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cmsweeney6's review against another edition
2.5
I had high hopes based on the first chapter, but I didn't really learn much and it didn't keep my interest very well. However, I thought the examples in the book were helpful.
paleontologa's review against another edition
funny
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
kpesch's review against another edition
3.0
What an enjoyable listen. I also peaked at the Kindle version for some of the doodles I was missing out on. The author explains AI in an incredibly approachable way, where even someone with minimal knowledge on the topic, I was able to follow. She also mixed in just the right amount of humor to keep you focused on the story.
I did get a bit repetitive, and listening to the entire read outs from the AI felt like it was dragging on. Also the narration of the AI parts was painful to listen to.
Final note, it's interesting that this was written in 2019 and in the four years we've made leaps and bounds with AI that I don't think the author thought we'd see in our lifetime while writing this.
I did get a bit repetitive, and listening to the entire read outs from the AI felt like it was dragging on. Also the narration of the AI parts was painful to listen to.
Final note, it's interesting that this was written in 2019 and in the four years we've made leaps and bounds with AI that I don't think the author thought we'd see in our lifetime while writing this.
balrog's review against another edition
3.0
A breezy and enjoyable read that was very clear in its explanations. However, I'm not quite the target audience and wished it covered more that I didn't already know.
It's wild how quickly AI has moved forward in the last five years though, so many things that the author (and almost everyone at the time) believed were decades away have already become quite commonplace.
It's wild how quickly AI has moved forward in the last five years though, so many things that the author (and almost everyone at the time) believed were decades away have already become quite commonplace.
holly_keimig's review
5.0
I really liked this book. I got it to give to my ridiculously smart nephew as a gift (he is very hard to buy books for but I really love sharing that with him when I find great ones) and decided to read it first to make sure it was all ok content-wise since he's only now a teenager. I knew very little about AI and machine learning when I started the book. Pretty much my only exposure was friends playing with ChatGPT and the doomsday headlines about AI taking everyone's jobs soon. This book made me feel both better and worse about AI. It was reassuring and cautious, informative and funny. It's a great example of accessible non-fiction writing that anyone can take something away from. I highly recommend checking this book out. You will learn something and probably feel a bit better about the future. Also, there are lots of giraffes and very cute illustrations. I listened to the book on audio, which was very good, but you will want to have the book (or PDF from library) so you can look at the illustrations!
inthebelljar's review against another edition
5.0
This goes right onto my Favorites shelf.
AIs and robots are a huge favorite topic of mine (both fictional ones and real life ones), so it probably isn't a huge surprise that I enjoyed this book so much (and especially when considering I follow Janelle Shane's blog already and have notifications turned on for updates). But You Look Like a Thing and I Love You is just such a hilarious and yet understandable exploration of modern day artificial intelligence, that I feel like you don't have to be weirdly enamored with artificial life like me to enjoy it (though it doesn't hurt to be).
The explanations are written clearly and Shane uses delightful hypothetical or real examples to clarify any unfamiliar concepts. The author also includes adorably wonderful little doodles (like the one on the cover) to accompany explanations, relevant real life stories, and just to be very fun and cute.
After reading this, I feel like I understand AIs and neural networks better than before, and I also had a great time laughing at neural network generated Buzzfeed article titles (for example, 27 christmas ornaments every college twentysomething knows and 24 times australia was the absolute worst). It was also helpful to learn more about the limitations of AIs in modern times (especially when many companies like to oversell what they can do), and ways to spot AIs from humans and vice versa. A huge portion of this book really does cover the limitations of our current technology, which I often think gets overlooked; Shane takes the time to point out that AIs can pick up on our intentional and unintentional biases as well, which can affect what output we get back from what many consider an impartial source.
It may get a bit repetitive at times for such a slim book as some other reviewers have mentioned, but I really didn't mind too much.
Overall, I just thoroughly enjoyed this book. If you have any interest in artificial intelligence, I would recommend this. You can get a preview of some of what you'll see in the book on her twitter or on her blog, AI Weirdness,.
(As a side note, it was great to have a book unrelated to gender be so great about acknowledging and respecting all genders :). )
AIs and robots are a huge favorite topic of mine (both fictional ones and real life ones), so it probably isn't a huge surprise that I enjoyed this book so much (and especially when considering I follow Janelle Shane's blog already and have notifications turned on for updates). But You Look Like a Thing and I Love You is just such a hilarious and yet understandable exploration of modern day artificial intelligence, that I feel like you don't have to be weirdly enamored with artificial life like me to enjoy it (though it doesn't hurt to be).
The explanations are written clearly and Shane uses delightful hypothetical or real examples to clarify any unfamiliar concepts. The author also includes adorably wonderful little doodles (like the one on the cover) to accompany explanations, relevant real life stories, and just to be very fun and cute.
After reading this, I feel like I understand AIs and neural networks better than before, and I also had a great time laughing at neural network generated Buzzfeed article titles (for example, 27 christmas ornaments every college twentysomething knows and 24 times australia was the absolute worst). It was also helpful to learn more about the limitations of AIs in modern times (especially when many companies like to oversell what they can do), and ways to spot AIs from humans and vice versa. A huge portion of this book really does cover the limitations of our current technology, which I often think gets overlooked; Shane takes the time to point out that AIs can pick up on our intentional and unintentional biases as well, which can affect what output we get back from what many consider an impartial source.
It may get a bit repetitive at times for such a slim book as some other reviewers have mentioned, but I really didn't mind too much.
Overall, I just thoroughly enjoyed this book. If you have any interest in artificial intelligence, I would recommend this. You can get a preview of some of what you'll see in the book on her twitter or on her blog, AI Weirdness,.
(As a side note, it was great to have a book unrelated to gender be so great about acknowledging and respecting all genders :). )
tricapra's review against another edition
4.0
Cute and actually really educational. I thought this was just gonna be like her newsletters but it was more than just jokes. I definitely feel like I have a handle on the current state of machine learning now.