Latest news with #AllisonParshall
The Star
9 hours ago
- The Star
Opinion: Wanna help save the planet? Stop asking AI dumb questions
It takes huge amounts of energy to power artificial intelligence – so much energy that it's looking less and less likely that the US will meet its goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. (If we still have any such goals under President Donald Trump.) What's less known is that AI also consumes copious amounts of water needed to cool all that IT equipment. To generate a 100-word email, a chatbot using GPT-4 requires 519 millilitres of water – roughly equivalent to an 18-ounce bottle of water. That doesn't sound like much, but when you multiply that by the number of users, it's significant. Also, it requires far more than 100 words for AI to respond to our most pressing questions, such as: – What are three excuses for skipping dinner at my (fill in the blank's) house tonight? – Can you rewrite this email to make me sound smarter? – How do you make a mojito? – Does this outfit look good on me? If you are wondering about that last query, yes, there are folks who rely on ChatGPT for wardrobe advice. Some check in with Chat on a daily basis by uploading a photo of themselves before they leave the house, just to make sure they look presentable. These superusers often spring for a US$20-per-month (RM84) subscription to ChatGPT Plus, which provides priority access, among other perks. Chat can also help you write a dating profile, plan a trip to Mexico City, manage your finances, give you relationship advice, tell you what shampoo to use and what color to paint your living room. Another plus: ChatGPT never talks down to you. Even the most outlandish queries get a polite, ego-boosting response like this: 'That's a thoughtful and important question. Here's a grounded response.' Google vs ChatGPT But again, it's hard to get around the fact that AI is hard on the planet. Example: The New York Times reports that Amazon is building an enormous AI data centre in Indiana that will use 2.2 gigawatts of electricity, which is enough to power a million homes. And according to a report from Goldman Sachs, 'a ChatGPT query needs nearly 10 times as much electricity to process as a Google search.' So we could save energy by opting for Google search, except Google is getting in to the AI business, too. Have you noticed those 'AI overviews' at the top of search results? Those come at an environmental cost. 'Embedding generative AI in such a widely used application is likely to deepen the tech sector's hunger for fossil fuels and water,' writes Scientific American staffer Allison Parshall. The good news is there is a way to block those pesky AI overviews; YouTube has tutorials like this one that will walk you through it. In further good news, there are smart people looking for ways to make AI more environmentally friendly, but that could take a while. in the meantime, should we conserve water and energy by letting AI focus on important tasks like diagnosing breast cancer, predicting floods and tracking icebergs? Maybe stop running to ChatGPT every time we have a personal problem? Should I feel guilty, for example, if I ask Chat how to stop my cats from scratching the couch? Not according to Chat. 'No, guilt isn't productive unless it's leading you to positive action,' Chat told me. 'Instead, awareness is more productive.' But if you do worry about the planet, Chat recommends using AI 'with purpose' rather than as entertainment. No need to swear it off entirely. 'The focus should be on conscious consumption rather than abstinence,' Chat says. Lower 'brain engagement' That sounds reasonable, except a recent MIT study offers evidence that the longer we use AI, the less conscious we become. Using an EEG to measure brain activity of 54 subjects, researchers found that those who used ChatGPT to write SAT essays had lower 'brain engagement' than two other groups – one was allowed to use Google search and the other relied solely on brain power to complete the essays. 'Over the course of several months, ChatGPT users got lazier with each subsequent essay, often resorting to copy-and-paste by the end of the study,' Time magazine reported. Granted, this is only one small study. But to be on the safe side, I'm going to lay off Chat for a while. Maybe I'll hit Google with that cat question. There is, however, one thing Google can't tell me: Does that dress I ordered online look OK on me or should I send it back? Tell me what you think, Chat. And please, be brutally honest. – The Sacramento Bee/Tribune News Service
Scientific American
a day ago
- Science
- Scientific American
Science Quiz: Synesthesia and Superconductors
Allison Parshall is an associate editor at Scientific American covering mind and brain. She writes the magazine's Contributors column and weekly online Science Quizzes. As a multimedia journalist, she contributes to Scientific American 's podcast Science Quickly. Parshall's work has also appeared in Quanta Magazine and Inverse. She graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with a master's degree in science, health and environmental reporting. She has a bachelor's degree in psychology from Georgetown University.
Scientific American
20-06-2025
- Science
- Scientific American
Science Quiz: Event Horizons and Flesh-Eating Parasites
Allison Parshall is an associate editor at Scientific American covering mind and brain. She writes the magazine's Contributors column and weekly online Science Quizzes. As a multimedia journalist, she contributes to Scientific American 's podcast Science Quickly. Parshall's work has also appeared in Quanta Magazine and Inverse. She graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with a master's degree in science, health and environmental reporting. She has a bachelor's degree in psychology from Georgetown University. Follow Parshall on X (formerly Twitter) @parshallison
Scientific American
13-06-2025
- Science
- Scientific American
Science Quiz: Immortal Animals and Analemmas
Allison Parshall is an associate editor at Scientific American covering mind and brain. She writes the magazine's Contributors column and weekly online Science Quizzes. As a multimedia journalist, she contributes to Scientific American 's podcast Science Quickly. Parshall's work has also appeared in Quanta Magazine and Inverse. She graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with a master's degree in science, health and environmental reporting. She has a bachelor's degree in psychology from Georgetown University. Follow Parshall on X (formerly Twitter) @parshallison
Scientific American
06-06-2025
- Science
- Scientific American
Science Quiz: Genes, Drugs and Nematodes
Allison Parshall is an associate editor at Scientific American covering mind and brain. She writes the magazine's Contributors column and weekly online Science Quizzes. As a multimedia journalist, she contributes to Scientific American 's podcast Science Quickly. Parshall's work has also appeared in Quanta Magazine and Inverse. She graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with a master's degree in science, health and environmental reporting. She has a bachelor's degree in psychology from Georgetown University. Follow Parshall on X (formerly Twitter) @parshallison
