From: cgdemarc@ai.mit.edu (Carl de Marcken)
Date: Fri, 12 Jan 1996 15:05:57 -0500
To: all-ai
Subject: GSB, Friday, 5:30, 7AI


It may be IAP, it may be raining, but there's still work to do.  I for
instance, have been been writing up a new vignette for the ethics
colloquium that Albert runs.  It has to do with entrapment.  The basic
question is, should a person be held responsible for flaming individuals
that go out of their way to ask for it.

For instance, I subscribe to comp.ai.nat-lang, hoping that some clever
young Russian will post a succinct, well-defined, and correct
characterization of the human language faculty there.  Instead, each day an
individual at "aloha.com" sends out requests such as

     I am still looking for people willing to spend time on hammering out an
     international standard for computational thought representation. ...
     I would be especially interested in hearing from anyone who might be
     able to help us set up a mailing list in order to accomplish our
     stated goal. ...  It is my feeling that, just as the "midi" standard
     was set up for music, we should set up an international standard for
     thought representation at this time.

Among his other popular posts are requests for Mandarin-Hopi translation
programs written in BASIC that take up less than 16k of RAM.  Notice that
he is "still looking".

But back to the work.  There IS work to do, and after work comes rest.
Join fellow members of the AI lab as they rest and relax at this week's

                    G I R L   S C O U T   B E N E F I T

where Minnesotans and Canadi*ns will describe how each winter wolves
pillage their villages, stealing infants and wild rice while parents look
on from their snow caves in helpless dismay.