[Ensorceled]

I'm trying to see the analogy ... if I ask a barber if I need a hair cut and they say "Of course you do." they may be lying because they want the $15 (well, I'm bald so ...)

How does the ML researcher gain from lying "In year X" if they don't believe that to be true? It's a tenuous connection.

[thomnific]

Ha, that's fair, I take your point. I was being a little glib. I didn't mean to suggest conscious malice on the barber's part -- only that the barber may be incented to provide more haircuts than are strictly necessary.

Perhaps the analogy works better if the barber is a friendly, honest person, who takes professional umbrage when they see other people with longer hair :)

[Ensorceled]

Lol. That works. "These long haired kids need a good classic French crop."