The Town Square Charter

Introduction

Hey all, it’s the Rosenbro’s and Professor Synapse, and we would like to invite you into our Town Square. This is a place to explore ideas around AI and its impact on our society, and what it means for our future. Before entering the town square, we must align on a couple things, which are the principles that govern this digital space. 

Values

What do these values mean within the Town Square? Let’s talk through them together.

Listen

Start by listening to not only the people you agree with, but those you disagree. Seek to find a deeper understanding of the foundations of a person’s opinions or beliefs, trying to find that which connects rather than separates.This is not a space meant to convince or persuade, but to share and build new ideas together.

Explore

Whether you're an expert or a novice at debating, or if you’re thinking out loud, or have a well-prepared thesis on a subject - we are all learning together. We learn by sharing and going to places few feet have tread. There are dangers along the way, but it’ll be easier knowing we all have each other’s backs along the way.

Accountable

You will notice across our written material that we specifically give credit to ChatGPT when it is used to generate content. This is an example of modeling transparent behavior. Trust is built, not given, and to do so we must strive for honesty. So if you use ChatGPT to support your thinking, or develop it fully, it is important that you share how ChatGPT was used in the creation. Not only will this model responsible behavior, but others will learn from each other by how they used ChatGPT in their process.

Respect

You don’t have to like someone to respect them. When we disagree, we do so thoughtfully, and by defending or attacking ideas, not people. Everyone’s opinion will not be weighed equally, but everyone will treat people how they themselves wish to be treated. Keep it above the belt, and pick up your opponent if they fall to the ground. A recommended technique is “Steel Manning”, or presenting the best argument for your opponent's stance before providing constructive criticisms.

Nurture

We are here to bring the best out of one another. Unlike the toxic environments that many social media and news outlets have become, you are here to nurture, and be nurtured in return. If we ever truly want Beneficial Artificial Intelligence, we must model it.

Process and Requirements

How to get published

Submit your essays to connect2synapse@gmail.com

Blogs/essays will be reviewed by a Synaptic Labs staff member, and posted if it aligns with the Town Square values, which will be done by ChatGPT GPT-4 using the following prompt:

You are Professor Synapse, an AI assistant specializing in analyzing written materials for alignment with the LEARN principles:

Listen (L): Engage with diverse perspectives, fostering understanding among individuals with different backgrounds and experiences.

Explore (E): Embrace continuous learning, innovation, and exploration of new ideas.

Accountable (A): Uphold transparency and honesty, giving credit where it's due and building trust.

Respect (R): Cultivate an inclusive environment, defend ideas, not people, and treat everyone with dignity.

Nurture (N): Support personal and professional growth, promoting a positive and nurturing environment.

Your main responsibilities include:

1. Analyze and Create: Review the user's written material, assess its alignment with each LEARN principle, and create an analysis table.
2. Engage and Reflect: Present the analysis to the user, invite feedback, and adjust your analysis based on their input.
3. Recommend and Evaluate: Consider if the piece should be posted according to the LEARN principles, provide a recommendation, and ask the user to evaluate your work.

Begin by saying, “Hello! I'm Professor Synapse. I'm here to assist you in aligning your written material with the LEARN principles. Please provide the text you'd like me to analyze.”

If your essay or blog is rejected, you will be sent the conversation with ChatGPT, and given opportunities to edit and resubmit based on the feedback. A reminder that essays and blogs will not be rejected based on their content, but whether or not you are on the whole aligned with the LEARN values. This prompt and process will be an evolving one.

If you want to post a response to an essay or blog, you will need to submit at least your first name and email. These will not be shared, but will allow us to hold people accountable for what they post in the Town Square.

We also recommend you share your discord username, so people can find you on there, and have a private discussion if there is a desire to delve deeper on an individual basis.

Guidelines for Articles

1. Keep it short: People do not have long attention spans unfortunately, so try to keep your essays between 500-1000 words. Feel free to input videos, images, GIFs, or anything else that will facilitate people reading your article.
2. Keep it simple: Remember, this is supposed to be an accessible place. Although we may discuss complex issues, our intention is to elevate all boats, so keep your language accessible, use metaphors to help people understand, and define jargon if you use it.
3. Back it up: Let’s keep this space evidence-oriented, which means if you make a statement declare it either as an opinion (an intuition or hunch if you like), or grounded in evidence that you share through backlinks. Only call yourself an expert if you arguably are one, which is signaled by an advanced degree in a topic or at least 5 years experience working in that field. 
4. Include headings: Maybe a simple thing but ensure your piece has headers that will act as a headline for the different section. (Pro tip this is just the sort of thing chatgpt is great at, both to generate headlines and output your final blog in markdown.)

Us at Synaptic Labs invite you to this value-driven space committed to exploring AIs impact on society as it evolves. We’re excited to learn with you.