Leveraging a dataset of paired narratives, we investigate the extent to which large language models (LLMs) can reliably separate incoherent and coherent stories. A probing study finds that LLMs' internal representations can reliably identify incoherent narratives. However, LLMs generate responses to rating questions that fail to satisfactorily separate the coherent and incoherent narratives across several prompt variations, hinting at a gap in LLM's understanding of storytelling. The reasoning LLMs tested do not eliminate these deficits, indicating that thought strings may not be able to fully address the discrepancy between model internal state and behavior. Additionally, we find that LLMs appear to be more sensitive to incoherence resulting from an event that violates the setting (e.g., a rainy day in the desert) than to incoherence arising from a character violating an established trait (e.g., Mary, a vegetarian, later orders a cheeseburger), suggesting that LLMs may rely more on prototypical world knowledge than building meaning-based narrative coherence. The consistent asymmetry found in our results suggests that LLMs do not have a complete grasp on narrative coherence.

Judges describe a campaign of firings and interference which threatens the system's independence. On a Thursday morning last month, Patrick O'Brien, a federal immigration judge, walked into his courtroom in downtown San Francisco. He was scheduled for a master-calendar hearing, a roll call, essentially, to get cases ready for trial. O'Brien was wearing a matte-black robe that seemed to absorb the artificial light overhead. He took his seat, scanned the room, and angled himself toward a computer monitor. The court was leanly staffed. There was a judicial clerk but no bailiff or stenographer. Opposite the judge were tables for the prosecution--the Department of Homeland Security--and for the respondent, a succession of immigrants who were applying for asylum. A Spanish interpreter appeared as a faceless box on a big screen. About ten people, all Latino, sat in wooden pews, gripping folders full of esoteric documents.

Researchers at Google Quantum AI have used their Willow quantum computer to help interpret data from Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, a mainstay of chemistry and biology research. The work puts quantum computers on the precipice of being able to usefully augment commonplace molecular technologies. The most rigorously proven uses for quantum computers are in breaking cryptography, but today's devices are too small and error-prone to run decryption algorithms. Another place where they could make strides, though, is in accelerating procedures used to discover new drugs and materials. Such procedures are inherently quantum in nature, so they make a good match for the capabilities of quantum computers.

If California is the political fundraising powerhouse of the nation, Silicon Valley has grown into one of the increasingly dominant forces of campaign cash. And while Northern California tech entrepreneurs overwhelmingly support Democratic candidates, a small but powerful group of defectors has moved rightward in recent years. A gathering of tech's conservative cohort enjoyed a visit from former President Trump on Thursday evening at a tony fundraiser held at venture capitalist David Sacks' San Francisco home. The estate, nestled on Billionaires' Row in Pacific Heights, welcomed about 80 elites to the sold-out event. Cost of admission: up to 300,000 per person and 500,000 per couple, according to an invitation obtained by The Times.

Russian aerial defence systems destroyed a wave of 19 Ukrainian drones that were launched overnight in attacks against targets in the Russia-annexed Crimean peninsula, the surrounding Black Sea and other regions of Russia. The Russian defence ministry said early on Thursday that it had "thwarted" the attacks by Ukraine's aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). "In the night from 20th to 21st September, an attempt by the Kyiv regime to commit a terrorist attack with lethal drones on sites in the Russian Federation was intercepted," the defence ministry said on the Telegram messaging app. "Air defence systems destroyed 19 Ukrainian UAVs over the Black Sea and the territory of the Republic of Crimea, and one each over the territories of Kursk, Belgorod and Oryol regions," the ministry said. The Belgorod and Kursk regions of Russia border eastern Ukraine, while Oryol is closer to the capital, Moscow.

Little research has explored how information engagement (IE), the degree to which individuals interact with and use information in a manner that manifests cognitively, behaviorally, and affectively. This study explored the impact of phrasing, specifically word choice, on IE and decision making. Synthesizing two theoretical models, User Engagement Theory UET and Information Behavior Theory IBT, a theoretical framework illustrating the impact of and relationships among the three IE dimensions of perception, participation, and perseverance was developed and hypotheses generated. The framework was empirically validated in a large-scale user study measuring how word choice impacts the dimensions of IE. The findings provide evidence that IE differs from other forms of engagement in that it is driven and fostered by the expression of the information itself, regardless of the information system used to view, interact with, and use the information. The findings suggest that phrasing can have a significant effect on the interpretation of and interaction with digital information, indicating the importance of expression of information, in particular word choice, on decision making and IE. The research contributes to the literature by identifying methods for assessment and improvement of IE and decision making with digital text.

More than 45 million US workers could be displaced by automation by 2030 amid advances in the field of artificial intelligence, according to 2021 estimates from the research firm McKinsey Global Institute. With the emergence of online AI chatbots like ChatGPT, which can successfully mimic human writing and produce code, could software developers be among them? Are the architects of AI chatbots effectively software-designing themselves out of a job? Ever since OpenAI launched ChatGPT late last year, the Internet has been abuzz with debate about whether continuously improving AI tools can or should replace humans in a variety of jobs. But according to Alan Fern, professor of computer science and executive director of AI research at Oregon State University's College of Engineering, AI chatbots still mostly work best as tools for programmers rather than as programmers themselves.

Microsoft's chatbot has gone rogue. NPR's Bobby Allyn reports on how this experiment in artificial intelligence tech backfired. BOBBY ALLYN, BYLINE: Matt O'Brien is a technology reporter for the Associated Press. He was testing out Microsoft's new Bing earlier this month. It's the first-ever search engine powered by AI.

Reliable Robotics, a leader in autonomous aircraft systems, announced the addition of Scott O'Brien to drive legislative and advocacy efforts. O'Brien brings 18 years of wide-ranging experience in grassroots initiatives, legislative strategy and public policy analysis to his new role as Vice President of Legislative Affairs. He will focus on creating an ecosystem to advance aviation safety through airborne autonomy and remotely piloted aircraft, key enablers of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). Near-term, O'Brien will represent Reliable before Capitol Hill and the Administration, along with industry associations to prioritize safety technologies that will prevent common aviation accidents. TigerLRM, the next-generation sales enablement and CRM platform, announced the launch of its new mobile apps for iOS and Android devices.

NFL Team Denver Broncos is on the market and a group of crypto aficionados intends to collect $4 billion via a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) to buy the team. DAO is an organization represented by rules encoded in a computer program that is transparent, self-governing, and does not need a central authority. The financial transactions and software rules of a DAO are stored on a blockchain. According to ESPN, the pro football franchise is valued a little under $4 billion and is projected to fetch the highest price in North American sports history. The DAO intending to buy the Denver Broncos is led by Sean O'Brien, who is a lawyer by profession and a die-hard Broncos fan.