ChatGPT and Research.

Is It Smart?

Photo by Michael Dziedzic on Unsplash

ChatGPT has been making waves around the world since its release. People have been using it and other forms of AI to do everything these days, from “creating” art to “writing” books and more. When I first heard of ChatGPT, I discouraged its use in creative production, felt neutral about its presence in educational settings, and pondered its potential in the business world.

In March I decided to test it for myself and asked it simple questions about the world, and was very interested in its response. I have to admit the technology is impressive, and while it has limits like everything in existence, its ability to scour the internet and even small mentions of written sources is amazing.

Now before I get into the meat of this article, I want to add that I don’t think ChatGPT or AI has the answer to all of our problems. It cannot adequately replace the human elements of society, be it teaching, creative production, etc. However, I believe ChatGPT’s greatest potential lies in its ability to aid researchers, regardless of their focus or industry.

It is important to note that, according to ZDNet, ChatGPT is NOT a search engine. It is apparently unable to search the internet for information. This raises a lot of questions for me personally as my use of it has highlighted some ability to access information not easily…