Did you know AI tools like ChatGPT can help take care of your busy work? Did you know it can help generate ideas if you’re stuck?
Table of Contents
I asked ChatGPT to do a number of common tasks across a few different fields. Each of the tasks is linked to the conversation, and I’ve only included the first few paragraphs for responses as ChatGPT can be pretty chatty.
Here are four practical uses of ChatGPT that can help you save time and allow you to focus on the larger things.
Content Creation
Prompt
Write a short backstory for Phineas the Phoenix, mascot of Swarthmore College.
Response
Phineas the Phoenix: The Resilient Symbol of Swarthmore College
In the picturesque town of Swarthmore, nestled amid the lush greenery of Pennsylvania, Swarthmore College has been a beacon of academic excellence for generations. Founded in 1864, this prestigious institution has a rich history and a unique mascot that embodies its spirit of resilience and renewal: Phineas the Phoenix.
Phineas was not always a mascot; in fact, his story begins long before Swarthmore College was even established. Legend has it that in the late 18th century, a majestic phoenix took residence in the woods near what would later become the college campus. This mythical bird, with its brilliant plumage and fiery wings, was said to be a symbol of transformation and rebirth.
As the decades passed, the phoenix became an enduring presence in the community, witnessing the growth and evolution of the town and its eventual transformation into a center of higher learning. The founders of Swarthmore College, inspired by the phoenix’s symbolism of renewal and enlightenment, adopted it as the college’s official mascot.
Phineas, as the phoenix came to be known, has since been an integral part of Swarthmore College’s identity. His image adorns banners, flags, and college merchandise, reminding students, faculty, and alumni of the institution’s commitment to personal growth and transformation. The phoenix is not only a symbol of academic excellence but also of the power of resilience and the ability to rise from the ashes of challenges and setbacks.
Over the years, Phineas has inspired countless generations of Swarthmore students to embrace change, challenge the status quo, and pursue their passions with unwavering determination. His story serves as a constant reminder that within every setback lies the potential for growth and renewal.
Today, Phineas the Phoenix stands tall as the beloved mascot of Swarthmore College, a symbol of the enduring spirit of the institution and its commitment to fostering intellectual curiosity, community engagement, and personal development. His fiery wings continue to inspire students to spread their wings and soar to new heights, carrying the legacy of Swarthmore College’s values into the future.
Lesson Planning
ChatGPT can help create lesson plans, if prompted with course details. Note: It also supplied Sessions for weeks 3-5, as well as materials and assessment + evaluation. Click the link 👆(above) for more.
Prompt
Create a lesson plan for a course focused on accessibility awareness. Core concepts include understanding disability in society, disability in legislation, best practices for physical access and universal design for learning.
Response
Course Title: Accessibility Awareness
Course Duration: 6 Weeks (12 sessions)
Target Audience: This course is designed for individuals interested in gaining a comprehensive understanding of accessibility and inclusivity. It is suitable for students, professionals, educators, and anyone interested in creating an accessible and inclusive environment.
Course Description: This course aims to raise awareness about accessibility and inclusion in various contexts, including society, legislation, physical spaces, and education. Participants will learn about disability in society, relevant legislation, best practices for physical access, and universal design for learning. By the end of the course, participants will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to promote accessibility and inclusivity in their personal and professional lives.
Week 1: Introduction to Accessibility
- Session 1: Course Overview and Expectations
- Session 2: What is Accessibility?
- Session 3: Understanding Disability in Society
- Session 4: The Importance of Accessibility
Week 2: Disability in Legislation
- Session 5: Introduction to Disability Rights Legislation
- Session 6: Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- Session 7: United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
- Session 8: Other Global Accessibility Laws and Standards
Week 3: Physical Access
Week 4: Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
Week 5: Web Accessibility
Week 6: Promoting Accessibility and Inclusion
Coding Assistance
It can also help you generate boilerplate code. (Never ever run code generated unless you know what it’s doing!)
Prompt
Create a python 3 http server with the following endpoints:
GET /status – Check to see if the API server is running properly
GET /files – List files. Has querystring params limit and page for pagination
POST /file – Upload a file. File is multipart/form-data
GET /file – Trigger a download of file. Has querystring params id, which is the file id.
DELETE /file – Delete a file. Has querystring params id, which is the file id.
Only provide boilerplate code. All routes should be namespaced in /api/v1
Response
(See: https://chat.openai.com/share/095d6af0-a566-4813-89e2-dcb859d00d6d)
ELI5: Some topic
ChatGPT can explain complex topics to you in a more digestible format.
Prompt
ELI5: The significance of the double-slit experiment.
Response
Sure, I’d be happy to explain the significance of the double-slit experiment in simple terms.
The double-slit experiment is a fundamental experiment in physics that helps us understand the nature of particles and waves, particularly at the quantum level. Here’s a simplified explanation of its significance:
Imagine you have a wall with two small slits in it, and you shine a beam of light or shoot tiny particles like electrons through these slits onto a screen on the other side. You might expect that the particles or light would create two distinct lines or patterns on the screen, corresponding to the two slits.
However, in the double-slit experiment, something strange happens. When you send particles (like electrons) through the slits one at a time, they don’t just create two lines. Instead, over time, they create an interference pattern, like the pattern you see when two sets of ripples in a pond overlap. This pattern suggests that the particles are behaving like waves, with peaks and troughs, even though they are fired one by one.
This bizarre result raised a fundamental question in physics: Are particles like electrons particles or waves, or something else entirely?
The significance of the double-slit experiment lies in its ability to reveal the wave-particle duality of particles. It shows that at the quantum level, particles like electrons can exhibit both particle-like and wave-like properties depending on how we observe them. When we try to measure which slit the electron goes through, it behaves more like a particle, creating two distinct lines. But when we don’t observe which slit it goes through, it behaves like a wave, creating an interference pattern.
This discovery has profound implications for our understanding of the fundamental nature of reality. It challenges classical physics and led to the development of quantum mechanics, a branch of physics that describes the behavior of particles at the quantum level. The double-slit experiment is often cited as one of the most mysterious and puzzling experiments in the history of science because it shows that our intuitive understanding of the world breaks down when we deal with extremely small particles.
In summary, the double-slit experiment is significant because it reveals the strange and puzzling dual nature of particles at the quantum level, blurring the line between particles and waves and revolutionizing our understanding of the physical world.
What Now?
While ChatGPT can obviously be used for a variety of things, it’s important to note that it may not always be correct. AI tools like ChatGPT should be used as just that, tools. You should always look over, and understand the responses it generates.
We should welcome our AI overlords with open arms, but also show a healthy amount of skepticism toward them.
