What comes to mind when you hear AI?
Chatbots, essay prompts or is it a “no-go” topic in your mind?
We’re talking about it so you’re aware of the areas of life where it’s impacting you and so you can make good decisions as you engage with it.
First up, what is AI?
Merriam-Webster defines AI as “the capability of computer systems or algorithms to imitate intelligent human behavior”.
The Cambridge Dictionary defines it as “the use or study of computer systems or machines that have some of the qualities that the human brain has, such as the ability to interpret and produce language in a way that seems human, recognize or create images, solve problems, and learn from data supplied to them.”
You could say: AI replicates humans by using existing information to create content and problem-solve.
1. AI can create echo chambers.
Do you ever find your social feeds are full of the same kind of content a lot or some of the time? This is because AI is analysing the content you are looking at and serving more and more of the same. AI will continue to deliver content more and more bespoke to your interests.
This is ok for most content; however, for some topics (like politics or views of particular groups of people) it can create a digital echo chamber, where you only hear one point of view, and your views are reinforced without challenge.
Misinformation could lead to extreme views, to radicalisation, misogyny, racial hatred, homophobia or more. You get the picture.
You can work against social media echo chambers by:
- not believing everything you see or read;
- getting your news from a range of sources;
- following a range of accounts to break out of your echo chamber – confuse the algorithms!
Takeaway point: be sure to leave your digital echo chamber.
2. AI can be a useful prompt or time-saving device – but don’t let it do all the thinking for you!
Want to create a low-budget meal plan that isn’t just a bowl of pasta and cheese? Ask AI (e.g. ChatGPT). Tell it what you’re looking to do and it’ll write you some suggestions.
But when it comes to writing your essay – that’s your remit. AI could offer you some pointers but don’t get AI to write your essay for you. AI might write your essay for you but what are the risks?
On one hand, that’s a straight-up Assessment Offence and you’ll get a 0 when that’s noted by the marker, you’re pulled up before an Assessment Offence panel; and you may fail a core module and have to leave your course.
On the other hand: what’s the point?! You’ve worked hard to get to uni, to get an education in a subject you love – why let AI do all the thinking for you? By over-using AI, you won’t have the benefit of the learning yourself and you won’t have the skills you need for your career – you might pass but will you have learnt?
When you’re in the workplace, you won’t have the knowledge you need – and there might be limitations on AI in your industry, so you won’t have it as a back-up. How will you evidence your knowledge in a job?
Delve into your subject, do the graft and feel the reward!
Takeaway point: AI is useful as a research tool but don’t rely on it too heavily. Don’t let a bot do your degree for you.
3. Don’t believe everything you see and read – AI is not 100% trustworthy.
Did you know that AI can produce “hallucinations”? Yep, that’s the technical word for AI making stuff up. A bit like a ropey Wikipedia page with misinformation, AI can make stuff up.
This can either be:
- Misinformation – wrong information.
Check the validity of what AI produces – if AI tells you something, find a source outside of AI to check that it’s true. Go to a national newspaper or another reliable source to check.
- AI can produce fake references.
AI can generate a reference that looks legit but is totally made up. Check, check, check!
- Fake imagery.
- Google Donald Trump AI hands and you’ll see what we mean. This is an example of a deepfake – an image which looks legit but it’s false. In this case, you can identify this by the fact that Trump has 6 fingers on his hands.
- You may have seen that TikTok released some AI-generated photos of Taylor Swift which crashed the platform.
- AI can produce an image from a text prompt; so be wary.
Takeaway point: question what you read and see.
4. Finally, sign up to one of our AI workshops.
The Library regularly run workshops you can attend online to give you an overview of the pros and cons of AI and how you can use it appropriately at university.
AI is everywhere, so make sure you know how to handle it.