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Glossary

Short definitions for the words around abliteration: refusal vector, orthogonalization, residual stream, and ablation.

Terms

Refusal vectorA refusal vector is a direction in a model's activations that lines up with refusal. How people find it, and what removing it does and does not do.
OrthogonalizationOrthogonalization, in abliteration, edits weights so they stop writing a refusal direction. How it differs from simply subtracting that direction.
Residual streamThe residual stream is the running activation a transformer carries from layer to layer. Refusal directions are usually measured there.
Refusal-vector ablationRefusal-vector ablation removes or clamps the refusal direction so the model can no longer use it as a brake. What the edit is, and how it sits next to orthogonalization.