The Amazing Power of AI

This contains AI generated text.

When I was in high school, I watched a video where a camera connected to a computer was pointed at a cup. The computer analyzed the image for a few minutes before the word cup appeared on the screen. This was in the mid 1990’s. At that time, the very thought of a computer being able to “think” about the identity of an item was completely science fiction. Fiction being the key word. To see that the technology was real, I was completely amazed.

Flashforward a few years. I went to college for Graphic Design. I learned how to photoshop images. One example of an image I did was of my sister. She had lost some of her wedding pictures. The main one she wanted was of her sitting on a chair on the stage with her husband behind her. I was able to take 2 separate photos, one of her and one of him and make it look like the picture she lost. I know that’s nothing today. Back then, it was impressive.

Back then, it took time to do this correctly. I worked for Walgreens at the time. They charged at least $40, just to do photo corrections. Now, photo corrections are built into the camera app on our phones. I took a picture of my mother. A friend of mine was in the background. Within seconds, I was able to remove him from the picture. I took a picture of my cousin’s baby. The child’s eyes were closed. With just a few clicks, not only did her eyes open, but she started to rock her had back and forth and started singing. If you would have told me 20 years ago that my phone would have the ability to do that, I would have said that you were crazy.

Correcting photos is one thing. Manipulating them is another. For a computer to create a photo realistic image is another class all by itself. Most of the images that I use on Vocal Media were created with Imagine.Art. I just tell the computer what I need using everyday conversation words, and an image is created. I love this. I’ll always have an image for my work.

In addition to changing or even creating photos, AI can create stories. I used ChatGPT to analyze 2 of my stories. I was trying to create a series of stories entitled The Bunsen Burner Mysteries. I wrote a few of them, had ChatGPT analyze 2 of them and create a third. I just wanted to see what was AI going to come up with based on what I wrote. (I did not use the AI generated work with my finished work.)

To see what ChatGPT was reading, please read the stories:

From the Viewpoint of Qwan Mangum and From the Viewpoint of Johnny Oliver. Other stories in the series came before these, but I felt that they were enough to for ChatGPT to work it.

I said:

Here are 2 stories about what happened in a science class. Analyze the 2 stories and create another story from the viewpoint of another student, Betty Knight. Betty Knight is shy. This is the first story:

ChatGPT said:

Sure! Please go ahead and share the first story so I can analyze it along with the second one when you provide it. Once I have both, I’ll create a new story from Betty Knight’s shy perspective.

I copied my first story into ChatGPT.

ChatGPT said:

Great! I have the first story. Please go ahead and share the second story whenever you're ready. Once I have both, I’ll analyze them and write a new story from Betty Knight’s shy point of view.

I copied my second story into ChatGPT.

ChatGPT said:

Thanks for sharing both stories. Now that I’ve analyzed them, here’s a new story from the perspective of Betty Knight, the shy student mentioned in both. This story will reflect her quiet demeanor, her internal thoughts, and how she perceived the chaos around her.

This is the story that ChatGPT created based on what I had wrote.

Betty Knight’s Story

I don’t usually get involved in things. I try not to draw attention to myself. That’s how people get in trouble. But what happened in science class today… I still can’t stop thinking about it.

I walked in right after Johnny and Qwan. I always try to come in quietly, so I don’t bother anyone. Mr. Gates was at his desk, and—at first—I thought he was working on something. But when I got closer, I saw he was asleep.

And then I saw his face.

There were words written on it. Mean, ugly words. I looked around. Johnny was smiling like he just won a prize, and Qwan looked like he wanted to laugh but was holding it in. I didn’t say anything. I never do. My voice gets stuck when I’m nervous. But I knew who did it. We all knew. Johnny.

I thought about just going to my desk, but it didn’t feel right. It was disrespectful. Mr. Gates may be strict, but he doesn’t deserve that. So, I quietly wrote a note and placed it on his desk, hoping he’d see it before anyone else. I didn’t say names. I just said what I saw.

I kept my eyes on my desk the rest of the time, pretending I was checking the materials. Someone had already set everything up—water, igniters, all that. I thought that was kind of helpful, but I didn’t know who did it.

When Mr. Gates woke up just before the bell, there was a weird mix of silence and giggles in the room. He looked confused for a second, then picked up the mirror he always keeps on his desk. As soon as he saw his reflection, he called out Johnny’s name.

I jumped.

He sent Johnny out. Or tried to. Johnny didn’t go right away. He argued, of course. Said he didn’t do anything. He always says that. I tried not to look, but it felt like I was watching a movie. I was nervous the whole time.

Then we got started. The project was about separating water into hydrogen and oxygen and recombining them. I tried to follow along, but my hands were shaking. I don’t like working with things that can explode. Even if it’s small.

Johnny came back after a while. I could tell Mr. Gates was not happy. The room was hot, though, and I was kind of glad when Johnny opened the window. Until the breeze blew all my papers off the desk. I spent the next few minutes picking them up off the floor.

The experiments went off one by one—small pops, loud bangs—but nothing broke. I flinched every time.

Then class ended.

Mr. Gates rushed out. Someone whispered something about him eating a bunch of trail mix, but I didn’t understand what that had to do with anything. I stayed in my seat, waiting for the hallway to clear. It’s easier that way. Safer.

Just as I was about to leave…

BOOM.

I froze.

My first thought was, someone’s hurt. But nobody screamed. The walls didn’t shake. I slowly stepped into the hallway with the others. We all looked at each other, like, What just happened?

I didn’t say a word the entire way to my next class.

I still haven’t.

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I did not use AI in my story. Except the picture. Please read my story, From the Viewpoint of Betty Knight.

AI can do everything these days. Photos, stories, I just read on imagine.art that soon they will be able to copy a person’s voice and have anything read back in that voice. Have we gone too far.