Generative AI tools have seen remarkably fast, widespread adoption and are changing many aspects of our daily lives—including coursework, learning, research, and teaching at USC.
The USC Libraries offer research guides, workshops, interactive tutorials, and videos on AI literacy and the responsible use of AI in academic settings. Our guides and tutorials help you build critical awareness and get the most out of the many available tools in the rapidly evolving space of generative AI—in addition to answering basic questions like, “How do I cite generative AI in my course papers?”
A great starting point is a dedicated USC Libraries AI Literacy webpage with links to the many resources the libraries offer. An in-depth research guide, Using Generative AI in Research, helps students, professors, and researchers navigate key issues in using generative AI in academic contexts. It gives an overview of core concepts, AI tools and use cases, limitations of AI tools, the USC policy landscape, and ethical considerations regarding generative AI in academia and research.
USC librarians are also offering a number of AI-related workshops this fall, including:
- Generative AI in Research on Tuesday, Oct. 7, from 11 a.m. to noon;
- and AI Literature Mapping Tools on Monday, Oct. 20, from 4 to 5 p.m.
For those wishing to engage with the broader cultural and societal questions around AI, the USC Libraries, through the Ahmanson Lab at the USC Sidney Harman Academy for Polymathic Study, offer hands-on learning experiences and programs that explore AI’s wider impact.
The Lab’s Conversations series provides a forum for USC students across the disciplines to meet and discuss technology topics. This fall, the Conversations series features:
- ChatGPT-Induced Psychosis on Tuesday, Sept. 9, from 1 to 2 p.m.;
- Brain Rot on Tuesday, Sept. 23, from 1 to 2 p.m.;
- The Rise of AI Therapy on Tuesday, Oct. 7, from 1 to 2 p.m.;
- AI in the College Classroom on Tuesday, Oct. 21, from 1 to 2 p.m.;
- The War on ‘Woke AI’ on Tuesday, Nov. 4, from 1 to 2 p.m.;
- and Accelerationism on Tuesday, Nov. 18, from 1 to 2 p.m.
The Ahmanson Lab is also launching a Critical AI Studies Reading Group this fall that offers USC students interdisciplinary perspectives on AI and society through selected readings of influential thinkers and futurists who are shaping the field today.
This year, the Lab will offer two AI-related “collaboratories,” in which small teams of USC students work together on projects that enhance practical skills in areas like game design and machine-learning models. The hands-on projects also build critical awareness of ethical issues in the field and the social forces influencing how generative AI tools are developed and integrated into digital media, online spaces, and other aspects of our lives.
