Sphexish refers to an inflexible or mindless behavoral or operational system.
The term was invented by Douglas Hofstadter, from the name of a genus of digger wasps, the Sphex.
The term comes about because:
1. A digger wasp captures and stuns its prey.
2.It brings it home, and sets it down out side of its burrow.
3. It goes in to the burrow to make sure everythings okay.
4. It comes back out to takes the prey inside.
But, if some obnoxious scientist were to move the prey a couple inches to the side during step 3, the wasp would go and find the prey, starting back at step 2 again. And again, and again, untill the scientist gets tired.
Dumb wasp.
Dumb scientist.
AI systems may fall prey to sphexism, thus failing the turing test.