LET’S START AT the end of his new book, where Luke O’Neill lists off some of the scientific breakthroughs he believes could be achieved in the future, running the gamut from the restoration of extinct species using their DNA to 3D printing of “everything we need, just like the replicator in Star Trek”.
Self-driving planes, trains and automobiles are in the mix too, as is the discovery of extraterrestial life (“surely only a matter of time”).
It should probably come as no surprise that a scientist who declares with breezy optimism the likelihood of many of these developments within 50-100 years, with advances in artificial intellegence (AI) probably speeding their progress, is quite relaxed about the use of AI in the here and now.
“It’s a great invention,” O’Neill says.
“Did you know, when handwriting was invented, Plato, the famous Greek philosopher, criticised it and said, ‘we can’t have students writing things down, because it will stop them thinking’?
“So every time a new technology comes along, we worry about it. In the case of AI, it’s a fantastic teaching tool.”
Unlike physicist Stephen Hawking, who speculated in 2014 that full AI could take off on its own and spell the end of the human race, O’Neill is optimistic the technology can help to solve many of the world’s problems, for example by analysing and interpreting massive data sets to improve drugs or advance our understanding of climate change.
In less existential news for the human race, fears about the impact of AI on the integrity of assessment in education were recently cited by the Minister Norma Foley as justification for postponing some promised Leaving Cert reforms.
But O’Neill tells The Journal he encourages his students at Trinity College Dublin to use AI.
O’Neill is professor of biochemistry at Trinity and Ireland’s most recognisable and prolific science communicator, not least due to his role in explaining in the media the SARS‑CoV‑2 virus, the pandemic it caused and the scientific race to control it.
Actually, why don’t we just ask ChatGPT?
“Luke O’Neill is a well-known Irish biochemist and professor of immunology,” the AI app says.
“As of my last knowledge update in September 2021, he held a position at Trinity College Dublin and was also the chair of biochemistry at the university.
“Luke O’Neill is known for his significant contributions to the field of immunology, particularly in areas related to the innate immune system and the human body’s defence mechanisms against infection and disease.
“He has conducted research on inflammatory and autoimmune diseases and played a key role in advancing our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the immune response.
“He is not only a respected scientist but also a communicator of science, frequently sharing his expertise through public lectures, media appearances, and written works to make complex scientific concepts accessible to a wider audience. He’s known for his ability to convey complex immunological topics in an understandable and engaging manner.”
Quite right. Thank you, ChatGPT.
Back to O’Neill’s students.
“I get them to write an essay with AI,” he explains.
“And then I get them to critique it, and stand up in front of me and tell me what they think of that essay, and AI makes mistakes – it might emphasise things in a different way than they might want to.
“I think it’s a fantastic teaching aid. So no, it doesn’t bother me. We shouldn’t be frightened of it.”
He adds that the university checks assignments for plagiarism. But he also notes that students have long “cribbed” using Wikipedia and other sources, and questions the value of “teaching kids to do things that computers [can do]“.
“That’s a hopeless ambition for education. AI can write an essay, so that’s good. Let the AI machine write the essay, then the student has to say what’s in the essay, whether they agree with it, whether there are errors in the essay, and then it turns out, they learn more.”
Not surprisingly for someone who is confident going on national radio to talk about the latest scientific developments, O’Neill sees great value in his students presenting their work.
“I think standing up and talking about things is a wonderful thing to teach people,” he says, adding that he believes it helps them understand, interpret and analyse information.
He suggests that oral assessment is a logical endpoint if AI becomes advanced enough to be able to produce work in students’ own (written) voice.
As for the students’ themselves, O’Neill says the first-years attending his biology lectures have, over the years, become “much more committed and serious”.
“It’s more difficult to get a laugh out of them – maybe becuase they’re dad jokes and they aren’t funny.
“But still, I’ve noticed a bit more seriousness, and of course, that gives rise to stress. There’s an epidemic of stress among university students at the moment. I try to tell them to just try and enjoy it.”
He believes science education in Irish schools is “very good” (although he declares an interest as honorary president of the Irish Science Teachers’ Association, as well as a board member of the planned, and much delayed, National Children’s Science Centre in Dublin).
He praises the “dynamic” curriculum and the fact that students study the subject until at least age 15.
“I think education in science is essential for democracy,” O’Neill says.
“It allows people to make their own minds off about things. If you have to decide on a vaccine or some issue around climate change, you should be informed, to allow you to make your mind up.
All this misinformation, the conspiracy theories – science is a weapon against that.
“That was always my job during the pandemic, because I saw myself as someone who could explain the science to people, to get the other side out.”
His new book, titled To Boldly Go where No Book Has Gone Before: A Joyous Journey Through All of the Science, is a history of scientific discoveries, with quite a few mentions of the contributions of Irish scientists. It’s a theme O’Neill also visited in an earlier book for children, The Great Irish Science Book.
“Ireland’s not famous for science, is it? It’s famous for Guinness, or James Joyce, or whatever. The fact is, in the 19th century in particular, there were some really important Irish scientists who made a big contribution. The trouble is, the victor writes the history. These people often got written out of the history, especially women,” O’Neill says.
So where has the pandemic – two years of thinking and talking about mRNA vaccines, R-numbers, and other complex concepts most of us had never heard of before – left Irish people’s understanding of and trust in science?
Uptake of childhood vaccinations, for example, is lower than before the pandemic.
“Now that we’re through it, I don’t know. I hope that what’s happened in the pandemic will give people more confidence in science,” O’Neill says.
“Look at this week’s Nobel Prize, that’s gone to the two people who discovered the mRNA for the vaccine.
You’d hope that trust will be similar or enhanced by this nightmare we’ve been through.”
Ever the optimist, he concludes: “All you can do is just keep the message going that science is our friend, and scientists are going to help things, and hope people go with that.”
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