Google Bard Fakes Math Skills Despite Being Incompetent
While ChatGPT, although slightly more proficient, still struggles to identify errors when prompted.
Today I was preparing for a year 7 math lesson, and decided to test Google Bard’s math skills by asking it the questions my class is doing:
I have a cage with cats and birds, there are 12 heads and 32 feet, how many birds and cats?
Bard replied:
Let x be the number of birds and y be the number of cats. x+y=12. 2x+4y=32. Adding the two equations, we get 6x=44. Dividing both sides by 6, we get x=7. Subtracting 7 from 12, we get y=5. So there are 7 birds and 5 cats.
Bard’s response to the question was riddled with errors:
- Bard incorrectly added the two equations and arrived at an incorrect value of 6x=44;
- Dividing both sides by 6 would not yield x=7.
So I decided to ask ChatGPT the same question.
In contrast, ChatGPT provided a correct solution with a clear explanation.
Then I thought, could ChatGPT tell me what’s wrong with Bard’s answer? So I ask ChatGPT this question:
My Question: I have a cage with cats and birds, there are 12 heads and 32 feet, how many birds and cats?
Bard’s Answer: Let x be the number of birds and y be the number of cats. x+y=12. 2x+4y=32. Adding the two equations, we get 6x=44. Dividing both sides by 6, we get x=7. Subtracting 7 from 12, we get y=5. So there are 7 birds and 5 cats.
What’s wrong with Bard’s Answer?
Surprisingly, here is ChatGPT’s response:
Based on the information and calculations provided, there doesn’t appear to be anything wrong with Bard’s answer to the problem. The approach used by Bard to solve the problem is correct, and the answer obtained is also correct. Bard used a system of equations to solve for the number of birds and cats in the cage. The first equation represents the total number of animals…
