It is impossible to imagine the life of a modern child without smartphones, wi-fi and social networks. Sometimes it seems like kids don't get to know the world at school or library, but on Google. This is neither bad nor good; this is just how an information funnel works now, which tends to drag on quickly and for a long time.
At the same time, it is impossible to argue with the fact that the Internet, various technologies and the companies that create them have made our lives more comfortable and mobile. The company told us about one of these technologies and how it can benefit your child Nanosemantics Laboratory — a specialist in the field of creating chatbots with artificial intelligence.
What is a chatbot
A chatbot (also known as a virtual consultant or assistant) is a computer program that can communicate with a person in natural language in one of the communication channels: a website, a messenger, a mobile application, a voice terminal, etc. Chatbots are usually used in dialogue systems for various practical purposes, including customer service or information collection.
Chatbots can be roughly divided into two types. Simple — they give an answer based on the keywords from the request, following a pre-defined “tree” of questions and answers. Even a child can make such a bot with the help of a special designer.
Only specialists who know programming languages (including python) and NLP (natural language processing) technology can make complex bots. For such a chatbot, many variants of dialogue scenarios are prescribed that form its knowledge base. Communication with such a system is as close to natural as possible, because it is able to take into account the context of the conversation and preserve the history of communication.
A little bit of history
Historically, the first chatbot is considered to be the ELIZA chatbot, created by Joseph Weizenbaum back in 1966. The program was a parody of a patient's conversation with a psychotherapist. For the most part, ELIZA simply rephrased the user's statements using the “active listening” technique. When she said, “I have a headache,” she said, “Why do you say you have a headache?” etc.
After Eliza, there were other chatbots. The most famous ones include Perry (a bot that learned independently through dialogue) and A.L.I.C.E. (a program that used the technique of heuristic comparison between a phrase and a knowledge base).
The next leap in the development of virtual conversations took place in 2011 with the advent of Apple's Siri. Siri's smart assistant communicates by voice, helps you search for information on the Internet, and manages some applications on iPhone smartphones. She understands English better than Russian, but she copes with simple tasks (like setting an alarm clock, tomorrow's weather, etc.).
Russia also has its own AI idol. In 2017, Yandex introduced Alice's smart assistant, the same Siri, only adapted for a Russian-speaking user. The virtual assistant is built into the company's various applications, as well as into Yandex.Station (smart speaker).
Chatbot applications and users differ from south to north. Of course, there are areas where their presence simplifies a number of processes as much as possible. For example, companies that serve a large number of customers use chatbots on their website or in messengers to answer frequently asked questions. But there are also situations in which bots will only be an extra link in the chain. Most often, these are unique user requests that are not answered in the bot's knowledge base. Why? Because you can't make a chatbot know everything! In a situation where the chatbot doesn't know what to answer and gets stuck, the best thing to do is to switch to a live person.
The benefits of a bot for a child
Nanosemantics believes that a chatbot can become a next-generation teacher. Many schools are already using electronic diaries and textbooks. Just imagine that a chatbot will be installed in a conditional “geography textbook” that can answer a question about a subject at any time, explain a term, or show you where Tuvalu is located on a map.
Nanosemantics Lab has made a selection of Telegram chatbots that can be useful for your child both for intelligence and relaxation.
Previously, in order to know a foreign language well, children studied additionally with tutors. Then there were various programs and applications that also helped to prepare for exams. They were followed by chatbots. For example, the @LennyEnglishBot chatbot, which will help you learn English. This is the perfect chatbot for expanding your vocabulary! You can learn up to 30 new words a day with it. Every day, the bot sends you a set of words formed along the Ebbinghaus forgetting curve.
Lenny's chatbot understands Russian and Spanish. He sends you the word, its translation, and the audio in the correct pronunciation. You mark words that are new to you, and then the bot asks for their meanings. You can set goals like 10,000 words in 3 months and track your progress.
And the @ThePirate_bot bot will help you improve your English grammar. When he determines your level, he will send you various tasks where you will need to insert a word. The downside of the bot is that it does not provide explanations, but will not skip any further until you choose the right answer that you will remember for sure.
If you are a resident of Moscow and love visiting libraries, the @MosBibliotekaBot chatbot will help you find the library closest to you, show you its opening hours and phone number. You can also get a list of the most popular books of the month and find out which libraries they are available in.
Do you love puzzles? @rebusbot has puzzles of varying difficulty levels for you and your child. Such puzzles are useful for children's intellectual development; they broaden their horizons, train thinking and logic.
And finally, a tank game! Not Wargaming, but it's also interesting. Your youngest son, who likes to play war games, will definitely like the “Tank Raid” quest in the Telegram bot @TanksGameBot. The main objective of the game is to defeat the enemy. Whether it works out or not depends on your answers.
The last thing I would like to add: whether chatbots learn how to understand a person better or not depends on the person himself. “Learning is light, and ignorance is darkness.” The more you give your child knowledge and opportunities to acquire it, the “brighter” the future of all humanity will be. And schools like Progkids turn the educational process into an exciting journey.
