Library Out Loud

Web tutorial: Creating multimedia with AI tools, from University of Arizona Libraries.
Review by Katherine Chisholm, Business Librarian, and NJ Jayne, CoCA/Business Librarian.

This is a fun introduction to AI for newbies! From showing how multimedia AI tools can give creative power and literal voice back to people suffering from degenerative illness, or disabilities caused by accident, to introducing you to several tools to help you create your own entertainment. An AI generated soundtrack for your animated short film? Or a music video to go with your music? Or a graphic novel that tells your journey in your words? Or simply add pizazz to your next tutorial group presentation*. This short course can open your eyes to a whole world of possibilities.

Even if you’re not a terribly creative person -or don’t think you are 😉 this is a great tutorial. You’ll learn more about how the tools work, and how to spot when they’ve been used. You’ll hear a range of voices and opinions from artists and others about the risks and opportunities this type of AI offers. “With great power comes great responsibility” (Stan Lee 1962), so you’ll consider ethical issues like authenticity and consent, bias, accuracy, and copyright. The section on copyright is from the U.S. perspective, which is slightly different from ours, but everyone is playing catch-up here!

Katherine’s favourite bits: the Dove guide on prompting for inclusive and diverse beauty and the ‘historical’ photos of giant cats!
NJ’s favourite bits: How diffusion actually works, the ability to speak any language, of course I would prefer a babel fish (Adams, 1979) but this will be handy when travelling. Looking forward to playing with some of those creative tools too. 🙂

* Only use AI in assignments if this is allowed by your tutor or lecturer.

References
Adams, D. (1979). The hitch-hikers guide to the galaxy. Pan.
Lee, S. (1962). Amazing Fantasy (No.15). Marvel Comics.