11 November: an open lecture “Large Language Models are bullshitters” by Dr. Michael Townsen Hicks
HDSM is excited to share the news that next Monday, 11 November 14:25 (CET), Dr. Michael Townsen Hicks will give a talk on “Large Language Models are bullshitTERs” as a part of the Voices Unbound: Lecture Series on Digital Oral History. A lecture series co-organised by TU Darmstadt, University College London, Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C²DH) and the Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte.
The seminar will accommodate hybrid format, offering an opportunity to join online via Zoom. To join us and secure your spot please follow instructions on Eventbrite page: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/voices-unbound-tickets-1048687170557

Michael Townsen Hicks is a philosopher of science and technology at the University of Glasgow. He has worked on the philosophy of physics, the structure of scientific explanation, and the logic of physical possibility. Recently, he has been thinking about the outputs of large language models and generative artificial intelligence.
The abstract of the talk is as follows:
What are large language models doing? In this talk, I’ll argue that their outputs are best characterized as bullshit in the sense of Frankfurt (1985). I’ll discuss some recent developments in generative AI, and argue that even in cases in which generative systems are not strictly speaking bullshitting, there is a mismatch between their creations and the expressive role of similar outputs by humans. I’ll conclude with some discussion of anthropomorphising metaphors in science and technology communication.
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valentinaprishchepova (November 4, 2024). 11 November: an open lecture “Large Language Models are bullshitters” by Dr. Michael Townsen Hicks. HDSM. Retrieved May 15, 2025 from https://hdsm.hypotheses.org/4057