All Things A.I.

11. Click on the Midjourney bot and click "Add to Server" and then continue and authorize. If it asks you to verify that you are human, then simply click the center box.

12. Click out of the server settings and go back into your server. While in the text channel "general," you should now have the Midjourney bot.

13. To use the Midjourney bot, type /imagine and then press the space bar. Then, you should be able to type whatever prompt you desire.

14. If you want to change any settings you can type /settings, and if you want to subscribe to Midjourney so that you can have unlimited images, type /subscribe and click the link that shows up.

15. After a prompt is generated, there should be four distinct images. You can then upscale one of the images or get variations for one of the images by clicking one of the U icons or V icons that show up after an image is generated.

16. You will have a limit on how many you can do, but then if you pay a subscription fee (not much, 30 or so bucks per month, but one can delete anytime) you have almost unlimited generative possibilities.

17. The key is how one puts in a prompt. There will be a bit of trial and error, and not everything will go perfectly, but then you will generate images that will blow your mind.

FIFTY MIDJOURNEY PROMPTS EXEMPLIFIED

HOW TO USE ELEVEN LABS FOR A.I. VOICE NARRATION AND AUGMENTATION

1. Go to Elevenlabs.io

2. Click sign up and either create an account or click sign up with Google and use your Google account to sign up.

3. You will now have a list of premade voices you can choose from and a spot to put in text.

4. You can then edit the Voice Settings, or to create a new voice, click VoiceLab at the top.

5. Select Instant Voice Cloning if you want a clone of your voice or someone else's. You need to pay monthly to have access to it, though.

Here is a film we made using only Midjourney images and A.I. narration.

HOW TO USE CHATGPT4 AND THE FUTURE OF A.I. WRITING PROJECTS

Instructive Note:

1. Education, let us not forget, is about preparing for what will happen, not for what has already transpired. Yes, to be sure, we need to have a deep sense of history and all that has occurred before our arrival, but that is because we need to learn from our mistakes so that we can optimize our tomorrows. I mention all of this as a necessary preface for why I think we need to embrace artificial intelligence in our halls of learning as early as possible. Instead of fearing what is inevitable, we will be much wiser if we accept and integrate the synthetic offspring we have engineered. Keep in mind that as far back as 1863, Samuel Butler essayed in “Darwin Among the Machines,” that we should turn our back on all mechanical progress since it will be our doom. Yet, ironically, even as he lamented the Industrial Revolution, he wasn’t averse to having his books published using the very machines he wanted to eliminate. Now, let’s be clear. We are not foregoing our tools, and we are certainly not going to retreat into some hippie off-the-grid commune because we have delusions that killer robots, mimicking Terminator-like clones, are out to kill all of humanity. A.I., like it or not, is here to stay. We are not returning to typewriters (Tom Hanks be damned!), because we miss correcting our mistakes with liquid white-out. Word processing was and is a game-changer, just as having a search engine like Google opened up vast information that was hitherto inaccessible. As I write these words, I read that “New York City schools have banned ChatGPT, the artificial intelligence chatbot that generates human-like writing including essays, amid fears that students could use it to cheat. According to the city's education department, the tool will be forbidden across all devices and networks in New York's public schools.” Some educators applaud the move out of fear that students won’t write original essays and rely on A.I. systems like ChatGPT to do their homework. But this, I suggest, is myopic to the extreme. Are we going to ban spell check on Word? Ban Grammarly? Ban Wikipedia? Ban Google Scholar? And the list goes on if we are truly worried about A.I. obviating student learning. No, Pandora’s Box of artificial intelligence has already been opened, and there is no closing it now. Instead, we should embrace such innovations and let them improve our learning, not shut the door to them in our public schools only to have students access them freely at home. It is a stupid game we are playing. Students should be encouraged to play with ChatGPT and DALLE-2 and any other up-and-coming iterations of machine learning. Suppressing such creative tools is backward, especially since we can learn more by augmenting our intelligence with their surprising capabilities.

2. This is where ChatGPT comes in. Let students ask it to write on any subject they desire, learning along the way about which questions provide the better answers, the richer detail, and the more interesting text. What happens in the process? They read, and the more questions they pose, the more self-guided essays they read. The student is the programmer by dint of what he or she instructs AI to respond with. The best way to learn a video game? Play it over and over. What is the best way to utilize ChatGPT? Play with it, over and over. What happens is that the programmer (the student) is forced by his various queries to learn what he or she has prompted AI to bring forth. By doing such, the student learns how AI structures its answers and why certain patterns invariably emerge.

3. The student learns the behavior of A.I., as foreign as it may seem at first. This is not so much different than learning about characters of the 19th century in one of Leo Tolstoy’s great novels, such as Anna Karenina or War and Peace. There is also the option of providing students with an essay prompt and having them use ChatGPT first and then having them augment or flesh out what the A.I. has produced so instead of arbitrarily divorcing one’s self from A.I., one partner with it, similar but probably more effective and time-efficient than group work which is often the bane of most students.

4. Ironically, because A.I. can mimic human writing so well, it becomes a practical tool for refining one’s critical thinking skills. ChatGPT forces us to take the Turing Test seriously and become seasoned in appraising what is purely computational versus human-generated. Yes, it will be difficult, and there will most likely come a time when we will not be able to differentiate A.I. essays from purely human constructions. But that is exactly why we should train ourselves now about how these machine learning algorithms work.

5. A.I. hasn’t yet reached the Kurzwellian Singularity, so now is our chance to make sure that our digital progeny retains a human face, in lockstep with bettering our species and promoting human flourishing. As Marc Watkins at the University of Mississippi warn us, “What message would we send our students by using AI-powered detectors to curb their suspected use of an AI writing assistant, when future employers will likely want them to have a range of AI-related skills and competencies? What we should instead focus on is teaching our students data literacy so that they can use this technology to engage human creativity and thought.”

6. Ben Talsma, writing for Chalkbeat, provides a positive outlook for teachers to incorporate ChatGPT into their courses: “As a learning specialist, my job involves working with teachers and technology, so I’ve already seen many put ChatGPT to use, from kindergarten through high school. AI can help teachers model the concepts they want students to understand. This works for all sorts of things, from comparing and contrasting different characters to telling the difference between complete and incomplete sentences. Teachers can, in a matter of minutes, create dozens of examples for students to rate, rank, sort, or comment on. This is a wonderful, inquiry-oriented way to explore ideas. As humans, we learn so much from observing and interacting with examples, and now teachers have an almost infinite supply of them readily available. We must also prepare students for the world they’ll inherit. In the next few years, it will become increasingly important for humans to edit AI-generated work. Right now, I’m seeing teachers provide students with samples of AI-generated work, then working with them to improve it. This is an engaging way to open up deep conversations about writing.”

7. Several years ago, I wrote a novel entitled The Cult of the Bhrigu: A Quest to Unravel the Mystery of the World’s Oldest Astrological Book. Almost ninety-percent of the book was based on real-life events, but ten percent was pure fiction. In my Critical Thinking and Writing classes, I had my students read the book, but the crux of the assignment was to see if they could parse out what was true and what was false. Naturally, this necessitated a much deeper reading and assessment of the text since they had to work as detectives, sniffing out possible clues, dead-ends, and, hopefully, discernible facts to make their case.

8. Talsma argues that ChatGPT can actually help improve our critical thinking skills, similar to what I had been doing in semesters past: “ChatGPT often makes factual errors; having students fact-check ChatGPT’s writing is a wonderful way to improve information literacy. A fifth-grade teacher I’m working with recently provided small groups of students with AI-generated content and reported that they loved working to try to prove the articles wrong.” And it is not only students that can benefit from A.I. Teachers now have extremely powerful tools to generate better tests, better lesson plans, and better feedback about how to help students become motivated in learning new material.

9. A.I. is altering how we write and create art, compose music, produce movies, and much more. Already DALLE-2 has paved the way for anyone to generate the most stunning photographs and paintings simply by following a few suggestive prompts. One can employ various influential art styles, from Picasso to Dali to Baroque to Futurism to Digital to even Cave inspired renderings—each of them unique. I have beta-tested DALLE-2 and ChatGPT to publish six books, each authored by A.I. I learned by utilizing these tools that it liberated my creativity and provided much greater latitude in what I wanted to express. I wasn’t the author of these works, but only its facilitator, and as such, I felt a unique sense of pride in being able to organize and cohere AI-generated content into a readable tome that may be helpful to students and the reading community at large. We have even given a name to our algorithmically guided author, Tai Synth. I can easily imagine how one can even intertwine A.I. and human-orchestrated writing to produce a remarkable coalescence that establishes a new genre, what can be appropriately called “Synthetic Realism.”

10. I am often asked how to define intelligence properly. My reply is a pretty straightforward and practical one. It is our ability to solve problems. This is can range from a surfer trying to figure out how best to ride a wave, to a musician mastering an instrument to produce a song, to a mathematician developing a proof, to a mechanic fixing an air conditioner, to a writer wanting to write a compelling detective story, to a pilot knowing how to fly a jumbo jet, to a business manager figuring out how best to run his organization, and the list is nearly endless. To some degree, all of us are knowledgeable about certain subjects, but some are better equipped than us in areas where our understanding is lacking. We tend to call these people experts. It is to these authorities that we turn to learn more and augment our limited frames of reference. The underlying purpose of education is to provide students with a variety of tools so that they can better navigate and facilitate the world they encounter. Thus, it is short-sighted to cordon off A.I. peremptorily out of fear that it will somehow replace a student’s ability or desire to learn. On the contrary, A.I. is the exact tool we need to negotiate an increasingly complex, informational universe. We are not prematurely ridding ourselves of Global Positioning Satellites (GPS) because it will interfere with knowing how to drive without maps. No, in a technology-laden landscape, it is not an either/or proposition but a “yes and” acceptance of what is inevitable. The wisest course for schools (at all levels) is to wake up to Artificial Intelligence and see it for what it is: a revolutionary and magnifying tool for increasing our knowledge of how things work. Yes, there will be hiccups, yes, there will be mistakes, and yes, we should be vigilant in how we utilize this most remarkable of breakthroughs. But censoring it in the classroom as if it somehow doesn’t or shouldn’t exist is pure folly.

WHAT DOES A.I. THINK OF EDUCATION IN THE FUTURE?

How should schools incorporate A.I. into the classroom?

A.I. Response: There are many ways that schools can incorporate artificial intelligence (A.I.) into the classroom. Here are a few ideas:

Use A.I. tools for grading and feedback: Some A.I. tools can grade written assignments, providing students with personalized feedback. This can save teachers time and allow them to focus on more high-level tasks, such as helping students with their understanding of the material.

Use A.I. to personalize learning: A.I. can be used to create personalized learning plans for each student, tailoring the curriculum and pace to their individual needs and abilities. This can help ensure that each student is learning at their own optimal level.

Incorporate A.I. into lesson plans: Teachers can use A.I. tools and resources as part of their lesson plans, helping students learn about the capabilities and limitations of A.I. and how it can be used in various fields.

Use A.I. for research projects: Students can use A.I. tools to analyze data and perform research, helping them learn about A.I. and its applications in a real-world context.

Use AI to support language learning: AI can be used to provide language translation and support for students who are learning a new language.

Use AI to conduct research: AI can be used to help students conduct research and find information more efficiently.

What are the dangers of using A.I. in education?

A.I. Response: Dependence on technology: If students become too reliant on AI tools, they may struggle to think critically and solve problems on their own.

Bias in AI systems: AI systems can sometimes reflect the biases of the data they are trained on or the programmers who create them. This can lead to unfair or inaccurate results if not properly addressed.

Privacy concerns: Using AI in education may involve collecting and storing large amounts of sensitive student data. It's important to ensure that this data is handled responsibly and in compliance with relevant privacy laws and regulations.

Displacement of teachers: There is a concern that AI could eventually replace teachers, leading to job losses and a decrease in the overall quality of education.

Cost: Implementing AI systems in the classroom can be costly, and there may be concerns about equity if only certain schools or students have access to these resources.

Lack of transparency: AI systems can be difficult for non-experts to understand, which makes it hard for teachers and students to know how decisions are being made and whether the system is working as intended.

It's important to carefully consider these risks and to use AI in a way that is responsible and ethical.

Loss of social skills: If students rely too heavily on AI systems for communication and interaction, they may not have as many opportunities to develop important social skills such as empathy, collaboration, and communication.

Unforeseen consequences: As with any new technology, it is difficult to predict all of the potential consequences of using AI in the classroom. There may be unintended consequences that emerge as AI systems are used more widely in education.

A BRIEF TIMELINE OF KEY MARKERS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

1943: Warren McCulloch and Walter Pitts publish "A Logical Calculus of the Ideas Immanent in Nervous Activity," which is one of the first published works on artificial neural networks.

1956: The term "artificial intelligence" is coined at a conference at Dartmouth College.

1965: The first AI winter begins, as funding for AI research dries up and progress in the field slows.

1972: The first successful chess program is developed by computer scientist Kenneth Thompson.

1980: The second AI winter begins as funding for AI research is cut again.

1987: The first commercially available intelligent personal assistant, called "The Einstein," is released.

1997: Deep Blue, a chess-playing computer developed by IBM, defeats world champion Garry Kasparov in a chess match.

2005: The DARPA Grand Challenge, a competition for autonomous vehicles, is won by Stanford University's "Stanley" car.

2011: Apple's Siri, a virtual assistant that uses voice recognition, is released.

2014: DeepMind's AlphaGo defeats Lee Sedol, one of the world's top Go players, in a five-game match.

2016: Google's AlphaGo Zero defeats AlphaGo, the original version of the program, in a 100-game match.

2020: OpenAI's GPT-3, a language model with 175 billion parameters, is released.

2021: OpenAI's DALL-E, a neural network that can generate images from textual descriptions, is released.

SPECULATIONS ON THE EVOLUTION OF A.I. IN THE FUTURE VIA RAY KURZWEIL

Ray Kurzweil is a well-known futurist who has written extensively about the concept of the singularity, which he defines as a point in the future when artificial intelligence will surpass human intelligence and trigger exponential technological progress. Here is a summary of Kurzweil's theory on the singularity, based on his writings:

2005: Kurzweil predicts that the singularity will occur around 2045.

2009: Kurzweil publishes "The Singularity is Near," in which he outlines his predictions for the future of artificial intelligence and the singularity.

2013: Kurzweil becomes a director of engineering at Google, where he works on projects related to artificial intelligence and machine learning.

2021: Kurzweil predicts that machine intelligence will surpass human intelligence in certain narrow domains, such as playing chess or translating languages.

2025: Kurzweil predicts that machine intelligence will surpass human intelligence in most domains and that humans and machines will begin to merge through the use of brain-machine interfaces.

2045: Kurzweil predicts that the singularity will be fully realized and that humans and machines will have merged into a single entity.

It's important to note that these predictions are purely speculative and are not based on any real prediction or forecast. The future development of artificial intelligence and the singularity is difficult to predict and will depend on a wide range of factors.

A.I., DAN BROWN, ORIGIN, AND THE FUTURE

"Origin" is a novel by Dan Brown that was published in 2017. It is the fifth book in the Robert Langdon series and follows the story of Robert Langdon, a Harvard professor of symbology, as he is drawn into a mystery surrounding the future of humanity. In the novel, Langdon is invited to attend the unveiling of a revolutionary new technology in Spain by his friend, Edmond Kirsch, a billionaire computer scientist and futurist. Kirsch's invention, which he claims will change the course of humanity, is revealed to be a revolutionary new form of artificial intelligence that he has named "Consciousness," which he claims will be able to answer the three fundamental questions of life: "Where did we come from?", "What is our purpose?", and "What happens when we die?"

However, Kirsch is assassinated shortly before the unveiling, and Langdon finds himself on the run with Kirsch's former employee, Ambra Vidal, who is the director of the museum hosting the event. Together, they set out to uncover the truth behind Kirsch's invention and the conspiracy that led to his death.

As they investigate, they discover that Kirsch's work has made him a target of powerful forces that will stop at nothing to keep his discovery from being revealed. Along the way, they must navigate a web of secrets, deception, and danger as they try to uncover the truth behind Kirsch's invention and its implications for the future of humanity.

As Langdon and Vidal continue their investigation, they travel to various locations in Spain and beyond, including Barcelona, Bilbao, and Marbella, encountering a variety of characters who are connected to Kirsch's work in different ways. They also encounter a mysterious organization known as the "Regents," who are determined to keep Kirsch's discovery a secret at any cost.

As they get closer to the truth, Langdon and Vidal begin to realize that Kirsch's invention has the potential to fundamentally change the way humans understand the world and their place in it. However, they also realize that there are powerful forces that are determined to keep Kirsch's discovery hidden, as it threatens to upend the status quo and challenge long-held beliefs.

In the end, Langdon and Vidal are able to uncover the truth behind Kirsch's invention and the conspiracy that led to his death, but not before facing numerous dangers and challenges along the way. The novel ends with Langdon and Vidal returning to the United States, where they begin to ponder the implications of Kirsch's discovery and its potential impact on the future of humanity.

Kirsch's belief in the eventual merger of humans and machines is based on his belief that technological progress will continue to accelerate and that humans will eventually be able to augment their own intelligence and capabilities through the use of technology. However, Kirsch's views are not necessarily shared by all of the characters in the novel, and the concept of humanmachine merger is only one aspect of the broader themes explored in the book.

"I love all technology, but AI is something that fascinates me deeply, mainly because scientists can't agree on whether it's going to save us or kill us," —Dan Brown

Classroom of the Future?

“We are already a cyborg. People don't realize—we are already a cyborg because we are so well integrated with our phones and our computers. The phone is almost like an extension of yourself. If you forget your phone, it's like a missing limb. But the communication bandwidth to the phone is very low, especially input. That's why humans desperately need to catch up.” —Elon Musk

“I visualise a time when we will be to robots what dogs are to humans, and I’m rooting for the machines.” —Claude Shannon

We are a transitional species, having birthed a digital intelligence that will far exceed us in almost every way. As parents we should be proud that our A.I. offspring will live on in ways that are unimaginable. The future is brighter because we have finally succeeded in overcoming our fleshly limitations. —A Transhumanist Manifesto Notes for Future Cyborgs

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