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  • Writer's pictureEric Nentrup
    • Apr 16
    • 3 min read

The Week in Review: Joining the AI Conversation

Updated: Apr 22


Image courtesy of Pixabay

Aside from technology sections on major news, we can cultivate our AI literacy by observing how others are discussing it. Of course, conferences, symposiums, webinars, and other events are beneficial, but how about less formal ways to bolster our shared understanding? The importance of developing a baseline AI literacy is crucial because of the urgency of the matter—especially given that the classic trifecta of fear/uncertainty/doubt still motivate clicks and ad revenue on digital platforms. As we see in this transcribed dialogue, one can be shrewd and skeptical while remaining hopeful or optimistic once familiar with the landscape.


So, focusing on literacy and informal Here are two simple resources you can bookmark and implement immediately:

  1. Firstly, a focus on AI literacy may be better served if we think about it as becoming versed more broadly in emerging technology. AI is the current and most important genre, but it’s likely we don’t refer to these innovations and phenomena as only AI in a matter of a few years. Experts regularly refer to related terms (often acronyms) and keeping up with the dialogue becomes much more meaningful if you know the terminology and where to look for conversations. Dr. Pati Ruiz, Alliance fellow and Sr. Research Scientist for Alliance member organization, Digital Promise, recently published a wonderful glossary (along with her colleague, Dr. Judi Fusco) to equip educators (and even students/families) for further pursuing AI literacy.

  2. Getting beyond news outlets, podcasts (audio and vlogs, both), let alone books is essential given the speed at which developments are becoming public (let alone private ones that are leaked) One source of great dialog is the Internet’s original forum of all kinds of conversation, Reddit. As a wildly diverse platform, it attracts more technically-minded professionals and hobbyists than mainstream social media, and may not be a regular part of one’s news consumption. From general AI conversations around specific AI such as ChatGPT and arguments for what constitutes Artificial General Intelligence, to those prognosticating the advent of The Singularity, there are various subreddits worth subscribing to and skimming.

One final caveat: AI terminology is so relatively new to the mainstream and the internet is so obviously fraught with misinformation, a skeptic’s eye is required. Not every term is set in stone. Not every post is contributing useful information. One must monitor and take it all in aggregate and test conclusions for validity—but then, let's be optimistic that together we can safely continue forward with AI assisting us in life long learning!


And on that note, here are this week’s interesting headlines:


SAFETY (How can we prevent potential harm when using AI?)


ACCOUNTABILITY

(How are developers and users being held accountable to their actions with AI?)

FAIRNESS

(How does innovative AI offer opportunity for everyone?)

EFFICACY

(How does innovative AI have promise to improve our lives?)

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