The Sum and the Sun of AI
Recently, I asked AI how far the sun was and it told me it was 93 million miles away. The answer was cold and clinical, but it also gave me other information, more than I could handle, or even use. It told me that 93 million miles was one astronomical unit. There was then a paragraph which told me what an astronomical unit was, and then another, and then a ‘more’ button for even more knowledge in which to drown meself. But all I could think was, how far really is 93 million miles? If it were, say 98 million miles away would it make any difference?
I then thought of my old friend, the poet. How would he answer this question? I took an imaginary walk down the bright sunlit road that led to his house and knocked on his door. It was almost afternoon but it took him a long time to answer. I could hear him slowly shuffling towards the door, and finally it swung open and there he stood bleary eyed, tousled hair, and that look of irritation that softened slightly when he saw me standing there hungry for an answer. “How far away is the sun really?” I threw it at him before he could bite.
He stared at me incredulously, and said “so far away that you can’t reach it, and as far away as you should be from this place at this unearthly hour!” Having dropped those pearls, he slammed the door shut right in my face. It immediately broke into a grin. There was no second chance, no opportunity for more, and the answer came begging a question. Why really did I want to know how far away the sun was?
I walked back to my laptop, back down the winding sunlit road. I was still curious and had to try once more. “How would a poet answer this question?” I typed. I did not have to wait long for a door to open. It spat out immediately “A poet might answer not with a number, but with an image or a feeling, describing the distance as a bridge of light or a golden tether. They might say that the sun is exactly one heartbeat of longing away, or that it sits just far enough to keep us from burning, yet close enough to wake the seeds in the soil.”
There was another paragraph. And then another. And then a cryptic button to switch the model. And another to extend the reasoning. I couldn’t take it any more. I had no patience to play around wih other prompts. My inane questions were contributing to burning out the electricity grid somewhere, or increasing global warming somehow, and what not else.
Realizing that I would rather live with imnperfect grammar and angry poets, I slammed the laptop shut. The sun was too far up in the sky to really bother with. It would set and rise and do its own thing.
Mandatory plug: This post was written using AI but only as exactly described. Did it engage you? Human-created content generally does. Also, this freelancer is available for more serious projects that get your buisness’ marketing message out to a market drowning in AI content, in a more human way. If that fits what you are looking for, do reach out!
Posted by: Charlie Published: 26th August 2026
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