The growth of AI-based tools is astounding and alarming. I was recently sent a CT report of a hospitalised relative with multiple findings that seemed to require medical attention. I was curious to learn more.
It is inadvisable to do this, but some of us have a curious itch to scratch (and suffer the consequences). I opened the PDF in Chrome, selected search with Google Lens, selected each of the individual findings (sentence by sentence), and got AI-generated results. The whole thing took a minute.
Without AI or Lens, I would have to type in each term, click on authoritative sites (Google takes care of this for medical terms quite well), read through a good portion of the page, and form an opinion. It would have taken at least 30 minutes.
Please note: I do not suggest that everyone do this. Of course, we would only follow what the doctor says and not bother the doctor with our findings. AI or no AI, we must be mature enough to process information well. Else, it is better to stay away from such “research”.
The point is that I have started using AI so much for daily searches that I worry that attention to detail is dying. Thanks to the internet, it is already half-dead.
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Earlier, we used to read books or articles from end to end, or at least most of them, to find what we wanted. In the process, we also learnt associated important things. For example, if it was a formula, a law, or a rule, we also learnt (even if we were not looking for it explicitly) sub-cases, situations where it will not work or needs to be modified, etc.
With the advent of digital documents, we just searched for a specific term in a 1000-page PDF. We decided that was ‘enough’, often not bothering to check the entire document for other instances of that term.
With AI, we don’t need to search. The model will do it for us, write a summary and “decide” what we need to learn or don’t. Unless we dig deeper, there is no way to learn if this is right or wrong (AI companies have a disclaimer, but no one takes them seriously).
In the above example, I could afford to do casual research. I was only satisfying my curiosity and mentally preparing for what lies ahead. But what if those who need rigorous research also switch to AI?
What if Phd students stopped reading papers, fed them into AI, and learned only the summary? What if scientists (say, developing a new drug) did this? Is this not a rational fear? Already, school and college students use AI for their homework and projects. The progression to higher echelons of research and investigation seems inevitable.
Recently, I asked a doctor about the connection between two health conditions. He did not know off-hand, so he searched on his PC and, within 30 seconds, told me there was no connection. I could not see the screen, so I wondered if he used AI! Surely it would take a lot longer to search an authoritative medical archive?
If mobiles, social media, and reel-watching have reduced our attention spans, AI seems to be the final nail in the coffin.
Any technological innovation increases the time available for leisure. This leisure is then used for creativity and more innovation. With AI assistance, the time freed up seems to be significant. Will it enhance our creativity? But then again, who will consume this creativity (first-hand)? AI or humans? Oh dear, it seems to be a case of rigour mortis.