# ­xkcd thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comic-strips\ **Created:** [May 28, 2020, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574 "2020-05-28T00:57:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 124
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2463 "2023-10-14T04:33:13Z")
I wonder what a current-generation self-driving car would do when it sees those signs. I tried showing that comic image to ChatGPT and asking it what I should do in this situation. (image interpretation only available to plus users). I confused it greatly. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2464 "2023-10-14T04:58:35Z")
Ok, this is kinda weird. I asked Bing this: [![](https://i.imgur.com/jaaasNv.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/jaaasNv.png) And it gave this response: [![](https://i.imgur.com/CyLPfVN.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/CyLPfVN.png) Reading the first paragraph, I was impressed–the signs indeed create create an impossible situation. But reading through the examples… they don’t correspond to the signs. And yet, they’re kinda close. Like the contradiction between the speed limit and minimum speed. Which came from the missing alt-text. The numbers are wrong, but the idea is exactly the same. And there is a Do Not Enter sign, but there’s no other “Entrance Only” sign. So weird. Almost like it interpreted a different comic with the same idea. Maybe Xkcd is presenting a different image to Bing? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2465 "2023-10-14T05:09:52Z")
Ok, I guess this makes sense: [![](https://i.imgur.com/2yg79IR.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/2yg79IR.png) [![](https://i.imgur.com/RfTPgjk.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/RfTPgjk.png) So it must have run across ExplainXKCD, and then rephrased the results into something new. What a cheat! I’ll have to try a different method. On the other hand, it did actually come up with legitimately contradictory situations. Well, except the first one, which doesn’t make much sense. ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2466 "2023-10-14T05:14:06Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > Maybe Xkcd is presenting a different image to Bing? Hard to say. To feed an image to ChatGPT you have to upload it, so it never saw the alt-text and I didn’t tell it. Twice, it misinterpreted the middle sign to be a _car_ with the red slash through it; I had to manually push at it to recognize it as a No U-turn sign. Then at that point, it still was confused; it kept forgetting that the first sign meant “do not continue on this road” even though it had successfully said that’s what it meant at first. So, I made the post I did about ChatGPT getting confused. After I made my post, I pushed on with the conversation. Eventually I did get a coherent response out of it but I had to lead it by the nose to get there: > [@](#): > > User > > It appears to me the entire road ahead is barred to entry due to the “do not enter” so it’s impossible to proceed down this road. But they can’t turn around, and they can’t stop. > > ChatGPT > > You’re right. The combination of signs presented creates a paradoxical situation for the driver: > > 1. They cannot proceed forward because of the “DO NOT ENTER” sign. > 2. They cannot make a U-turn due to the “No U-Turns” sign. > 3. They cannot stop because of the “NO STOPPING ANY TIME” sign. > > Given this conflicting set of directives, the driver is placed in a difficult and potentially confusing situation. It’s possible that such a combination of signs is meant to be humorous or illustrative of a certain point rather than an actual road scenario. If this were a real-life situation, it would be a poorly designed or thought-out traffic control setup. ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2467 "2023-10-14T05:28:57Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > booping trilobites I just went back and semi-randomly picked this one to try ChatGPT-4’s new image interpretation feature, and it got it almost exactly right: > User > > Tell me what’s in this image and your interpretation of the message? > > ChatGPT > > The image is a three-panel comic strip. > > 1. In the first panel, there’s a caption that reads, “It’s weird to pry open a rock and see an animal that no one has laid eyes on for 400 million years.” Below the caption, there’s an illustrated scene of ancient marine life, including trilobites, swimming around. > 2. The second panel shows a stick figure holding a rock that appears to have been split open, revealing the fossilized remains of a trilobite. > 3. In the third panel, the stick figure is shown “booping” or touching the trilobite with their finger, and another voice from off-panel exclaims, “Hey! Don’t boop the trilobites!” > > Interpretation: The comic humorously contrasts the awe and reverence we might feel when discovering a creature from millions of years ago with the casual, playful instinct to “boop” or touch it. It juxtaposes the ancient and profound with the contemporary and lighthearted. The message might be about human curiosity and our sometimes irreverent interactions with ancient artifacts or the natural world. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2468 "2023-10-14T05:34:07Z")
I worry now that it’s just doing a web search for the image and then paraphrasing the results! I used my extreme MS Paint skills to make a different version of the XKCD comic, and asked it: [![](https://i.imgur.com/32ccB3q.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/32ccB3q.png) Ok, so it didn’t get the contradiction. Though it doesn’t seem to like that the car is driving down the middle of the road 🙂 . I gave it a bit of a hint: [![](https://i.imgur.com/ASDSNcl.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/ASDSNcl.png) I don’t like the poor grammar. But aside from that, it did correctly get the contradiction. ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2469 "2023-10-14T11:44:00Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > worry now that it’s just doing a web search for the image and then paraphrasing the results! I’m pretty sure ChatGPT is not doing that. I’ve thrown screenshots I’ve made that I know aren’t indexed on the web and it’s clearly trying on its own to interpret the pictures. It frequently misunderstands important elements. Also, you have to choose which extra feature is active when you start a session, either web browsing OR image interpretation. (OR using 3rd party plugins like Wolfram OR Dall-E 3 image generation OR advanced data analysis (dunno why they call it that; it’s just a built-in python code interpreter)) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2470 "2023-10-14T14:20:05Z")
Nothing quite so blatant, but I did once see an actual photograph of a signpost with > [@](#): > > End 35 MPH zone > Speed Limit 55 > Minimum Speed 45 The Intermediate Value Theorem would like a word, here. And with the intervening discussion, now I wonder if any current AI could see the issue with that one. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2471 "2023-10-14T15:03:12Z")
That panel needs a cop car parked by the side of the road. Otherwise… ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2023, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2472 "2023-10-14T22:46:33Z")
Sesame Street covered [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGZQcMuyJnM)! (start at 0:25) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2023, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2473 "2023-10-17T05:47:47Z")
> **[Inspiraling Roundabout](https://xkcd.com/2842/)** > > Look, I just think we need to stop coddling those hedonistic roundabout hogs who get into the inner lane and circle for hours, wasting valuable capacity. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2474 "2023-10-18T10:49:51Z")
There are the Houses of Parliament! ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2475 "2023-10-18T14:42:14Z")
I feel I may be missing the joke on this one. The roundabout is only drivable if you get off at the first exit. If you enter the spiral, you end up driving into oncoming traffic. But I think I’m being too literal and there’s a punchline I’m not seeing. ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2476 "2023-10-18T15:39:37Z")
You’re right. Any cars that go into the spiral wind up at the center, and there’s no way to escape that without going the wrong way. “The only way to win the game is not to play it” - stay on the outside perimeter, even though there are (dashed) lane lines that discourage that. And no, I don’t see a real punchline either. All the lane lines are dashed, so that might mean that technically one could cross any of them at need - but I’m retired, not practicing as any kind of engineer, and I sure ain’t the judge you could find yourself in front of, if you ever did. ---
**Author:** ![Teuton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teuton/32/3864_2.png) [@Teuton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teuton)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2477 "2023-10-18T16:07:49Z")
You could, to ruin the joke completely, just move right just after the exit, before the next entrance, because there can be nobody there, and ignore the centre entirely. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2478 "2023-10-18T17:14:25Z")
> [@Civil\_Guy](#): > > All the lane lines are dashed, so that might mean that technically one could cross any of them at need - but I’m retired, not practicing as any kind of engineer, and I sure ain’t the judge you could find yourself in front of, if you ever did. I’d be really surprised if anyone has ever gotten a ticket for changing lanes in a roundabout. In fact, there’s some times you have to change lanes. Mainly if you need to make a U-turn and exit the same way you came in. As far as I know, that’s perfectly legal, but it requires at least one lane change to do it in a multi-lane roundabout. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2479 "2023-10-19T07:34:05Z")
> **[Professional Oaths](https://xkcd.com/2843/)** > > Interpretations of the Hermeneutic Oath differ. ---
**Author:** ![Teuton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teuton/32/3864_2.png) [@Teuton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teuton)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2480 "2023-10-19T08:42:16Z")
Any ideas on what a ‘Hermeneutic oath’ could be? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2481 "2023-10-19T09:41:15Z")
Hermeneutic Oath: First, there is more than one way to interpret it Hemispheric Oath: First, cut your ball in half Heliocentric Oath: First, the Sun is at the center of the Solar System Hemorrhagic Oath: First, keep your blood inside Hieroglyphic Oath: First, draw some little pictures ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/2482 "2023-10-19T14:06:46Z")
Hypocritic Oath: First, never lie to anyone unless you want to. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574.md?page=123) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574.md?page=125)