"So how much am I going to out myself about how much artificial intelligence I use every day?” Lyda McCartin, Ph.D., director of the School of Information Science, begins by reluctantly answering a question about the extent of her AI usage in her everyday life.
When asked about usage of AI, it’s important to note that this new wave of technology is something many people are suspicious of.
AI, specifically in a collegiate setting, can be a particularly difficult conversation. McCartin touches on ways she believes schools should be working with AI, “Why don’t we think about how it can help students start a project? Or instead of being upset that ChatGPT can answer exam questions, why don’t we think about rewriting exam questions?”
“If AI can answer the question, maybe we’re asking the wrong question,” says McCartin.
McCartin explains the lack of creativity unveiled by AI and how it’s a potential threat to students. She mentions Sabrina Habib, Ph.D., who teaches the CIC’s creative thinking class, explaining that when brainstorming, you stop at the first idea and don’t go beyond that. However, if it’s the first idea, it’s probably not a creative idea. “You kind of have to think beyond the AI as human who is bringing in lived experience,” McCartin says.
Alamir Novin, Ph.D. pioneers AI at the iSchool with many initiatives to incorporate AI in the iSchool and the AI Lab is the biggest.
The AI and AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) Lab researches experiments with AI simulations in interdisciplinary collaborations with the academic community.
The lab is partnered with Interpares, a major international research initiative, allowing it to be networked with over 50 universities across six continents. The lab also partners with MethodsAGI’s simulation software giving researchers assistance in their experiment in their AI learning and cognition experiments.
The CIC Biometrics and User Experience Lab cooperates with the AI lab, enabling experiments on human biological responses to AI.
Finally, the AI and AGI Lab works with the college's Social Media Insights Lab allowing experiments on the interactions between AI and society using big data compiled by the Social Media Lab.
McCartin explains the importance of the mix of undergraduate and graduate students working together. “It’s a faculty led thing, but student-driven.”
An AI in society course is in development for the iSchool. “That’s really going to be exploring these questions around the technology and its impact on people, and what it means for how it’s impacting humans,” McCartin says. In addition, there is an AI track through the schools bachelor’s program. Essentially, if you major in information science you can do an AI in society track.
From a broad standpoint, McCartin thinks the conversation about AI is still in its beginning stages. She believes that there will be many conversations around policy and cyber ethics, and updating and controlling the university’s standpoint on those will remain consistent.
“So the question about it becoming something bigger than this … the AI conversation will evolve with the technology,” McCartin noted. “We’ll see both positive and negative impacts, deepening our understanding. There may be more challenges before widespread benefits, but that’s typical with transformative tech. We’ll need to stay vigilant and adaptable as AI takes shape.”