Can You Teach Computers To Understand Knock-Knock Jokes?
from the knock-knock dept
We were just discussing how difficult it is for computers to handle certain types of tasks, that are often much better suited for human intelligence. However, that won't stop some from trying to program computers to do all sorts of things, with the latest such effort focused on teaching a computer to understand knock-knock jokes. Knock-knock jokes, of course, are usually based on puns, that involve recognizing how a word is being misused for the sake of humor. It's easy (if groan-inducing) for humans, but extremely difficult for computers. The idea, it seems, is that figuring out how to teach computers to understand humor could go a long way in figuring out ways to program stronger artificial intelligence. At least that's the theory. Of course, this isn't the first time we've talked about computers and their senses of humor. Back in 2001, when some researchers set up a program to pull a Monty Python and find the world's funniest joke -- for a long time, the leading entry was written by a computer (though, eventually the computer-written joke was eclipsed by a human-written joke).
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Culture Specific by dorpus on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 8:49am
As multilingual people know, humor tends to be very culture-specific. I bet it would be harder to explain a knock-knock joke to a Chinese or Japanese speaker than to a computer.
Many jokes that are extremely funny to Americans make no sense, even to other English speakers.
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I'll write the other end. by Buzz on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 9:22am
public class JokeResponse
{
___public static void main(String[] args)
___{
______new JokeResponse().go();
___}
___public void go()
___{
______while (1) System.out.println("ha");
___}
}
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Don't forget that by ibmihs on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 9:48am
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (Heinlein)
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by skwash on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 9:54am
I'm going to patent the concept of teaching computers to understand knock-knock jokes! Better yet, how about I just patent the process of telling a knock-knock joke!
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I actually laughed... by TheDock22 on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 10:31am
I like the computer generated joke: "What kind of murderer has moral fibre? a cereal killer." It got a laugh around the office, so I think it's possible to teach a computer humor to some degree.
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by matt on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 10:36am
I doubt this one is difficult, I think it'd be harder to create a psychoanalytical computer than one that can essentially put together a simple sentence structure:
aka knock knock
who's there
x
x y?
x z
correlated x/y/z.
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by Anonymous Coward on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 10:43am
"Knock knock!"
"Who's there?"
"9/11"
"9/11 who?"
"I THOUGHT YOU'D NEVER FORGET!"
"I don't get it."
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Started fallowing the links... by Chronno S. Trigger on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 10:58am
Not an easy task since most sites outside of techdirt don't keep their files as far back as 2001 but I found the worlds funniest joke.
A couple of New Jersey hunters are out in the woods when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn't seem to be breathing, his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out his cell phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps to the operator: "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator, in a calm soothing voice, says: "Just take it easy. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a shot is heard. The guy's voice comes back on the line. He says: "OK, now what?"
I was hoping for a Monty Python thing where I read it and had a heart attack.
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Re: by Name on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 11:32am
Get off your patent tirades. It's not funny.
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You forgot... by Anonymous Coward on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 11:41am
Who cares?
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Easy by James on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 11:57am
Computer prompts the user, "How do you keep a moron waiting?", user clicks on prompt and computer maxes CPU utilization to 100%.
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by Anonymous Coward on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 12:20pm
There is no such thing as the world's funniest joke, because everybody has a different sense of humor. Many things may be outright hilarious to one person and downright boring to another. There is no "absolute" type of funny.
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Re: by Robert on Sep 12th, 2007 @ 1:00pm
There is no such thing as the world's funniest joke, because everybody has a different sense of humor. Many things may be outright hilarious to one person and downright boring to another. There is no "absolute" type of funny.
That's the point... dufus.
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lateral thinking by mike allen on Sep 13th, 2007 @ 3:21am
Of course they want computers to have a sense of humor So come the machine wars robot V humans due around 2050 they can laugh as they kill us
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