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Student Guide to AI

A college student sitting at a table in a library with notebooks, textbooks, and a laptop, using AI resourcesWith the increasing use of AI, there are some important things to remember when you are using AI for course activities.

Remember:

  1. Check with your instructor on their AI use policies for every class.
  2. Remember, you need to verify the information, because some AI tools may make things up.
Attribution: Image created by Copilot

What is AI Good for?


 

BrainstormStudent brainstorming a topic

 

Ask AI to provide information related to a topic you might be interested in but are unfamiliar.

What is AI Good for?


 

Keywordsimage of AI generated keywords for climate change

 

Ask AI to assist you in narrowing topic ideas for a research paper or identify keywords for searching in library databases.

What is AI Good for?


 

Explaining/Concept Breakdowntwo college students with one with a laptop and one with a notebook showing understanding

 

AI can help you break down and understand a complex concept or assignment.

What is AI Good for?


 

Summarize/OutlineStudent writing summary on whiteboard

 

A number of AI tools can summarize or outline articles freely available online.
The library resource, JSTOR is currently testing an AI Interactive Research tool

What is AI Good for?


 

Ask QuestionsStudent brainstorming a topic

 

You can ask multiple questions without being judged.
**Be sure to fact check responses with non-AI sources
**Don't share any personal information.

What is AI Not so Good for?


 

HallucinationsAdobe firefly image of Paris, Texas showing the Eifel Tower by green grass and river

 

AI may make up credible-sounding citations to sources that do not exist, or give inaccurate information.

What is AI Not so Good for?


 

Not a Substitute for the Libraryscreenshot of library homepage

 

Several of our resources are integrating AI technology, but for now, it is best to use the Library's Enterprise One Search or one of the Library's Databases

What is AI Not so Good for?


 

Paywall Contentdecorative image depicting dollar sign on laptop screen

 

Most AI tools including literature search tools such as Research Rabbit or Elicit do not have access to the full range or full text of articles that are behind a paywall.

**Using the library resources will give access to millions of articles that are not currently available to AI tools.

What is AI Not so Good for?


 

Ethics, Privacy, Environmental impact

 

There has been a lot of conversation about AI limitations related to ethics, privacy, bias, labor and environmental impact.

What is AI Not so Good for?


 

Out Dated/Limited Datasets

 

AI tools can only produce results based on the data they have been trained on. Some free AI tools do not currently include current events and may only reference datasets prior to 2022.

What is AI Not so Good for?


 

Incorrect Response

 

Asking for any information that would have dire consequences if it was incorrect (such as health, financial, legal advice, and so on). This is because of AI's tendency to sometimes make up answers, but still sound very confident