The Painter

1. Tell your AI not to mention pink elephants. Then read what it wrote.
2. It paints from the words it's given. Write 'no elephant', and the elephant is on the brief.
3. There it is, in the corner, pink.
4. Write what you want instead. 'A harbour at dusk, boats only.' The canvas fills with boats.
5. A 'don't' still puts the thing in the room. A 'do' fills the room with something else.
6. What did yours sneak in?

17). A painter's attic studio at dusk, the harbour outside the skylight. The painter (the machine) paints from the words on the brief pinned above the easel. You pin "NO PINK ELEPHANTS": the elephant is on the brief, so a pink elephant appears in the corner of the canvas. The fix, by the middle: you pin what you want instead, "A HARBOUR AT DUSK, BOATS ONLY", and the canvas fills with boats. The why: a "don't" still puts the thing in the room; a "do" fills the room with something else.