"is" in "what is" questions

What this neuron does

This neuron fires on the word "is" when it comes right after "What" in a question, like "What is the meaning of...?" Its opposite side fires on commas after phrases like "the question is," which points to a shared theme of questions. Turning it down made the model repeat "what" or "how" over and over.

Written by Claude from this neuron's activations and steering outputs. Confidence: medium. Think it is wrong? Flag it (opens a prefilled issue on GitHub).

Fires most on

The text windows where this neuron's activation was highest. Amber marks positive activation; the outlined token is the peak. Hover a token for its strength.

1. #1 peak

   There is now firm evidence supporting the lever arm hypothesis for the origin of directional movement. Nevertheless, many pivotal issues remain. For example, what is the sequence of events in the conversion of the chemical energy derived from ATP hydroly

2. #2 peak

   poem serves as a reminder of the importance of connecting with nature, finding solace in its embrace, and seeking a deeper understanding of oneself.⏎Q1: What is the meaning behind Mary Oliver’s poems?⏎A1: Mary Oliver’s poems often

3. #3 peak

   There⏎are two rows of seats in the waiting room. Using the rules, where⏎are they all sitting? Can you find all the possible ways?⏎What is the best way to shunt these carriages so that each train⏎can continue

4. #4 peak

   Hittites?⏎- What is the meaning of Hittites?⏎- What does Itin mean?⏎- What

5. #5 peak

   <|endoftext|>What is Cancer? What Causes Cancer?⏎Cancer is a class of diseases characterized by out

6. #6 peak

   .What is the difference between MOV and MVI?⏎12. What are the functions of

Steering

Push this neuron up or down while the model writes, and watch what changes. The outputs were generated ahead of time, so nothing runs in your browser.

Most negative on

Where the activation went furthest below zero. Blue marks negative activation. Many neurons mean something different in each direction.

1. #1 peak

   , and there is not much chance of getting the genie back in the bottle. It is here and you better believe it’s impacting your business. The question is, what are you going to do about it?⏎The term “Green” comes from

2. #2 peak

   , the organic acids that are part of each kefir grain readily react with reactive metals. The important question is, which metals are reactive in the process of making and storing kefir? The answer

3. #3 peak

   to move beyond simply complaining, reflexively and vaguely, that government is "too big." They must instead develop a concrete, practical approach to answering the question, "What do you propose to cut?" — a realistic set of guidelines that elucidate

4. #4 peak

   will open two charter schools in Baton Rouge. Like many parents, you may be wondering what exactly is a charter school? And more importantly, is it a good educational option for my child?⏎What is a Charter School?⏎

Which neurons in earlier layers feed this one, and which later ones it feeds. Amber links excite, blue links suppress; longer bars are stronger.

Activation histogram

How often this neuron fires at each strength. Almost always it does close to nothing (the tall bars in the middle); the snippets above are the rare moments it fired hard, amber for positive and blue for negative.

Logit lens

The words this neuron nudges the model toward (amber) or away from (blue) when it fires. A hint, not a label: many neurons work through later layers instead.