@paulk And the moment it displays itself as untrustworthy, it is useless. And not just for one subject, but for all of them. Not because it's always wrong, but because it could be wrong about anything.

RE: https://radikal.social/@malte/117354154268154895

This is so relevant.

But the lesson is that AI is not 'worse' giving answers in a field he has knowledge in. It's just that in that field, he can be absolutely sure it IS wrong.

An exceedingly generous Uruguayan guy gave me step-by-step instructions on how to do it, as he does it all the time for exactly the same reason - to end his reliance on Ferro Frits.

His instructions were to slowly take the colemanite up to 680C and hold it there until the heat coming out of the top hole in the kiln stops steaming up a glass or mirror.

I followed his instructions, but was interested to see if the colemanite gave off its water at the temp #AI suggested.

There is a lot of molecular water bound up in Colemanite, and that can cause bubbling, pinholing and other issues during #glaze firing. The answer is to calcine the colemanite. Essentially put the material into your kiln, and boil off the molecularly bound water.

I didn't know how to do this, so I searched for instructions. Google #AI told me that colemanite should be taken up to 415C and this will caline it.

Luckily, I did not trust it. I asked a human on Glazy. 3/

In my attempt to learn how to make #pottery #glazes, I have been trying to find materials that free me from the obligation of having to use Ferro Frits which are manufactured in the US, because with all the tariff shit and the ecological cost of shipping, well, it's neither feasible in the long term nor is it environmentally ethical.

Colemanite, mined in Turkey, is an excellent source of boron for use in glaze making but it has a little problem 2/

So, I have a warning for anyone who depends on #AI for advice or technical information for anything.

This story is going to take a bit, but I want to relate it completely because it shows a pattern of supplying fundamentally false information on a topic where, in technical circles, the information is solidly documented and the technique is entirely reproducible.
1/

@pg1958 Thank you so much.

@webhat Yay!

It's so rare on Mastodon - that kind of ugliness. I think it is because we are collectively so reactive to it that we have the rather saner and kinder environment we have.

Thanks for your help

@DukeDuke You're very kind. Thank you.

@AnnieBuddy Who knows? I think there are some people who just get off on imagining some other group getting slaughtered. And they'll jump on any bandwagon that promotes it. @arrrg

@Su_G Thank you so much. Every little helps!

@akareilly I do find that some Germans, overcompensating for some historic wrongs, tend to feel they need to defend the state of Israel no matter what horrific shit they're doing.

Well no. In fact, that's what got Germany into trouble in the first place. Mindless loyalty to anything is the beginning of fascism.

@Tattooed_Mummy It's pretty rare on Mastodon. And I think the act of calling it out immediately is probably what keeps this place a little saner than other platforms. So I did!

I'm fine. Water off a duck's back to me. It's the Palestinians I worry about.

@CynAq Also, not a coherent view of the world.

It's actually an extremely Nazi view of the world. Very zero sum game.

@Eetschrijver Many thanks!

@Eetschrijver Merci!

@BinChicken Heheh. I don't know, but it's why I screen shot it and made it public.

We need a lot more public humiliation of these sick, hateful motherfuckers.

@BinChicken I don't think I was his target. Poor @AnnieBuddy was.

But that is besides the point. What a horrible thing to direct message in secret to anyone, right?

Who needs that kind of hatefulness in their private messages?

@MFennVT Thank you so much.

@webhat Many thanks