Monthly Archives: January 2023

Arts & Humanities, Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Libraries, Politics, Science & Health, Times They Are A-Changing, Web & Technology

Artificial Intelligence and the Research Paper: A Librarian’s Perspective – News | SMU Libraries

By: Jonathan McMichael, Undergraduate Success Librarian
Screenshot…

AI writing can mimic style, but it cannot mimic substance yet. The release of a powerful, free and easy-to-use large language model platform, Open AI’s ChatGPT, raises interesting questions about the future of writing in higher education.

As the Undergraduate Success Librarian, I have a unique perspective on generative AI, like ChatGPT, that I want to share along with some advice for instructors and students on adapting to AI’s presence in higher education.

What is ChatGPT?

How does it work? ChatGPT is an interface that allows you to interact with artificial intelligence through text inputs and responses. The AI on the other side of the interface is a language model called GPT-3. It produces human-like text by parsing and analyzing the massive corpus of text information (large language) it has been trained on to predict what is likely to come next in a string of words. This makes GPT-3 a type of Generative AI because it uses machine learning to generate new content based on a given set of input data. So, when you give ChatGPT a prompt like “describe losing your sock in the dryer in the style of the declaration of independence” it (in simplified terms) identifies relevant data within its large language dataset, notices patterns within that dataset and then generates a set of text that seems most like the things it identified.*

Editor’s Note: Source was Library Link of the Day
http://www.tk421.net/librarylink/  (archive, rss, subscribe options)

Source: Artificial Intelligence and the Research Paper: A Librarian’s Perspective – News

Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Science & Health, Times They Are A-Changing, Web & Technology

Dan Levitt’s ‘What’s Gotten Into You’ traces atoms’ long trip from the big bang to the human body | CNN

By Bryn Nelson, CNN, Published 10:17 AM EST, Sun January 22, 2023

We are ever-changing and replacing old parts with new ones: our water, proteins and even cells.
Faisal/Adobe Stock

In its violent early years, Earth was a molten hellscape that ejected the moon after a fiery collision with another protoplanet, scientists now suspect.

Dan Levitt’s book, “What’s Gotten Into You,” reconstructs the journey of our atoms across billions of years.

Later, it morphed from a watery expanse to a giant snowball that nearly snuffed out all existing life.

Source: Dan Levitt’s ‘What’s Gotten Into You’ traces atoms’ long trip from the big bang to the human body | CNN

Arts & Humanities, Current Affairs, Film & Movies, Libraries, Music, Pleasures, Television

Bewitched by TV Themes | Library of Congress Blog | Library of Congress

By Mark Hartsell, January 23, 2023

The sheet music for “Jeannie,” the theme song to the hit TV show. Music Division.

Most folks know the ridiculously catchy instrumental theme song for the 1960s classic TV comedy “I Dream of Jeannie.” But how many can recite its lyrics — “Jeannie, fresh as a daisy! / Just love how she obeys me” — or even knew it had any?

The theme for “Bewitched,” another ’60s favorite, briefly had its day: Peggy Lee, among others, recorded a jazzy vocal version in 1965. The lyrics weren’t used in the series, however, and over many decades of reruns faded from public consciousness.

The original lyrics for both songs, and countless others, are preserved in Library collections as submissions to the U.S. Copyright Office, which is part of the Library. Such submissions for registration help preserve mostly forgotten stories about pop culture staples: They chronicle the creators’ original ideas and, sometimes, the subsequent histories of their works.

Source: Bewitched by TV Themes | Library of Congress Blog

Current Affairs

Life Advice for Book Lovers: Finding Joy in Retirement ‹ Literary Hub

Book Recommendations for the Troubled Soul

By Dorothea, January 19, 2023

From article…

Dear Dorothea,

I’m sixty. I just took my pension after having worked in the Quebec health system for forty-two years. Yes, I survived COVID. I saw a lot of my old patients die, and I had to work under less than ideal conditions. We were forced to wear masks, scrubs and gloves all day.

Moreover, there was a lack of personnel because many employees got the bug. Therefore, the rest of us had to work like dogs but did not sleep like logs, afraid as we were of falling sick too. It was a time of distress.

So, I should feel joyous not going to work anymore, but not as much as I think I would. I’m telling myself that I will finally be able to finish and polish the sci-fi series of adventure novels I began years ago. However, in the morning I feel a little bit depressed. I have trouble believing that the whole time of each new day (or at last a big part of it) can be spent pursuing my heart’s desires.

It’s like Society is whispering in my utilitarian programmed brain: do something useful, start a garden, cook with your wife, find a part-time job, study theology, etc. How can you believe that what you write will interest anybody?

Should I read positive thinking books, although most of them are written by Republican car salesmen?

Thank you, Morning Hope, Morning Sadness

Source: Life Advice for Book Lovers: Finding Joy in Retirement ‹ Literary Hub

Arts & Humanities, Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Libraries, Memories & History, Politics, Times They Are A-Changing

Banned and Challenged: Restricting access to books in the U.S. : NPR

A series on books that are facing challenges to their placement in libraries in some areas around the U.S.

Special Series

Banned and Challenged: Restricting access to books in the U.S.

First in series…

Author George M. Johnson: We must ensure access to those who need these stories most

All Boys Aren’t Blue, a memoir for teens and young adults about growing up Black and queer, appeared on many “best books” lists when published in 2020. It’s being challenged in some U.S. counties.

Source: Banned and Challenged: Restricting access to books in the U.S. : NPR

Food & Drink, Memories & History, Pleasures, Science & Health

It’s Not What You’re Eating, It’s When You’re Eating | by Ashley Richmond | In Fitness And In Health | Medium

Time-restricted eating may be the easiest path to your health goals.

By Ashley Richmond, Dec 29, 2020

Photo by Sander Dalhuisen on Unsplash

Health is confusing.

There are so many diets to choose from, exercises to try, and different people saying conflicting things about what is best.

For years, I have experimented with different diets and exercises to try to find the best one. And the truth is, there isn’t one. Diet and exercise are highly personal. You can read more about this here.

But there is one strategy that is universal: Time-restricted eating.

Source: It’s Not What You’re Eating, It’s When You’re Eating | by Ashley Richmond | In Fitness And In Health | Medium