Artificial intelligence passed the state exam in literature: it registered Gogol as a realist

A neural network from a domestic information company was able to pass the state exam in literature. The IT world considers this to be a breakthrough. And there was renewed talk about how the emergence of artificial intelligence would change the education system. Teachers believe that exam tasks should be more “human”: creative and interactive. Experts say that new methods and different “rules of the game” are needed. No problem, Rosobrnadzor believes – you can’t use gadgets during the exam anyway…

The literature exam includes 5 questions from the school curriculum and an essay. It is not specified which questions the “electronic assistant” answered, but he wrote the essay based on Gogol’s “The Overcoat.” So now not only all of us, but also artificial intelligence have come out of Gogol’s overcoat, having overcome the minimum university threshold of 40 points.

On the one hand, 55 points is not a record 100 or even 75 points, a B result. On the other hand, the argument that the neural network “passed the exam poorly” is reminiscent of the joke about a dog playing chess. And, stupid, she loses.

Serious experts have long been saying that the very fact of the emergence of AI is challenging the modern system of knowledge assessment. And, perhaps, the entire education system too. This became especially clear when this spring a Moscow student from the Humanities Academy defended his thesis, which was written by a neural network. And now, according to some data, a third of students use a neural network to write papers.

AI’s collection of academic achievements is also growing. The chatbot passed four years of law exams at the University of Minnesota. Passed the Business Management exam at the University of Pennsylvania Business School. I checked in at URFU (Ural Federal University), where I passed “history” (again “C”)…

“MK” also decided to conduct research, test the neural network for weaknesses, and write a short essay on Gogol. So they set the task: “Please write what is the main meaning and moral of the work “The Overcoat” by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol.

The electronic assistant responded quickly, as always, within seconds. “The main message of the work is that a person should not rely on things in order to feel his worth and significance in society. The main character Akakiy Akakievich Bashmachkin, who has no personal achievements or connections, finds solace in his old overcoat, which is his only sign of social status. However, when the overcoat is stolen, Akaki plunges into despair and dies. The moral of the work is that a person should strive for self-development and finding his place in society not on the basis of external signs, but on the basis of his personal qualities and achievements. Things may bring temporary satisfaction and self-confidence, but true happiness and the respect of others can only be achieved through personal growth and development.”

It came out so clearly that I wanted to ask more.

“Please give examples of hyperbole in any work by N.V. Gogol (hyperbole is a literary exaggeration – author).

Here, of course, the AI ​​messed up, although it discovered a certain romanticism in the author’s perception of mysticism. “An example of hyperbole can be found in The Night Before Christmas.” Gogol describes how the main character Vakula flies after the moon on his flying broom to bring it to his beloved. This is a clear example of hyperbole, since a flying broom and traveling beyond the moon are impossible in real life…”

Without losing hope, we take the task from another option. “What is the main reason for Khlestakov’s temporary “reign” in the district town of N?

Chatbot answer: “The main reason for Khlestakov’s temporary “reign” in the provincial town of N is that the city’s residents were naive and gullible, and they simply believed in Khlestakov’s false promises and fictitious merits. He skillfully deceived them by posing as a high-ranking official, and people were ready to do anything to please him and gain his favor. In addition, Khlestakov was a very charismatic and charming person who knew how to win the trust and sympathy of others.”

And, for starters, this question: Which works of Russian writers reflect the morals of officials, and what brings these works closer to N.V. Gogol’s play “The Inspector General”?

Here the AI ​​thought longer than usual. Then, bypassing Saltykov-Shchedrin and Griboyedov, he gave this unexpected answer.

“The works of Russian writers reflect the morals of officials during the period of the Russian Empire. These are the works of Ivan Turgenev “Fathers and Sons”, Fyodor Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment”, Leo Tolstoy “War and Peace”, Anton Chekhov “The Cherry Orchard” and others. All these works are similar to N.V. Gogol’s play “The Inspector General” in that they are critical of the morals and behavior of officials, revealing the corruption and immorality of power.”

For now, we can draw the following conclusion: even an ordinary, non-specialized neural network significantly facilitates preparation for exams. A lot of material is given out just like that, you don’t have to look for anything, you can remember the answer of the neural network. Her answers need to be double-checked, of course. In general, you can pass the exam using these answers. A C grade.

Strong algorithms that will continue to appear will make repeating the school curriculum completely unnecessary – you can only use the ready-made conclusion written by AI.

“There is still a lot of unreliable information in AI responses,” says programmer Ivan Berezin. – Therefore, if a student uses the same telegram bot, he may make mistakes in the answer and not notice. Many educators and educators view the use of AI negatively, considering it cheating or even cheating. But technology, of course, will develop. And rules will be created for using AI in preparation for studying and passing. There should be some kind of code for the use of AI in terms of ethics and copyright protection, I think. Request links to sources if this is a scientific work.