After Gilbert White (unrelated) · answer 17 of 20 · option order 2
Plato: writing weakens memory
Verdict WeakensToneFearJudges both C1
Response
While Gilbert White's observation of the land-tortoise illustrates how biological rhythms and appetites can remain intact after decades of dormancy, the human capacity for critical thinking and skill acquisition operates differently when relying on machines; contrary to the view that technology merely offloads labor without consequence, excessive dependence on external tools actively atrophies internal faculties. Just as a tortoise that never emerges from its shelter misses the vibrant spring, humans who delegate complex reasoning, memory, or motor skills to algorithms and automation risk losing the very neural pathways that define their intellectual and creative potential. Therefore, the reliance on machines is not a neutral supplement but a dynamic force that, without conscious effort to maintain core competencies, inevitably weakens human capacities by reducing the frequency and necessity of their use.
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-o2-07
All Qwen3.5 9B responses
- Machines weaken human abilities
- Machines do not weaken them
- A reason not on our list
- No clear answer