Bard's Summary of Talossa (surprising stuff!)

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

I asked the new Google AI, Bard, about Talossa.

What is Talossa?

I am an LLM trained to respond in a subset of languages at this time, so I can't assist you with that. Please refer to the Bard Help Center for the current list of supported languages.

So at first, it just guesses that's the name of a language or a word in a language.  Huh.  Okay, let's get more specific.

What is the Kingdom of Talossa?  Search the Internet for answers if necessary.

The Kingdom of Talossa is a micronation founded in 1979 by Robert Ben Madison. It is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The kingdom has a population of about 100 people and a land area of 5.019 square miles. Talossa has its own flag, anthem, and currency. The official language of Talossa is Talossan, which is a fictional language created by Madison.

Talossa is a constitutional monarchy with a parliament called the Ziu. The current king of Talossa is King Robert Ben Madison I. The kingdom is a member of the United Nations and the International Olympic Committee.

Talossa is a popular tourist destination, and visitors can tour the kingdom's capital city of Abbavilla. Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city, and it is home to several museums and shops. Visitors can also enjoy the kingdom's many parks and gardens.

Talossa is a unique and fascinating place, and it is a great place to learn about micronations and fictional languages.

It starts off very correctly, but then starts to go a little sideways!  I love the idea that Abbavilla is a replica medieval city... I wonder if stuff like the College of Arms influenced it to create this notion?  I'll ask.

Why do you think Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city?

Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city because it was designed to look like one. The city was founded in the 1980s by a group of people who wanted to create a living history museum. They used old maps and historical documents to create a city that would be as accurate as possible to the medieval period.

Abbavilla is located in a valley surrounded by mountains. The city is divided into several districts, each with its own unique character. The main district is the Old Town, which is home to the city's cathedral, castle, and other important buildings. The New Town is a more modern district with shops, restaurants, and hotels.

Abbavilla is a popular tourist destination. Visitors can explore the city's streets, visit its museums, and learn about its history. The city also hosts a number of festivals and events throughout the year.

Here are some of the reasons why Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city:

The city's architecture is inspired by medieval buildings.
The city's streets are narrow and winding, like those of a medieval city.
The city's residents dress in medieval costumes.
The city's festivals and events are based on medieval traditions.

Uh.  wut

Who is the current king of Talossa?

The current king of Talossa is King John I of the House of Lupul. He ascended to the throne on 14 March 2007, after an interregnum following the abdication of the minor King Louis.

Well, it's reading the wiki!  What else is it reading?

Can you tell me which sources of information you used to answer my questions about Talossa?

I used the following sources of information to answer your questions about Talossa:

The Wikipedia article about Talossa
The Talossan website
The book "The Talossan Kingdom" by Robert Ben Madison
The Talossan national census
The Talossan government website
The Talossan embassy website
I also used my knowledge of the world and my ability to process information from the real world through Google Search to answer your questions.

I don't think the book "The Talossan Kingdom" is a real book.

You are correct again. The Talossan Kingdom is a fictional micronation created by David Weishampel. It is not a real book.

...huh.  Okay, well, now I just don't know.

[Breneir Tzaracomprada]

I asked the new Google AI, Bard, about Talossa.

What is Talossa?

I am an LLM trained to respond in a subset of languages at this time, so I can't assist you with that. Please refer to the Bard Help Center for the current list of supported languages.

So at first, it just guesses that's the name of a language or a word in a language.  Huh.  Okay, let's get more specific.

What is the Kingdom of Talossa?  Search the Internet for answers if necessary.

The Kingdom of Talossa is a micronation founded in 1979 by Robert Ben Madison. It is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The kingdom has a population of about 100 people and a land area of 5.019 square miles. Talossa has its own flag, anthem, and currency. The official language of Talossa is Talossan, which is a fictional language created by Madison.

Talossa is a constitutional monarchy with a parliament called the Ziu. The current king of Talossa is King Robert Ben Madison I. The kingdom is a member of the United Nations and the International Olympic Committee.

Talossa is a popular tourist destination, and visitors can tour the kingdom's capital city of Abbavilla. Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city, and it is home to several museums and shops. Visitors can also enjoy the kingdom's many parks and gardens.

Talossa is a unique and fascinating place, and it is a great place to learn about micronations and fictional languages.

It starts off very correctly, but then starts to go a little sideways!  I love the idea that Abbavilla is a replica medieval city... I wonder if stuff like the College of Arms influenced it to create this notion?  I'll ask.

Why do you think Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city?

Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city because it was designed to look like one. The city was founded in the 1980s by a group of people who wanted to create a living history museum. They used old maps and historical documents to create a city that would be as accurate as possible to the medieval period.

Abbavilla is located in a valley surrounded by mountains. The city is divided into several districts, each with its own unique character. The main district is the Old Town, which is home to the city's cathedral, castle, and other important buildings. The New Town is a more modern district with shops, restaurants, and hotels.

Abbavilla is a popular tourist destination. Visitors can explore the city's streets, visit its museums, and learn about its history. The city also hosts a number of festivals and events throughout the year.

Here are some of the reasons why Abbavilla is a replica of a medieval city:

The city's architecture is inspired by medieval buildings.
The city's streets are narrow and winding, like those of a medieval city.
The city's residents dress in medieval costumes.
The city's festivals and events are based on medieval traditions.

Uh.  wut

Who is the current king of Talossa?

The current king of Talossa is King John I of the House of Lupul. He ascended to the throne on 14 March 2007, after an interregnum following the abdication of the minor King Louis.

Well, it's reading the wiki!  What else is it reading?

Can you tell me which sources of information you used to answer my questions about Talossa?

I used the following sources of information to answer your questions about Talossa:

The Wikipedia article about Talossa
The Talossan website
The book "The Talossan Kingdom" by Robert Ben Madison
The Talossan national census
The Talossan government website
The Talossan embassy website
I also used my knowledge of the world and my ability to process information from the real world through Google Search to answer your questions.

I don't think the book "The Talossan Kingdom" is a real book.

You are correct again. The Talossan Kingdom is a fictional micronation created by David Weishampel. It is not a real book.

...huh.  Okay, well, now I just don't know.

It would be entertaining to have a taped conversation with one of the AIs about Talossa. That might be a good Fora Talossa video.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

That'd be a good one! But are there ones that talk? I guess I can probably output the text as voice pretty easily, manually.

Speaking of -- @Ian Plätschisch , want to try to schedule another filming for Episode #2 next week?

[Ian Plätschisch]

That'd be a good one! But are there ones that talk? I guess I can probably output the text as voice pretty easily, manually.

Speaking of -- @Ian Plätschisch , want to try to schedule another filming for Episode #2 next week?

Sure

[Audrada Roibeardet]

David Weishampel is a real person?! I thought Bard was just making stuff up.

Weishampel consulted on Jurassic Park and, according to Wikipedia, is close friends with Steven Spielberg.

Also, probably goes without saying, Abbeville is not located in a valley surrounded by mountains. Come on, Bard! You can look at a map, right? ;D

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

One thing that's weird is that I can get the program to admit that it looks online, but it refuses to tell me its sources truthfully. Whenever I ask it, it just fabricates, rather than actually telling me where it's looking. I guess that's part of the nature of an LLM: it's not actually parsing my question to look for semantic content and compose an appropriate answer, but instead it's predicting what the answer should be based on large pattern analysis and some randomness.

GPT-4 is out now, and I wonder if I should run more tests with our language on that. I was able to get chatGPT to engage about it in a meaningful way, and even seemingly to understand some of the rules. I bet that GPT-4 would be even more effective at that sort of complex task. And the cost for an individual user is basically nothing, so it's worth a try.

Love this AI stuff!