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Im a writing professor who sees artificial intelligence as more of an opportunity for students, rather than a threat. That sets me apart from some of my colleagues, who fear that AI is accelerating a glut of superficial content, impeding critical thinking and hindering creative expression. They worry that students are simply using it out of sheer laziness or, worse, to cheat. Perhaps thats why so many students are afraid to admit that they use ChatGPT. In The New Yorker magazine, historian D. Graham Burnett recounts asking his undergraduate and graduate students at Princeton whether theyd ever used ChatGPT. No one raised their hand. Its not that theyre dishonest, he writes. Its that theyre paralyzed. Students seem to have internalized the belief that using AI for their coursework is somehow wrong. Yet, whether my colleagues like it or not, most college students are using it. A February 2025 report from the Higher Education Policy Institute in the U.K. found that 92% of university students are using AI in some form. As early as August 2023a mere nine months after ChatGPTs public releasemore than half of first-year students at Kennesaw State University, the public research institution where I teach, reported that they believed that AI is the future of writing. Its clear that students arent going to magically stop using AI. So I think its important to point out some ways in which AI can actually be a useful tool that enhances, rather than hampers, the writing process. Helping with the busywork A February 2025 OpenAI report on ChatGPT use among college-aged users found that more than one-quarter of their ChatGPT conversations were education-related. The report also revealed that the top five uses for students were writing-centered: starting papers and projects (49%); summarizing long texts (48%); brainstorming creative projects (45%); exploring new topics (44%); and revising writing (44%). These figures challenge the assumption that students use AI merely to cheat or write entire papers. Instead, it suggests they are leveraging AI to free up more time to engage in deeper processes and metacognitive behaviorsdeliberately organizing ideas, honing arguments and refining style. If AI allows students to automate routine cognitive taskslike information retrieval or ensuring that verb tenses are consistentit doesnt mean theyre thinking less. It means their thinking is changing. Of course, students can misuse AI if they use the technology passively, reflexively accepting its outputs and ideas. And overreliance on ChatGPT can erode a students unique voice or style. However, as long as students learn how to use AI intentionally, this shift can be seen as an opportunity, rather than a loss, Clarifying the creative vision It has also become clear that AI, when used responsibly, can augment human creativity. For example, science comedy writer Sarah Rose Siskind recently gave a talk to Harvard students about her creative process. She spoke about how she uses ChatGPT to brainstorm joke setups and explore various comedic scenarios, which allows her to focus on crafting punchlines and refining her comedic timing. Note how Siskin used AI in ways that didnt supplant the human touch. Instead of replacing her creativity, AI amplified it by providing structured and consistent feedback, giving her more time to polish her jokes. Another example is the Rhetorical Prompting Method, which I developed alongside fellow Kennesaw State University researchers. Designed for university students and adult learners, its a framework for conversing with an AI chatbot, one that emphasizes the importance of agency in guiding AI outputs. When writers use precise language to prompt, critical thinking to reflect, and intentional revision to sculpt inputs and outputs, they direct AI to help them generate content that aligns with their vision. Theres still a process The Rhetorical Prompting Method mirrors best practices in process writing, which encourages writers to revisit, refine and revise their drafts. When using ChatGPT, though, its all about thoughtfully revisiting and revising prompts and outputs. For instance, say a student wants to create a compelling PSA for social media to encourage campus composting. She considers her audience. She prompts ChatGPT to draft a short, upbeat message in under 50 words thats geared to college students. Reading the first output, she notices it lacks urgency. So she revises the prompt to emphasize immediate impact. She also adds some additional specifics that are important to her message, such as the location of an information session. The final PSA reads: Every scrap counts! Join campus composting today at the Commons. Your leftovers arent trashtheyre tomorrows gardens. Help our university bloom brighter, one compost bin at a time. The Rhetorical Prompting Method isnt groundbreaking; its riffing on a process thats been tested in the writing studies discipline for decades. But Ive found that it works by directing writers how to intentionally prompt. I know this because we asked users about their experiences. In an ongoing study, my colleagues and I polled 133 people who used the Rhetorical Prompting Method for their academic and professional writing: 92% reported that it helped them evaluate writing choices before and during their process. 75% said that they were able to maintain their authentic voice while using AI assistance. 89% responded that it helped them think critically about their writing. The data suggests that learners take their writing seriously. Their responses reveal that they are thinking carefully about their writing styles and strategies. While this data is preliminary, we continue to gather responses in different courses, disciplines and learning environments. All o this is to say that, while there are divergent points of view over when and where its appropriate to use AI, students are certainly using it. And being provided with a framework can help them think more deeply about their writing. AI, then, is not just a tool thats useful for trivial tasks. It can be an asset for creativity. If todays studentswho are actively using AI to write, revise and explore ideassee AI as a writing partner, I think its a good idea for professors to start thinking about helping them learn the best ways to work with it. Jeanne Beatrix Law is a professor of English at Kennesaw State University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Japanese video-game maker Nintendo on Thursday reported a 43% decline in profit for the fiscal year through March, but promised a turnaround as its Switch console upgrade goes on sale in June.Nintendo Co.’s profit for the fiscal year through March totaled 278.8 billion yen ($1.9 billion), down from 490 billion yen the previous fiscal year.Annual sales slipped 30% to 1.16 trillion yen ($8 billion) from 1.67 trillion yen, according to the Kyoto-based maker of the Super Mario and Donkey Kong games.The fortunes of game companies tend to decline somewhat as time passes after a new game machine goes on sale since many people have already bought the machine, although new hit software helps boost the results.Much anticipation has been building over the rollout of the so-called Switch 2, which goes on sale June 5.Nintendo said it expects to sell 15 million Switch 2 consoles for the fiscal year through March 2026.Demand has dwindled for the current Switch, now in its eighth year after its debut. The number of Switch players around the world remains above 128 million people, according to Nintendo.Nintendo said attractive software was coming for the Switch 2 later this year, including “The Legend of Zelda” games, a Pokemon title and a Kirby game, as well as offerings from outside software companies.Also adding to the momentum is the opening of a Nintendo store in San Francisco and the Super Nintendo World amusement facility opening in Orlando, both set for this month, according to Nintendo.Nintendo is projecting a 300 billion yen ($2.1 billion) profit for the fiscal year ending in March next year, a nearly 8% improvement from the fiscal year just ended, on sales of 1.9 trillion yen ($13 billion), up 63% on-year. Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama Yuri Kageyama, AP Business Writer
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Pope Francis left a lasting legacy, not least his appreciation for art. In his 2025 biography, Hope, Francis spoke of his admiration for the Baroque painter Caravaggio. He recalled that during his travels to Rome as a cardinal, he prayed in front of the painting by CaravaggioThe Calling of Saint Matthew. The painting is found in the chapel dedicated to St. Matthew in the Church of San Luigi dei Francesi. The donor of the chapel was a French cardinal, Matthieu Cointerel, who died in 1585. This was the first commission for Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, who was hired in July 1599. A year later, The Calling of Saint Matthew and The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew, depicting the beginning and the end of the apostle Matthews ministry, were installed. The motto that Francis selected for his papacy, miserando atque eligendo, translated as looking at him with mercy, he chose him, is directly connected with this painting. The words miserando atque eligendo come from a sermon on the calling of Matthew written in the eighth century by the celebrated monk and historian Bede the Venerable. It is used in the readings for the Feast of St. Matthew on September 21. The Calling of Saint Matthew [Image: Caravaggio] The Calling of Saint Matthew Matthew is described in the Bible as a tax collector, viewed at the time as a highly dubious occupation. In the painting, Christ enters the room from the right. We see only his silhouetted head and outstretched arm pointing in Matthews direction. Light from the window behind Christ, which aligns with the actual light from the window in the chapel, falls on a group of men, including some handsome youths in fancy clothes, counting money. Matthew, the bearded man in the center, makes a gesture that suggests, Who, me? Matthew became one of four disciples of Christalong with Mark, Luke, and Johnwhose accounts of Christs life, called Gospels, are included in the Bible. Francis and Jesuit training Franciss thinking about this painting was shaped by his training as a Jesuit, a Catholic order that he entered in 1958. Jesuits practice something called a process of discernment. The painting represents God calling to Matthew to show him his will for the future, one that requires discernment. The founder of the order, Ignatius of Loyola, stressed a humble but vigorous effort to understand Gods will for each individual, as part of this process. Ignatiuss own life demonstrated this search for Gods will. His initial career as a soldier ended when he was gravely wounded in the battle of Pamplona in 1521, permanently damaging his leg. He subsequently tried to follow the life of a hermit, meditating in solitude, and then tried to become a missionary to the Holy Land. At the age of 33, he entered a university in order to become a priest, ultimately initiating the most influential transformation of religious education since the Middle Ages. Jesuits became a great teaching force, stressing individual study and debate over memorization. Ignatius was named a saint in 1622. Inspiration of Saint Matthew [Photo: Caravaggio] The Inspiration of St. Matthew The central painting in the chapel, Inspiration of Saint Matthew is Caravaggios third painting, which was put in place in 1602. The patrons originally planned to install statues at the center, but upon their arrival they rejected the idea and commissioned Caravaggio instead. This painting also shows the saint searching to understand Gods directions. In this painting, Matthew is in conversation with his symbol, a winged man. Each of the four evangelists are represented in art through symbols. The winged man symbol for Matthew refers to the beginning of his Gospel that records the genealogy of Christ. The angel-like figure, resembling one of the young men depicted alongside the saint in Caravaggios The Calling of St. Matthew, appears to hold his left index finger with his right hand, as if to signal that this is the first and most important point. Matthew seems careworn, even distracted, struggling to write while leaning his knee on a bench. Francis remarked in his biography that Caravaggio increased viewers empathy by using contemporary figures from the artists own time. The figures in the painting are dressed in clothes worn in Italy in the late 16th century, so that the viewers in Caravaggios time could see themselves in the painting. Viewers come to art with different perspectives derived from their own experiences and challenges. Francis, too, connected to art through his own experiences. Virginia Raguin is a distinguished professor of humanities emerita at the College of the Holy Cross. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the a href="https://theconversation.com/why-the-calling-of-saint-matthew-by-caravaggio-was-pope-francis-favorite-painting-an-art-historian-explains-255577">original article.
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