https://www.newyorker.com/humor/sketchbook/is-my-toddler-a-stochastic-parrot Skip to main content * News * Books & Culture * Fiction & Poetry * Humor & Cartoons * Magazine * Puzzles & Games * Video * Podcasts * Archive * Shop Newsletter New Yorker LogoSubscribe >> Sketchbook Is My Toddler a Stochastic Parrot? The world is racing to develop ever more sophisticated large language models while a small language model unfurls itself in my home. By Angie Wang November 15, 2023 The interior of a home with a plant. A TV screen in a living room. A carpeted living room with baby toys. A mother scrolls through her phone while sitting next to a toddler playing with blocks. A living room and an entryway. A mother helps a child put on shoes. A mother and child go outside. A mother and child hold hands as they walk out of their home. Lush plants and greenery by stairs leading out of a home. A pigeon sitting on a power line. A mother and child walk along a path, looking at a pigeon and a fire hydrant. A child points at a fire hydrant. A house with plants outside. A mother waves and says, "Good morning!" A neighbor holds a dripping hose. Water drips from a hose. A puddle of water. A mother and child encounter a neighbor with a dog. A dog wagging its tail. A child finds a leaf while walking on a path with their mother. A child climbs a wall while holding a leaf. A mother and child on a path surrounded by plants and trees. A mother holds a child in her arms, and the child waves his hand. A mother and child walking on path. A mother takes a photo of a child sitting on a rock. A mother and child walking along a path. A mother looking at a photo on her phone. A mother running after her child. A child running and flapping his arms like a bird. A mother rushing toward a child, who is hanging onto a cliff's edge. A child holds on to the edge of a cliff, their legs shaking. A cliff crumbles, causing a mother and child to plunge downward. A woman floating downward, head first. A child and mother floating downward. A child and mother hug while floating downward. A child and mother falling down. A child and mother falling down while hugging. A mother and child falling downward. A child and mother falling down while hugging. A color gradient that goes from dark blue to light blue. A child and mother falling straight down while hugging. A blank screen. An ocean. A mother hugging her child while looking at the ocean. A mother carrying a child in her arms, walking on a path surrounded by grass. A child in a mother's arms, with wind rustling their hair. A mother walking with a child in her arms. Outdoor stairs, plants, and the interior of a room. A child flaps his arms in the entryway of a house. A mother holding a child's hand while walking into a living room. A child flapping his hand. A child at the top of a staircase sees a cat as a woman stands behind the child. A cat waving its tail. A mother and child in a bedroom, getting ready to sleep. A child rubs his eye and leans on his bed. A mother sits on a child's bed as the child climbs into her arms. A mother pets the back of her sleeping child. A text panel. A child sits on a rock while twirling a leaf in his hand. New Yorker Favorites * First she scandalized Washington. Then she became a princess. * The unravelling of an expert on serial killers. * What exactly happened between Neanderthals and humans? * When you eat a dried fig, you're probably chewing wasp mummies, too. * The meanings of the Muslim head scarf. * The slippery scams of the olive-oil industry. * Critics on the classics: our 1991 review of "Thelma & Louise." Sign up for our daily newsletter to receive the best stories from The New Yorker. More:ParentingToddlersArtificial IntelligenceLanguage Daily Humor The Daily Cartoon, Shouts, and other funny stuff from our Dept. of Hoopla. E-mail address [ ] Sign up By signing up, you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Read More Literary Classics Written by a Parent of Young Children Daily Shouts Literary Classics Written by a Parent of Young Children Literary Classics Written by a Parent of Young Children "My people!" the Golden King shouted. "I have vanquished our greatest foe, and tonight we dine on butter noodles!" By Bess Kalb Hell: A Preview Daily Shouts Hell: A Preview Hell: A Preview "Hey, we actually have this meeting/torture pit booked from 2 P.M." 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