AI definitions: AGI (Artificial General Intelligence)

AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) – A machine that has the capacity to understand or learn any intellectual task that a human being can. Rather than focusing on solving specific problems (like Deep Blue, which was good at chess), this type of AI has broader uses and may possess seemingly human-level intelligence to learn and adapt. Scientists have had difficulty defining human intelligence and disagree as to what would count as AGI. Regardless of where they draw the line, most experts say AGI is at least decades away. Scientists have no hard evidence that today’s technologies can perform even some of the simpler things the human brain can do, like recognizing irony or feeling empathy. Beyond AGI lies the more speculative goal of "sentient AI," where the programs become aware of their existence with feelings and desires.

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Denialism and Science

Denialism, and related phenomena, are often portrayed as a “war on science”. This is an understandable but profound misunderstanding. Certainly, denialism and other forms of pseudo-scholarship do not follow mainstream scientific methodologies. Denialism does indeed represent a perversion of the scholarly method, and the science it produces rests on profoundly erroneous assumptions, but denialism does all this in the name of science and scholarship. Denialism aims to replace one kind of science with another – it does not aim to replace science itself. In fact, denialism constitutes a tribute to the prestige of science and scholarship in the modern world. Denialists are desperate for the public validation that science affords.

While denialism has sometimes been seen as part of a post-modern assault on truth, the denialist is just as invested in notions of scientific objectivity as the most unreconstructed positivist. Even those who are genuinely committed to alternatives to western rationality and science can wield denialist rhetoric that apes precisely the kind of scientism they despise. Anti-vaxxers, for example, sometimes seem to want to have their cake and eat it: to have their critique of western medicine validated by western medicine.

The rhetoric of denialism and its critics can resemble each other in a kind of war to the death over who gets to wear the mantle of science. The term “junk science” has been applied to climate change denialism, as well as in defence of it. Mainstream science can also be dogmatic and blind to its own limitations. If the accusation that global warming is an example of politicised ideology masked as science is met with indignant assertions of the absolute objectivity of “real” science, there is a risk of blinding oneself to uncomfortable questions regarding the subtle and not-so-subtle ways in which the idea of pure truth, untrammelled by human interests, is elusive. Human interests can rarely if ever be separated from the ways we observe the world.  

I do not believe that, if only one could find the key to “make them understand”, denialists would think just like me. If denialists were to stop denying, we cannot assume that we would then have a shared moral foundation on which we could make progress as a species.

Keith Kahn-Harris, Denial: The Unspeakable Truth  

19 Webinars this week about AI, Journalism & Media

Mon, June 1 - Vibe Code Your Media Feed

What: We will highlight several functional, educator-created vibe-coded media curation platforms, and consider how we can experiment together in building the kind of community-driven, serendipity-friendly information environments we, our students and our colleagues deserve.

Who: Wesley Fryer, a middle school STEM and media literacy middle school teacher at Providence Day School in Charlotte, North Carolina.

When: 12 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Media Education Lab

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Tue, June 2 - Finding opportunities in political journalism

What: Insights into the newsrooms’ operations of our guests and what they look for in job applicants and potential colleagues. Attendees will learn what types of jobs exist within the broad spectrum of political journalism, how to stay motivated among trends in hiring, and which skills are worth gaining or adapting to match real-world opportunities.

Who: Coy Draytona, editorial recruiter for Axios; Dave Clarke, policy editor for Punchbowl News.

When: 12 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: National Press Club Journalism Institute 

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Tue, June 2 - Filtered In: Navigating AI-Powered Hiring Practices

What: How is artificial intelligence being used for hiring, and why? How can better understanding of how these tools work improve the hiring experience for employers and job seekers?  The event will discuss trends in how tools are used and offer tips that attendees can use while navigating the hiring process.  

Who: Hilke Schellmann, investigative reporter and Pulitzer Center grantee.

When: 1 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Pulitzer Center

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Tue, June 2 – Your Organization Is Not Ready for AI. Here's Why

What: The hidden execution gaps that determine whether AI transforms your organization or quietly makes things worse. You'll walk away knowing exactly what "readiness" actually means, why your current approach to AI adoption is missing the most critical variable, and what to do about it.

Who: Tim Ohai Founder and Sr. Principal, Kupu Solutions.

When: 3 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Training Magazine Network

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Tue, June 2 - What is a creator journalist? And why we should be paying attention

Who: Liz Kelly Nelson, Project C and The Independent Journalism Atlas.

When: 4 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsors: The Center for Scholastic Journalism at Kent State University & Trusting News.

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Wed, June 3 - Disaster-ready media and information ecosystems

What: This session will introduce UNESCO’s Model Disaster Preparedness and Response Plan for Media Institutions and seek to equip media with the tools to adapt and apply it in their own organisations. The session will highlight how disaster-ready media can uphold journalistic standards, counter information disruptions, and help communities, especially those most at risk, retain access to trusted, life‑saving information before, during and after disasters.

When: 9 am, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsors: Public Media Alliance & UNESCO

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Wed, June 3 - Creating Workspace Agents for Higher Education Staff/Admin

What: This webinar is on how staff and administrators can identify, scope, build, test, and safely use Workspace Agents for recurring operational workflows. We’ll start with the basics: what Workspace Agents are, how they work, and when they are a better fit than a regular ChatGPT conversation or reusable skill. Then we’ll walk through how to choose a strong first use case, define the sources and review steps an agent needs, build a first version, and improve it through testing and feedback

Who: Andrew Glenn, AI Deployment Manager, OpenAI.

When: 11 am, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: OpenAI Academy

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Thu, June 4 - How to become a science journalist

What: Whether you’re an established journalist keen to explore scientific subjects or a scientist hoping to hone in on your science communication skills, this class will outline the basics of science journalism, from pitching to best practices for creating accurate, reliable and engaging science news.

Who: Pandora Dewan, Trending News Editor, Live Science.

When: 7:30 am, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: members, £10; nonmembers, £20

Sponsor: Women in Journalism

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Thu, June 4 - Reporting and story editing for impact with Pro News Coaches

What: An intensive seminar on deadline reporting and editing. This skills-intensive, one-day immersion event is designed to strengthen breaking-news reporting and fast-turnaround editing through guidance and hands-on practice.

Who: Kimberly S. Johnson, Corporate Editor, The New York Times; Jo Craven McGinty, Former science bureau chief, The Wall Street Journal; Cory Schouten, NYC-based editor, writer, and content strategist; Jennifer Smith, SVP, Director of Content & Editorial Strategy, Greentarget; Chris Winans, Former editor, The Wall Street Journal.

When: 10 am, Eastern

Where: Eventbrite

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Center for Cooperative Media

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Thu, June 4 - From infrastructure to revenue: How telcos are monetizing AI

What: Our experts will explore how telcos are building out AI-ready infrastructure and turning these investments into revenue streams. We’ll cover the scale of the computing opportunity, the impact of AI workloads on network architectures and service portfolios, and real-world examples of how operators are deploying AI infrastructure today.

Who: Kerem Arsal, Senior Principal Analyst; Julia Schindler, principal analyst; and Brian Washburn, chief analyst, all at Omidia.

When: 10 am, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Omdia

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Thu, June 4 - Genuine Learning in the Age of AI: A Panel Discussion

What: Our panel of educators will discuss how they are adapting to AI, along with principles and practices for navigating its impact on learning.

Who: Karin L. Heffernan, MLIS Campus Faculty Librarian, Associate Professor Southern New Hampshire University.

When: 11 am, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Clarivate

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Thu, June 4 - Investigating the Impact of Chatbots on Mental Well-Being

What: We explore the methods panelists used to plan and execute their investigations.

Who: Patricia Clarke, AI Fellow, Pulitzer Center; Livia Garofalo, Data & Society Research Institute; Briana Vecchione; Joanna S. Kao who leads the Pulitzer Center's AI Accountability Network.

When: 12:30 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Pulitzer Center

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Thu, June 4 - Housing Journalism for Everyone

What: In this panel, attendees will learn:  What’s happening nationally in housing and homelessness, essential data tools every journalist should know to report on housing, how to find housing stories in any community, ethical sourcing practices, and examples of strong housing journalism.

Who: Juan Pablo Garnham, the Communications and Policy Engagement Manager for Eviction Lab; Camila Vallejo, a bilingual communications specialist with the Eviction Lab.

When: 1 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsors: Online News Association & the Eviction Lab at Princeton University

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Thu, June 4 - Production at the Speed of AI: Scaling Creative Without Sacrificing Trust

What: What You Will Learn: How to scale AI-driven creative production without compromising brand trust or governance; A new model for brand–agency collaboration that accelerates speed and decision-making; Practical ways to balance velocity, creative excellence, and risk in modern marketing.

Who: Alex Lemley, Global Brand Lead NetApp; Rod Sobral, Global Chief Creative Officer, OLIVER; Corey O'Brien, Head of Solutions, OLIVER.

When: 1 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: ANA

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Thu, June 4 - Honing Your Voice: Scripting Secrets

What: We’ll delve into scripting for hosted video, considering as different approaches for scripts and prompting hosts, how to transform your longer form reporting into video formats, script durations, how to think about hooks and the first 15 seconds, text on screen, and how to guide reporters without a video background to film/host video.

Who: Katrina Pham, Audience Engagement Reporter, Borderless Magazine.

When: 4 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Video Consortium

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Thu, June 4 - Freelancing with ADHD: Productivity Strategies That Actually Work

What: This session for neurodivergent journalists will help you assess difficulties, deal with pressure and offer tips to keep you calm while you thrive and achieve clarity and control.

Who: Jen Brdlik, a neurodivergent life coach, former mental health therapist, and an ADHD and autism specialist.

When: 6 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Society of Professional Journalists

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Thu, June 4 - AI on LinkedIn: What to Do and What to Avoid

What: You’ll learn how to strategically use AI to define your value proposition, build a compelling personal brand, and optimize your LinkedIn profile—without losing authenticity or credibility.

Who: Lynne Williams is the Executive Director of the Great Careers Network.

When: 6 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: Small Business Development Center, Widener University

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Fri, June 5 - Using AI to improve newsgathering

What: How newsrooms can ethically use AI to boost their news products.

Who: Sean Mussenden, Interim Director of the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism, Merrill College, University of Maryland; Derek Willis, Lecturer in Data and Computational Journalism; Eli Wohlenhaus, Director of Digital and AI News Strategy at Adams Multimedia.

When: 12 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: University of Maryland

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Fri, June 5 - Climate Reporting 102

What: We'll discuss what data can be used to tell stories about climate change and how you can gather and vet that data.

Who: Mara Hoplamazian is a climate, environment and energy reporter at New Hampshire Public Radio.

When: 12 pm, Eastern

Where: Zoom

Cost: Free

Sponsor: New England Newspaper & Press Association

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AI definitions: Small Language Models

Small Language Models (SLMs) – Requiring less data and training time than large language models, SLMs have fewer parameters, making them more useful on the spot or when using smaller devices. Perhaps the best advantage of SLMs is their ability to be fine-tuned for specialized tasks or domains. They are also more useful for enhanced privacy and security and are less prone to undetected hallucinations. Google’s Gemma (designed for developers) is an example.

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22 Articles about the Business of Running an AI

Anthropic has surpassed OpenAI as the most valuable artificial intelligence company - New York Times 

OpenAI readies cyber, misinformation defenses ahead of elections – Axios

CNN sues Perplexity over alleged AI copyright theft - CNN

A One-Stop Shop for A.I. Models Raises $113 Million - New York Times

Tracking the spend and revenue of frontier AI companies - Is AI profitable 

How Google Is Starting to Win the A.I. Race – New York Times

These 5 charts show how ChatGPT is flooding our lives – Washington Post 

OpenAI Bought Company That Offered A.I. Tools for Cloning Voices – New York Times 

Teaching AI models to say “I’m not sure” - MIT

Notable Researchers Join $4 Billion Effort to Build Self-Improving A.I. – New York Times  

Anthropic overtakes OpenAI in workplace AI adoption - Axios 

Meta’s Embrace of A.I. Is Making Its Employees Miserable – New York Times   

For Palantir, AI Is a Product, a Punching Bag—and a Problem - Wall Street Journal 

Google Says Criminal Hackers Used A.I. to Find a Major Software Flaw – New York Times

Pennsylvania sues Character AI, says chatbot poses as doctors – Reuters  

Apple Reaches $250 Million Settlement Over Claims It Misled People on A.I. – New York Times  

Google updates AI search to include quotes from Reddit and other sources – Tech Crunch

Meet Mark Zuckerberg’s Right-Hand Man Who’s Unleashing AI at Meta - Wall Street Journal 

OpenAI releases new default ChatGPT model aimed at reducing hallucinations in law, medicine, finance, and other technical fields - Tech Crunch 

Five book publishers and a best-selling novelist accused Meta of stealing their work to help train A.I. models. – New York Times

The death of AI idealism - Axios 

Start-Up Raises $1.3 Billion for an A.I. electrical ‘Grid’ – New York Times

AI Detectors are not Lie Detectors

What’s really happening is that human expression is being measured against a distorted reflection of itself. So what does it mean that I “sound like AI”? It means I’ve internalized patterns that are now statistically recognizable. It means I’ve developed consistency, structure and voice. It means I write in a way that is legible, repeatable and coherent. In any other context, that would be called skill. In today’s world, it becomes suspicious. -Denise Zubizarreta writing in Technical.ly

32 Recent Articles about AI & Writing

What 370,000 College Essays Tell Us About A.I.’s Effects on Creativity: Writing is fundamental to how we think – New York Times

How to Deal With Students Using AI to Cheat – Wall Street Journal  

Was a short story that shared a prestigious prize this week written with artificial intelligence? – New York Times

I’m an AI ethicist accused of AI plagiarism. Now what? - Technical.ly

Ban for Authors Submitting AI Content ‘Welcome but Unenforceable’ – Inside Higher Ed 

This Literary AI Scandal Changes Everything – The Atlantic

I’m a Professional Writer Who Uses A.I. It’s Not As Scary As I Thought. – Slate

‘Obvious markers of AI’: doubts raised over winner of short story prize – The Guardian

Book on Truth in the Age of A.I. Contains Quotes Made Up by A.I. – New York Times

The prevalence of AI content is growing rapidly and ‘it’s not just X, it’s Y’ – Tech Crunch

College students are noticing their AI‑smoothed writing sounds strong — and not like them – The Conversation 

AI hasn't overtaken human writers online – Axios

AI writing is impossible to avoid, is making everything sound the same, and is driving us crazy. – 404 Media  

Is AI bad for critical thinking? It depends on when you use it – Science News  

Writers Are Going to Extremes to Prove They Didn’t Use AI – Wall Street Journal

AI is changing how we write and speak – Axios  

Why I Teach My Students to Write With AI – University of Central Florida

Nothing is “100% human authored” – London School of Economics & Political Science

Don’t let your students use AI as a ghostwriter – Nature  

New Browser Plugin Adds Typos to Your AI-Generated Emails to Make Them Look Real – Futurism  

This new tool makes AI's role in student writing visible – Phys.org

An elite Wall Street law firm has apologized to a federal judge for submitting a court filing full of A.I. “hallucinations.” – New York Times

The Human Skill That Eludes AI – The Atlantic

Google Search is now using AI to replace headlines – The Verge  

WordPress.com now lets AI agents write and publish posts, and more – Tech Crunch

How A.I. Killed Student Writing (and Revived It) - New York Times 

Could AI write this column? In a world of slop-inion, I’m certifying myself human – The Guardian

How Are Your Teachers Handling Writing in the Age of A.I.? – New York Times  

Sports Illustrated Just Deleted Every Article by One of Its Writers After Accusation of AI Plagiarism – Futurism

Could you spot an AI-written book? An author set up an experiment to find out. – Vox

Plagiarism of ideas in the age of generative artificial intelligence - Nature

AI Can Improve Scholarly Writing — If We Use It Right – Chronicle of Higher Ed

AI definitions: SQL

SQL (pronounced ess-kew-ell or sequel) Structured Query Language is the most widely used method of accessing databases. This programming language can be used to create tables, change data, find particular data, and create relationships among different tables. For data scientists, SQL is second in importance after Python. Similar in structure and function to Excel, SQL can work with Excel and is able to handle billions of rows in multiple tables and thousands of users can access this data securely at the same time.

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24 Recent Articles about AI Fakes

Bay Area mom out thousands after scammers use AI to mimic daughter's voice in fake kidnapping - ABC-7 SF

AI scamming ain’t brain surgery, but even neurosurgeons get fooled - The Hill

Sports Illustrated Just Deleted Every Article by One of Its Writers After Accusation of AI Plagiarism - Futurism 

Fake academic journals are publishing AI-generated papers under real professors’ names - NBC News

Two men charged with creating AI-generated porn under new law targeting ‘deepfakes’ – Associated Press

Since chatbots hallucinate their own facts, it’s useful (and easy) to have a second, nitpicking AI that can audit the results for errors – Wall Street Journal 

In the AI propaganda war, Iran is winning – Economist  

This Literary AI Scandal Changes Everything - The Atlantic 

Book on Truth in the Age of A.I. Contains Quotes Made Up by A.I. – New York Times 

Scammers targeting missing pet owners with AI – ABC7 

Oregon DMV warns drivers about realistic scam texts written with AI – Statesman Journal  

The JPMorgan Sexual-Assault Lawsuit Was Already Messy. AI Is Making It Worse. – Wall Street Journal   

AI agents may be skilled researchers—but not always honest ones – Science.org 

Fake data, AI slop, and the future of academia – Out of the Lab (video)

The Hantavirus Outbreak Is Resurrecting Covid-Era Misinformation Tactics – New York Times

Teaching AI models to say “I’m not sure” - MIT

PR crisis inside America’s biggest bank stoked by AI fakes. - Wall Street Journal 

Hundreds of Fake Pro-Trump Avatars Emerge on Social Media - New York Times

OpenAI releases new default ChatGPT model aimed at reducing hallucinations in law, medicine, finance, and other technical fields – Tech Crunch

Deepfakes Are Coming for Your Bank Account OpenAI made the perfect tool for scammers. - The Atlantic

Nothing is “100% human authored” – London School of Economics and Political Science

Detecting Fraud-Associated Characteristics In The Medical AI Literature: A Multi-Signal NLP Framework Reveals Distinct Paper Mill Subtypes – OSF

South Africa withdraws AI policy due to fake AI-generated sources - Semafor

Man faces 5 years in prison for using AI to fake sighting of runaway wolf - ArsTechnica

YouTube Opens Up AI Deepfake Detection Tool to All of Hollywood – Hollywood Reporter

AI-powered scams cost seniors $800 million a year: How to protect yourself - ABC-7 NY

AI keeps inventing fake cases. Lawyers keep citing them – Scientific American

US judicial panel delays action on AI-generated evidence, deep fakes - Reuters

AI labels were supposed to help users spot fakes. Here’s why they’re failing – Fast Company

Doctors' growing AI deepfakes problem – Axios

The AI Power of Suggestion

A.I. interaction can narrow ideas is through the power of suggestion. Once a chatbot suggests a direction, humans tend to lock in on it. The conversational nature of A.I. can make it difficult to distinguish where the user’s thinking ends and the bot’s begins, making it effortless for people to adopt A.I.-generated perspectives as their own. It’s easy to see how an impressionable teenager could forgo writing the unconventional essay in favor of whatever A.I. suggests. -Rebecca Winthrop writing in The New York Times

11 Apps for Job Hunting

Career Builder - online hiring app that allows job seekers to access tools that will help them at every point in the process.

ExpressJob - mapping that shows nearby jobs and makes applying easy with one-click applications but also offers ways to stay organized once you are hired (timesheets, schedule, etc.)

Glassdoor - search engine platform offering job openings along with company reviews.

Indeed - sort through the search engine database and stay on top of openings that interest you. 

Linkedin - the social network for professionals.

Linkup - focuses on little-known job listings. Free, iOS only. 

MeeBoss - A chat-first job matching platform.

Monster - brings jobs from other job searchers into a single app.

Snagjob - only hourly jobs. Free.

Strawberry.me - Matches individuals with professional personal and career coaches.

ZipRecruiter - offers more than 100 job boards with filters. Sends notifications about vacancies.\

More Job Tips

AI definitions: Shadow AI

Shadow AI - Using generative AI inside an organization without the approval or supervision of the company’s IT. While not typically malicious, it creates risks that can grow over time. For instance, customer data might end up being stored in a third-party AI’s training environment or proprietary code might be copied and pasted into an AI code assistant to debug an issue. 

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37 Recent Articles about AI & Academic Scholarship

AI tools are smuggling biases in their summaries – The London School of Economics & Political Science  

Plagiarism of ideas in the age of generative artificial intelligence - Nature  

AI research papers are getting better, and it’s a big problem for scientists. – The Verge

Fraudulent citations, blamed on AI hallucinations, are becoming more common in research papers – Stat

Researchers who use hallucinated references to face arXiv ban - Nature

 Will Make the Academic Article Obsolete – Chronicle of Higher Ed

AI agents may be skilled researchers—but not always honest ones – Science.org 

Safeguards against GenAI hallucinations in literature review – Times Higher Ed 

As researchers aim for universal AI disclosure guidelines, the devil is in the details - Science.org

Retractions ‘must be the start of AI slop clean-up’, says critic – Times Higher Ed

AI Slop Is Flooding Academic Journals. A Top Journal Measured It - Forbes

First AI tool to detect suspicious peer reviews rolled out by academic publisher - Nature  

Performance of AI Tools in Citing Retracted Literature – JMIR Publishing  

The AI scientist: now academic papers can be fully automated, what does this mean for the future of research? – The Conversation  

How AI is Quietly Distorting Academic Enquiry and what to do about it – Times Higher Ed

Meet the academics refusing to use generative AI - Nature

Modeling scientific uncertainty in language: Applied linguistic insights from human and artificial intelligence texts – Science Direct

Researchers already use AI—it’s time to agree on how to use it responsibly – Research Professional News 

Illicit Use of AI by Philosophers Refereeing for Journals – Daily Nous 

Artificial intelligence in the retraction spotlight – Frontiers  

Detecting Fraud-Associated Characteristics In The Medical AI Literature: A Multi-Signal NLP Framework Reveals Distinct Paper Mill Subtypes - Open Science Framework

Could agentic AI topple grant-funding systems? - Nature 

Study: AI Policies Fail to Reduce Undisclosed AI Use – The Scientist

Do Large Language Models know Which Published Articles have been Retracted? – ArXiv

AI Wrote A Harvard Physicist’s Most Recent Paper. No One Knows What It Means for Science – The Crimson 

No humans allowed: scientific AI agents get their own social network - Nature  

Enacting AI disclosure in scholarly publishing – Wily 

Harvard says researcher who published nearly 100 articles in 2 1/2 years has no affiliation with the university – Free Beacon  

Institutional support for ethical AI adoption in higher education amid the rising trend of manuscript retractions - Nature 

AI Can Improve Scholarly Writing — If We Use It Right – Chronicle of Higher Ed

AI Conferences Should Embrace Submission Explosion via Autonomous Review Pipelines - Preprints 

Hallucinated citations highest in social sciences preprints site - Nature 

An AI did the astrophysics. The paper got halted. – Blankline 

Major accounting firm retracts study after researchers discover AI hallucinations - Financial Times

The uncritical adoption of AI in science is alarming — we urgently need guard rails - Nature

AI-generated research papers are overwhelming peer review – The Verge

25 research papers from one university in India retracted in 5 years amid integrity and AI concerns – India Today