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Research Skills

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly embedded in the tools we use every day. Programs like ChatGPT, Bard, Gemini, Llama, Midjourney, and DALL-E2 are exciting and powerful tools with an impressive ability to produce content. Using AI in your academic work, however, requires careful consideration. 

WHAT IS AI?

AI tools are trained on a huge amount of text and data so that it can generate responses to a wide variety of prompts. These programs can produce text, images, audio, code or other formats.

These programs are rapidly changing and evolving and require careful consideration and evaluation. And they come with limitations, including currency and bias of information.  

Using AI in Your Assignments

Before using AI in your work, be sure to confirm with your instructor that using content produced by these programs is acceptable and if there are any restrictions.  See UNE’s policy on Academic Integrity, UNE’s Guidance for the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Research [PDF], and the AI-U Student Guide to Artificial Intelligence.

Evaluate Carefully

AI programs can produce inaccurate, outdated, or false information, called hallucinations, and have been shown to create realistic looking citations to articles which do not exist. Also, because these programs were developed and trained by humans, bias may be present in the language and answers provided. Evaluate any AI-generated information or references carefully, as you would any other source.

Citing Generative AI

If you use AI generated content in your work you will need to attribute the source. Be sure to verify factual information in other credible sources and check references to make sure they are real.  

As AI is still developing, the rules for citation are being developed. Guidance for incorporating AI tools in your research in the following styles is currently available:  

For Faculty

The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning’s (CETL) has published resources on using AI in Education.

Questions & Help

If you have questions on this, or another topic, contact a librarian for help!