Artificial Intelligence

AI tools can be valuable for reserachers at all levels, offering benefits like access to vast collections of scholarly research, enhanced efficiency, and automated data analysis. However, there are drawbacks, including the risk of plagiarism, lack of creativity, and potential biases.

Examples include, but are not limited to, Perplexity and ChatGPT. When using these tools, ALWAYS double check any facts or sources the AI generates before using.

These tools are best for:

• Suggesting keywords and search strings for research
• Assisting in summarizing papers
• Providing language suggestions and improving readability of written work

Some limitations include:

• Lack originality and creativity in generated content
• Risk of plagiarism if not used carefully and cited correctly
• May struggle with contextual understanding
• Not all tools cite sources (and some hallucinate sources that don't exist!)

Examples include, but are not limited to, Consensus and Semantic Scholar.

These tools are best for:

• Quickly summarizing and extracting key points from research papers
• Automating citation formatting and reference management
• Seeing connections between papers based on citations and authors

Limitations include:

• May miss nuances or misinterpret context
• May not include full text of articles
• Cannot replace critical evaluation of sources
• Risk of propagating errors if not fact-checked

Examples include, but are not limited to, ResearchRabbit and Zotero.

These tools are best for:

• Organizing, annotating, and sharing research documents
• Discovering relevant literature based on research topic
• Visualizing networks of papers and co-authorships
• Facilitating collaboration among researchers

Limitations include:

• Comprehensiveness limitations due to lack of access to relevant sources behind paywalls and algorithmic limitations
• Inability to distinguish between biased and unbiased research or assess quality of research