I’d like to talk about something close to my heart.
Not my wallet – A.I.
Incidentally, American’s refer to wallets as ‘pocketbooks’.
Which begs the question, what do they call books small enough to fit in their pockets?
They also call a waistcoat a ‘vest’.
We know from Hollywood films, American men wear what we call vests – possibly the most famous example was the sweat-stained one that Bruce Willis wore in “Die Hard”, which by “Die Hard 2” had been washed and ironed.
So, what do Americans call ‘vests’?
Asking you questions is an example of one human being (me) inter-acting with another (you, in case you weren’t sure). Something less easy to do with Artificial Intelligence, A.I.
If you think that A.I. has no bearing on your life, let me gently point you in the direction of your nearest supermarket and the self-service checkout tills that have slowly begun to replace checkout staff – even in smaller supermarkets with names that rhyme with ‘Bal-dy’ and ‘Wid-dle’.
Yes, I did recently rewatch ‘Carry On Up The Khyber’.
A self-service checkout that scans your goods and takes your money is a prime example of Artificial Intelligence, so allow me to put my (loyalty) cards on the table.
I loathe self-service checkout tills and think they should be banned.
“Get down off that fence, Phil and tell us what you really think!” Yes, I can hear the shouting already!
I was astonished to hear someone say they actually prefer them to going through a check-out where your items are scanned by a human being, who can sort out problems such as a barcode missing from an item, and speaks to you, if only to say “Goodbye and have a lovely evening!”
Self-service tills may suit busy people who need to rush home to smash a few avocados for dinner. But every self-service checkout means someone who once worked on it is now out of a job.
Apparently A.I. can now create jokes!
Once it can deliver them on stage to an audience and write articles like this . . . what’ll happen to me?
I won’t even be able to get a job in Bal-dy or Wid-dle.