An AI Experiment

There’s been a lot of talk lately about artificial intelligence — what it can do and what its limitations are. And if you’ve been keeping tabs on it at all, there’s no doubt that it seems to be getting better — and fast. Texas Standard commentator WF Strong wanted to find out for himself just […]

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
With all the excitement over
artificial intelligence
and what it is capable of.
I thought I would see what it could
do for me.
I decided I would ask al,
my AI assistant, to
write a story in the style
of strong.
I didn't tell him that I write Texas
stories. I wanted him to send

(00:20):
his creepy crawlers out
onto the vast web and
figure that out for himself.
And as for my style, I
couldn't define that for you.
I think it depends on whether I've
been reading McCarthy or McMurtry
or Paula Giles this week.
Well, anyway, here is
the beginning of the story that al

(00:41):
wrote in response to my request.
In the heart of the Lone Star State,
where the sun's rays beat down
fiercely on the red Earth.
There lived a man named Jeb.
Jeb was a rugged cowboy,
weathered by years of hard
work on the sprawling ranches
that stretched as far

(01:01):
as the eye could see.
One scorching summer day,
as Jeb rode out to check on the
cattle, he noticed a strange
shimmer in the distance.
Curiosity piqued, he spurred his
horse onward, the dust
kicking up behind him in
a swirling cloud.
As he drew closer, Jeb realized

(01:21):
the shimmer was coming from a small,
crystal clear spring
bubbling up from the ground.
The water was cool and refreshing,
a stark contrast to the blistering
heat of the day.
Jeb dismounted and took a long
drink.
Feeling the liquid revive him
from the inside out.

(01:41):
But as he knelt by the spring, Jeb
heard a voice carried on the
wind.
You have found the spring of truth,
cowboy.
Startled, Jeb looked around
and saw no one.
Let me stop the story right here to
add another wrinkle to this
experiment.
I wondered if I could ask
al to make this story

(02:02):
even more artificially.
Me?
So I asked him to create
a clone of my voice.
It took about an hour, but he came
up with a pretty good likeness.
I'll let the clone take over the
narration of the story.
Now remember, we left
Jeb at the Spring of Truth.

(02:22):
Determined to uncover the mystery,
Jeb spent the next few days
exploring the area around the
spring.
In the process, he discovered
a hidden cave nestled
in the rocky cliffs nearby.
Inside the cave, he found ancient
pictographs and symbols
etched into the walls, telling

(02:43):
the story of a lost civilization
that revered the spring as a
source of wisdom and enlightenment.
Armed with this newfound knowledge,
Jeb returned to the ranch with a
sense of purpose.
He shared the tale of the Spring of
Truth with his fellow cowboys,
inspiring them to seek out their
own truths and live

(03:04):
with integrity and honor.
From that day on, the spring
of truth became a sacred place
for the people of the Texas Plains.
They would make pilgrimages to the
spring, seeking guidance
and wisdom in times of need
and always finding solace
in its cool, clear waters.
And so the legend of Jeb and the

(03:25):
Spring of Truth lived on a
reminder to all who heard it
that the path to enlightenment can
be found in the most unexpected
of places, even in the vast
expanse of the Texas wilderness.
Not bad.
A little bit of tweaking, and al can
send in the clone to take
my place, but I'll go ahead and keep

(03:47):
the direct deposit coming to my
bank.
I even had him create the artwork to
go with this story, which you
can see if you go online shortly to
Texas standard.org.
Okay, al, you finish
up while I pop a cold one.
I'm strong.
These are stories from Texas.
Some of them are true.

(04:09):
Stories from Texas is a listener
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Standard, distributed through
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Studios in Austin, Texas.
You can support it at support this
podcast.org.