Humans: Our Unique Ability to Create and Problem Solve
As humans, one of our unique traits is the ability to think, problem-solve, talk, create, and adapt to different environments. Recognizing this can inspire people to value their own unique creative potential and feel confident in their innate abilities.
As more technology tools have entered our lives, created by humans themselves, they have also, in some ways, eliminated obstacles, allowing tasks to be done more quickly, such as using a calculator, a typewriter, a printing press, a wheel, and others. Appreciating these advancements can evoke pride in our collective progress.
After reading and learning about Creativity and Writing with AI, I was concerned about our generation’s future. Generative AI is being misused to get things done “much faster” or “more productively”. This raises questions about how AI might influence our natural ability to think, problem-solve, and create, which are essential to human cognition and societal progress.
Therefore, as we continue to embed generative AI into our everyday lives, users will use it unintentionally to get tasks done faster. For example, using generative AI tools to create art, poems, or essays, or to teach instead of a real-life teacher. Currently, on social media, AI-generated content sometimes looks “perfect” or fake, highlighting the need for mindful engagement.
This technology is so new that eventually there will be research and studies on its effects on the brain. The damage is being created now, and as new generations are born into this type of society, I fear that people will become too reliant on it rather than doing what humans do best: problem-solve, think, and create. Over-reliance on AI could diminish our innate cognitive skills and impact societal innovation in the long run.
While I know that AI won’t disappear and is already embedded in our daily lives, we can either decide not to use it or learn to use it with the intention of supporting our work and learning. We can learn to use the tool for what it is, a tool, and acknowledge that it’s not a perfect tool but one of many defects. The TEDx Video embedded above, titled “How to use AI without killing your creativity,” by Dr Anil Doshi, shares some tips on using AI in a way to support your creativity as a tool.
Estefany M Gonzaga
First Gen | Student Parent | Digital Humanities & Pedagogy Graduate Student | Higher Education Professional Talks about #graphicdesign, #peermentorship, #studentsuccess, #digitallearning, and #professionaldevelopment Estefany Marlen Gonzaga is the Program Coordinator for LaGuardia’s Student Success Mentor (SSM) Program. In this role, she recruits, trains, and guides student leaders who mentor and support new-to-college students in the discipline-specific First-Year Seminar Studio Hour Lab. Having been a mentee and mentor herself, Estefany understands the value and impact of peer mentorship and leverages these experiences in her work with SSMs. Throughout her ten years in CUNY, she has listened to the reasons New Majority students go to college and captured their stories in the video “I am going to college because…” referenced in Cathy N. Davidson’s book The New Education. Estefany holds an Associate of Science in Business Administration from LaGuardia Community College and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Communication (specialization in Graphic Communication) from Baruch College. In the Fall of 2022, she will continue her studies at the CUNY Graduate Center to pursue a Master of Arts in Digital Humanities, Digital Pedagogy.
