LibGuides: Artificial Intelligence (AI): AI Prompts & Tools

The Art of the Prompt

Since AI answers are extracted from vast amounts of text found on the internet and other sources, the all-important "prompt" is critical to getting high quality answers. New additions are incorporating features like 'code interpreters' to do more than cherry-pick words and actually analyze data, generate charts, and perform complex calculations. The technology is expanding even as this is being written. But for now, it is worth your while to focus on prompt design.

Below are some basic tenets of good prompt design:

Clarity - leave as little as possible for guesswork:
- Use details
- Use delimiters
- Provide examples
- Specify steps
- Specify length of answer.
Reference text - provide text that is pertinent so it acts like a 'role model':
- Give as many examples as possible
- Provide relevant citations if available
Style Preference - clarity in describing what you want will directly impact the AI generated answer
- Describe the style of writing you want - scholarly, colloquial, slangy, persuasive.
- Specify audience context - age group, interest level, locational needs.
- Details on length and format.

Learn Prompting is a comprehensive and free guide to the art of the prompt. It covers basic, intermediate, advanced and specialized courses so you can learn at your own pace.

OpenAI has ongoing blogs, FAQ's, and helpful examples of prompts.

DALL-E2 has a prompt book for image creation.

Types of Prompts

Write
- Write a Shakespearean sonnet about a girl with curly, black hair and big brown eyes.
Draft
- Draft a 300-word lean startup business plan for adding a makerspace to the college library.
Create
- Create a 2X2 inch logo that includes the image of an open book and the initials SWU.
Edit
- Edit this lyric into standard English: "Fings ain't wot they used t'be; There's ted wiv drainpipe trousers and debs in coffee houses."
Simplify
- Simplify this text for a 10-year old student: "Jupiter can be bright enough for its reflected light to cast visible shadows, and is on average the third-brightest natural object in the night sky after the Moon and Venus."
Generate
- Generate a two-column CSV of top climate change documentary movies along with the year of release.
Give me examples
- Give me examples of five questions for an interview with a scholar of Heidegger.
Analyze
- Analyze the pros and cons of electric vs gas vs hybrid cars.

Example of a string of prompts to complete a query

https://chat.openai.com/share/54722767-d07d-4d7a-81df-91100ba1efe9

Provided by Amy Francis, 10-2-2023

Introductory Video Series

Practical AI for Teachers and Students
A 5-part introductory video series on using generative AI.
Learning Modules
A comprehensive and clear set of modules was created on AI and information literacy by the Teaching & Learning Transformation Center and University Libraries of the University of Maryland. The modules take up to two hours to complete and are instructive as a first step into AI literacy.

AI Tools

While chatbots are the most popular and well-know manifestation of AI, there is a veritable armada of AI tools being continually generated.

Recognition or/and use of these tools gives one a glimpse into the seemingly endless breadth and scope of AI tools created to simplify processes, take over repetitive tasks, foment creativity, and aid human industry in a wide range of activities.

Below are links to a select few that are currently popular:

CHATBOTS:

chatGPT - https://chat.openai.com/auth/login
Bard - https://bard.google.com/

IMAGES:

Dall-E 2 (text to image) - https://openai.com/dall-e-2
Midjourney (unique image creation for a fee) - https://www.midjourney.com/showcase/recent/
Supermeme (text to meme) - https://www.supermeme.ai/

AUDIO: