Information Literacy & Artificial Intelligence

Here are some good uses for AI in research, with examples of prompts:

Generate research questions

• "Generate 5 research questions about climate change, focusing on community-level impacts"
• "What are the key connecting ideas between social media use and adolescent mental health?"
• "I'm writing a research paper for my environmental science class about the effects of microplastics on marine life. Help me identify sub-topics to investigate."

Ask for alternative viewpoints

• "What are some criticisms of the perspective you just described?"
• "Are there opposing scholarly viewpoints on this issue?"

Develop database search terms

• "What are alternative terms, synonyms, or related concepts for 'food insecurity' that I could use in a library database search?"

Refine search terms

• "How can I narrow my search on renewable energy to find more specific information about barriers to implementation?"

Research planning

• "I'm feeling overwhelmed by my coursework. I have four weeks until this assignment is due - help me create a plan to stay on track."

While AI can be helpful, there are many scenarios where library resources provide more reliable and appropriate information. Knowing when to use each tool is an essential research skill.

Finding Scholarly Sources

Does your assignment state that you must cite scholarly sources? These are found in academic journals, or books chosen by SCC librarians, which are accessible through OneSearch. 

• AI may cite non-existent sources or misrepresent information from scholarly works.
  • The output will look good, with correctly formatted MLA or APA citations, and believable-sounding article titles from real publications.
  • But when you search for the source, it may not exist.
  • Or if it does exist, and you search for a phrase it is quoting, you may not find it. 
• In the time it takes to verify AI sources, you could have been searching the library databases and finding usable articles instead. Need help? Ask a Librarian!

Finding Primary Sources

Does your assignment state that you must cite primary sources? These are original documents, data, and artifacts best found through library databases and digital archives.

• AI tools typically don't have access to these specialized collections. Plus, looking at primary sources is interesting. They are often high-quality scans or photographs that evoke the past through their colors and textures.

Finding Current Research

You can filter by year in OneSearch or any of the library's databases, to ensure you are reviewing search results published recently. 

• AI training data has limitations and cutoff dates.

Finding Accurate Statistics

SCC Library's reference collection and databases contain trusted, factual sources.

• AI will cite a statistic that sounds good and supports what you've asked it to. It will not respond with "I can't find that information," or "I don't know". It will supply an answer whether or not it finds a factual one.

AI is advancing so quickly that this list of limitations will soon seem quaint. One day AI will likely be able to find real scholarly sources, containing accurate and current information, and output a seamless assignment that is indistinguishable from what a human could create.

But if you let AI do your thinking, reading, and writing for you... you haven't learned.

The future will belong to those who have developed their minds and who have learned to use AI as an assistant; not to those who have outsourced their thinking to the bots.

In order to prompt AI effectively, you need to have curiosity, an interest in making connections between ideas, and knowledge about the world.

To develop these qualities:

Read books and articles

Listen to podcasts and audiobooks

Converse with other people