Each module you are studying on will clearly state whether the use of AI is acceptable in the assignment brief.
The general principle at the University of Huddersfield is that the work you hand in must be your own, and where it is acceptable to make use of AI, you need to acknowledge this.
The Academic Integrity module on Brightspace includes more information on the ways in which misusing AI could lead to you breaching the University's Academic Misconduct regulations. You should complete this module each year to make sure that you are up to date with the latest developments
The University has set out six principles in regards to AI, to help understand how and when it can be used, and some of the potential pitfalls, such as academic misconduct and copyright. The six principles can be found here.
Proof reading of assessments relates to the use of both human proofreading services and machine translation software such as Google Translate. It does not relate to the use of inbuilt software support such as spellchecker in MS Word. If you use the services of a proof reader, please refer to the Human and Computer Proof Reading Policy for full guidance and clarification on the boundaries between legitimate support and unacceptable intervention when using any proof-reading service.
The guidance for students on the use of AI can be found at: students.hud.ac.uk/studies/ai/principles/
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, is the science of making machines that can think like humans. It can be defined as "the use or study of computer systems or machines that have some qualities that the human brain has, such as the ability to interpret and produce language in a way that seems human, recognise or create images, solve problems, and learn from data supplied to them" (Cambridge Dictionary).
AI is a tool, and can fulfil various functions. The most common ones are in an academic setting can include text generation, analysis of texts, grammar checks, and image generation. This guide will go into more detail on some of the types of AI you may encounter.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) - "The use or study of computer systems or machines that have some of the qualities that the human brain has, such as the ability to interpret and produce language in a way that seems human, recognize or create images, solve problems, and learn from data supplied to them" (Cambridge Dictionary)
Machine Learning - Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) focused on "creating systems that can automatically improve their ability to perform tasks such as classifying images, interpreting text, or finding patterns in data" (The Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Technology)
Generative AI - Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence that can produce content such as audio, text, code, video, images, and other data. Generative AI uses machine learning algorithms to create outputs based on a training data set. Specifically, generative AI models are fed vast quantities of existing content to train the models to produce new content. (Investopedia)
Large Language Model (LLM) - An AI tool defined as; "A large general-purpose language models that can be pre-trained and then fine-tuned for specific purposes. They are trained to solve common language problems, such as text classification, question answering, document summaries, and text generation." (Penn State) Common examples of LLM's include ChatGPT, Google Bard, and ResearchRabbit.
Text to image AI - An AI model that takes a written input and produces an image based on that input. Examples include DALL-E and Midjourney.
Here is a comprehensive glossary by AIPRM.
Your tutors and assignment briefs should give clear guidelines on the acceptable use of AI within your assignments, and should always be your first line of enquiry if you have any questions about use of AI in your work.
The library view is that AI can be a useful tool in many areas of your work, and several AI programs are highlighted in this guide. It has great potential in aiding the searching and analysing of literature, and if used correctly is a benefit to information literacy.
There are lots of potential concerns with AI however, including potential for academic misconduct, bias, misinformation, and other ethical concerns, also detailed in this guide. AI should be viewed as a tool to aid with research; not as a replacement for it. Any work created or generated by AI must be verified and checked, for accuracy and due to the concerns mentioned above.
The library is committed to supporting staff and students in the safe and ethical use of AI. It is a fast changing area so we cannot promise to have all the answers, but if you have any questions at all please contact library@hud.ac.uk and we will do our best to help!
