Last week, I wrote about the new AI module that the College rolled out for this year’s first-year orientation. Then I spent a lot of time speaking with first-years about their thoughts on the module and the broader topic of generative AI. These conversations only tell part of the story. Though I reached out to people with diverse perspectives on generative AI, I wasn’t able to document any conversations with people who feel positively about the technology.
Donovan Thompson `30 has concerns about many aspects of generative AI use, including its impacts on the environment and on the brain: “I already knew the environmental impacts of using AI, like how much water it uses and how harmful the data centers are… I also know that it’s really harmful for your brain because I’ve read studies about, like, LLMs and how using them decreases retention and memory and intellect and everything and it decreases your critical thinking ability… I believe it’s just harmful overall.”
Thompson is also a creative, and it disheartens him to witness the proliferation of AI-generated art. “I love to write and draw, so just seeing people auto-generate short stories or books or art really angers me, because… the whole point of art is that it’s meant to be made by humans and represent that humanity. And I feel like it’s really harmful when I see people… not having the media literacy to detect that AI art is not art,” he said.
He found it surprising that the College would provide its students with access to generative AI software through its Google Suite: “They provide us with Notebook LM and Gemini for free, and I feel like that’s harmful because it’s kind of… encouraging students to use generative AI because they’re being given it as… a resource from the school.”
Will Grosshuesch `30 felt that the module didn’t put enough emphasis on the ramifications that data centers have on surrounding areas: “They could’ve gone more into the environmental impacts… they just said it uses a lot of water, but it uses a lot of water, and, like, how they’re clearing land for that kind of thing… I think they should talk about the cons a little more than the pros.”
Another first-year source who preferred to remain anonymous expressed slightly more favorable feelings toward the technology, saying, “I feel like once [generative AI companies] clean up their act—a lot—then I’d be more open to it, but at the moment I’m trying to stay away from it.”
The source felt that the module failed to cover an important criticism of generative AI usage: “They focused a lot… more so on the intellectual cons — I feel like they didn’t touch as much on, like, creative downsides… I know there was a debate around here about a banner, someone made a banner using AI. It was just for some silly little thing but, you know, there are people out there that do that for work.”
Anthony Kihwele `30 is worried about what the proliferation of generative AI means for his future: “Using AI… prompting and all that, it’s a major loss of human agency. You know, as an adolescent, someone growing up, the future is already very blurry… the only thing I see is human demise in the use of AI… I don’t want to see human demise, and I don’t know what my future looks like, so I say no to demise.”
Despite his apprehension and his personal decision to not use AI tools, Kihwele sees the value in the College choosing to provide Gemini and Notebook LM to students through the Google Suite. “I didn’t know that source-bound large language models were a thing… [the College’s Gemini and Notebook LM tools] don’t release information out there, they don’t train their models [on what students input into the tools]… You can’t really stop someone, so if you are [going to use generative AI], this is the safest viable option,” he said.
It can be difficult to form an opinion on generative AI in a world inundated with sensationalized media coverage and a steady stream of new and often conflicting information. These first-years represent some of the varying opinions held by students at the College. What we can likely all agree on at this institution of higher education is that nobody wants these generative AI tools to harm student learning.
According to Thompson, the module made that clear: “I thought it was important to address AI, especially in current times… [the module] made the point that they don’t encourage using it as a replacement for learning… if it’s going to be used, it should be something that advances learning.”
~ Anna Izquierdo `29
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