Tag Archives: education

ChatGPT Use Linked to Memory Loss, Procrastination in Students – Futurism

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You won't always have an AI chatbot in your pocket... right? Brain Drain

New research has found a worrying link to memory loss and tanking grades in students who relied on ChatGPT, in an early but fascinating exploration of the swift impact that large language models have had in education.

As detailed in a new studypublished in the International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, the researchers surveyed hundreds of university students ranging from undergrads to doctoral candidates over two phases, using self-reported evaluations. They were spurred on by witnessing more and more of their own students turn to ChatGPT.

"My interest in this topic stemmed from the growing prevalence of generative artificial intelligence in academia and its potential impact on students," study co-author Muhammad Abhas at the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences in Pakistan told PsyPost. "For the last year, I observed an increasing, uncritical, reliance on generative AI tools among my students for various assignments and projects I assigned."

In the first phase, the researchers collected responses from 165 students who used an eight-item scale to report their degree of ChatGPT reliance. The items ranged from "I use ChatGPT for my course assignments" to "ChatGPT is part of my campus life."

To validate those results, they also conducted a more rigorous "time-lagged" second phase, in which they expanded their scope to nearly 500 students, who were surveyed three times at one to two week intervals.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the researchers found that students under a heavy academic workload and "time pressure" were much more likely to use ChatGPT. They observed that those who relied on ChatGPT reported more procrastination, more memory loss, and a drop in GPA. And the reason why is quite simple: the chatbot, however good or bad its responses are, is making schoolwork too easy.

"Since ChatGPT can quickly respond to any questions asked by a user," the researchers wrote in the study, "students who excessively use ChatGPT may reduce their cognitive efforts to complete their academic tasks, resulting in poor memory."

There were a few curveballs, however.

"Contrary to expectations, students who were more sensitive to rewards were less likely to use generative AI," Abbas told PsyPost, suggesting that those seeking good grades avoided using the chatbot out of fear of getting caught.

It's possible that the relationship between ChatGPT usage and its negative effects is bidirectional, notes PsyPost. A student may turn to the chatbot because they already have bad grades, and not the other way around. It's also worth considering that the data was self-reported, which comes with its own biases.

That's not to exonerate AI, though. Based on these findings, we should be wary about ChatGPT's role in education.

"The average person should recognize the dark side of excessive generative AI usage," Abbas told Psypost. "While these tools offer convenience, they can also lead to negative consequences such as procrastination, memory loss, and compromised academic performance."

More on AI: Google's AI Search Caught Pushing Users to Download Malware

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Universities build their own ChatGPT-like AI tools – Inside Higher Ed

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When ChatGPT debuted in November 2022, Ravi Pendse knew fast action was needed. While the University of Michigan formed an advisory group to explore ChatGPTs impact on teaching and learning, Pendse, UMichs chief information officer, took it further.

Months later, before the fall 2023 semester, the university launched U-M GPT, a homebuilt generative AI tool that now boasts between 14,000 to 16,000 daily users.

A report is great, but if we could provide tools, that would be even better, Pendse said, noting that Michigan is very concerned about equity. U-M GPT is all free; we wanted to even the playing field.

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The University of Michigan is one of a small number of institutions that have created their own versions of ChatGPT for student and faculty use over the last year. Those include Harvard University, Washington University, the University of California, Irvine and UC San Diego. The effort goes beyond jumping on the artificial intelligence (AI) bandwagonfor the universities, its a way to overcome concerns about equity, privacy and intellectual property rights.

We need to talk about AI for good of course, but lets talk about not creating the next version of the digital divide.

Students can use OpenAIs ChatGPT and similar tools for everything from writing assistance to answering homework questions. The newest version of ChatGPT costs $20 per month, while older versions remain free. The newer models have more up-to-date information, which could give students who can afford it a leg up.

That fee, no matter how small, creates a gap unfair to students, said Tom Andriola, UC Irvines chief digital officer.

Do we think its right, in who we are as an organization, for some students to pay $20 a month to get access to the best [AI] models while others have access to lesser capabilities? Andriola said. Principally, it pushes us on an equity scale where AI has to be for all. We need to talk about AI for good of course, but lets talk about not creating the next version of the digital divide.

UC Irvine publicly announced their own AI chatbotdubbed ZotGPTon Monday. Deployed in various capacities since October 2023, it remains in testing and is only available to staff and faculty. The tool can help them with everything from creating class syllabi to writing code.

Offering their own version of ChatGPT allows faculty and staff to use the technology without the concerns that come with OpenAIs version, Andriola said.

When we saw generative AI, we said, We need to get people learning this as fast as possible, with as many people playing with this that we could, he said. [ZotGPT] lets people overcome privacy concerns, intellectual property concerns, and gives them an opportunity of, How can I use this to be a better version of myself tomorrow?

That issue of intellectual property has been a major concern and a driver behind universities creating their own AI tools. OpenAI has not been transparent in how it trains ChatGPT, leaving many worried about research and potential privacy violations.

Albert Lai, deputy faculty lead for digital transformation at Washington University, spearheaded the launch of WashU GPT last year.

WashUalong with UC Irvine and University of Michiganbuilt their tools using Microsofts Azure platform, which allows users to integrate the work into their institutions applications. The platform uses open source software available for free. In contrast, proprietary platforms like OpenAIs ChatGPT have an upfront fee.

A look at WashU GPT, a version of Washington Universitys own generative AI platform that promises more privacy and IP security than ChatGPT.

Provided/Washington University

There are some downsides when universities train their own models. Because a universitys GPT is based on the research, tests and lectures put in by an institution, it may not be as up-to-date as the commercial ChatGPT.

But thats a price we agreed to pay; we thought about privacy, versus what were willing to give up, Lai said. And we felt the value in maintaining privacy was higher in our community.

To ensure privacy is kept within a universitys GPT, Lai encouraged other institutions to ensure any Microsoft institutional agreements include data protection for IP. UC Irvine and UMichigan also have agreements with Microsoft that any information put into their GPT models will stay within the university and not be publicly available.

Weve developed a platform on top of [Microsofts] foundational models to provide faculty comfort that their IP is protected, Pendse said. Any faculty memberincluding myselfwould be very uncomfortable in putting a lecture and exams in an OpenAI model (such as ChatGPT) because then its out there for the world.

Once you figure out the secret sauce, its pretty straightforward.

It remains to be seen whether more universities will build their own generative AI chatbots.

Consulting firm Ithaka S+R formed a 19-university task force in September dubbed Making AI Generative for Higher Education to further study the use and rise of generative AI. The task force members include Princeton University, Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Chicago.

Lai and others encourage university IT officials to continue experimenting with what is publicly available, which can eventually morph into their own versions of ChatGPT.

I think more places do want to do it and most places havent figured out how to do it yet, he said. But frankly, in my opinion, once you figure out the magic sauce its pretty straightforward.

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Universities build their own ChatGPT-like AI tools - Inside Higher Ed

ChatGPT use linked to sinking academic performance and memory loss – Yahoo News UK

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ChatGPT use is linked to bad results and memory loss. (Getty Images)

Using AI software such as ChatGPT is linked to poorer academic performance, memory loss and increased procrastination, a study has shown.

The AI chatbot ChatGPT can generate convincing answers to simple text prompts, and is already used weekly by up to 32% of university students, according to research last year.

The new study found that university students who use ChatGPT to complete assignments find themselves in a vicious circle where they dont give themselves enough time to do their work and are forced to rely on ChatGPT, and over time, their ability to remember facts diminishes.

The research was published in the International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education. Scientists conducted interviews with 494 students about their use of ChatGPT, with some admitting to being "addicted" to using the technology to complete assignments.

The researchers wrote: "Since ChatGPT can quickly respond to any questions asked by a user, students who excessively use ChatGPT may reduce their cognitive efforts to complete their academic tasks, resulting in poor memory. Over time, over-reliance on generative AI tools for academic tasks, instead of critical thinking and mental exertion, may damage memory retention, cognitive functioning, and critical thinking abilities."

In the interviews, the researchers were able to pinpoint problems experienced by students who habitually used ChatGPT to complete their assignments.

The researchers surveyed students three times to work out what sort of student is most likely to use ChatGPT, and what effects heavy users experienced.

The researchers then asked questions about the effects of using ChatGPT.

Study author Mohammed Abbas, from the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences in Pakistan, told PsyPost: "My interest in this topic stemmed from the growing prevalence of generative artificial intelligence in academia and its potential impact on students.

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"For the last year, I observed an increasing, uncritical, reliance on generative AI tools among my students for various assignments and projects I assigned. This prompted me to delve deeper into understanding the underlying causes and consequences of its usage among them."

The study found that students who were results-focused were less likely to rely on AI tools to do tasks for them.

The research also found that students who relied on ChatGPT were not getting the full benefit of their education - and actually lost the ability to remember facts.

"Our findings suggested that excessive use of ChatGPT can have harmful effects on students personal and academic outcomes. Specifically, those students who frequently used ChatGPT were more likely to engage in procrastination than those who rarely used ChatGPT," Abbas said.

"Similarly, students who frequently used ChatGPT also reported memory loss. In the same vein, students who frequently used ChatGPT for their academic tasks had a poor grade average."

The researchers found that students who felt under pressure were more likely to turn to ChatGPT - but that this then led to worsening academic performance and further procrastination and memory loss.

The researchers suggest that academic institutions should be mindful that heavy workloads can drive students to use ChatGPT.

The researchers also said academics should warn students of the negative impact of using the software.

"Higher education institutions should emphasise the importance of efficient time management and workload distribution while assigning academic tasks and deadlines," they said.

"While ChatGPT may aid in managing heavy academic workloads under time constraints, students must be kept aware of the negative consequences of excessive ChatGPT usage."

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ChatGPT use linked to sinking academic performance and memory loss - Yahoo News UK

Russian roulette: the amazing history and further fate of the creator of Chatroulette – hi-Tech.ua

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21.12.10

It was on this home computer that Andrey wrote ChatRoulette in two days

In November 2009, a new entertainment appeared on the World Wide Web Chat Roulette. This is a video chat in which you can accidentally meet anyone an American fan, Chinese schoolgirls, an Indian poet For full communication in the chat, you need a video camera through which the interlocutor can see you. Next, everything is simple. Go to the site, click on the start button and see a random interlocutor on your screen. You have a few seconds to start chatting with him, or click on the next button and see another random face (sometimes its not a face at all, but something indecent, so dont let your children on this chat roulette).

One American user, talking about his experience working on ChatRoulette (www.Chatroulette.com), found it funny that in one session he was able to contemplate several people drinking liquor; two girls who were doing makeup; many guys who immediately switched as soon as they saw that I was not a girl; several girls who passed out as soon as they saw my face, and so on.

An ordinary schoolboy Andrei Ternovsky lives with his parents in an unremarkable 16-story building in a residential area of Moscow

Andrey Ternovsky, talking about the birth of the project, said that he is an ordinary teenager and knows what his peers love. The impetus for the creation of Chatroulette was video conferencing on Skype, where he often hung out with friends, but they quickly got bored with it. As Andrei himself said: Its boring when you know exactly who youre going to talk to. Having searched Google for a video chat that would work in random mode, Andrey did not find one, and was surprised. So he sat down and in two days wrote a program for the first version of Chatroulette on his old computer. In creating the site, he was helped by his knowledge of programming (he has been on the Internet since he was 11 years old and his father taught him something).

The name was also invented spontaneously just before this, Andrei watched the famous film The Deer Hunter. In it, prisoners of war played Russian roulette. The name for the newly created service was born by itself, by analogy.

At first, the service did not have advertising as such. Andrey showed it to his friends, but they began to criticize the site and said that no one would use it. But the guy did not despair he went to several forums and asked people to test the service, which is how he got the first 20 users. Then the audience began to double every day, and people started talking about the service in the virtual world. Popularity literally fell on his head. As Andrey himself says, I woke up one morning and saw all these articles about Chatroulette. I called my mother to come and take a look. At first she was very nervous and didnt understand what was happening, then she asked why I wasnt going to school today.

Real popularity came to Chatroulette almost immediately in February 2010, the site was talked about in the media of different countries. In the USA in the program Good Morning America and in the press (New York Times, New York Magazine), in the UK on Newsnight and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. In addition, the service was parodied in the cartoon South Park (season 14, episode You Have 0 Friends). And what do we see today? Now site traffic fluctuates between 0.5-1.5 million people per day (!). The numbers sound especially impressive compared to the starting 500 visitors.

Everyone finds their own way to use the site. For some it is a game, for others it is a whole unknown world, for others it is a way of meeting people. I think its great that such a simple thing can be useful to many, Andrey explained the reason for the popularity of his resource.

Media experts believe that the reason for the popularity may be the mesmerizing expectation of something unusual when you press the next button (although what you see on the screen at first can be shocking and almost crushing). Or this is entertainment of a new generation, incomprehensible to those who are accustomed to sorting information on the Internet and limiting themselves to certain boundaries.

Andrey plans to get an education, although he may put it off until later. Now he is engaged in programming, learning foreign languages and developing his brainchild

The American press is now comparing the Moscow schoolboy with nothing less than 25-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, founder of the Facebook network (www.facebook.com) and the youngest billionaire in the world. And popular American bloggers such as Asylum (http://theasylum.wordpress.com) and The Frisky (www.thefrisky.com) said that the site that Ternovsky came up with is their favorite since the advent of YouTube and even the holy grail of all internet entertainment.

But in the 11th grade of Moscow gymnasium No. 1519, the young talent has problems, despite the full support of his classmates and the sympathy of his teachers. The fact is that because of the site, Andrei has no time left to study, and since January he has stopped going to school. Whether he will receive a certificate is also a big question. This is due to the popularity of Chatroulette.com as soon as visitors began to arrive, the service required improvements. One day Andrei Ternovsky sat at the computer for almost two days.

So they are in no hurry to set him up as an example to other students. I think that Ternovsky is not acting very thoughtfully by betting only on this site, says one of the teachers. What if everyone gets bored with its development and people stop using this service? Who will he be then? He wont be able to get into university without a certificate. Colleagues confirm him: The boy is a very average student. He does not participate in Olympiads, much less in scientific projects. We think that among our guys there are those who will definitely become famous in the future.

Indeed, the gymnasium where Andrei studies is one of the best. A few years ago, a youth design bureau was opened here, where teachers from the Moscow Aviation Institute and the Design Bureau named after them come to give lectures. Sukhoi. Another pride of the director is the students, who last year received nine grants from the capital authorities of 30 thousand rubles each.

But can this amount be compared with the millions that can be offered to Ternovsky for the site, classmates say. They themselves learned about their friends success from the Internet: Although he is a very sociable, he is still a modest guy. He didnt boast about his success. We, of course, knew that he was making such a site; he worked on it almost all day long. He said he doesnt do it for money, but for fun.

Andrey became interested in computer programming at the age of 11, when his father gave him a computer. Mom recalls that even in elementary school, her son could give out a couple of computer terms. Computer science, as you might guess, was Andreis favorite subject in the gymnasium. Friends say that somewhere in the 7th or 8th grade, he himself made a computer virus and installed it on the school computer. True, I fixed everything later. He also helped the girls: he taught them how to hack passwords from boys email accounts. He doesnt have any bad habits, his classmates laugh.

In addition to programming, Andrey is interested in learning foreign languages. Now he is learning English and Chinese and plans to become a translator, although he has no plans to give up programming. True, Andrei is not yet thinking about finishing school according to him, he can postpone this in order to devote himself entirely to what he loves. But he is going to continue his education in any case probably, the opinion of conservative (as he himself claims) parents plays an important role here.

Like any large resource where visitors accumulate, trolls graze on Chatroulette. Often they just scare other users

Despite the fact that the rules of the resource prohibit the broadcast of indecent images, Chatroulette is often used by exhibitionists due to the lack of registration. A study of 2883 communication sessions showed that every eighth connection violates this particular point of the rules.

Andrey himself says that he wanted to create a fairly free, unmoderated resource, but some people take advantage of this and come to the site with disgusting intentions. And exhibitionism and voyeurism are prohibited in the rules. The system itself blocks violators, counting the number of times the Report button is pressed by those who do not like it.

However, this fashion continues. Some users make it a kind of sport out of counting naked people and body parts, then broadcast their statistics on the Internet.

By the way, one of the possible investors, Fred Wilson, among the shortcomings of the resource names sexual overtones, since the site is already filled with numerous exhibitionists and voyeurs, but they can show you not only naked parts of the body: someone will sing, someone will read poetry to -We urgently need to talk for life. The Internet is a huge space used by more than a billion people from all over the world. Chatroulette can become a very convenient way to travel on the Internet, allowing you to expand the possibilities of meeting and communicating between people, the businessman said in his blog (www.avc.com).

This pianist became a real star thanks to Chatroulette

Some celebrities claim to have used Chatroulette, such as Kelly Osbourne and Nicole Richie. There are those who were photographed on the site, but did not confirm their presence there for example, Paris Hilton, Ashton Kutcher, the pop-rock group Jonas Brothers and Jessica Alba. Although, as for the Jonas Brothers, they directly stated on their Twitter that all the personalities similar to them on Chatroulette are fakes.

Additionally, on February 27 at the Soundwave festival in Melbourne, Australia, Faith No More streamed their performance live on Chatroulette.

Another user named Merton used video chat as a platform for musical improvisation. Sitting at the piano, he played music to random video interlocutors, composing the theme and lyrics as he went.

A recording of improvisations on YouTube, posted by Merton on a specially created channel PianoChatImprov (www.youtube.com/user/PianoChatImprov), collected 1.3 million views in five days. The channel itself, on which the musician promised to post more videos, has collected over 45 thousand subscribers.

Little is known about Merton. He is self-taught and has not taken any music lessons. He also claims to be not multi-instrumentalist Ben Folds, whom he bears a slight resemblance to in appearance.

Business shark Fred Wilson is still one of the most likely investors in Chatroulette if Andrey agrees to new investments

Andrey admits that he has no entrepreneurial spirit. He had no idea that the project would bring him money. But when the service began to grow rapidly, the guy had to borrow $10 thousand from his parents, although he soon repaid the debt. At first, Andrey used AdSense (a contextual advertising service developed by Google). Then I worked with Mamboo.com for several weeks. Now the service, according to its creator, brings in about $1,500 a day.

Chatroulette employs 4 programmers, although the site does not have its own office. Andrey found all of them on the Internet, and one of them works in the USA, in Virginia, and the other in Belarus.

In addition, about 200 venture capital companies from Silicon Valley contacted Andrey. ChatRoulette has attracted the attention of businessmen and investors from all over the world, including giants such as Google, Skype and Facebook. In Russia, Andreys site is monitored by local trendsetters Yandex and Digital Sky Technology (http://dst-global.com/), whose founder and president, Yuri Milner, is the only Russian entrepreneur who owns a stake in Facebook. Yu. Milner (www.snob.ru/profile/about/5240) offered Ternovsky a deal to acquire a stake in ChatRoulette.

Another promising investor, Yuri Milner, also remains out of work for now. Andrey is currently thinking about the future of his service

However, Ternovsky has serious plans for the United States. The Internet is my world, my connection with the West. I dream of opening my own company in Silicon Valley, Andrei told the German magazine Der Spiegel. A few days after meeting with Yuri Milner, who claimed that the young man had more prospects in Russia than in the United States, Andrei still applied for an American visa to go to the United States for reconnaissance. He was invited to negotiations: American business angel, first Twitter investor Fred Wilson in New York, and the eVenture fund (www.eventureinternet.com) in San Francisco.

As Andrey says, his head is full of different ideas. He doesnt know if he wants to work for a well-known company. On the one hand, I would like to live in the USA for some time, and this requires money. I would like to work and develop my project at the same time. But Im not in a hurry to decide anything yet, since it may well be that Chatroulette will feed me too. I dont have any clearly thought out plan for life. Its all rather like some kind of crazy journey, he says. At the same time, the young man names the approximate cost of his project, which his friends from Silicon Valley guided him to, $50 million.

But Andrey developed a little intrigue around possible changes to the Chatroulette concept. Moreover, he does not say unequivocally whether these will be just partial innovations or a global change in concept. But he doesnt plan to leave his brainchild, even if the fashion for it passes: Nothing lasts forever, and I understand that people will get tired of roulette. When I feel a decline, I will change and improve the concept to support fashion.

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Russian roulette: the amazing history and further fate of the creator of Chatroulette - hi-Tech.ua

Free Speech or Hate Speech? | GW Today | The George Washington University – GW Today

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What are the free speech rights of university students? That was the first question posed by moderator Jeffrey Rosen, GW Law professor and president of the National Constitution Center, to a panel of George Washington University faculty experts on the First Amendment.

The webinar, Free Speech v. Hate Speech: First Amendment Scholars Discuss Where to Draw the Line in the Context of Higher Education, was held as part of the universitys plan for strengthening the GW community in challenging times, with the goal of fostering civil conversations about complex issues and emphasizing university policies.

The incoming inaugural Burchfield Professor of First Amendment and Free Speech Law, Mary-Rose Papandrea, began by noting that the First Amendment applies to public and not private universities, but private universities often look to the First Amendment principles for guidance. Under the First Amendment, she explained, some categories of speech receive no First Amendment protection, such as incitement of unlawful conduct, threats of violence, or giving material support to terrorists. But offensive speech and bad words are not carved out from the First Amendment. In a public university setting, however, there is some leeway for penalizing speech that would be otherwise protected. She suggested classrooms provide the best example of this.

When I ask a student to tell me the holding of a case, I actually want the holding of the case, and there is a wrong answer, Papandrea said. And if the student doesnt give me the correct answer, that will result in a lower grade in the class. Outside in the town square you can engage in false speech, incorrect speech, or misrepresentations and cannot be, as a general matter, punished by the government.

Most of the tensions surrounding free speech on campuses today, she added, arise when universities attempt to regulate the speech of faculty and students outside of the classroom.

Universities are the quintessential marketplace of ideas, Papandrea said, and we should be really concerned when the university starts making viewpoint-based speech restrictions outside of the classroom.

First Amendment: Does everything go?

In the view of Mary Anne Franks, Eugene L. and Barbara A. Bernard Professor in Intellectual Property, Technology and Civil Rights Law, free speech issues are clouded by unequal power relations, often resulting in protection of reckless speech for the majority but not for minorities. Franks proposes an alternative paradigm encouraging what she describes as fearless speech.

If we really want to talk about free speech, we actually need to get away from the First AmendmentI mean the kind of popularized version of the First Amendment which says everything goes, and you can never have any kind of intervention, Franks said.

People operating under this misconception, she added, argue that any kind of devaluation or nonplatforming constitutes censorship. That idea, she said, is pernicious.

When we think about what the First Amendment actually does, its not really telling us anything about free speech, Franks said. Its telling us about what the government cant do in certain contexts. And thats really useful to know, because the government has a lot of power that no individual has and because the kinds of measures it can take against you include the loss of your liberty. But I dont know that its such a good model for us as a private university. How much are we like a government? What we could be doing instead, and what I think successful universities do when they want to be marketplaces of ideas or spaces for intellectual, robust debate, is set standards. What are the good ideas? Whether an idea is controversial or noncontroversial is not the point.

Instead, Franks said, ideas should be well informed and argued eloquently. She argues in favor of a conscious curation of the best ideas that reflect the universitys values, expressed as persuasively as possible without threats of force or ad hominem attacks.

What is the kind of speech that a university could uniquely try to foster? she asked. What kind of space could it foster to become a forum where really difficult ideas get aired out in a way that is physically safe but also sophisticated? Im suggesting that we move toward fearless speech and critiques of current power structures, that we take notice of the fact that reality is a certain way. There are certain sensitivities to race and gender and class that we really need to have on our radar, if we want to make sure that people within the university space can speak equally.

Free speech at a private university

Dawn Nunziato, Pedas Family Professor of IP and Technology Law, agreed that the First Amendment is not necessarily the right one for every context.

At a private university like GW, we have the autonomy and the freedom and the duty to decide what kind of community we want to be, Nunziato said, and within certain bounds, what types of speech we want to protect and to not protect. Our speech policies are not governed by the First Amendment. So we dont need to protect hate speech in the same way that the First Amendment protects hate speech. We could draw the line very differently. And there are reasons why we should, and we should be very thoughtful about how we draw the line. We may choose to value inclusivity and belonging over the unfettered marketplace of ideas.

Under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Nunziato noted, GW has a responsibility to provide an educational environment free of discrimination.

Robust discussion and respectful listening

The panels discussion touched on the recent congressional hearings at which the presidents of three elite universities were criticized for saying that whether speech could be considered hate speech depends on context.

After pointing out that she didnt view it as incorrect to say that the answer to questions of free speech v. hate speech can depend on context, Papandrea noted examples of speech that should be protected, such as an antisemitic line spoken by a character in a play meant to condemn antisemitism. The same line spoken by a student marching across campus could be viewed as creating a hostile environment.

Franks, too, was sympathetic to the trio of university presidents, who may have been reacting to the charge that universities are a woke paradise for snowflakes who require trigger warnings.

The most upsetting thing about the spectacle is not any of those presidents answers, Franks said. It was the fact that the spectacle was happening at alla real invocation and revitalization of a McCarthyesque kind of moment, with legislators who have made it clear that antisemitism and white supremacy are things that they either dont have a problem with or actively support. It was a really grotesque spectacle, she added, a bad faith attempt to attack diversity.

If we object to the First Amendments protection of vile speech in the public square, Nunziato said, we take that up with the Supreme Court, which defines the First Amendments protections. But whether vile speech should be restricted in the university environment is a different question, she added.

Balancing robust, sometimes caustic and heated discussion on issues of public importance against the legal obligations that we have to protect our community members from discriminatory harassment, Nunziato said, is an important part of what we do as a university.

Being part of a university community, Nunziato said, presents a unique opportunity to interact more thoughtfully than people do on social media.

Our University Yard and the quad are spaces where there may be protesters and counter-protesters, but we can be there together, Nunziato said, and engage in speech and counterspeech, unlike in some of the online environments where we have egregious problems of information silos and people going down rabbit holes. In the university environment, were all on our phones and on social media, but were also in spaces where we can engage with one another. Maybe were raising our voices, but we can listen to one another. One of the principles in our code of conduct is that members of the university community are urged to hear all sides of controversial issues.

In closing remarks, Rosen quoted Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, who argued that the correct remedy for harmful speech is more speech, not enforced silence. Only an emergency can justify repression.

The concluding webinar, Rosen said, was a model of the kind of robust discussion and respectful listening that Brandeis advocated.

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Civic Nebraska hosts AI and democracy summit at UNL ahead of legislative hearing – Nebraska Examiner

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LINCOLN Just days before lawmakers consider the possible impacts of artificial intelligence on Nebraskas upcoming elections, at least one state senator says the conversations are just beginning.

State Sen. Tom Brewer, who represents north-central Nebraska, joined Civic Nebraskas community forum Saturday on AI and democracy, stating bluntly that AI is scary and that multiple University of Nebraska professors, who detailed possible impacts of the technology, scared the hell out of me.

Theyre talking about things that if you stop, pause and think about, how do you stop it? Brewer told a group of about three dozen people at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Heidi Uhing, director of public policy for Civic Nebraska, moderated the event. She pointed to January robocalls using President Joe Bidens voice to trick voters ahead of the New Hampshire primary. In 5,000 AI-generated calls, people were discouraged from voting.

That was sort of the first shot over the bow when it comes to artificial intelligence used in our elections, Uhing said.

Brewer, a two-time Purple Heart recipient who chairs the Legislatures Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, suggested lawmakers come together to learn more about AI after the 2024 session and after the May primary election to examine whether there are any issues.

He suggested that the Government and Judiciary Committees should investigate AI, possibly providing momentum to propel 2025 legislation up the food chain.

We need smart folks all along the way to make sure as we build it, as we write it, that end product is good to go, Brewer said.

Brewer said there is a chance but a remote one that AI-related legislation could become law in 2024, since none of the bills has been prioritized.

Gina Ligon, director of the University of Nebraska at Omahas National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology and Education Center, said Saturday that NCITE has started to examine how terrorist or non-state actors might be using AI.

Previous thinking was terrorists needed specific expertise for attacks, but AI is closing the gap.

Ligon said terrorists are using AI to find information, and in just the last week shared manuals of how to use it on the dark web among terrorist organizations.

U.S. election hardware and systems are methodical and more protected than elsewhere in the world, Ligon said, but she cautioned that election officials and workers are not protected.

If you get enough of these threats, enough of these videos made about you, youre maybe not going to volunteer to be an election official anymore, Ligon said.

Thats what keeps me up at night is how we can protect election officials here in Nebraska from what I think is an imminent concern of how terrorists are going to use this technology, Ligon continued.

NCITE has also been looking at threats to election officials, with a record number in 2023, double from when the center started investigating a decade ago. However, Ligon said, thats just the tip of the iceberg through federal charges focused on violence.

Ligon said Nebraska lacks specific language related to election worker harassment, which could degrade and erode election workers ability to come to work and to protect elections. She said she would like to see enhanced penalties should someone attempt to harass an election official.

Local threats to local officials, to me, is national security, Ligon said.

Nebraska election officials in 2022 said their jobs were more stressful and under the spotlight.

Douglas County Election Commissioner Brian Kruse said Saturday his biggest concern is bad actors attempting to use AI to sow misinformation or disinformation about elections, such as changes to voting deadlines or polling places.

The only thing that has changed is we now have voter ID in Nebraska, Kruse said.

Its always good to have the conversation about election safety, Kruse said, because he and his office try to be proactive. He added that in daily journals he reads, not a day goes by without an AI-related article.

Legislative Bill 1390, from Lincoln State Sen. Eliot Bostar and endorsed by Civic Nebraska, would prohibit deep fakes, or deceptive images or videos, of election officers. It also would crack down on threats and harassment of election officials or election workers and requires an annual report. It will be considered at a Government Committee hearing Wednesday.

LB 1203, by State Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha, will also be considered Wednesday. It would have the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission regulate AI in media or political advertisements.

UNL Professor Matt Waite, who taught a fall 2023 course on AI and journalism, said it might be impossible to escape the damage that AI could cause and said the field is changing so fast his course was like flying a plane with duct tape and prayer.

I get six different AI newsletters a day, and Im not even sure Im keeping up with it, Waite said.

In one example, Waite described creating an AI-generated clip of UNL radio professor Rick Alloway for his class. He and students asked dozens of people to listen to two audio clips of the same script and decide which was AI-generated and which was read by Alloway.

About 65% of those responding to the poll had heard Alloway before or had taken one of his classes. More than half, 55%, thought the AI-generated clip was actually the professors voice.

The AI inserted breath pauses you can hear the AI breathing, Waite said. It also went um and ah twice.

The Nebraska Examiner published the findings of a similar experiment with seven state lawmakers last month. Senators similarly expressed concern or hesitation with where to begin to address AI issues.

Waite said lawmakers are in an arms race that you cannot possibly win and have tried to legislate technology before but have often run aground on First Amendment or other concerns.

Its not the AI thats the problem, Waite said. Its the disruption of a fair and equitable election.

Professor Bryan Wang, who teaches public relations at UNL and studies political advertising, explained that social media has created echo chambers and niche connections, which complicates AI use.

AI is already changing the production, dissemination and reception of information, Wang said, such as users in a high choice environment where they may choose to avoid political information incidentally being exposed and sharing information within their bubble.

That process isnt random, Wang continued, as social media works off algorithms that feed off peoples distrust, which extends to all sectors of life.

We also need to work on restoring that trust to build more empathy among us, to build more data and understanding among us, Wang said. Research does show that having that empathy, having that dialogue, does bridge gaps, does help us understand each other and does see others views as more legitimate that way.

Kruse said the mantra of see something, say something also applies to elections and said his office and others around the state stand ready to assist voters.

Wang said theres a need for media literacy, too.

State Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha introduced LB 1371, to require media literacy in K-12 schools and set a graduation requirement. The Education Committee considered the bill Feb. 20.

At the end of the event, Uhing and panelists noted that AI is not all bad in the realm of democracy. Waite said AI could expand community news, which has been shrinking nationwide, or could be used to systematically review voter rolls.

Kruse said voters in Douglas County recently asked for a remonstrance petition to stop local government from doing something. AI could help teach staff about such a petition.

He also said quasi-public safety tools could review Douglas Countys 13 dropboxes and associated cameras to identify a suspect should there be an issue.

I dont have the staff, the time or the funds to sit there and monitor my cameras 24/7, Kruse said.

Waite said AI is not all evil and encouraged people to play around with it for themselves.

Youre not giving away your moral soul if you type into a chat window, Waite said. Try a few things out and see what happens.

Editors note: Reporter Zach Wendling was a student in Waites fall class on AI.

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Civic Nebraska hosts AI and democracy summit at UNL ahead of legislative hearing - Nebraska Examiner

University of Stuttgart picks HPE for 115 million exascale supercomputer – DatacenterDynamics

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The University of Stuttgart has ordered two supercomputers from HPE for its High Performance Computing Center (HLRS).

The two systems, called Hunter and Herder, will cost 115 million ($127m), and take the HLRS up to exascale level in two stages by 2027, leading to a massively parallel GPU-accelerated system.

"The expansion will strengthen Stuttgart's outstanding position in computer simulation and artificial intelligence research," explains Professor Wolfram Ressel, Rector at the University of Stuttgart.

The systems will be used for simulation, artificial intelligence (AI), and high-performance data analysis, within computational engineering and applied science.

Hunter, a transitional supercomputer based on HPE's Cray EX400, will begin operation in 2025, replacing HLRSs current flagship supercomputer, Hawk, and taking HLRS from its current peak performance of 26 petaflops, to 39 petaflops,

It will have 136 HPE Cray EX4000 nodes, each with four HPE Slingshot high-performance interconnects. Hunter will also use the next generation of Cray's ClusterStor storage system.

Hunter will begin the move away from CPU processors, adding in more energy-efficient GPUs. It will be based on the AMD Instinct MI300A accelerated processing unit (APU), which combines CPU and GPU processors, with local unified memory the processors can access quickly.

As well as boosting performance, Hunter will use 80 percent less energy than Hawk, the University says.

Herder, a true exascale system, will arrive in 2027. It is projected to provide speeds on the order of one quintillion (1018) flops. Its final architecture will use accelerator chips but won't be fully determined till the end of 2025.

The 115 million budget will be jointly funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the State of Baden-Wrttemberg's Ministry of Science, Research, and Arts, through the Gauss Centre for Supercomputing (GCS), which is an alliance of Germany's three national supercomputing centers.

Elsewhere in Germany, the GCS is funding the Jupiter supercomputer at the Jlich Supercomputing Centre which, 2025, is scheduled to be Europe's first exascale system in Europe in 2025. The Leibniz Supercomputing Centre is planning an exascale system for widescale use in 2026.

The move to GPUs will save power, says the University. "Energy efficiency with optimal support for cutting-edge science is of paramount importance for us at the University of Stuttgart," said Anna Steiger, Chancellor at the University of Stuttgart.

"With Hunter and Herder, we are responding to the challenges of reducing CO2 emissions, while also enabling both improved computing power and outstanding energy performance."

"As part of the University of Stuttgart, HLRS has a key role to play it is not just the impressive performance of the supercomputer but also the methodological knowledge that the center has assembled that helps our cutting-edge computational research to achieve breathtaking results, for example in climate protection or for more environmentally sustainable mobility," said Petra Olschowski (Baden-Wrttemberg Minister of Science, Research, and Arts).

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University of Stuttgart picks HPE for 115 million exascale supercomputer - DatacenterDynamics

Supercomputer Ramanujan Universe to enable engineering students to pursue qualitative research in AI and ML … – Education Times

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The Ramanujan Universe - a supercomputer was inaugurated at Jaypee Institute of Information Technology (JIIT) to help the Engineering students pursue cutting edge research in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). The supercomputing facility was inaugurated by Rajive Kumar, member secretary, AICTE on the National Mathematics Day.

This newly developed High Performance Supercomputing Center(HPC) facility has eight A 100Graphics Processing Unit(GPU) cards accelerated nodes, six compute nodes, more than 3500 GB RAM and 100 GB InfiniBand connectivity. The supercomputer has been developed with the help of technical expertise provided by Dell. The cost ofRs10crore has been incurred to develop this high computing facility.

Speaking to Education Times, on the sidelines of launch event, BR Mehta, vice-chancellor, JIIT, Noida, says, Introduction of the supercomputer will enable undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD students to solve complex mathematical problems, algorithms and more. Several students involved in AI and ML research can use the supercomputer. In addition to the regular curriculum, we would encourage the students to use the supercomputer for research in healthcare, data analysis, data Science and cyber security."

The needfor supercomputer was felt for long and itslaunchwill fulfil requirementof AI programmerstodevelop diversesoftware applicationscatering to differentindustries.This supercomputer cancalculatewithing fraction of secondsandenable processing of complex tasks and simulations at incredibly high speed.In the era of AI and ML, this facility will play a crucial role in advancing scientific research, technological innovation, and solving complex real- world problems in the areas of AI, Robotics, and many more by harnessing the power of high-speed computation and data processing.

Rajive Kumar, member secretary, AICTE, says, The supercomputing facility will be beneficial to all Engineering students as computing is the major component of their curricula. Besides the computer engineering students, students from mechanical stream can use this to create Computer Aided Design and Drafting technology (CADD) technology. Students can take the help of this supercomputer to complete their online internships and projects. This high-powered supercomputing facility will revolutionise the engineering education in the country. This is the second college which has introduced a facility of high-powered supercomputing after IIT Delhi in North India.

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Supercomputer Ramanujan Universe to enable engineering students to pursue qualitative research in AI and ML ... - Education Times

Students need to stop turning their backs on liberal arts degrees – North Texas Daily

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The pressure to pursue a STEM major in college has steadily grown over the years, causing the arts and humanities to be overshadowed in exchange. The liberal arts are a necessary pillar of education that deserves to be valued and maintained.

The number of jobs requiring STEM qualifications has surged by 34 percent over the past decade, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. Students have been told sciences are the future of our world and the most practical thing to study in college. Following that advice is usually at the disparagement of a liberal arts education, calling it a "useless degree."

The notion of a useless degree is misperceived because any form of education and learning will never be useless, and a liberal arts education is valuable. Most people who belittle arts and humanities usually do so from a place of ignorance. They misconstrue the liberal arts as being associated with the modern political idea of liberalism, or the opposite of being conservative.

Rather, the term liberal arts refers to the Latin word liberalesmeaning "free," as opposed to "subjugation" or "enslavement." The term was used during the Middle Ages to distinguish from the servile arts, which were vocational careers such as medicine, engineering and business. The liberal arts were considered the education of a free person in society unconstrained by the sole purpose of production, with the ability to learn liberating knowledge.

The fundamentals of a liberal arts education are grounded in the idea of broad interdisciplinary teachings that serve to create critical thinkers who recognize the interconnectedness of all knowledge. This form of education should be applied and taught to all majors, and would especially benefit the sciences. Being able to relate formulas and numbers to the arts and humanities would help foster creativity, innovation and remind students of the human aspect of their disciplines.

Instead, universities and their federal funding are adopting a hard stance on turning colleges into vocational schools, investing more within their STEM departments and phasing out the arts. The National Endowment for the Humanities budgetwas only$180 million in 2022, and the National Science Foundations budget lapped that number by 50 times, according to The New York Times. The future of higher education is now blindsided with the prospect of creating a world of scientists and business professionals, approaching students as cogs needed to fit within the business world framework instead of as learners.

Even politicians are pushing toward the death of liberal arts education. Miguel Cardona, the current secretary of education, said Every student should have access to an education that aligns with industry demands and evolves to meet the demands of tomorrow's global workforce. Insinuating the sole reason for education is to meet industry demands instead of self-fulfillment or the development of moral virtues, qualities philosophers like Socrates and Aristotle intended education to create for individuals.

What these advocates of a strict STEM paradigm fail to recognize is that only some are suited for science and math. Whether it is because they do not find enjoyment within the numbers or they simply do not have the predisposition for a mathematical aptitude, no one should feel pressured by industry demands or STEM job qualifications.

Students should pursue whatever major they are passionate about or what brings them enjoyment. The construct that some majors are better than others or prepare you for life better needs to be reevaluated. Most majors within the arts and humanities focus on the human aspect of their disciplines and are well-versed in soft skills such as communication, adaptability and creativity. Eighty-nine percent of recruiters in LinkedIns 2019 Global Talent Trends report claimed people who did not get hired lacked these skills.

Although many value the sciences as being more vital to society than the arts, the need to value the cultivation of culture and the understanding between people that the liberal arts establish must always remain a priority within education. After all, what is the point of doctors saving lives and engineers crafting towers if there is not music to be heard or art to witness?

That begins with universities and federal organizations recognizing the importance of a liberal arts education and implementing more funding and opportunities for liberal arts colleges. Core requirement courses must extend to include more classes within the humanities and arts for STEM majors to foster a holistic education rather than a technical one.

Steve Jobs said it best: Technology alone is not enough. It is technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that [] make[s] our heart sing.

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Students need to stop turning their backs on liberal arts degrees - North Texas Daily

Dean of the College of Liberal and Fine Arts job with Tarleton State University | 37572379 – The Chronicle of Higher Education

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Dean of the College of Liberal and Fine Arts

Tarleton State University seeks an experienced educator, researcher, and administrator to serve as Dean of the College of Liberal and Fine Arts.

The Dean serves as the academic officer responsible for executive management of the college and its full range of programs and initiatives; exercises leadership responsibility in advising the college regarding administrative, curriculum, and budgetary matters; and provides a vision that contributes to achieving the goals of the institutional strategic plan: Tarleton Forward 2030. The ideal candidate will be a person who can articulate the importance of the collective disciplines of the college to outside stakeholders, and thinks creatively and energetically about the challenges of the changing demographics in higher education. The position reports to the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Institutional Profile

Tarleton State University is an energetic, comprehensive Carnegie R2 Doctoral University: High Research Activity, with the elective Community Engagement classification, and a new member of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. The Wall Street Journals latest rankings have Tarleton State fifth among U.S. schools highly recommended by their students and recent alumni.

Fall 2023 brought another all-time high enrollment, outpacing many institutions nationwide. A total of over 14,500 students is up over 10% from 2019, making Tarleton the fifth fastest-growing university in Texas.

The university offers 84 bachelors, 39 masters, and three doctoral degree options, with 10 additional research and health professional doctorates proposed for 20242028. For their majors, students choose from seven academic colleges Agriculture and Natural Sciences; Business; Education; Health Sciences; Liberal and Fine Arts; Science and Mathematics; and the Mayfield College of Engineering.

Tarleton State University is a proud member of The Texas A&M University System and serves students on the main campus in Stephenville, its growing Fort Worth campus, in Waco, and on the A&M-RELLIS campus in Bryan. True to Tarletons values of excellence, integrity, and respect, academic programs emphasize real-world learning and address regional, state, and national needs.

Joining NCAA Division I in July 2020 as the ninth full-time member of the Western Athletic Conference increases national recognition for student-athletes and academic programs, positioning Tarleton State as a frontrunner for anyone seeking a university education. Among numerous milestones, its storied rodeo program boasts eight national team titles and 29 individual CNFR (College National Finals Rodeo) champs, making it a top pick for many cowgirls and cowboys.

Tarleton Student Body

Over 50% of Tarleton State students are first generation with no family tradition of seeking a post-secondary degree. Others are legacy students following their parents, grandparents and even great-grandparents as proud defenders of the purple and white. Some graduate from the only high school in their rural county, and some transfer from large urban community college districts.

Tarleton State students are a diverse group (almost 40 percent report an ethnicity other than white) from all parts of Texas, 48 states, and 47 countries. Over 80% receive some form of financial assistance, and 37% are Pell Grant eligible. They love the university its people, its traditions, its commitment to student triumphs in and out of the classroom.

The university is fast approaching status as a Hispanic-Serving Institution with almost 23 percent of its student body identifying as Hispanic in fall 2023.

The Class of 2027 is over 2,700 students and represents the largest, and most well-prepared group of incoming students in the universitys 124 years proof that Tarleton State is quickly becoming one of the nations premier comprehensive public universities.

Financial Stability

Tarleton States comprehensive operating budget for fiscal 2022 was $276 million, giving the university sound financial footing. The universitys largest-ever comprehensive capital campaign recently met its $125 million target 18 months ahead of schedule. These campaign dollars will strengthen student success, enhance the academic experience, elevate Tarleton States institutional profile, and fortify the schools infrastructure. Tarleton State saw the second-highest percentage growth in funding in the A&M System (only behind A&M-College Station) as part of a record $1.19 billion appropriated to the System by the 88th Legislature. The university also received a $5 million exceptional item, reflecting its contributions to research and innovation in rural healthcare. Tarleton State annually generates an estimated $1.2 billion for North Central Texas and $2 billion in added income for the state. College of Liberal and Fine Arts

The College of Liberal and Fine Arts (COLFA) is dedicated to providing an academically challenging education through exemplary teaching, significant research and inspired creativity. Home to 298 faculty and 26 staff who serve over 1,500 undergraduate majors and over 250 graduate students, the college manages a budget of almost $10 million and consists of the School of Criminology, Criminal Justice and Public Administration, which houses the departments of Criminal Justice and Public Administration, and six additional academic departments: Communication Studies; English and Languages; Government, Legal Studies, and Philosophy; History, Geography and GIS; Performing Arts; and Visual Arts and Design. The college offers 22 baccalaureate and five masters degrees, as well as the PhD degree in criminal justice, and plans to seek system and state approval for a new PhD program in Public & Applied Humanities.

COLFA Points of Pride

Named for a distinguished Tarleton alumnus and chairman of the Texas A&M Board of Regents, the Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center opened in 1980, and is considered a crown jewel of Tarleton States Stephenville campus. The facility features a theater, an auditorium, two workshop theaters, band and choir rehearsal halls, music and art design labs, and an art gallery.

Criminal Justice Research: The college is home to four dedicated research institutes that are nationally recognized for specialized work that is addressing challenges and issues in the criminal justice system: The Institute for Criminal Justice Leadership and Public Policy; the Institute for Homeland Security, Cybercrime, and International Criminal Justice Studies; Institute for Predictive and Analytical Policing Science; and the Institute for Violence Against Women and Human Trafficking.

The Texas Folklore Society is the second oldest folklore organization continually functioning in the United States, after the American Folklore Society founded in 1888. Chartered in 1909, The Texas Folklore Society held its first meeting at the University of Texas in 1911. The society has stimulated the recording and study of Texas rich folk culture, has attracted both laymen and scholars, and has distributed its publications throughout the world.

Responsibilities of the Dean

Required Qualifications and Credentials

Preferred Qualifications

Emphasized commitment to student success demonstrated through impactful and transformative educational opportunities; Experience in launching and sustaining masters and doctoral programs; Accomplishments in building institutional capacity for research and creative scholarship. Procedures for Applying

All applications, nominations, and inquiries are invited. Applications should include the following components, as separate .pdf documents:

A detailed letter of interest addressing the responsibilities and qualifications outlined above; A full curriculum vitae with relevant administrative and scholarly accomplishments and responsibilities; A list of five professional references, including names, titles, organizations, phone numbers, and email addresses, noting the candidates relationship with each reference. References will not be contacted without prior knowledge and approval of candidates. Application packets only accepted online at: https://www.tarleton.edu/jobs/externalapplicants/

Apply directly to posting: Dean of the College of Liberal and Fine Arts

The search will be conducted with a commitment to maintaining confidentiality for candidates until finalists are selected. Finalists will participate in on-campus interviews that may include a public presentation. A background check (including identity, degree verification, and criminal records scan) must be completed satisfactorily before any candidate can be offered this position.

Candidate materials received by January 15, 2024, will be given full consideration, although applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

Tarleton State University provides equal opportunity to all employees, students, applicants for employment, and the public regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, genetic information or veteran status.

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Dean of the College of Liberal and Fine Arts job with Tarleton State University | 37572379 - The Chronicle of Higher Education