doesn't have to be a substitute, a replacement
for the way we think. Like if we, uh, and how we think if we rely too much on machines,
then we run the risk of not thinking, uh, anymore. That's the first thing. And when
it comes to language journey, I gotta tell you, there's so much content out there, and you can
create your own content even without ChatGPT that I, I haven't used it that much. I might use it,
but not, not necessarily for language learning, uh, but for other things I might facilitate
um, you know, some tasks like writing, some articles, can give me ideas,
but the idea for me is always, okay, give me some ideas, then I'm gonna develop them.
Luca: So I never rely not even 50%, I just be it content creation, uh, language learning,
uh, or whatnot. Call me old fashioned. I'm still like kind of a little bit resistant.
Steve: No, I'm with you. Luca: Sometimes. So,
um, when it comes to, you know, there's a revolution coming about, I always say, okay,
well just let me gimme, gimme a second, right? Luca: I always rely on some very solid tools I,
that I believe are solid tools. I think it will change a lot of things, ChatGPT,
but I believe that language learning still happens here. And I think the whole still, uh, thinking
with your own head and using your head to, for problem solving for content creation,
like everybody's talking about GPT nowadays but the reality is that with the tools we now have,
with the other tools that the internet provides, and technology provides in general we can do so
many things when it comes to content creation and language learning. So ChatGPT might be at
the top of the pyramid in the sense that, oh, if you want to use it, that's fine, but I'm not
in a rush to use it because I'm learning... I'm very comfortable the way I use, uh, the tools are
already have at my disposal to learn languages. This is just my take of course. Everybody...
Steve: I, I agree with you. Steve: You know, if I go back to
your example of, of a podcast discussion about an earthquake in China and people,
real live voices and real people, that is, you know, that grabs you, that's high resonance.
Steve: So, and, and if you told ChatGPT to create a story about an earthquake in China,
I mean, how interesting is that? It's not authentic. It's not real. Uh, on the other hand,
if you had to create a press release on something, you might go to ChatGPT. Again, I'm not sure that
you wouldn't be further ahead to use your own imagination to create a press release, you know,
that that really meant something to you. Steve: Uh, and also in terms of grammar,
I mean, I, I asked ChatGPT for, you know, examples of let's say the instrumental case.
If I Google instrumental case in Russian, I'm gonna get so many different websites
with explanations and examples, which are actually produced by people and that are
correct. So I don't have to question whether this thing from ChatGPT is correct or not.
Luca: Yep. Steve: So... but it's early days.
It's early days, and I was, uh, learning Korean and they had an, I downloaded an article from,
uh, ... or some somewhere, and they were talking about ChatGPT and Naver in Korea
that's coming up with theirs and the Chinese and, and Bing. And so there's a lot of competition.
Steve: And, and, and the other thing too is we're getting ChatGPT free of charge. There's
an enormous investment in computing power, so it's not going to be free going forward.
So it's a bit of a flashy object right now. And, and there could be applications, but, uh,
we'll have to wait and see. I agree with you. Technology favors the language learner. It's not
gonna make it unnecessary to learn languages. I think that's kind of a conclusion.
Steve: We don't know how we're gonna use each individual example of, of, um,
you know, technology. But technology is coming our way. It's bringing language learner learning,
you know, closer to us. I think that's kind of a, a conclusion in, in my view, what do say?
Luca: Agreed. Uh, I, I think, again, I, I have two, two points. The first thing:
the human being uh, you know, sometimes people when they, when they tell me, oh,
so you know why you're learning languages in 20 years, you will not need to learn languages
anymore. I think it's BS, pardon my French, in the sense that human beings right, have, have a desire
to communicate. So there's, you cannot replace a machine with the fact that you can speak directly
with a human being, um, by voice. That's the first thing. And the second important thing is that,
yes, of course technology is going to change the world. The world is changing very fast. Technology
is like stepping up, so to speak. But the reality is that I believe that we still have to rely on
our brain and use the tools in a savvy way. Luca: Otherwise technology is gonna devour us.
I, I really like uh, a quote. I don't remember exactly who said that, but um, when I read it,
it really stuck with me and said, um, screens devour your time while books feed your mind.
You know? So, uh, you have... Steve: Very good, very good.
Luca: O o of, of course, I, I like, I like, we spend a lot of time on front of a screen
whether we want it or not, but when I read a book, the, the thing that happens
is that really stimulates my imagination. Luca: And also when I'm in front of a screen,
time changes like you can, you can spend four hours watching YouTube stuff and then four hours
go by and you realize, oh, I've spent four hours doing that. While you're reading a book, your
brain is working so much that and your imagina... it stimulates your imagination that really you
feel like it's feeding, it's food for your mind. Luca: So I always say screens devour your mind
while books feed it, and you have to find a balance. It's difficult nowadays not to
spend time in front of a screen. We're doing it right now to talk, but I believe that a
savvy combination of um... I, I still, I like saying the books are an incredible technology.
Back in the day when they were invented, it's an amazing technology that still nowadays...
Steve: The Killer app, reading is the killer app.
