Seek, and you shall find PROF. RICHARD PAGE, CHAIR OF COUNCIL
As we come to the pointy end of the school year, with exams over and Summer ahead of us, there is a lot to reflect on and to celebrate. In this article, I look at the importance of developing informed views; the impact algorhythms and AI have on the facts we are delivered, and our own responsibility to continue to seek independent information and educate ourselves. Digital technology is part of most people’s daily lives. We are heavily reliant on its convenience, the ease with which we can complete daily tasks such as shopping online, searching for information, or booking a holiday - and that’s only a snapshot of potential uses. However, the humble smartphone is a tool few of us truly understand. That small device that fits in our pocket, and goes everywhere with us, gives us more potential than the massed national university computing power of the 1960s. We undeniably live in a digital age, with a digitally enabled ‘Jetson’
4 Ad Astra Issue No 145
lifestyle. It brings with it tremendous power, convenience and joy as it enables us to communicate, search, entertain and even order food to be delivered to our door. Some of the parents, friends, Old Collegians and staff will remember the line ‘Beam me up, Scotty’. Captain Kirk would flip out his Transponder and Communicator and request ‘Scotty’, the Chief Engineer on Star Trek to transport him up to the Starship Enterprise. In 2023, this once-futuristic world has become our norm; the only thing missing is transportation through space. The rest is a reality that we
have in our hands and take for granted in our daily lives. Underpinning this is the wonderful science of Artificial Intelligence, or AI. There is much debate about the role of AI in our lives and its impact on a range of issues from social interaction, creativity, employment and car safety – to the future role of humans in decision-making. To test this, I have put AI to the test in writing part of this article. It was adapted from this year’s Valedictory Speech, and created with the assistance of Chat GPT. See if you can work out when it starts and ends!
