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JUMBO (A Science-Fiction Romance)
They were set-up the hard way. Two ancient VAX machines.
Two Jumbo programs plugged to the network. One language.
He learned LISP so he could modify the program. To seek.
Over the ether, in no time. The Jumbos found each other.
Adazzle-dim, Adim-dazzle. Adizzle-do, Ado-dizzle.
Rose-moles, Mose-roles. Mole-roses, Moler-oses!
Tackle-trim, Trackle-tim. Tickle-Tram, Tacklet-rim.
Fickle-freckled, Frickle-feckled. Freckle-Fickled, Frickled-Fleck!
He gave them words* to play with. They tossed them to each other.
He watched the Jumbos jumble. Their pseudo-word spaces.
The sparking made him smile. The innocence of Jumbo.
The romance of chunkabets. Fresh-firecoal, freshfire-coal.
The radium clock rocked him to sleep. His capsule-earth in space.
His world was made when they Jumbd the stars. Jumbd the stellar signals.
They Jumbd finches' wings, dappled things. Oiled the squeaky wheels.
Forthers-fart, Fathers-forth. They dreamt of grander things.
*Words lifted from "Pied Beauty" (1877) by Gerard Manley Hopkins
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I know that only a tiny group of people will be able to understand the intent of this poem so I provide explanatory notes below. I hope that without explanation the poem still induces and challenges interpretation.
--- explanatory notes below -----
Nb: Jumbo is a computer program developed by Douglas Hofstadter in 1982-83 as part of an artificial intelligence research project. Jumbo constructs English-like word candidates (or pseudo-words) from a given set of letters, based on knowledge of affinities described in a table called "chunkabet". I chose Hofstadter because his approach to AI and machine learning is unique, effectively constituting a critique of mainstream AI methodology which plays on anthropomorphism and hype. Hofstadter chooses the less-beaten path of creating models of fluid analogy, the core of cognition.
I chose to employ words from Gerard Manley Hopkins' poetry because of his innovative use of language, coining new words if not using archaic and dialect words, a daring stance within a Victorian period of stringent traditionalism. Perfect for Jumbo.
"JUMBO (A Science-Fiction Romance)" describes a future world that is capsule-sterile, life regulated by radium clocks, created through the desecration of the natural world by grandiose dreams of machine intelligence. The solitary person in the poem derives his romantic pleasures watching two JUMBO programs play with each other.
Two Jumbo programs plugged to the network. One language.
He learned LISP so he could modify the program. To seek.
Over the ether, in no time. The Jumbos found each other.
Adazzle-dim, Adim-dazzle. Adizzle-do, Ado-dizzle.
Rose-moles, Mose-roles. Mole-roses, Moler-oses!
Tackle-trim, Trackle-tim. Tickle-Tram, Tacklet-rim.
Fickle-freckled, Frickle-feckled. Freckle-Fickled, Frickled-Fleck!
He gave them words* to play with. They tossed them to each other.
He watched the Jumbos jumble. Their pseudo-word spaces.
The sparking made him smile. The innocence of Jumbo.
The romance of chunkabets. Fresh-firecoal, freshfire-coal.
The radium clock rocked him to sleep. His capsule-earth in space.
His world was made when they Jumbd the stars. Jumbd the stellar signals.
They Jumbd finches' wings, dappled things. Oiled the squeaky wheels.
Forthers-fart, Fathers-forth. They dreamt of grander things.
*Words lifted from "Pied Beauty" (1877) by Gerard Manley Hopkins
---
I know that only a tiny group of people will be able to understand the intent of this poem so I provide explanatory notes below. I hope that without explanation the poem still induces and challenges interpretation.
--- explanatory notes below -----
Nb: Jumbo is a computer program developed by Douglas Hofstadter in 1982-83 as part of an artificial intelligence research project. Jumbo constructs English-like word candidates (or pseudo-words) from a given set of letters, based on knowledge of affinities described in a table called "chunkabet". I chose Hofstadter because his approach to AI and machine learning is unique, effectively constituting a critique of mainstream AI methodology which plays on anthropomorphism and hype. Hofstadter chooses the less-beaten path of creating models of fluid analogy, the core of cognition.
I chose to employ words from Gerard Manley Hopkins' poetry because of his innovative use of language, coining new words if not using archaic and dialect words, a daring stance within a Victorian period of stringent traditionalism. Perfect for Jumbo.
"JUMBO (A Science-Fiction Romance)" describes a future world that is capsule-sterile, life regulated by radium clocks, created through the desecration of the natural world by grandiose dreams of machine intelligence. The solitary person in the poem derives his romantic pleasures watching two JUMBO programs play with each other.
Published 14th Feb 2014
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14th Feb 2014 8:57am
Romance of two Jumbo programs, so funny for Valentine day... I am impressed by the work performed to collect all the datas for writing this poem. Very well done and writing. I like this poem, thank you, absinthe!
14th Feb 2014 9:39am
Ah yes, of course, you are of a mathematical mind! ;)
You're welcome, malin, I enjoyed reading about Jumbo. It was programmed in a poetic way, using metaphors of courtship (how people are attracted to each other) and the metaphor of the cell cytoplasm (how molecules come together to make protein, etc).
You're welcome, malin, I enjoyed reading about Jumbo. It was programmed in a poetic way, using metaphors of courtship (how people are attracted to each other) and the metaphor of the cell cytoplasm (how molecules come together to make protein, etc).
14th Feb 2014 11:29am
your programmer's life sounds very regulated; he needed something to overide the boredom, so he chose assimilated romance. & who knows what their byted copulation might produce...
16th Feb 2014 4:44am
14th Feb 2014 12:01pm
16th Feb 2014 4:42am
Interesting. I see this poem as a reflexion about the priceless commodity which we work with - the language.
(Amazing those games of words and words variations)
(Amazing those games of words and words variations)
16th Feb 2014 4:41am
Thank you, Celino.
I started to become interested in invented words.
I think invented words would be interesting to employ in poetry.
I started to become interested in invented words.
I think invented words would be interesting to employ in poetry.
15th Feb 2014 2:54am
i thought this was very well written esp. with what would have seen as a challenging thing to convey.
16th Feb 2014 4:40am
Thank you for reading, PathosPassion.
You are correct, it is a complex story that I tried to fit into a couple stanzas.
I wrote the poem to understand Jumbo, too. And so I wondered what would happen if Jumbo was used to mimic and thus reconstruct animal language, not to mimic animal (or human behaviour).
And I wondered what would happen if they used Jumbo to Jumble star signals.
You are correct, it is a complex story that I tried to fit into a couple stanzas.
I wrote the poem to understand Jumbo, too. And so I wondered what would happen if Jumbo was used to mimic and thus reconstruct animal language, not to mimic animal (or human behaviour).
And I wondered what would happen if they used Jumbo to Jumble star signals.
15th Feb 2014 1:15pm
eye'm not gonna read thee footnotes
eye love it just thee way it are
how swift & cleverly wee've overjumbo'd
this
poor, bland planet wit 'municipal improvements'.
If I've missed-the-point, wha'do it matter?
16th Feb 2014 4:38am
Right, Dada, Before I used to feel embarrassed if I "don't get the point" in a poem - well if a poem wants to make a point.
But I can make it clear now that I prefer writing poems that make spaces and not points.
Not a single point, but lots of little points that the space creates.
Thanks for reading, Dada!
But I can make it clear now that I prefer writing poems that make spaces and not points.
Not a single point, but lots of little points that the space creates.
Thanks for reading, Dada!
15th Feb 2014 1:18pm
PS
the musicality of stanza 2 is most loverly to mine eyes/ears, etc........
jumbo bravo !
the musicality of stanza 2 is most loverly to mine eyes/ears, etc........
jumbo bravo !
16th Feb 2014 4:35am
I was actually thinking of your poems when I read about Jumbo! So in a way, Jumbo helps me understand your poetry more.
Thanks, Dada! :)
Thanks, Dada! :)
16th Feb 2014 11:50am
yikes....thank you dear
having just been 'discredited' by one of our colleagues,
tis a blessing to read such from you
having just been 'discredited' by one of our colleagues,
tis a blessing to read such from you
16th Feb 2014 11:58am
Oh no, I didn't think he was discrediting you! I read it as a dialogue, in fact! Read it again - and yes, there is 'good in all this'!
Jumbo was about the spontenaeity in human intelligence and creativity, something that all AI research so far has failed to understand. :)
Jumbo was about the spontenaeity in human intelligence and creativity, something that all AI research so far has failed to understand. :)