How to Avoid ChatGPT's Forgetfulness and Decreasing Intelligence in Long Conversations

byDr_Dave

637 followers

1 year ago

Ever been in a long conversation with ChatGPT and felt like it’s messing with you? Maybe you’ve even been tempted to yell, “Why are you doing this to me, ChatGPT?!” or hit it with a few colorful words. Unfortunately, swearing at AI doesn’t actually make it smarter (trust me, I’ve tried). But don’t worry—there are better ways to keep your AI assistant sharp during long and complicated projects. In this article, we’ll explain why ChatGPT seems to lose its intelligence over time and show you how to keep it focused, even for complex topics like planning a trip to Mars.

Why Does ChatGPT Become Forgetful and Less Intelligent in Long Chats?

To understand why ChatGPT seems to “forget” or get less sharp as the conversation goes on, it helps to know how it processes information:

• Token Limit: ChatGPT can only handle a certain amount of information, known as tokens, in a single conversation. As the chat gets longer, it discards older tokens to make room for new ones, which is why it seems forgetful.
• Context Dilution: As more information piles up in a conversation, ChatGPT tries to juggle all the details, but sometimes it starts to fumble. This can make it seem like the AI is giving less coherent or even less intelligent answers.
• Decreasing Intelligence: As the conversation lengthens, ChatGPT might not just forget—it can also start to feel a little less sharp, offering responses that are more generic or off-topic. This happens because it’s trying to balance all the context while keeping up with your new inputs.

Practical Solutions to Prevent ChatGPT’s Forgetfulness and Decreasing Intelligence

When writing long-form or complex articles, like “How to Plan a Trip to Mars,” here’s how you can prevent ChatGPT from losing its focus (and save yourself the frustration of yelling at it):

1. Break Your Project into Subtopics (Using Multiple Chats) Instead of overwhelming ChatGPT with everything at once, break your project into smaller, focused subtopics, each in its own chat. For example:This way, ChatGPT can focus on one thing at a time, which keeps it sharp and prevents it from losing track of earlier details.
2. • Transportation (e.g., propulsion systems)
   • Life Support (e.g., managing air, water, and food systems)
   • Crew Selection (e.g., psychological traits for long-duration space missions)
2. Summarize Key Points Frequently As you move from one subtopic to another, summarize what you’ve discussed so far. For example:
   “In our last discussion, we concluded that nuclear propulsion is the best option for Mars travel. Now, let’s move on to life support systems.”
   This helps carry the conversation forward without overwhelming ChatGPT with too much context.
3. Use Recaps When Revisiting Topics If you need to return to a topic after discussing other things, provide a brief recap to get ChatGPT back on track. For example:
   “Earlier, we talked about using nuclear propulsion for Mars travel. Let’s now consider how long that system would take to get to Mars.”
   This keeps things organized, so ChatGPT doesn’t have to remember every detail of the entire conversation.
4. Split Complex Subtopics into Smaller Chats If a subtopic is too complex, split it into smaller parts, each in its own chat. For example, within "Transportation," you might further break it down into:This helps ChatGPT handle each chunk of information without getting overwhelmed.
5. • Propulsion systems
   • Fuel efficiency
   • Safety concerns for long-distance space travel

Handling Good Information Generated Earlier

If ChatGPT starts forgetting things or its responses get weaker, don’t panic—you don’t need to abandon all the good stuff from earlier conversations. Here’s how to handle it:

• Keep Notes in an External Document: Copy and paste key points or summaries into a separate document (like Word or Google Docs) so you can easily refer back to them. This way, even if ChatGPT forgets, you don’t have to.
• Recap Key Points When Starting a New Chat: When starting a fresh chat, bring in the important takeaways from earlier discussions. For example:
  “We concluded earlier that nuclear propulsion is the best option for our Mars mission. Now let’s talk about the fuel efficiency of that system.”
  This ensures you build on earlier insights without worrying about ChatGPT forgetting the details.

Integrating Subtopics into One Coherent Article

Once you’ve completed each subtopic, you’ll need to pull everything together into one article. Here’s how to do it:

1. Cut and Paste Key Content into One Document: As you work through each subtopic, copy the important sections into a master document. This way, you have everything organized in one place.
2. Ask ChatGPT to Integrate the Subtopics: Once you have all the content ready, ask ChatGPT to help you integrate it into a single article. For example:
   “Here are the key points from several discussions on planning a trip to Mars. Can you help me integrate these into a single coherent article?”
   Make sure to give it instructions on the order you’d like the topics covered.
3. Review and Edit for Consistency: Review the integrated article for consistency in tone and flow. You may need to adjust transitions between sections or ask ChatGPT to help smooth them out.

Advanced Tips for Efficiency

1. Use Clear, Specific Prompts: Always ask clear, specific questions. Instead of “Tell me about transportation to Mars,” ask, “What are the most fuel-efficient propulsion technologies for a Mars mission, and how do they compare in travel time?”
2. Set Goals for Each Chat: At the start of each chat, set a specific goal. For example, “In this chat, I want to explore the psychological traits needed for astronauts on long-term missions.” This keeps ChatGPT focused.
3. Reset When Drift Occurs: If ChatGPT starts losing track or giving less intelligent responses, start a new chat with a recap of key points to get it back on track.

Conclusion: While it might be tempting to curse at ChatGPT or ask, "Why are you doing this to me?" when it forgets something, there are better ways to keep the conversation productive. By splitting your project into subtopics, summarizing key points, and using multiple chats, you can prevent the AI from becoming forgetful (or less intelligent) and ensure a smooth workflow. Whether you’re planning a trip to Mars or tackling another big project, these strategies will help you keep your cool and get the most out of ChatGPT—without having to yell at it.