ChatGPT takes on Penn State AI – here’s what Penn State has to say about it

We asked ChatGPT to write an article about Penn State’s capabilities in AI, from materials science to ethics and sustainability. And then, we asked David Hunter, who was recently appointed as director for a cross-functional Penn State AI Hub, for his reaction to what artificial intelligence said about the University.

“I accept your challenge!” he said. “But first a digression. A friend of mine asked ChatGPT to write a press release about Penn State’s AI Hub and the results were ... interesting. It showed me a use for ChatGPT I hadn’t previously thought of – suggesting things to specifically avoid. I guess this makes sense; to the extent that a neural network trained on a bunch of information currently publicly available can describe your entity, your entity is not novel.  Put a different way, if ChatGPT writes it, you should make sure you really mean it before you write it too.”

“Remember, there’s nothing magical about this program; it’s simply very good at matching a particular set of inputs to an appropriate set of outputs, using as its 'matching' rule a truly enormous body of human knowledge,” he added. “There are several implications of this, not least that you only get from ChatGPT an answer that is as good as what can be found in that body of knowledge.”

Credit: Mike Fleck / Penn State. Creative Commons

Tell me about the capabilities of AI at Penn State:

ChatGPT: As an AI language model, I can provide information about AI in general and Penn State's initiatives related to AI, but I don't have access to real-time information or specific details about current capabilities of AI at Penn State beyond what has been publicly shared.

DH: The above passage is interesting.  I have very little ChatGPT experience, but most of what we’ve been reading about it doesn’t  talk about passages like this.  It’s almost as though its creators have explicitly added a feature to try to educate users about what it is and is not—seems very responsible, actually!

There’s nothing magical about this program; it’s simply very good at matching a particular set of inputs to an appropriate set of outputs, using as its "matching" rule a truly enormous body of human knowledge.

ChatGPT: That being said, Penn State has been actively working to advance AI research and education across a variety of fields, from healthcare to sustainability. Some of the AI initiatives and capabilities at Penn State include:

1. The Penn State Institute for Computational and Data Sciences (ICDS), which provides expertise, infrastructure, and support for AI research across disciplines.
2. The Center for Neural Engineering, which focuses on developing AI-based solutions to treat neurological disorders and restore function.
3. The Center for Big Data Analytics and Discovery Informatics, which leverages AI and big data analytics to solve complex problems in areas such as healthcare, energy, and the environment.
4. The Department of Computer Science and Engineering, which offers undergraduate and graduate programs in AI and related fields.
5. The Nittany AI Alliance, which brings together industry partners, faculty, and students to develop AI solutions and promote AI education.

Overall, Penn State is actively working to advance the state of AI research and education and to apply AI to solve real-world problems in a variety of fields.

DH: On one hand, the list is amusing: It’s not even close to what a human familiar with Penn State would put together, since it’s so all over the place it doesn’t really give a coherent snapshot of AI-related activity at Penn State.

The list is amusing: It’s not even close to what a human familiar with Penn State would put together.

On the other hand, there are some interesting aspects, like its mention of sustainability. I’d be curious to see what it would find if one were to ask ChatGPT do a deep dive into the sustainability. Obviously all of the same information would be available by simply searching the web, but ChatGPT will perform the rote search and compile the results for you. In this way, tools like ChatGPT represent nothing more than a democratization of access to computing power that has existed for a long time.

What are some of the initiatives happening with AI at Penn State?

ChatGPT: Penn State has several ongoing initiatives related to AI. Here are some examples:

DH: ...some examples of the high variability in the quality of items in lists generated by ChatGPT, that is. Some of these items are useful, while some are ridiculous.  Specific comments below:   

1. The Penn State AI Initiative: This is a university-wide initiative that brings together researchers from various disciplines to advance AI research and education. The initiative is focused on three main areas: fundamental research in AI, interdisciplinary collaborations, and AI education and workforce development.

DH: I have no idea what this is!  I guess we can add it to the list of “things that ChatGPT turns out that don’t jibe with reality.”

ChatGPT:

2. AI for Earth: This initiative, which is a collaboration between Penn State and Microsoft, aims to use AI to address environmental challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and water scarcity. The initiative provides funding and resources for research projects that use AI to solve environmental problems.

DH: Maybe this is going on at Penn State, and I’d like to learn more if so; but a quick search doesn’t turn up anything specific to Penn State.

ChatGPT:

3. The Center for Security Research and Education: This center focuses on advancing research in areas such as cybersecurity, data privacy, and national security. AI is a key component of many of the center's research projects.

DH: This is legit.  Definitely something to make sure to highlight somehow.

ChatGPT is a helpful tool for automating the process of compiling “to do” items.  Yet like any tool, it clearly requires human interaction to be effective.

ChatGPT:

4. The Penn State College of Medicine: The college is using AI to improve patient care and outcomes. For example, researchers are using AI to develop predictive models that can identify patients at risk for complications and improve treatment decisions.

DH: The College of Medicine is an “initiative”?  Way too broad to be helpful.

ChatGPT:

5. The Penn State World Campus: The World Campus offers an online Master of Professional Studies in Artificial Intelligence and Analytics. The program is designed for working professionals and provides training in areas such as machine learning, natural language processing, and data visualization.

DH: Like #3 , the MPS in AI is something to highlight.

Chat GPT: These are just a few examples of the many AI-related initiatives happening at Penn State. The university is committed to advancing AI research and education and to applying AI to solve real-world problems in a variety of fields.

DH: As with the earlier list, ChatGPT is a helpful tool for automating the process of compiling “to do” items.  Yet like any tool, it clearly requires human interaction to be effective.

How will an AI Hub unite AI at Penn State

ChatGPT: An AI Hub at Penn State would provide a central hub for AI research and education across the university, allowing researchers from various disciplines to collaborate more easily and efficiently. Here are some ways an AI Hub could unite AI at Penn State:

1. Facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations: An AI Hub would bring together researchers from various disciplines, such as computer science, engineering, and the social sciences, to work on AI projects. By facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations, the AI Hub could help researchers develop more comprehensive and innovative solutions to complex problems.
2. Providing access to resources: An AI Hub could provide researchers with access to the latest hardware, software, and other resources needed for AI research. This could help researchers stay up-to-date with the latest AI technologies and techniques.
3. Fostering education and training: An AI Hub could provide education and training opportunities for students and faculty interested in AI. This could include workshops, seminars, and courses on topics such as machine learning, natural language processing, and data analytics.
4. Promoting outreach and engagement: An AI Hub could serve as a focal point for engaging with industry partners, government agencies, and other organizations interested in AI. This could help Penn State researchers and students develop partnerships and collaborations that lead to real-world applications of AI.

Overall, an AI Hub at Penn State could help unite AI research and education across the university, providing a central hub for interdisciplinary collaborations, access to resources, education and training, and outreach and engagement.

DH: Nothing wrong with any of this!  That said, it would not be helpful to use this text on a public-facing website.  Almost by definition, whatever is generated by ChatGPT is not truly original.  Technically, it’s “new” in the sense that these precise words have never been combined in exactly this way, but it’s all merely based on existing ideas.  If there is anything novel about the AI Hub, it will not be captured by ChatGPT using a query like this.

Can you list any publications or mentions of Penn State AI in any publication in the last year?

ChatGPT: As an AI language model, I can search for information and publications related to Penn State AI. However, I have a knowledge cutoff of September 2021, and I do not have real-time access to the latest publications or news.

DH: This is a really interesting preamble; the message feels like something ChatGPT has been programmed to insert as a way of teaching the humans that use it what it can and cannot reasonably be expected to help with.  It’s sort of like an “intelligent instruction manual” that knows when to feature relevant passages.

I’m not sure whether to put more faith in a ChatGPT-generated list of publications related to AI at Penn State than, say, a Google search.

ChatGPT: That being said, here are a few examples of recent mentions of Penn State AI in publications:

1. Penn State researchers have developed an AI-based algorithm that can detect COVID-19 by analyzing chest X-rays. This study was published in the IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics in August 2021.
2. In March 2021, Penn State launched the Institute for Computational and Data Sciences, a multidisciplinary research institute focused on advancing AI, machine learning, data analytics, and other computational fields.
3. A recent publication in the Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters (June 2021) co-authored by a Penn State researcher discusses the development of an AI-based method to predict the electronic structure of materials.

It's important to note that these examples are not an exhaustive list, and there may be other recent publications or mentions of Penn State AI that I am not aware of.

DH: #2 is flat wrong: ICDS was not launched in 2021 in any sense. There is a brief history of the Institute here, and as you’ll see, that claim about ICDS and its history is wrong on a number of levels!

We all know at some level that that last sentence is true for any web search we ever perform, and there’s nothing wrong with a tool that reminds us of its limitations.

I’ll add here that I’m not sure whether to put more faith in a ChatGPT-generated list of publications related to AI at Penn State than, say, a Google search.  In the end, ChatGPT is clearly a useful tool but one that needs supervision when it’s being asked to aid in a creative process.  (This is distinct from, say, a task that is well-defined, like driving a car on roads, where a well-designed modern computer program is FAR better than humans at the same task.)

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