Category: Help & advice

AI and the Library Week three. Prompt writing: How to write effective prompts for better AI results

WordPress User [abc27] Help & advice, Information Skills, Learning, Research Leave a comment

AI can be a valuable tool to help you to get the most out of your time in the library. By utilising the conversational style of AI tools like ChatGPT, you can collaborate with the AI to refine searches, get personalised recommendations, and quickly discover relevant resources that meet your specific academic needs.

To get the best results from AI, it’s important to ask the right questions, and this is a skill in itself,

Pixabay

This skill, known as prompt building or prompt engineering, involves structuring your queries in a way that directly impacts the usefulness of the AI’s responses. Mastering this technique can significantly improve your results from AI tools. (For more on the importance of effective prompt building, see our AI and the Library Guide here).

What is an effective prompt?

A good AI prompt is concise, structured, and specific. You might like to think of it as a formula, where each element plays a role in making the prompt clear, targeted, and focused on the desired outcome.

The elements of the formula might look something like this:

Task + Topic + Structure + Style + Level

Let’s have a look at what we mean by those elements and how we might apply them in a library scenario.

The Task component of the formula specifies what you want the tool to do. Some examples might include: Find; Summarise; Explain; Describe; Compare.

The Topic defines the subject matter or scenario that we want the Task to explore. Examples might include: The Origins of the Second World War; Romanticism in English Literature; The Aims of Positive Psychology.

The Structure specifies the format in which the response should be presented. You could ask for responses in: One Sentence; 200 words; A Bullet Point List; A table; A Graphic or Chart.

The Style specifies how the content should be written. Styles might include: Formal; Informal; Academic; Witty.

The Level of detail indicates the depth and scope of the information needed. This level of detail could be a Basic Overview or an In-Depth Analysis (or anywhere inbetween!)

Here’s an example that you might use in the library. You want to find some library resources that will help you to answer the following question: “Analyse the themes and characteristics of English Romanticism in the poetry of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.”

  • Task: Find
  • Topic: Books that discuss English Romanticism and the poetry of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge
  • Structure. A bullet point list
  • Style. Academic
  • Level. An introductory overview

The full prompt may look something like this:

Please find me some academic books that give an introductory overview of English Romanticism and the poetry of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge and show them in a bullet point list. 

This was the output that the AI provided* (for this example, we used perplexity.ai, a tool we will be reviewing in our next AI blog post):

*We always recommend checking any AI outputs for accuracy.

By getting to grips with the art of prompt building, you can more effectively communicate your needs to the AI. This ensures that the responses are both academically relevant and that they meet your specific learning needs – saving you time spent searching. You could then visit Primo, the library catalogue to see if the library has the suggested titles available for you.

As demonstrated in our example, a well-structured prompt can help you uncover valuable academic resources that can quickly help you get a better understanding of topics.

Your Subject Librarians – Supercharge Your Studies with the Library’s Secret Weapon!

WordPress User [sif4] Help & advice, Information Skills, Learning Leave a comment

Welcome (back) to university! Whether you’re a new student or returning for another year, your Subject Librarian is here to help you get the best out of the library resources at Aberystwyth.  

Each department has a subject librarian (a list of them can be found here) 

Here are some of the things they can help with: 

Finding your way around the library.  

Getting to grips with the library catalogue (Primo) including: 

  • Finding Books and Articles: Get help locating books, journal articles, and other materials for your work. 
  • Accessing Databases: Learn how to navigate academic databases to find high-quality information. 

Understanding how to evaluate the information that you find and how to spot possible misinformation. 

Learning how to properly reference and cite your sources in various styles (APA, Harvard, MLA, etc.) 

You can schedule a one-on-one meeting with your librarian here, or you will usually find one of the team on the Level F desk on the top floor of the Hugh Owen Library between the hours of 10am and 5pm. 

For more information on our library services see our Library Guides here.  

Don’t think that we’ve forgotten teachers or researchers. Do contact your subject librarian with any library-related questions and we’ll do our best to help. You can also find information on our Teacher’s Library Guide here, and our Researcher’s Library Guide here. 

Shwmae Su’mae Day

WordPress User [abc27] Help & advice, Learning Leave a comment

15 October 2024

Today is Shwmae Su’mae Day, a day to celebrate and promote the Welsh language.

You’ll have plenty of opportunities during your time at Aber to learn and to use Welsh, so here’s a quick peek at some of the ways to make the most of it!

Learning Welsh

You’ll find details of Welsh courses at Aberystwyth University on the University website. For more information on Welsh lessons, contact learnwelsh@aber.ac.uk or visit learnwelsh.cymru.

Remember you can also download apps, such as Duolingo, to practise your skills between classes.

Library Resources

If you are on your journey to learning Welsh, thinking about starting it, or you’re a Welsh speaker looking to polish your skills, the library has a wide-range of helpful resources.

Head to the Celtic Collection on Level F of the Hugh Owen Library where you’ll find books to help you practise and develop your reading and speaking skills – from graded novels with vocabulary to grammar books to complete language courses.

And remember to say su’mae and more to the Library staff! You can identify the ones who speak or are learning Welsh by their ‘Speak Welsh” lanyards or badges.

Studying and learning through the medium of Welsh

The wealth of AberSkills skills development resources are available in both English and Welsh. The librarians offer workshops in both languages also – workshops will be held in the language of their title on the listing page: https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/aberskills/skills-workshops/

Head over to our Digital Skills blog to find out ways to make working in Welsh on your computer more convenient: https://wordpress.aber.ac.uk/digital-capabilities/2024/03/01/work-on-your-computer-in-welsh/

And did you know? You can use most IS systems and services including Primo, LibGuides and Aspire Reading Lists in Welsh or English. Click on the language on the top right of the webpage or on the globe icon to switch between languages.

UMCA – Welsh speaking Students Union

UMCA provides a voice and community for Welsh speaking students, learners and the curious! They also host Welsh-speaking events and cultural events, and give learners the opportunity to meet and practice their Welsh with Welsh speakers. Follow UMCA on social media to learn more.

AI and the Library – Week two. Tool Review: ChatGPT

WordPress User [abc27] Help & advice, Information Skills, Learning Leave a comment

These days, it feels like you can’t go a minute without someone bringing up AI. It’s as if it has always been part of our everyday lives! But believe it or not, it’s only been about 18 months since OpenAI’s ChatGPT burst onto the scene and really kicked off the AI revolution (or all the AI hype, depending on your point of view!)

Whichever term you prefer, AI isn’t going away anytime soon, so in the coming weeks we will explore some of the most popular generative AI tools. We’ll review some of their features, discuss their limitations, and provide a few quick tips on how to use them effectively.

As ChatGPT was the first generative AI tool to really capture the popular imagination, let’s take a closer look at what it can do, and how you can get the best out of it.

As the name suggests, ChatGPT (as with a number of the AI tools we’ll look at in this series) is designed for conversation. Its simple interface enables users to interact with an AI tool that has been trained on a vast amount of data. This training allows it to generate human-like responses to prompts (a prompt can be a question, statement, or command that guides the AI to generate a response.) For more on prompts, visit our AI Guide.

Here’s a closer look at what ChatGPT (and other AI tools) can do:

  • Answer Questions: ChatGPT can provide information and explanations on a variety of topics, making it a helpful resource for learning.
  • Generate Written Content: ChatGPT is excellent for overcoming writer’s block and for checking your writing for grammar, spelling, clarity, and style.
  • Summarise Information: It can take long texts and condense them into shorter summaries, helping you to grasp the main points quickly.
  • Translate Languages: ChatGPT can translate text from one language to another, making it easier for people to communicate and understand each other.
  • Engage in Conversations: The tool can simulate conversations, making it a fun way to practice language skills, prepare for a job interview, or simply have a friendly chat.

For further information on what AI tools like ChatGPT can do, visit our AI Guide.

Using ChatGPT can be useful (and fun!) but please do bear in mind there can be drawbacks to using it.

For example:

  • Misleading Information: ChatGPT can sometimes provide incorrect, out of date, or biased answers, which may affect the quality of your work or understanding.
  • An Over-Reliance on Technology: Relying too much on ChatGPT may hinder critical thinking and creativity, as users might depend on it for answers instead of developing their own ideas.
  • Plagiarism Risks: Students may use AI to generate content that is not their own, leading to plagiarism issues.

For further information on the drawbacks of using AI tools like ChatGPT, visit our AI Guide.

Top Tips for Using Chat GPT:

  • Be Clear and Specific: When you ask ChatGPT a question or give it a task, be as clear and detailed as possible. The more specific you are, the better the AI can understand what you need and provide a relevant response.
  • Start Simple: Begin with straightforward requests. If you have a complex question or task, break it down into smaller parts. This helps ChatGPT focus on one thing at a time, leading to better answers.
  • Use Follow-Up Questions: ChatGPT can maintain the context of a conversation so don’t hesitate to ask follow-up questions or give additional details after the initial response. This allows you to refine the conversation and get more accurate or tailored information.

For further information on the effective use of ChatGPT, visit our AI Guide.

A few caveats:

  • Aberystwyth University does not currently endorse any of these AI tools.
  • You must follow the guidelines on the use of AI issued by your department (where available)

In our next blog: we will look at prompt engineering, and we’ll share some valuable tips on how effective prompt design can improve the accuracy and relevance of AI outputs.

AberSkills. Your skills hub

WordPress User [abc27] Help & advice, Information Skills, Learning, Research Leave a comment

Do you want to develop your academic writing skills, learn about using the library and its resources, get to grips with referencing, or improve your employability skills?

Good news! These topics and more are covered in the Semester 1 AberSkills programme, which is available for free for all students at Aberystwyth University.

AberSkills Workshops take place throughout the academic year and are a mixture of face to face and online sessions. Most sessions are offered in both Welsh and English.

All workshops are listed on the AberSkills website. Take a look to see what’s available and book your place in a click.

If you miss a session and want to catch-up, academic skills and library workshop teaching materials for 2023-2024 are available on Blackboard under Organisations. 2024-2025 workshop teaching materials will be uploaded soon after the session.

AI and the Library – Week One. Our New Guide and Blog Post Series

WordPress User [abc27] Help & advice, Information Skills, Learning Leave a comment

Your Subject Librarian team have been hard at work over the “summer” (seriously, did it ever stop raining?) to bring you a newly updated AI Guide which outlines how you can use AI to get the best out of the library’s resources.

AI and the Library

Screenshot from the new AI and the Library LibGuide

The Guide offers advice on:

  • How you might use AI.
  • Some of the AI tools that might be useful for you.
  • The benefits of using AI over traditional search engines.
  • The appropriate and ethical use of AI tools.
  • Effective prompt building.
  • Some of the potential risks of using AI (including issues around copyright infringement, bias, and data protection).
  • The impact of AI on academic integrity.

Links to the Guide can be found here:

As a companion to the Guide, we are going to offer a series of blog posts which will look at the advice given in the guide in more detail and offer some practical tips for using AI.

Here’s a sneak peek of what you can expect in the coming weeks:

  • Reviews of AI tools.
  • Practical advice on effective prompt building.
  • Developing smart keyword searches.
  • Discovering resources related to your area of study.
  • Evaluating AI outputs by applying the CRAAP test.
  • The risks of using AI.

We hope that you will find our Guide and the series of blog posts useful. It is important to stress that you must follow the guidelines on the use of AI issued by your department (where available).

Get to know your librarians

WordPress User [abc27] Help & advice Leave a comment

Subject Librarians provide information skills training, look after your reading lists and subject guides and offer support and advice on using the libraries, finding resources for your assignments and referencing.

Aberystwyth University Libraries has 7 Subject Librarians, each with their own areas of expertise.  

You are very welcome to arrange a MS Teams meeting with your Subject Librarian if you have any questions about using the Library or would like advice – you can do this online here, or by e-mail. Or just drop them a message to say hello!  

Simone Anthony – sia1@aber.ac.uk

Simone is our Subject Librarian for Healthcare Education.

When I was fourteen, I volunteered at my local library to gain work experience. I honestly enjoyed spending hours alphabetically sorting the cardboard library cards into the beautiful oak drawers. The desire to travel later drove me to pursue a career in dance. I returned to libraries by graduating with an Education and Information & Library studies degree, at the age of thirty-three, having studied part-time around a full-time job as a dance instructor at the Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

I’ve been employed at the Hugh Owen Library since 2017, and I consider it an honour to be Aberystwyth’s first subject librarian for Healthcare Education.

Joy Cadwallader – jrc@aber.ac.uk  

Joy is the Subject Librarian for Theatre, Film and Television Studies, Modern Languages and English and Creative Writing.  

I was a school librarian and worked at the Aberystwyth public library in the 1980s as part of a job creation scheme. Since then I have had roles at the University as computer operator and IT help desk advisor before becoming a subject librarian. In my spare time I love visiting local wildlife projects, listening to e-audiobooks, keeping fit and watching professional road cycling on TV. 

Simon French sif4 Simon French – sif4@aber.ac.uk 

Computer Science, Geography and Earth Sciences, International Politics, Maths and Physics are Simon’s areas of expertise.  

As a child, I was a keen reader and collector of books. As an adult, I worked for many, many unhappy years in the second-hand and rare book trade before becoming a librarian here at Aberystwyth University. All of this might lead you to think that I’m a bit of a one-trick-pony, but I want to make it abundantly clear that I do enjoy things other than books, like…um…! 

Anita Saycell aiv Anita Saycell – aiv@aber.ac.uk 

Anita looks after Business, Sport and Exercise Science and Information Studies.

I started volunteering in libraries at the age of 14, then secured my first paid Saturday library job at 16 and everything has come from there.  When I’m not out cycling on the rolling Ceredigion hills, I really enjoy teaching and being able to help, so please do get in touch with any question however big or small! 

Sarah Gwenlan ssg Sarah Gwenlan – ssg@aber.ac.uk  

Sarah is our Subject Librarian for Education, the International English Centre and Psychology. 

Prior to working at Aberystwyth University I taught English Language in Spain, the Czech Republic, Italy and Poland. I’ve also worked in the Careers Services at SOAS and Newport, so you could say I’m familiar with working with students! Please get in touch if you need help, that’s why I’m here!

Lloyd Roderick glr9 Lloyd Roderick – glr9@aber.ac.uk  

Lloyd is responsible for Art and Art History, Law and Criminology, Welsh and Celtic Studies and History and Welsh History.  

I wanted to work in libraries after spending a lot of time hanging around the music collection in Llanelli public library after realising they had Sonic Youth’s back catalogue available to loan. After university I worked at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies Library, University of London, then studied an MSc in Information and Library Science.  I later worked at Newport public libraries and the Courtauld Institute of Art library.  Later I produced a PhD studying art collections at the National Library of Wales…. all of which has given me a good background for supporting students and staff in the departments I work with as a Subject Librarian at Aberystwyth University. 

In my spare time I’m an assessor on the Professional Registration Panel of CILIP (Chartered Institute of Librarians and Information Professionals) and have curated exhibitions on modernism and contemporary art in Wales.  

Non Jones nrb Non Jones – nrb@aber.ac.uk 

Non’s subject areas are ASVS: Aberystwyth School of Veterinary Science, Life Sciences, and Lifelong Learning.  

Ever since I got work experience at my local public library here in Aberystwyth when I was a pupil in secondary school (… and I’m going back several years now!), I knew I wanted to be a librarian.  I joined Information Services in 2001 and a few years later received a postgraduate degree in Information and Library Studies here at the University as a distance learner.  In my spare time – in between looking after the family, cats, chickens and hamsters – I enjoy reading and being creative with art, craft and calligraphy.

Protecting your research: avoiding publication scams 

WordPress User [ssg] Help & advice, Information Skills, Learning, Research Leave a comment

Journal hijacking and fraudulent journal sites are becoming an increasing problem for journal authors, publishers and readers. Publishing scams aim to exploit researchers, promising quick publication but charging excessive publication fees. These sites can often be a clone of an established journal, set up to extract fees from unsuspecting authors. 

Publishers are becoming more increasingly aware of the problem and have taken steps to combat this new trend. Scopus academic database had 67 hijacked journals on its database by 2023 (Challenges posed by hijacked journals in Scopus – Abalkina – 2024 – Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology – Wiley Online Library ) To help alleviate this problem, Scopus removed URLs to all journal homepages that it indexes, although the problem persists (Retraction Watch, 2023 Elsevier’s Scopus deletes journal links following revelations of hijacked indexed journals – Retraction Watch) 

Many authors and readers are unaware of this practice and the following resources might be useful to consider. 

Evaluating journals: 

 
Support from your library: 

 
Contact us: librarians@aber.ac.uk  

Reading List Update for Teaching Staff

WordPress User [jrc] Help & advice, Teaching Leave a comment

Create / update your module reading lists for 2024-2025

Advice for adding library resources to a new Aspire list and updating an existing list

Empty reading lists are being created in Aspire for new and returning modules requiring a list. Once you have added some content to your reading list, it will be linked to the appropriate Blackboard module by Library staff.

Remember you can also add links to sections in your reading lists.

When updating your Aspire reading list content for the coming year, be sure to update the 2024-2025 edition of your reading list. If you add books to 2023-2024 reading lists they will not be purchased. FYI 2023-2024 Aspire reading lists will remain visible in 2023-2024 Blackboard modules until the end of August when they will be archived.

Contact

Please contact librarians@aber.ac.uk or your subject librarian if

  • there is no reading list in Aspire for your module
  • you would like a reading list appointment with your subject librarian
  • you have any questions

Finding your way around the Hugh Owen Library

WordPress User [nas77] Help & advice Leave a comment

22/05/2023

Introducing the Library Floor Map

We have launched a new map and library guide to help you navigate the Hugh Owen Library and locate your books and other resources on the shelves.

Browse the map online at libraryfloormap.aber.ac.uk to find out what’s where, get more information about library resources and spaces and familiarise yourself with the layout – never get lost again!

The Library Floor Map is integrated with Primo, the library catalogue. When you’re viewing your item in Primo, click the Library Floormap link to open the map and the shelves where your item is located will be highlighted.

We are interested in your feedback

The Library FloorMap is a new resource, and we need your feedback to let us know how we could make it as helpful as possible for our users. Let us know here or by emailing is-feedback@aber.ac.uk