Hello, reader. How are you doing? I’m thinking about AI and evaluating sources.
I use AI all the time, every day. It’s been around for decades, but recently the term AI is used for a subset and hyped. Search engines, photo fixes, predictive text, spell checks, and advertising have used AI for a long time. There’s no way to turn AI off, unless we turn off our devices.
evaluating sources
I was a teacher long ago. At university and community college, I taught composition, poetry, creative writing, reading, and study skills, if you can believe that. Part of teaching composition was critical thinking. How do we evaluate our sources?
The thing about the google AI search results– that summary on the top– is they are an amalgamation of what the internet said, and were all those people right? AI search results can tell us a “yes” or “no” and rephrase main ideas. But when some sources are better than others, I need to evaluate.
Trust is important. I want to establish a relationship with an herbalist, a writer, a thinker, an org.
cold brew
I mention herbalists because I make teas a lot, and I prefer cold brew. Some teas are better cold brew because it preserves delicate compounds. But cold brew takes longer.
I was trying to remember if chamomile is ok cold brewed, so I looked it up. Nuance matters. If AI is giving us a summary based on many sources, sometimes the info is wrong. It can be Big Wrong, and it can be off in a slight way that matters.
I am close to a young person who would look something up and trust the AI answer on top. I felt like a cranky elder when I told them not to trust that part.
Digging takes time and effort, and it’s hard when deception and trickery are common on the internet. Thinking takes time and effort, like relationships.
Yes, I am becoming a cranky elder about evaluating sources. But relationship is important to me. That’s why I write. I write to love.
questions for tea time
How do you know when to trust?
How do you feel about AI?
Do you use google to search?
And stop at the AI answer on top?
Is critical thinking important to you?
How do you evaluate sources?
How much does truth matter to you?
art
I made a collage called Snow Tiger Brings You Bananas. It’s my first collage that’s sewn.
Then I embroidered an antelope made of dotted curved lines. It’s called Antelope of Curves.
I’m up for trades if you would like to own Antelope of Curves.
