Experts warn AI is making your brain work less

What’s the last thing you wanted an AI chatbot to do for you?

Maybe you wanted an essay structure that would help answer a difficult question, provide a clear analysis of a large data set, or check if your cover letter fits the job description.

Some experts worry that outsourcing such tasks means your brain is working less hard and may even harm your critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Earlier this year, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) published a study showing that people who used ChatGPT to write papers showed less activity in brain networks associated with cognitive processing while exercising.

These individuals also were not able to cite their articles as easily as those who did not use the AI ​​chatbot in the study.

The researchers said their study raises the “urgent issue of exploring a possible decline in learning abilities.”

All 54 participants were selected from MIT and nearby universities. Brain activities were recorded using electroencephalography (EEG), which involves electrodes placed on the scalp.

Some of the prompts used by participants included asking the AI ​​to summarize essay questions, find sources, and improve grammar and style.

It was also used to generate and express ideas; However, some users thought that artificial intelligence was not very good at this.

Separately, Carnegie Mellon University and Microsoft, which operates Copilot, found that people’s problem-solving skills may decrease if they rely too much on artificial intelligence.

They asked 319 white-collar workers who use AI tools in their jobs at least once a week how they apply critical thinking when using them.

They examined 900 examples of tasks assigned to AI, from analyzing data for new insights to checking whether a job follows certain rules.

The study found that increased confidence in the tool’s ability to perform a task was associated with “less critical thinking effort.”

“While GenAI may increase employee productivity, it can inhibit work-critical interaction and potentially lead to over-reliance on the tool in the long term and reduced ability to solve independent problems.”

School children in the UK were also surveyed for a similar study Published by Oxford University Press in October (OUP).

It was revealed that six in 10 people feel that artificial intelligence negatively affects their skills with schoolwork.

So, with the huge explosion in the use of artificial intelligence, are our cognitive abilities at risk of diminishing?

Prolific artificial intelligence expert Dr. who worked on the school survey at OUP. Not necessarily so, says Alexandra Tomescu.

“Our research shows us that nine in 10 students say AI has helped them improve at least one skill related to their schoolwork (problem solving, creativity or revision).

“But at the same time, about a quarter of those who say the use of AI has made it much easier for them to do business… So [it’s] It’s a pretty subtle picture.”

He adds that many students want more guidance on how to use AI.

ChatGPT, which has more than 800 million weekly active users, according to boss Sam Altman, has released a series of 100 prompts designed to help students get the most out of technology.

But Prof Wayne Holmes, who researches critical studies of artificial intelligence and education at University College London (UCL), says this is not enough.

He calls for much more academic research into the effects of AI tools on learning before students and students are encouraged to use them.

“Today there is no large-scale independent evidence of the effectiveness of these tools in education, their safety, or even the idea that they have a positive impact,” he tells us.

Professor Holmes points to research on cognitive atrophy, where a person’s abilities and skills deteriorate after using artificial intelligence.

He says this is a problem for radiologists, who use AI tools to help them interpret X-rays before diagnosing patients.

A study published last year by Harvard Medical School found that AI support improved the performance of some clinicians but harmed others for reasons researchers don’t fully understand.

The authors called for more studies on how humans interact with AI; so we can find ways to use AI tools that “enhance rather than hurt human performance.”

Professor Holmes fears that students, whether at school or university, will become too reliant on AI to do their work for them and fail to develop the basic skills that education provides.

A student’s paper may get better grades with the help of AI, but the question is whether they understand less.

As Prof Holmes puts it: “Their output is better but their learning is actually worse.”

Jayna Devani, who leads international education at OpenAI, which owns ChatGPT An agreement was reached with Oxford UniversityHe says the firm is “very aware of this debate at the moment.”

“We certainly don’t think students should use ChatGPT for outsourcing,” he tells the BBC.

In his opinion, it is best used as a teacher rather than merely a provider of answers.

The example he gives shows a student moving back and forth with ChatGPT using the study mode setting.

You enter the question you are having trouble answering and the chatbot can help you understand the question by breaking it down into its components.

His example shows a student doing homework late at night on a topic he doesn’t fully understand.

“[If] You have a presentation coming up and…it’s midnight, you won’t be sending emails [university] Ask for a private tutor and help,” he says.

“I think ChatGPT really has the potential to accelerate learning when used in a targeted way.”

However, Prof Holmes warned that any student using AI tools must be aware of how their logic works and how the companies providing them handle the data. He emphasizes that the results should always be checked.

“This isn’t just the latest version of the calculator,” he says, describing the far-reaching capabilities and implications of AI.

“I would never tell my students that you should never use AI… But what I try to say is that we need to understand all these different things about it so that you can make informed decisions.”