The tentacles of AI

I saw my kid, when she was 4 years old, chatting over the phone. When I checked how she managed to make a phone call, I came to know that it was not a phone call, but she was having a conversation with Google. Two years ago, when I stumbled upon chatGPT, and the associated AI tools, with some basic knowledge of computers, I felt a chill in my spine. I felt that the scope of AI is beyond our imagination. This led me to ask a question to chatGPT if AI can take over human beings. The answer was a straight NO. But I rephrased it and asked it in a different way. This time the answer was not a definite NO, but ‘maybe not in the near future’.  How near that future is something that only time will tell.

As the title states, tcan it get into our lives and wreck havoc, or can it create a whole new arena of opportunities? Let’s delve deeper into it and try to figure out what it can or cannot do to our lives, how much it can impact us and where it can lead us to. The uncertainties it has started to create, the fear of losing jobs, and the fear of finding job opportunities among students, all cannot be ruled out. AI is moving ahead at a pace that we cannot fathom. 

While exploring the AI realm, I stumbled upon a site. Though I could create a script using AI, convert that text to audio and use it, I preferred not to. I wrote my own script, recorded the audio and used a photograph of mine to create a video (Click to watch). The body was stiff, but the face did a good job. Though the expression was not that great, the lip moment and head moment was not that bad. I also tried to create a song using another website with one of my lyrics. But the AI industry was not ripe enough to create even a bad one. Time took a toll, and I couldn’t explore much of it. But I was quite sure that AI is going to leap forward at an unprecedented pace. 

At that point in time, while speaking to a team of lecturers, I had to spend almost an hour on how AI is creeping in, but they were not ready to accept it. I asked them if they would prefer to stand in a long queue to buy a railway ticket or do it at comfort using an app. One of them said that she would prefer to stand in the queue. She was indeed from the Performing Arts department. She said she would want to interact with people, know their emotions, expressions etc. But, I felt it's right and didn’t counter it, later when I thought about it, I felt that that can be done even otherwise. I remember chatting with people around the world using mIRC chatrooms even before Yahoo or Google came into existence. 

The group of faculty members whom I interacted with was from the deanery of Arts and Humanities. They have their own way of looking at things. They say that human interaction is very much required. But will using apps and AI snatch away that interactiveness from anyone’s life? Well, not at all. If we can save the time using latest technologies we can use that time to go out and be with others thereby having all the interactions that we are looking for. If at all we need to know about people waiting at the counter of a railway station, we can simply be there without bothering about the rest of the troubles.

    Having said that, no matter how much we fear, or try to evade AI in our lives, the more it will invade our daily spaces. Is it going to be disruptive or constructive? We need to ponder deeply about it. Let us have a look at a few areas where it matters most, when it comes to media and communication to understand it better before thinking about the next step.

Whether we realise or not, AI is in all spheres of our life already. From the messengers we use to the advertisements we receive, it’s all around us. Often when you try to send an email, or a message in your watsapp, the words that are shown as suggestions are all a part of it. You might wonder why you get advertisements based on what you wanted to search or were speaking about, AI has its clutches on it.  

In journalism, AI has become an inevitable tool for quite some time. From creating scripts to final rendering it has a big role to play. Nowadays journalists depend on AI tools like Grammarly to make sure that the grammatical errors are avoided, rather than spending a whole lot of time reading the entire material. We can even input a few prompts and create articles using ChatGPT. One might wonder if it’s okay to do so. But in this fast paced world, it will be like asking if one should use a calculator or computer to calculate or rather spend time and calculate manually with high possibility of errors. It is a feature which is built-in in almost all the softwares these days to check grammar or spellings. Even while I am writing this article it is doing the checks and asking me to make necessary changes. 

AI has a big role in media. These days even logos can be created with prompts, which used to take days and months of brainstorming and thought processes. There are websites where we can create logos with prompts. One need not spend a lot of time on Photoshop or Coreldraw to do that. We can even create videos from photographs from AI sites. As mentioned earlier, we need even write a script of our own. All we need is to prompt and get the script. The same script can be used to generate a voice similar to any famous personalities or of our own. 

In the area of mass media, AI has a good role to play. But at the same time it has it’s issues too. Due to the algorithms used in AI, often we don’t get what we are supposed to, but get only what we want. If we are not vigilant and not ready to explore beyond the layer that engulfs us, we will never be able to see the realities. If we have been checking only what we like, then everything that we get will only be based on that. When it comes to NEWS, it’s a dangerous thing for those who are always biased. Already they are not in a position to think. On top of it, they get only news or articles based only on that view point. It’s the same with advertisements too. For eg, if you search for furniture and happens to check those made of engineered wood, then you won’t get ads of furnitures made of plywood or real wood, unless it’s pushed to you as advertisements and make you check it forcefully. 

 These kind of AI intervention in our lives will snatch away our capacity to think.  Of late, one of my friends, when asked to choose food at a restaurant proposed to check with AI what to eat. Another friend of mine told me about a meme which showed people stuck at an escalator when it stopped working. They just had to climb down, but were not ready to move as they didn’t know what to do in such a situation. Maybe someone could have at least used a search engine to find what to do. But this is where AI is taking us to. We are being made puppets, threaded in the hands of AI.

There was a time when we had to hire dubbing artists for voice-overs. Not just the price, but also the time taken with all the corrections and re-recordings were too high. These days all we need is the script. We get the voice in any gender, any race, any personality. Of course, dubbing artists are becoming a thing of the past, which is a problem, but on the other hand the production time and expense has come down drastically. With AI character in place it can even replace actors. Many might contest that no one would be interested in AI characters. But to answer that, one need to answer: don’t we enjoy cartoon characters?  

As mentioned earlier, with AI we can create characters and make them do what ever we want it to do with just some prompts. There had been instances where people made use of AI to show others in bad light. It has evolved so much that it’s not possible for many to find out if a video is real or fake. We can use AI creatively, but it can also be a disaster if not used wisely or without restrictions. We would need laws to prevent misuse of such elements. 

Another field where AI can be made best use of is in the field of education. It can be used as a medium of communication between teachers and students. One might feel a bit uncomfortable thinking that it would snatch away the jobs of teachers. But on the contrary it could actually be used as a supportive element in teaching. It’s impossible for a teacher in the class to carter to all sorts of students with different learning skills - The VARK (Visual, auditory, read-write and kinesthetic skills). Each one has a different way of learning. If we implement AI, we can take care of everyone individually. The teacher need not be there. Learning can happen on a laptop or a desktop. With the help of AI, a student’s learning skill can be identified and the teaching method can be chosen based on that. For those who are inclined to learning through auditory method, audio clips can be provided as learning material. If the learner is inclined to learning via visual media, videos can be provided for learning. This way it becomes more personalised and enhances the learning. 

If you fear loss of job due to this, you need not actually bother. Because a teacher can always be there as a mentor. AI technology would only reduce the burden of the teacher. To teach something, how many times and how many ways would a teacher be able to do? AI can do it in various ways, umpteen times without getting fed up. For any person to know each and everything in this world is impossible. But AI is the collective knowledge of all the people and data around the world. So it can answer the learner better than 100 teachers all together. Instead of mentoring the students in a classroom, the teacher can be there to support them individually beyond what the AI is used for. Even assessing the students will become easier that way. It would be like using Excel sheets to maintain the records of students and calculate their marks, average, etc and use analytics to know about the students’ progress. Why should one write down all the names of the students in the class for every assessment and do all the calculations manually? 

With AI, the first set of people to lose jobs ought to be the group that many won’t even envisage - doctors, lawyers and engineers. You might wonder why. A doctor, throughout the learning period learns about what is already there. Just as a teacher, a doctor too cannot learn everything in the world. If we go to a doctor, the prescriptions are given based on the symptoms. Doctor can go wrong often since there are many things that keep evolving. Keeping up to date is difficult because they won’t have time for that. AI is a collective knowledge. It can help one find the problems and give solutions based on the symptoms, whether it’s an age-old flu or a new virus. Even lawyers quote existing cases which can be in the database. No lawyer can get to know every case in the world. Here is where AI can come to help. In engineering, to know what materials to use for construction or for making anything, AI can decide the materials, the cost, the time and what not. Any building design can be created, based on the location, the soil, the budget etc etc. 

 

With all these said, is AI a boon or bane? The answer is ‘both’. It all depends on how we use, and for what. Future might belong to the one who makes best the use of AI. Especially in the media field, we can use it immensely to create contents, may it be NEWS, may it be entertainment, may it be movies, AI can bring down the cost of production to a great extent. It will drive a lot of creative people to bring out a lot of content. The one who knows how to use it will bring a lot more to the platter.

With the alarming rise of AI, what if AI takes over almost everything? This is what one of my friends asked me. The answer is simple, though one might find it utopian. What does a human being need? It’s the basic necessities - food, water, clothing and shelter. If AI can do all the work, then we need not bother. AI can do a wonderful job in terms of creating all these necessities with the help of robots. It can get into agriculture and provide necessary food by doing any kind of farming anywhere in the world by understanding the soil, watering when and how much is required, pruning and all the care needed at the right time at the right quantity. No one needs to toil hard for that. Water can be plenty by managing the resources by AI. Enough clothing can be produced with the help of AI. And so is the shelter. That is when human beings get enough time to get to know each other, spend time with each other, love each other and go and explore places with plenty of time left behind. 

At that point in time creative people will keep creating things from their heart. No matter how much AI can do, creative people will never cease to create things. Just as a poet who keep writing poems, no matter how many million poets are there are in the world, creative people will always remain creative and never become idle.  

* I wrote this article as an assignment for one of my courses. It was not written just for the sake of it, but something that I wanted to share for long. It's a vast area to deal with. Hope I will be able to spend some time soon and write more about it.

AI conundrum - The scope of Artificial Intelligence in education

Of late, maybe none of my conversations, or workshops or classes that I take, go without the mentioning of AI. When I see the young generation not being able to think, I wonder if I should ask them to think, or just let them be as they are because AI is there to take care of all the decisions. If I ask them to think, it might sound like asking them to go back to bullock-cart age. We have progressed a lot in terms of technology, and AI creeping into our lives in such a fast pace, should we shy away from accepting the fact that AI is no more a myth and thereby embrace it, or should we fight against it? There was a time calculators and computers were kept away from all spheres for the fear that it will kill our abilities. But now it has become a part of our lives. Similarly, should we get along with AI or wage a war against it is what we should think. The choice is personal right now, though the choice may cease to exist any time sooner or later.

That being said, the scope of AI in the realm of education is something that can turn the whole system topsy turvy. It's a dreadful thought that creeps into many a mind of those in the teaching profession. The fear of losing their bread and butter might bring shivers down their spines. But is it something to be fearful about, or is it something that can come handy is what we need to think about.

Should we bother?

Can it lead to massive loss of jobs in education sector? Can it cause havoc? Well, the answer maybe yes. Why so? The potential of AI is so much so that it can replace the teaching fraternity as a whole. One might find it difficult to digest. I'm pretty much sure that those who know about computer programming can understand that better.  So what can AI do in the teaching-learning sphere? Let's take a look.

When a faculty deals with an average of fifty to sixty students in a class, it indeed is a diverse group whose learning methodologies are as varied as the group is. If you consider the VARK learning style, some are inclined to learn better with visual aids, some auditory, some read/write and others kinesthetics. When catering to students with varied learning styles, classroom teaching won't satisfy every individual. No matter how a person tries to incorporate all of these, it will not be possible to do all in one. This will lead to almost everyone lose out on a bit of each. Moreover one person cannot understand the mood of each and every student and cater to each one of them personally.

This is where digital content comes to use. It is very personal. The teaching happens one on one, with no one around. It has all the elements of VARK, including kinesthetics as it can have feedbacks and activities too. In the classroom, no matter how much ever a student is interested, due to mood swings, climate, time of the day etc, the student can lose attention. Even if not, the distraction by a friend can result in the loss of flow of attention. On the contrary, a video can be played when the student is in good mood to learn, beyond the stipulated time frame. More over, if concentration is lost for a moment, one can replay it and listen to it again and again as many times as it is understood, whereas it's not possible for a faculty to repeat anything umpteen times in a classroom setting. 

Role of AI in education

Now, where does AI fit in? If AI can be developed in such a manner that it can understand the learning methodology of a student, it can deliver the learning material based on that. For eg, if a student is inclined to learn better through visual aids, it can provide more visual materials than using other types of study materials. If the student didn't understand, or lost concentration, or feel sleepy, AI can detect the mood with the help of a camera and can either ask the student to take a break and get back, or maybe play a game to get the student back in track. Here, even the game can be based on the study material. If not a game, it can be a song, or a movie, or anything that the student will find rejuvenated as per AI's understanding of the student. 

One might argue that classroom teaching can never be replaced with digital learning. But, is it true in this era? My child, before going to school, learned almost all the nursery rhymes by watching TV. Well, of course, the next argument would be about their inter or intra-personal capabilities. How many from the previous generation are in touch with their friends and relatives physically? Have not most of them moved into making phone calls and sending messages, instead of going and meeting anyone personally? Even marriages and funerals are attended online these days. Should we be sceptical about the generation that is born in the digital era? I recently saw my 10 year old child with five or six children of the same age. I didn't see her speak, neither did other children. Everyone were having mobiles in their hands and were busy with that. Can we expect them to have the kind of relationships the older generation had? Will it make sense for them? Should we force our way of life on to them? 

With AI, if we take it a step ahead, it can even speak to the student just like any of us. So it will become more of an interaction between them. Again, my child, when she was around four or five years of age, one day was speaking over the phone. I was wondering how could she make a phone call. But when I checked, it was not a phone call, but she was having a conversation with google. I don't think they will have the kind of thinking that we used to have once upon a time. Things have changed and they have moved far beyond the personal sphere. They will live in a digital world. I remember myself being busy with computer games and mIRC chats 20 years ago, and I never thought about anything else at that point in time. I used to be engrossed in it, not knowing what is happening around me. I was in touch with people across the globe, though I was cut off from my own relatives and friends. Twenty years down the lane, kids born in the IT age, will no doubt be far beyond that.    

AI in lieu of teacher 

When we speak about AI being the teacher, the student can even choose the teacher since it's all virtual. In a classroom setting, students can have issues with the teacher. Some students lose their interest in studies because of their teacher. Here, with AI, student can even choose the character. For eg, if a student is more attached to his/her father, the father's character can be chosen as teacher. This will give more of a personal touch. At times they might get bored with the same person teaching. Here again, just like the characters being chosen in games, students can choose/change the teacher character at any point in time. This will make learning more interesting.  

Also, human beings have limitations in terms of knowledge, amount of time, health etc. But AI can be with the student beyond any time, with a wealth of knowledge. Since it's a collective knowledge, the information it can give is beyond imagination. It can deliver the same information again and again without losing temper. 

If we sit and think of AI in teaching/learning, the advantages and possibilities are too many to list out. Here we would need to think about the role of a teacher. Should we move to AI and get rid of all the teachers? Or should we limit the learning possibilities of students with that of the limitations of human beings as teachers? Well, I would say that it's high time we move to AI. But at the same time, teachers should make use of AI and be facilitators and guides rather than fighting against it. One day or the other AI will surely takeover and if teachers are not ready to embrace it and make the best use of it, that is when they are going to be at the receiving end and may become obsolete. We can think of the scenario when computers were introduced, how even now, many struggle to make use of it, while those who have adapted it gives better output in terms of efficiency and timeliness. An MCQ question paper can give the results in fraction of a second than a teacher going through all the answers one by one and ending up with calculation errors, with so much of stress and fatigue. Which one is better? 

We can't turn a blind eye to the reality. It's high time that we explore the possibilities of what AI can do and how we can make use of it in the best possible way in the field of education. There soon will be a pioneer who will turn the entire world upside down. Should we walk a step ahead or lose out? Ask, and decide for yourself.

Memories to cherish

Nothing lasts for ever, but the memories till we go
The good times and the bad that we cherish
No matter whether we like it or not
Nothing lasts for ever, but the memories till we go.

This time this day, we'll be missing like no other day
We'd never wanna miss a wink for ever and ever
Just as these days that never come back
Nothing lasts for ever, but the memories till we go.

We walked into this place all alone
But we walk out not alone 
With a hell lot of friends and a wealth of knowledge
Nothing lasts for ever, but the memories till we go.

Some good times, some bad
Some sleepless nights, some missed heartbeats,
The rush hours and the fun that we all pass by
Nothing lasts for ever, but the memories till we go.

As we bid farewell to those around that stood by us
It's time to move on, to move on to a different world
All set to conquer, leaving all the wonderful moments behind
As nothing lasts for ever, but the memories till we go.

Teacher

         Who is a teacher? A teacher is the one who passes on the knowledge to someone. Who can be a teacher? Anyone who is willing to learn and impart the right knowledge to the listener can be a teacher. Who can be the best teacher? It is the who can sow the seeds of knowledge in the best possible way. What does a teacher earn? A true teacher earns true respect. Here I try to bring in some of my thoughts about teachers.

       I believe that teaching is the most noble profession of all and a teacher is the greatest sculptor of humankind. A teacher plays a very important role in a person's life. It can be positive or negative. A good teacher moulds a child and bring the best out of  him. A passionate teacher works towards it tirelessly. To the Teachers Day wish of one of my students, I responded this way: "A teacher becomes great when the student becomes great, in terms of knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge is about subject, wisdom is about righteousness, justice and love." 

      The first thought about a teacher that comes to my mind is my granny. Throughout my half a mile walk to market with her during holidays, I have seen many wish her with a lot of respect and say how their lives were transformed by her. When I look back, I realise how great it is to be a teacher.         

       How far can a teacher influence a student? Well, it depends on various factors like the age of the student, acceptance and trust the student has in the teacher etc. Knowledge, wisdom and the ability of the teacher to communicate plays a crucial role in it.   

      Why age plays an important role? The way adults think is different from a child, and so is a grown up. One should be moulded at a younger age. Tender age is like soft clay. Once it gets harder, it's difficult to shape, though possible up to certain extent. Once they grow older, the learnings and experiences they came across make them rigid in their thinking. So a teacher's responsibility at younger ages is the most important one. A student can love or hate a subject based on the teacher.     

        Another aspect I pointed out was acceptance and trust towards the teacher. Once a student can accept the teacher and the trust is built, the teacher can guide the student without a hitch. There are many things associated with it, like knowledge about the subject, wisdom, communication skills, appearance, cleanliness etc. Without a sound subject knowledge how can the knowledge sharing happen? But, that doesn't mean that only the one who knows everything can be a teacher. As I once said: "The day one believes he knows everything, that is the day he becomes a fool." So, a teacher's life is about learning one or the other thing every now and then.

       Wisdom is equally important, because it is wisdom that helps one to gain trust, without which there will be no acceptance. Wisdom stands by truth, justice and truthfulness. Most of the students whom I deal with, in the initial days itself I let them know that no matter how close they try to be with me, wether they love me or hate me, everyone is equal to me and no one get any special consideration, or less, no matter what. I am faithful to my job and hence I expect the same from them too.

       Communication is another aspect that one cannot neglect. No matter how much knowledge one has, without proper communication it cannot be imparted efficiently. The student will end up having half knowledge or even worst understanding of subject.     

        Most importantly, it is the passion that drives a teacher. If one gets into the profession for the sake of remuneration, then it will be the greatest injustice one can do to the profession. Respect needs to be earned by what one do. If one looks at gaining respect, without being driven by passion, it will be lost.       

         Should the teacher teach the subject alone? No. Along with subject, the teacher should be able to teach the student to think, reason, analyse and experiment. Not only that, even emotions, interests and many other aspects need to be touched upon. Every student and his/her thoughts should be respected. Not every one is equal and the same cannot be expected from all. Every individual has his own interest, talent and passion. Tap the right potential rather than diverting it or stopping it.      

       Of late, I have seen a degradation of respect towards teachers. Though one of the reasons is their upbringing, their experience with teachers plays a crucial role. Since people are lured into teaching profession with good remuneration, many of them, like any other profession, get into it without even a bit of passion. For some it might be time pass or just another job, but for another it's a dream of their life.         

      Maybe not being studious, I never had a good rapport with any of my teachers. So I don't have any good memories with any of them during my childhood. But in college days I did come across few of them whom I look up at. They had good thinking ability, subject knowledge, reasoning ability and above all humility. They indeed earned my respect.

     If I were asked whom I consider to be the greatest teacher, I would say my parents. But above all it's Jesus who taught the greatest art of life - love.