That Thread Written by ChatGPT

[Belacqua]

 social aspects that would usually influence me

This seems like it could end up being a very important part of it. 

I remember reading about a really early computer program developed by a psychologist. It was programmed to respond with non-committal but relevant replies to what the user typed in. So if you typed in "I hate my mother," the machine would respond, "Oh, tell me more about your mother." Sort of like the way Bob Newhart, in the show where he played a psychologist, only ever said "How do you feel about that?"

The story is that he was just setting it up in his office and running tests, but he discovered that his secretary had access to it and was engaged in serious discussions. She asked him to leave the room so she could talk with the computer. 

Introverts, shy people, people who have trouble focussing in class, hikikomori -- they might get a lot out of this. I'd be willing to tell an AI things that I wouldn't tell most people. I mean, I wouldn't develop plans to shoot the President, because that might get flagged and sent to the authorities. But nobody's going to be worried if I mention embarrassing stuff from my childhood.

My time in academia made it clear that teachers' personalities made a huge difference in the classroom, and if you were stuck with a prima donna or a harasser, it could ruin your whole school experience. Removing personality like that would no doubt help people who have had bad experiences that way.

That said, the ideal school is still one in which a wise mentor perceives what his students need and tailors the class for them. But there aren't many teachers who can do that -- either because of personality or restraints from academia. I interviewed at a women's college where they'd had such trouble with male teachers sleeping with students that I was told NEVER to speak to a student outside the classroom -- in the hallway, in the cafeteria, on the monorail to campus.