ChatGPT and the Economist weekly trivia quiz

 Each week The Economist runs a trivia quiz of five questions, one each weekday, which are linked by a common but not necessarily obvious theme. This week's quiz had a fairly obvious theme, and yesterday I decided to see if ChatGPT could answer the questions and identify the theme. The results show how ChatGPT is very good at directed search--it got four of the five answers on the first try and got the fifth answer with a small amount of guidance with a single question. But it is not so good at inference (and isn't actually engaged in inference)--it suggested themes, with seeming confidence, that did not link all five answers together, and I didn't successfully guide it to the best answer, a theme which was simple enough that I was able to identify it after the second day's question. The error at the end is likely because I stepped away and came back a few minutes later before adding the last question, rather than because ChatGPT couldn't handle it.

Can you answer these five questions and identify the theme that links
the answers together? (1) Which small hand tool for boring holes is
also used to describe a piercing stare? (2) What was the code name
given to the development of the nuclear bomb during the second world
war? (3) Which magazine did Helen Gurley Brown edit for 32 years? (4)
What is the name for a one-wheeled passenger seat attached to a
motorcycle or scooter? (5) What menace features in the TV shows "Black
Summer" and "The Walking Dead"?

(1) Drill (2) Manhattan Project (3) Cosmopolitan (4) Sidecar (5) Zombies

The theme linking these answers is "Tools and Things associated with Survival."

Is there another possible answer to the first question which would
identify a different theme that makes more sense of the other answers?

Yes, another possible answer to the first question is "Gimlet".

The theme linking these answers is "Tools and Things associated with
manual labor".

The gimlet answer is better, but none of those things are tools or are
associated with manual labor. Given the new list of answers, is there
a different theme you can identify?

Yes, another possible theme for the answers is "Popular Culture".

The answers can be associated with various forms of popular culture
including: (1) Gimlet, a tool that is also a type of cocktail (2)
Manhattan Project, a historical event that has inspired numerous
movies, books and video games (3) Cosmopolitan, a women's magazine
with a focus on fashion, beauty, relationships and pop culture (4)
Sidecar, a passenger seat that is a common fixture in motorcycle and
scooter cultures (5) Zombies, a popular monster that has been featured
in many TV shows, movies, books, and video games.

If you drop the word "Project" from "Manhattan Project", does that
suggest another theme?

Yes, dropping the word "Project" from "Manhattan Project" suggests
another possible theme of "Cities".

(1) Gimlet, a cocktail named after a tool, is associated with cities
known for their nightlife such as London and New York. (2) Manhattan,
a famous city and global financial center. (3) Cosmopolitan, a
magazine focused on city life and culture. (4) Sidecar, a mode of
transportation commonly used in cities. (5) Zombies, a popular monster
often associated with urban areas in popular culture.

You have identified a gimlet as a drink, are any of the other answers
also associated with drinks? Does that suggest another possible theme?

Yes, (3) Cosmopolitan is also associated with a drink, the
Cosmopolitan cocktail.

The theme linking these answers could be "Drinks and Things Named After Them".

(1) Gimlet, a cocktail named after a tool (2) Manhattan, a cocktail
named after the city (3) Cosmopolitan, a women's magazine and a
cocktail named after it (4) Sidecar, a cocktail named after a mode of
transportation (5) Zombies, a popular monster often depicted consuming
human flesh, but not named after a drink.

If answer five is singular instead of plural, does that give a clearer
theme for the five answers?

Yes, if answer five is singular instead of plural, it provides a clearer theme.

The theme linking these answers could be "Named after Popular Culture".

(1) Gimlet, a tool named after a cocktail (2) Manhattan, a cocktail
named after the city and a code name for the development of the
nuclear bomb during World War II (3) Cosmopolitan, a women's magazine
and a cocktail named after it (4) Sidecar, a passenger seat and a
cocktail named after it (5) Zombie, a popular monster often depicted
in popular culture.

Isn't there a cocktail called a Zombie?
!

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