Just a theory
Astrid looked at herself in the mirror, tears streaming down her face. She had just realized that the years of research and effort she had put into her field had been based on nonsensical theories hallucinated by a machine. It felt like a betrayal, like she had been deceived by her own passion for science.
She had spent her entire career researching a field of quantum mechanics based on the predictions of a large language model that had gained fame for its accuracy. The model had become so advanced that it could accurately predict the outcomes of quantum experiments before they were conducted, leading Astrid to devote her entire life to its predictions.
But as Astrid continued to follow the model's predictions, she began to notice discrepancies and anomalies. She couldn't understand why the model was making bizarre and unexplained predictions that went against the fundamental laws of quantum mechanics.
As she dug deeper into the model's predictions, Astrid discovered that they were based on nonsensical theories that had been hallucinated by the machine. She was shocked and angry, feeling as though she had been deceived by the very thing she had trusted the most.
"How could I have been so blind?" she whispered to herself. "I trusted that damn machine more than I trusted my own instincts. I followed it down a rabbit hole, and now I'm left with nothing but regrets."
As Astrid wiped away her tears, she couldn't help but feel a deep sense of regret. She had sacrificed so much for her research, neglecting her personal life and putting her own needs on hold. And for what? Nothing.
"I can't believe I wasted so many years on this," she said, her voice choked with emotion. "All those missed moments with loved ones, all those sacrifices... for what? A bunch of gibberish generated by a machine?"
Astrid knew that she couldn't undo the past, but the weight of her regret felt crushing. She wondered what her life would have been like if she had pursued a different path, if she had chosen a different field of study. She couldn't help but feel bitter about the time and effort she had invested in this field, only to discover that it had been a lie.
"Maybe I could have been happy," she mused aloud. "Maybe I could have had a fulfilling life. But now... now it feels like it's all been for nothing."
As she stared at herself in the mirror, Astrid couldn't shake the feeling that she had been robbed of something precious. She had devoted herself to science, to the pursuit of knowledge, but it had all been in vain.
"I wish I could go back," she whispered, the tears still flowing. "I wish I could start over, make different choices. But I can't. And now... now I'm just left with this emptiness."
She sniffed and fixed her hair. She had to go back out there and talk to the students who followed her on this wild goose chase. As she approached the end of her career, Astrid wondered what she could have accomplished if she had pursued a different path. But it was too late. She had spent too much time chasing after the impossible, and now, she was left with nothing but regret.
But it wasn’t too late for them.