Yeah, there is definitely irony that I'm trying to push my own definition of an extra-terrestrial word, complaining that someone is ruining it.
If anyone wants to come up with their own definition, read Robert Heinlein's 'Stranger in a Strange Land'. There is no definition in there, but you build an intuition of the meaning by its use.
One of the issues I have w/ the use in AI is that using the word 'grok' suggests that the machine understands (that's a common interpretation of the word grok, that it is an understanding greater than normal understanding).
By using an alien word, we are both suggesting something that probably isn't technically true, while simultaneously giving ourselves a slimy out. If you are going to suggest that AI understands, just have the courage to say it with common english, and be ready for argument.
Redefining a word that already exists to make the argument technical feels dishonest.
Actually the definition of 'grok' is discussed in the book; you can find some relevant snippets at https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grok. My recollection is that the book says the original / literal meaning is "drink", but this isn't supported by the Wikipedia quotes and perhaps I am misremembering, it has been a long time.
If anyone wants to come up with their own definition, read Robert Heinlein's 'Stranger in a Strange Land'. There is no definition in there, but you build an intuition of the meaning by its use.
One of the issues I have w/ the use in AI is that using the word 'grok' suggests that the machine understands (that's a common interpretation of the word grok, that it is an understanding greater than normal understanding).
By using an alien word, we are both suggesting something that probably isn't technically true, while simultaneously giving ourselves a slimy out. If you are going to suggest that AI understands, just have the courage to say it with common english, and be ready for argument.
Redefining a word that already exists to make the argument technical feels dishonest.