Pet Peeves: Aka Things That Make You Go "Gah!"

[Ancaster]

The low voltage in the US - it takes forever for my (electric) kettle to boil.

[fastiller]

16 minutes ago, Ancaster said:

The low voltage in the US - it takes forever for my (electric) kettle to boil.

Additional 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 for this.  I mean some kitchens have 240v sockets for larger appliances, so I guess you could maybe use this one if you've got it in your place.

[SoMuchTV]

1 hour ago, Ancaster said:

The low voltage in the US - it takes forever for my (electric) kettle to boil.

They must be amazing outside the US, then!  Mine (in the US) is so much faster that boiling the same amount of water in a covered pan or in the microwave.

[Absolom]

6 hours ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

She’s also one of the partying ringleaders so she made a bunch of Jell-O shots for the bus that’s visiting different churches for Holy Thursday. Because I’m sure people who are in those churches for private prayer are going to be thrilled (/sarcasm) if people from our church come in talking loudly since they’ve been drinking on the bus. It’s another reason she gets a pass. People are so excited to do shots and get their drink on when they should remember that Holy Thursday isn’t exactly a partying day in the church. (Plus, there is a bar and a brewery right down the road if they need to drink that bad. I don’t know why that’s allowed either but again, you can’t speak up in that church.)

This is the choir you're thinking of taking a break from?  That sounds like an excellent idea.  

54 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

They must be amazing outside the US, then!  Mine (in the US) is so much faster that boiling the same amount of water in a covered pan or in the microwave.

My daughter's only gives me about enough time to get the tea bag out of the pantry. 

[EtheltoTillie]

We had one of those kettles in a UK hotel room, and yes, it was fast!  But even the one I have here in the US is faster than boiling on the stove. 

[PRgal]

Growing up in an immigrant household, we'd always have hot water available - you don't drink cold or room temp water if you're an immigrant from Hong Kong.  Most immigrant Asian households have one of these.  Some have a filtered water tap that dispenses hot AND cold. 

Note:  My grandmother scolded me for drinking cold water until I was a teenager.  Yes, Poh Poh was pretty toxic by Canadian/western standards.

Edited April 16 by PRgal

[EtheltoTillie]

58 minutes ago, PRgal said:

Growing up in an immigrant household, we'd always have hot water available - you don't drink cold or room temp water if you're an immigrant from Hong Kong.  Most immigrant Asian households have one of these.  Some have a filtered water tap that dispenses hot AND cold. 

Note:  My grandmother scolded me for drinking cold water until I was a teenager.  Yes, Poh Poh was pretty toxic by Canadian/western standards.

I wish I understood the reason for this cultural difference.  I experienced it at the home of a Chinese client.  I was offered warm water to drink.  Is it a purported health reason?  Or is it taste? 

[PRgal]

4 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I wish I understood the reason for this cultural difference.  I experienced it at the home of a Chinese client.  I was offered warm water to drink.  Is it a purported health reason?  Or is it taste? 

I'm guessing that tap water was not suitable for drinking at the time.  I'm unsure if it still is in Hong Kong.  Boiling kills off bacteria (like why you always make baby formula with water that has been boiled).

[Ancaster]

3 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

They must be amazing outside the US, then!  Mine (in the US) is so much faster that boiling the same amount of water in a covered pan or in the microwave.

It's hard to fathom!

I do use my kettle to boil water for making pasta or soups, etc that require boiling water.  Like you say, so much faster than the stove top.

[SoMuchTV]

1 hour ago, Ancaster said:

It's hard to fathom!

I do use my kettle to boil water for making pasta or soups, etc that require boiling water.  Like you say, so much faster than the stove top.

For real! If I want to make pasta, I put about 3/4 of the water in the electric kettle and the rest in the pan on the stovetop. It all comes to a boil at about the same time. 

[EtheltoTillie]

I also use less water than called for.  Recipes for pasta usually call for too much water.  It is not necessary to use as much water as they say, and it takes too long to boil. 

[PRgal]

9 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I also use less water than called for.  Recipes for pasta usually call for too much water.  It is not necessary to use as much water as they say, and it takes too long to boil. 

This!  As long as the pasta is completely submerged, you’re fine.  Learned this trick watching a cooking show (don’t remember which one). 

[Ancaster]

1 hour ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I also use less water than called for.  Recipes for pasta usually call for too much water.  It is not necessary to use as much water as they say, and it takes too long to boil. 

I've done this forever but have never said anything because I thought people would judge!  I also don't salt it as much as you're "supposed to."  I do take out a little of the water before draining in case I want to thin out the sauce.

I also make lasagna and other pasta bakes without precooking the noodles (the regular ones, not "pre-cooked").  They come out great and mean a lot less prep time and washing up. 

Edited April 16 by Ancaster

[Bastet]

53 minutes ago, Ancaster said:

I also don't salt it as much as you're "supposed to."

Neither do I; not once has my pasta water tasted like "the ocean" as so many TV chefs recommend.

[Cloud9Shopper]

5 hours ago, Absolom said:

This is the choir you're thinking of taking a break from?  That sounds like an excellent idea.  

Yes. I told my mom today how I was feeling (she’s also Catholic, so where there are some things in life we disagree with, the church and the way some people conduct themselves isn’t one of those issues) and finally realized I need a break. I told her I was still going to sing this weekend since Holy Week is so significant and I’m not backing out this late but after that I’m done for a while. The choir I used to be in is so much more laid back and doesn’t have any of these shenanigans going on; I just wasn’t going there as much once I moved 20 minutes away. If I ever move back closer to that church then they will become my home church again. 

[Anela]

3 hours ago, Ancaster said:

It's hard to fathom!

I do use my kettle to boil water for making pasta or soups, etc that require boiling water.  Like you say, so much faster than the stove top.

I’ve noticed this, too. I’ll put really hot water in the pan, and it still somehow takes forever to boil.  When the tap water was too hot for me to put my hands under the water.  

Edited April 16 by Anela

[Ancaster]

1 hour ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

Yes. I told my mom today how I was feeling (she’s also Catholic, so where there are some things in life we disagree with, the church and the way some people conduct themselves isn’t one of those issues) and finally realized I need a break. I told her I was still going to sing this weekend since Holy Week is so significant and I’m not backing out this late but after that I’m done for a while. The choir I used to be in is so much more laid back and doesn’t have any of these shenanigans going on; I just wasn’t going there as much once I moved 20 minutes away. If I ever move back closer to that church then they will become my home church again. 

Have you looked into local secular choirs?  I realise they're not founded on the beautiful liturgical music that is so meaningful to you, but that may well be included in their repertoire, along with important music from other cultures' traditions.  I play the viola and used to drive an hour each way weekly because it was so emotionally and socially fulfilling.  And we didn't know each other outside the orchestra, so there were no politics involved.

Edited April 17 by Ancaster
Orchestra, not choir

[Dimity]

I'm pretty sure this is done either to get people to respond, or because it's AI and it's stupid AI, but anyway the posts I keep seeing talking about a particular celebrity or some well known historical person and the picture included is not that person.  I am peeved by this because as a librarian my first reaction is to point this out, identify the picture correctly and send them a link to an actual depiction of the person in question.  But I suspect this is exactly what they (whoever they are) wants me to do.  So I am left frustrated and my husband just doesn't care that I know that photo is Cyd Charisse and not Ann Margret.

Edited April 16 by Dimity

[Mondrianyone]

2 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I also use less water than called for.  Recipes for pasta usually call for too much water.  It is not necessary to use as much water as they say, and it takes too long to boil. 

This. Plus, you get starchier water when you use less, which is better when you need it to thicken a sauce. I honestly don't know why they tell you to use so much water.

[Ancaster]

38 minutes ago, Dimity said:

I'm pretty sure this is done either to get people to respond, or because it's AI and it's stupid AI, but anyway the posts I keep seeing talking about a particular celebrity or some well known historical person and the picture included is not that person.  I am peeved by this because as a librarian my first reaction is to point this out, identify the picture correctly and send them a link to an actual depiction of the person in question.  But I suspect this is exactly what they (whoever they are) wants me to do.  So I am left frustrated and my husband just doesn't care that I know that photo is Cyd Charisse and not Ann Margret.

Sometimes it's time to take a break from certain websites/chatrooms/social media whatevers.  If you're more frustrated and irritated than made happy by something you're doing, maybe it's not the right thing for you right now.  AI has become evil, and I don't say that lightly.

[SoMuchTV]

1 hour ago, Anela said:

I’ve noticed this, too. I’ll put really hot water in the pan, and it still somehow takes forever to boil.  When the tap water was too hot for me to put my hands under the water.  

Okay, now I have to ask if I’m the only one who’s learned that you don’t use hot tap water for cooking? Because it apparently leaches some stuff from the pipes that cold water doesn’t? I’m sure it’s a very marginal risk but for some reason I don’t fully recall, I’ve always been careful to use only cold tap water for cooking. Is this just some weird thing that only I have heard of?

[Trini]

6 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I wish I understood the reason for this cultural difference.  I experienced it at the home of a Chinese client.  I was offered warm water to drink.  Is it a purported health reason?  Or is it taste? 

Keep in mind, this is secondhand-secondhand info; but my brother picked up the habit of drinking warm water from when he worked in South Korea for a while. It's supposedly better/healthier than drinking it cold, but I don't know the exact reasoning behind it.

 

13 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

Okay, now I have to ask if I’m the only one who’s learned that you don’t use hot tap water for cooking? Because it apparently leaches some stuff from the pipes that cold water doesn’t? I’m sure it’s a very marginal risk but for some reason I don’t fully recall, I’ve always been careful to use only cold tap water for cooking. Is this just some weird thing that only I have heard of?

Nope! I don't remember exactly where I heard it from decades ago, but yes, it has to do with leaching from the pipes. I still do this, although I agree the risk is probably marginal.

[graybrown bird]

53 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

Okay, now I have to ask if I’m the only one who’s learned that you don’t use hot tap water for cooking? Because it apparently leaches some stuff from the pipes that cold water doesn’t? I’m sure it’s a very marginal risk but for some reason I don’t fully recall, I’ve always been careful to use only cold tap water for cooking. Is this just some weird thing that only I have heard of?

Why risk it?

https://www.epa.gov/lead/why-cant-i-use-hot-water-tap-drinking-cooking-or-making-baby-formula

[EtheltoTillie]

I too heard that about the hot tap water many years ago.  Sometimes I don't bother following that rule. 

[Dimity]

My grandmother told me years ago that you need to use fresh cold water when you put the kettle on the boil for tea.  Although she never explained why her insistence made a lasting impression on me to the point where no matter why I am boiling water (pasta, vegetables, anything) I have to start with cold water.

[Anela]

1 minute ago, Dimity said:

My grandmother told me years ago that you need to use fresh cold water when you put the kettle on the boil for tea.  Although she never explained why her insistence made a lasting impression on me to the point where no matter why I am boiling water (pasta, vegetables, anything) I have to start with cold water.

I do that for tea, but I’ve tried using hot water in pans, when I’m really hungry.  

[roseha]

I'm in a 98 year old apartment building so I imagine it's a good guess that there's lead in our ancient pipes. I've always heard about drinking or cooking with cold water anyway though and I imagine that's the main reason.

I do use an electric kettle for making pour over Melitta type coffee every morning.  I don't have a coffee maker anymore and would rather not turn on the gas range just to boil water.  I know that my little kettle takes exactly 5 minutes to boil and turn off.

[SoMuchTV]

44 minutes ago, roseha said:

I do use an electric kettle for making pour over Melitta type coffee every morning

Yeah, another fan of pour over coffee. I think I get more simplified as I age.  I did do the Mr coffee, then the aeropress, but now my one pour over mug a day is just right. 

[Ancaster]

15 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

Yeah, another fan of pour over coffee. I think I get more simplified as I age.  I did do the Mr coffee, then the aeropress, but now my one pour over mug a day is just right. 

Me three for the pour over.  Quick, easy, and way less clean up than the French press I used to use.

What I would like to find is a large French press thermos like my siblings in the UK have.  It's great for more than one cup and keeps the coffee hotter than a conventional larger French press.  I have one of those for when I have guests and have a snug little neoprene "vest" (wrap) for it, but it still loses heat quite quickly.

Edited April 17 by Ancaster

[JustHereForFood]

8 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

Okay, now I have to ask if I’m the only one who’s learned that you don’t use hot tap water for cooking? Because it apparently leaches some stuff from the pipes that cold water doesn’t? I’m sure it’s a very marginal risk but for some reason I don’t fully recall, I’ve always been careful to use only cold tap water for cooking. Is this just some weird thing that only I have heard of?

Yes, same with drinking. I mentioned this a while ago at work when somebody wanted warmer water to drink, that they should use cold water and warm it in the kettle, and they were surprised. I thought it was one of those things everyone knows, but then again, if people don't know that they should wash their hands why am I still surprised?

[fastiller]

Regarding volume of water for pasta: I've been told (by my Italian/Italian-American family) that more water is better so the pasta has room to move around in the boiling water.  

One day, when I've won the lottery and have 'screw you money', I'm installing something like this, the Quooker tap which provides boiling water right from the tap. 

 

[Ancaster]

15 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

Okay, now I have to ask if I’m the only one who’s learned that you don’t use hot tap water for cooking? Because it apparently leaches some stuff from the pipes that cold water doesn’t? I’m sure it’s a very marginal risk but for some reason I don’t fully recall, I’ve always been careful to use only cold tap water for cooking. Is this just some weird thing that only I have heard of?

I'm probably going overboard, but I also let the water run for a few seconds in case I'd run it hot before and there's residual "stuff" that needs to be flushed out.

(Sorry if I've now added another tic to anyone's routine!)

[Anela]

8 hours ago, JustHereForFood said:

Yes, same with drinking. I mentioned this a while ago at work when somebody wanted warmer water to drink, that they should use cold water and warm it in the kettle, and they were surprised. I thought it was one of those things everyone knows, but then again, if people don't know that they should wash their hands why am I still surprised?

I was told the same thing, but my dad said it’s all the same water.  I have no idea, and I don’t really care anymore.  That’s not said against you, I’ve just stopped caring or worrying about some things.  

Edited April 17 by Anela

[Bookworm 1979]

4 hours ago, Ancaster said:

I'm probably going overboard, but I also let the water run for a few seconds in case I'd run it hot before and there's residual "stuff" that needs to be flushed out.

(Sorry if I've now added another tic to anyone's routine!)

I was talking to some of our water maintenance operators once, and they said they always let the water run for a few seconds to flush it out. One told me she would even prefer to let it run for a few minutes, but she may have been exaggerating.

[Absolom]

The difference with the hot and cold water unless one has tankless water heating, or so I've been told, is that the hot water has been sitting in the boiler or the water heater and could be growing who knows what since it's held at a close to comfortable temperature for bacteria growth.  The cold water comes straight through the pipes. 

[isalicat]

On 4/15/2025 at 4:37 PM, Cloud9Shopper said:

If you ask me, someone should’ve told this woman to shut up and reminded her she’s not the director and put her back in her place and he’s the one who should be reminding us when to breathe. 

A scathing but amusing riposte is called for in these circumstances, and *you* can be the one to do it, you know. I might have said something along the lines of: "Saint Cecilia, thanks for the fashion direction - who knew you were in command of our choir? Thank you again for the input!" (with a huge smile on my face). (Saint Cecilia is the patron saint of church music, just in case you did not know that.)

Don't just fume...be the push back you want to hear/see!

[oliviabenson]

On 4/16/2025 at 12:25 PM, SoMuchTV said:

They must be amazing outside the US, then!  Mine (in the US) is so much faster that boiling the same amount of water in a covered pan or in the microwave.

mine boils in a few minutes for 1 liter of water. way quicker than the stove.

[oliviabenson]

5 hours ago, Bookworm 1979 said:

I was talking to some of our water maintenance operators once, and they said they always let the water run for a few seconds to flush it out. One told me she would even prefer to let it run for a few minutes, but she may have been exaggerating.

my mom always ran the cold water in the kitchen for a few minutes in the morning.

[oliviabenson]

On 4/15/2025 at 7:37 PM, Cloud9Shopper said:

People who need to be in charge all the time. Even when they have no business leading. 

I just got home from choir and there was a woman who was out of control and raised her voice twice during practice at us (she is around 35-36 years old; not that that’s relevant but just for context that this isn’t some old Catholic lady), one time to yell that we need to not breathe on a certain point in a song and then again at the end of practice that we need to wear gold or white on Holy Thursday and then she added “and if you don’t have something figure it out!” And the director never stepped in and told her to quit yelling or put her back in her place. She is not the choir director, the assistant choir director, the conductor or anyone of leadership in the church. She’s just been going to that church since childhood. That’s about it.

I’m sorry but I don’t go to church choir practice to get screamed at. I wouldn’t like it if the director yelled either. Not to mention there is zero need to be that hostile and insist that adults need to wear matching colors for Mass. As we sit upstairs in a choir loft and really no one turns to look at us, who is going to care if we wear white, gold, green, whatever? I wore a purple sweater last Holy Thursday when I was still at another church and singing in the choir. Guess who cared? Absolutely nobody. That’s who. If you ask me, someone should’ve told this woman to shut up and reminded her she’s not the director and put her back in her place and he’s the one who should be reminding us when to breathe. 

in my opinion it's time for you to quit. you are not having fun and it's not your job. leave and be happy.

[Ancaster]

On 4/16/2025 at 1:54 PM, SoMuchTV said:

For real! If I want to make pasta, I put about 3/4 of the water in the electric kettle and the rest in the pan on the stovetop. It all comes to a boil at about the same time. 

I do the same. Isn't it just a little bit crazy how much thought we put into this kind of thing?  😆

[Cloud9Shopper]

New one, and not related to my previous post a couple of days ago. People who treat even minor mistakes as deadly serious. I made the mistake of posting in one of my fanfic communities that I used ChatGPT as a Google-like tool to ask it some questions for a story I’m working on. Someone got upset and said “please be very careful” as if I had posted that I was committing tax fraud or planning to kill someone and it just made me feel like…it’s not that deep? Especially given the amount of mediocre to bad fanfic that’s published and isn’t always true to reality. A lot of authors don’t even bother doing any research and some readers and writers say explicitly they don’t care about researching or reality in fic. I also wasn’t planning to use AI to write the story for me (I test ran it just as an experiment/out of boredom and hated the suggestions anyway).

For the record, I was asking ChatGPT if it’s OK to have Character A, who works with Character B and is a doctor, read Character A’s chart under HIPPA and ChatGPT gave me some answers about informed/implicit consent and said technically it’s not OK unless one of these things is true. I wasn’t planning to apply that info to real life and try to get unauthorized access to a friend’s medical records or looking to plagiarize for a school paper. It’s just a fictional story, and even professional TV writers come up with unrealistic and ridiculous storylines that people eat up for other reasons. I don’t think my fanfic is going to spawn real world outrage and legal consequences if Character B gives Character A’s consent to read her chart as long as I elude to something like B signing a written consent form or what have you.

Honestly, the whole thing with having to be so careful all the time (I get these lectures at work even when I make a small mistake, and my work isn’t the type of job where people’s lives are on the line or essential to keep the world turning) and making every misstep or pique of curiosity seem like a huge deal gets stressful. 

[Katy M]

This was partly my fault, so I'm my own pet peeve at times.  But, if there's a sign at a store that says daily UPS drop off, I think they should specify that, yes, you can drop off every day, but no UPS doesn't pick up every day.   Yes, this is partially my fault, because it does say that on the website.  But, signage at the store would have been appreciated.  Although, at that point, not sure what I would have done.  This is the one drawback to non-urban living.  Having to drive 20 miles to get to an actual UPS.  40 miles for a cable company office.  25 miles to renew my driver's license.  OK, the benefits outweigh these inconveniences by a long shot.

[bmasters9]

On 2/23/2025 at 12:02 AM, Calvada said:

This gets me into another pet peeve - when people try to argue about my choices.  I'm in my 60's and in those 6+ decades, I have developed preferences for food I like to eat, the type of clothes I like to wear, the books I like to read, the TV shows I like to watch, etc  Why are some people so convinced that what they like is what everyone should like?  I'm fine with a suggestion, in fact I especially love to get book recommendations, but allow me to decide whether it's right for me.  

Late response to this, but I actually agree with it-- here lately, I've been seeing a lot of TV DVD collection videos on YouTube, and most of them are comprised chiefly of what is on these days or what was on in the 90s and 2000s (most of this stuff is stuff I'll likely never touch, as I've never had the interest), but I don't question those choices; in fact, I chalk 'em up as that such is what those video posters actually enjoy seeing/think is worth seeing.

And to be honest, I've felt that certain of these video posters might try a few of the shows and movies that I've liked, and might like 'em if they did, but I've generally tried to keep it to myself-- I would never try to make someone see, say, The Addams Family from the 60s that was on ABC, when they have clearly stated in their collections that they prefer Friends that was from the 90s and 2000s on NBC.

[Ohiopirate02]

On 4/18/2025 at 10:51 AM, Cloud9Shopper said:

New one, and not related to my previous post a couple of days ago. People who treat even minor mistakes as deadly serious. I made the mistake of posting in one of my fanfic communities that I used ChatGPT as a Google-like tool to ask it some questions for a story I’m working on. Someone got upset and said “please be very careful” as if I had posted that I was committing tax fraud or planning to kill someone and it just made me feel like…it’s not that deep? Especially given the amount of mediocre to bad fanfic that’s published and isn’t always true to reality. A lot of authors don’t even bother doing any research and some readers and writers say explicitly they don’t care about researching or reality in fic. I also wasn’t planning to use AI to write the story for me (I test ran it just as an experiment/out of boredom and hated the suggestions anyway).

For the record, I was asking ChatGPT if it’s OK to have Character A, who works with Character B and is a doctor, read Character A’s chart under HIPPA and ChatGPT gave me some answers about informed/implicit consent and said technically it’s not OK unless one of these things is true. I wasn’t planning to apply that info to real life and try to get unauthorized access to a friend’s medical records or looking to plagiarize for a school paper. It’s just a fictional story, and even professional TV writers come up with unrealistic and ridiculous storylines that people eat up for other reasons. I don’t think my fanfic is going to spawn real world outrage and legal consequences if Character B gives Character A’s consent to read her chart as long as I elude to something like B signing a written consent form or what have you.

Honestly, the whole thing with having to be so careful all the time (I get these lectures at work even when I make a small mistake, and my work isn’t the type of job where people’s lives are on the line or essential to keep the world turning) and making every misstep or pique of curiosity seem like a huge deal gets stressful. 

I don't see how someone saying "please be very careful" when talking about using something like ChatGPT is being upset especially in a writing community. Not when programs like ChatGPT work by scraping the internet for information including using copyrighted work. For some writers, it is that deep and they have taken an ethical stand against using LLMs even when writing fanfic. I have no idea which fanfic communities you frequent, but there are many published authors who got their start in fanfic and are still active in them.

Then there's the fact that LLMs are wrong more often than they are right. Everyone who chooses to use them does need to be careful.

[PRgal]

I got ChatGPT "rewrite" (well, not quite "rewrite" since I only asked it to write about a family celebrating three New Years) Our Three New Years! a while back and it was HILARIOUS!!!  

[JustHereForFood]

I have been attending a translating course this year (I have the first exams tomorrow actually!) and one of the topics we keep going back to is how many people are now telling translators that their jobs will soon be made redundant because of AI. Our teacher says that she doesn't think so, that we will still need human translators at least for fiction, because the machines can't grasp the human touch in art (I wholeheartedly agree) and especially with more obscure languages, because some of the translations done by AI now are still pretty shitty. What is more likely is that companies, trying to minimize costs, will use AI for some sort of first draft translations and use human translators as "editors" to catch any mistakes, especially for non-fiction. I hope this doesn't lead to any dangerous mistakes in medicine, for example.

I mean, even now I can see that many news articles are being obviously translated via translator and the newspapers (and these are serious newspapers, not tabloids) don't seem to dedicate much energy to check them, because there often are some very obvious mistakes (false friends and such). 

Anyway, our teacher keeps saying how annoying and demotivating these comments are. I imagine it's the same for artists or academics whose jobs are also in a similar place if people keep trying to use AI for everything.

Another AI anecdote:

Two of my colleagues mentioned using chatgpt to write their annual reviews for them. I get that it is a boring and basically unnecessary task, but I still can't grasp how lazy some people are. If it's part of your job description, you are being paid for doing it. I would not think about having somebody else do it for me, much less a computer program. Also, I liked the peer review I got from one of them, now I feel stupid about that if he didn't even write it.

[fairffaxx]

California's February Bar Exam results are in dispute, now that the State Bar Assoc admits having used AI to write some of the questions.  

[Ohiopirate02]

2 hours ago, JustHereForFood said:

Another AI anecdote:

Two of my colleagues mentioned using chatgpt to write their annual reviews for them. I get that it is a boring and basically unnecessary task, but I still can't grasp how lazy some people are. If it's part of your job description, you are being paid for doing it. I would not think about having somebody else do it for me, much less a computer program. Also, I liked the peer review I got from one of them, now I feel stupid about that if he didn't even write it.

Is it possible that they used the LLM to help formulate their thoughts into more coherent sentences and make the words better match their sentiments? I say this because I am currently working on a review of one of my employees and am struggling on the correct verbiage. (How does one professionally tell an employee that they come off as rude and selfish when they refuse to say things like good morning, hello, goodbye, or see you tomorrow?) I also had to send some emails earlier this year to graduate students that I never heard back from. I fear I did not word them correctly and that is why I am 0 for 2 with graduate students needing interviews and internships. I've done the work in the past and was looking forward to working with them when my schedule permitted.

[StatisticalOutlier]

16 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

(How does one professionally tell an employee that they come off as rude and selfish when they refuse to say things like good morning, hello, goodbye, or see you tomorrow?)

Maybe ask colleagues how they handle it? 

[StatisticalOutlier]

57 minutes ago, fairffaxx said:

California's February Bar Exam results are in dispute, now that the State Bar Assoc admits having used AI to write some of the questions.  

That story doesn't mention AI at all.  It mentions technical problems that were reported as soon as the exam happened (reported previously by Reuters this way:

Quote

Some test takers were unable to log into the exam at all, while many experienced delays, lax exam security, distracting proctors, and a copy-and-paste function that didn’t work.

And the proposed remedy addresses this:

Quote

The state bar’s Committee of Bar Examiners also recommended that the bar “impute” scores for test takers who weren’t able to complete significant portions of the two-day exam. That process involves using a test taker’s submitted answers to project their performance on questions that were missing.

I gather from other sources that AI was used to generate some questions, but the February bar exam was a clusterfuck long before that was revealed.

And I'd like to know if it was a computer or a person who chose the photo that goes with the article, which is captioned "Students take a university entrance examination at a lecture hall in the Andalusian capital of Seville, southern Spain, June 16, 2015."  Maybe the bot just saw the guy wearing the Oklahoma basketball jersey in the front and figured, "Close enough."