The AI Firehose - End of Year News and Updates

Join Matt and Liz in this episode of ChatEDU as they explore critical AI developments. They dive into the potential of AI as a brutally honest mentor, discuss new tools like Google's Gemini 2.0 and Harvard's free AI dataset, and address serious concerns such as the rise of non-consensual intimate imagery in schools and the environmental costs of AI. They also unpack OpenAI's '12 Days of Shipmas' while reflecting on how AI impacts policy, literacy, and education.

00:00 Introduction and AI's Flattery

00:52 The Brutally Honest AI Mentor

01:38 Liz's Book Editing Challenge

02:15 ChatGPT's Tough Love

04:23 Reflections on AI's Impact

06:00 AI in Education: News and Updates

07:17 Deep Research, AI Literacy & Policy

14:25 Environmental Concerns of AI

16:55 Clean Energy Solutions for AI

18:55 Challenges in K-12 Schools

20:13 The Challenges of Preventative Education

21:05 A Troubling Lawsuit Against Character AI

22:00 Character AI's Controversial Influence

27:11 AI Literacy and Gen Z

31:21 The 12 Days of Shipmas by OpenAI

Prompt from Forbes:

You are now my brutally honest mentor who calls out my self-deception. Ask me what goal I'm struggling to achieve. After I respond, mercilessly point out the lies I'm telling myself. Challenge every excuse. Mock my weak justifications. Make me defend my position until I admit the real reason I'm not taking action. Don't let me off easy - keep pushing until I reach complete honesty about what's truly holding me back. Then help me create an action plan based on this new truth.

In this episode of ChatEDU, co-hosts Matt Mervis and Liz Radday dive into the evolving landscape of AI's capabilities and its implications on human tasks. They discuss the growing reliability of AI memory, and whether AI can offer surprising personal insights. The discussion touches on three recent studies, exploring AI's edge in medical diagnoses, neuroscience predictions, and the surprising preference for AI-generated poetry over classic literature. The episode raises questions about the future roles of humans in AI-integrated tasks, emphasizing the need for empathy and creativity. Additionally, it features an intriguing segment where AI mimics Shakespearean style to compose a sonnet about a recent football game. The show concludes with their popular 'ShortStack Chat Back', highlighting the interplay between AI and human creativity.

00:00 Introduction: Memory and AI

00:38 Chatting with ChatGPT

02:25 AI's Role in Memory and Productivity

04:33 Podcast Introduction and Episode Overview

05:25 AI in Medical Diagnosis

12:01 AI in Neuroscience

15:52 AI and Poetry

25:50 Implications for Teaching and Learning

30:18 ShortStack Chat Back: Isaac Asimov

New Micro-Credential Cohort Launching January 2024! Learn more and sign up at skills21.org/ai/micro.

In this episode of ChatEDU (Motion Rejected - The AI Cheating Case That Surprised Everyone - Including Us), Matt and Liz reflect on AI’s evolving role in schools and classrooms. They unpack two new studies on AI adoption among teachers, a timely toolkit from the U.S. Department of Education, and a controversial AI cheating case that’s testing the limits of academic integrity policies.

• They revisit the story of "Daisy," the AI modeled as a 90-year-old woman, and discuss a holographic AI Jesus confessional booth in Switzerland.

• Matt and Liz share updates on the ChatEDU AI Micro-Credential program and highlight the need for balance in all modes of AI professional learning.

1. Teacher Studies: AI Adoption and Skepticism

• Insights from new studies on how teachers are navigating the challenges and opportunities of AI in their classrooms.

• Matt and Liz explore the gap between teacher readiness and the demands of modern classrooms.

2. U.S. Department of Education AI Leadership Toolkit

• The DOE's latest guidance emphasizes privacy, ethical use, and practical implementation.

• Key takeaways include the need for AI planning teams, audits, and addressing algorithmic bias.

• Matt shares the challenges of balancing privacy risks with powerful tools like real-time translation.

3. Beneath the Surface: Motion Rejected – The Hingham AI Cheating Case

• A follow-up to last week's pre-recorded story: A federal court denied a preliminary injunction requested by the student’s family.

• New details emerge, including the student using Grammarly to generate inaccurate citations (e.g., books by “Jane Doe”).

• Matt and Liz discuss what this case teaches about the AI ethics and policy debate moving forward.

• Johnny Cochran (AI Edition) summarizes the Hingham AI case with wit and legal flair.

• Hingham Court Ruling: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/11/school-did-nothing-wrong-when-it-punished-student-for-using-ai-court-rules/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

• U.S. Department of Education AI Toolkit: https://blog.ed.gov/2024/10/new-ai-toolkit-to-empower-educational-leaders-on-safe-ethical-and-equitable-ai-integration/

• ChatEDU Micro-Credential Info: skills21.org/ai/micro

• New Micro-Credential Cohort Launching January 2024! Learn more and sign up at skills21.org/ai/micro.

This updated version reflects the correct episode title. Let me know if you need any more tweaks!

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