Session 148 – Ethics and Practice of AIs in the Academy
As artificial intelligences (AIs) in the form of “large language models” and similar models trained by neural networks (including but not limited to ChatGPT) become a presence in society, profound concerns arise about their ethical and practical use in the academy. This session focuses on what the professional and ethical position of higher education and associations such as the MLA is or should be given ever more capable AIs. What are practical, desired, and ethical uses of AIs by students, instructors, researchers, and administrators? Topics suggested in the original call for papers included: whether or how to make AIs part of academic work in the literature and language classroom; the stakes (and ways) of incorporating AIs in research or in such everyday academic business as writing recommendations, administrative memos, etc.; and how to grapple with the social, political, and economic implications of AIs in the academy.
Thursday, 4 January 2024, 7:00 – 8:15 PM EST (Convention Program page)
Marriott – Franklin 2
Hashtags: #mla24, #s148
Presider
- Avery J. Wiscomb, Virginia Tech
Presentations
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- “How AI Large Language Models like GPT Are Disrupting, Redefining, and Revitalizing the Academy” — Jon Chun, Kenyon C [Slides]
- “The Archive Effect: Philology in the Large Language Model Era” — Gabriel Hankins, Clemson U
- “TextGenEd Live: Revising Public, Real-World Genres with ChatGPT” — Carly Schnitzler, Johns Hopkins U, MD [Slides]
- Respondent — Rita Raley, U of California, Santa Barbara
One of two sessions at #MLA2024 organized by the MLA’s Committee on Information Technology.
