Prompt engineering basics in AI

Prompt engineering is the art and science of designing effective prompts for artificial intelligence systems. A prompt is a set of instructions, keywords, examples, or queries that guides the AI system to perform a specific task or generate a desired output. Prompt engineering is essential for leveraging the power and potential of AI systems, especially those based on large-scale language models. In this blog post, I will introduce some of the basics of prompt engineering, such as: - How to formulate clear and concise prompts that specify the input and output formats, the task objective, and the evaluation criteria. - How to use natural language, symbols, or special tokens to communicate with the AI system and control its behavior. - How to provide relevant and diverse examples or demonstrations to help the AI system learn from human feedback and preferences. - How to test and debug the prompts using different methods, such as paraphrasing, probing, or adversarial attacks. - How to optimize the prompts for efficiency, accuracy, and creativity using various techniques, such as fine-tuning, pruning, or augmenting. By the end of this blog post, you will have a better understanding of how to engineer effective prompts for AI systems and how to use them for various applications and domains. You will also learn some of the challenges and limitations of prompt engineering and how to overcome them. So let's get started! What are some examples of prompts? Prompts can take many forms and formats depending on the type and complexity of the task, the data and model available, and the desired outcome. Here are some examples of prompts for different tasks: - Text summarization: Given a long text, write a short summary that captures the main points and key information. For example: Text: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruptions to global health, economy, and society. Millions of people have been infected and died from the novel coronavirus, while billions more have suffered from lockdowns, social distancing, and economic hardships. The pandemic has also exposed the fragility and inequality of many systems and institutions, such as health care, education, and governance. The pandemic has also highlighted the need for global cooperation, solidarity, and innovation to overcome the crisis and build a more resilient and sustainable future. Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic is a global crisis that has impacted health, economy, and society in unprecedented ways. It has revealed the weaknesses and gaps of many systems and institutions, as well as the importance of global collaboration and innovation. ``` - Text classification: Given a text, assign it to one or more categories based on its content or sentiment. For example: ``` Text: I love this movie! It's so funny and heartwarming. The actors are amazing and the plot is hilarious. I highly recommend it to anyone who needs a good laugh. Category: Positive - Machine translation: Given a text in one language, translate it into another language while preserving its meaning and style. For example: Text: Bonjour, je m'appelle Pierre et je viens de France. Translation: Hello, my name is Pierre and I come from France. ``` - Question answering: Given a text and a question about it, provide a short answer that is accurate and relevant. For example: ``` Text: The Eiffel Tower is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Constructed from 1887 to 1889 as the entrance to the 1889 World's Fair, it was initially criticised by some of France's leading artists and intellectuals for its design, but it has become a global cultural icon of France and one of the most recognisable structures in the world. Question: When was the Eiffel Tower completed? Answer: 1889 ``` - Sentiment analysis: Given a text, determine its emotional tone or attitude. For example: ``` Text: This book is amazing! It's full of suspense, mystery, and romance. The characters are well-developed and the plot is captivating. I couldn't put it down until I finished it. Sentiment: Positive ```