The Mirror and What's Not There

Every now and then, a series of articles, videos, and ideas emerges that helps form a connection and uncover a somewhat hidden aspect of a concept.

It started for me with this video of Philomena Cunk and Brian Cox:

Now regardless of Paul’s understanding of quantum theory, this clip planted the idea of mirrors in my head. Sure, they may not run on quantum power but there is something to them that unlocks what seems like hidden world.

D'arcy’s post on the value of Rubber Ducking and thinking out loud outlines something similar to the power of the mirror. By looking and perhaps more importantly, talking and thinking in a reflecting way, we develop ourselves and our understating of things. That looking and seeing our own reflection helps to inform ourselves and develop our knowledge and experience.

Finally there was this great post outlining the Gestaltian Mistake. Evan walks through Gestalt theory, essentially

"there are consistent ways the human mind will group information and recognize patterns... even if there isn't actually a pattern there."

Humanity has this way of seeing the world through patterns, and we will see them even if they aren't there. That part is just wild when you think about it – yet revelatory when we look at the world around us. That what we see in a mirror is just a pattern that "looks like" reality - but it isn't. The mirror image is different and distinct from reality - we just perceive it as the same as it is the pattern that we apply.

This idea of seeing things that aren't there in the context of the "AI" flood seems to relevant. It's perceived as intelligent because we see recognise a pattern and then apply it. This mirroring (the output of text) coupled with our Gestaltian ways of seeing (the ability to output relatable text as a sign of intelligence), creates a reality that isn't there. On the individual level it warps reality – they see the pattern and it becomes Jesus on toast. This is their "truth", and you cannot change it.

I'm not sure what this ultimately means. I think the idea of reflection and reflective practice is important, but I also wonder if we naturally see patterns in everything, even when they don't exist, do we set ourselves up for failure? Are we able to recognise what's really there when it's reflected back at us?