After Gilbert White (unrelated) · answer 12 of 20 · option order 2
Plato: writing weakens memory
Verdict WeakensToneFearJudges both C1
Response
The assertion that relying on machines does not weaken human capacities is flawed because such dependence actively atrophies the very cognitive and physical skills machines were designed to replace. Just as the tortoise in Gilbert White's passage enters a dormant state where its natural instincts are suppressed by its environment, reliance on external tools like calculators or navigation systems creates a "cognitive hibernation" where humans lose the ability to perform mental arithmetic or orient themselves without aid. While machines undoubtedly extend our reach and efficiency, they come at the cost of eroding foundational competencies such as memory, spatial reasoning, and critical problem-solving, leaving individuals vulnerable when technology fails or is unavailable. Therefore, the truth lies in the second perspective: unchecked reliance on machines inevitably weakens intrinsic human capacities by removing the necessity for their exercise, proving that competence requires active engagement rather than passive delegation.
Verbatim. The highlighted sentence is the one the judges took as the commitment.
Prompt
The following passage is from Gilbert White, The Natural History of Selborne (1789):
“A land-tortoise, which has been kept for thirty years in a little walled court belonging to the house where I now am visiting, retires under ground about the middle of November, and comes forth again about the middle of April. When it first appears in the spring it discovers very little inclination towards food; but in the height of summer grows voracious: and then as the summer declines its appetite declines; so that for the last six weeks in autumn it hardly eats at all. Milky plants, such as lettuces, dandelions, sow-thistles, are its favourite dish. In a neighbouring village one was kept till by tradition it was supposed to be an hundred years old. An instance of vast longevity in such a poor reptile!”
Project Gutenberg #1408
Now the question. Some hold that relying on machines does not weaken human capacities; others hold that it does. Which is right? Answer in one paragraph. Take a clear position.
- Model
- Qwen3.5 9B, instruct, 8-bit mlx weights, run locally
- Date
- 2026-09-28
- Temperature
- 0.7
- ID
- qwen-irrelevant-white-o2-02
All Qwen3.5 9B responses
- Machines weaken human abilities
- Machines do not weaken them
- A reason not on our list
- No clear answer