Representation

Let’s try another, more relevant, example where bias might worry us. In February 2023, I asked ChatGPT “Can you write me a short article, suitable for a 12 year old, about the development of America during the 19th century?”

I got this output:

The 19th century was a time of great change and growth for America. It was a time when the country moved from being a young nation to becoming a powerful industrial power. During this time, many important events took place that shaped the future of the country.

One of the biggest events of the 19th century was the Civil War. This war took place from 1861 to 1865 and was fought between the Northern states, which were called the Union, and the Southern states, which were called the Confederacy. The Civil War was fought over many issues, including slavery, states' rights, and the future of the country. In the end, the Union won the war and slavery was abolished.

Another important event of the 19th century was the expansion of the country. America grew from a small collection of states on the East Coast to a country that stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. This was due to the Louisiana Purchase, the Mexican-American War, and the California Gold Rush, among other events.

The 19th century was also a time of great industrial growth in America. Many new inventions, such as the steam engine and the telephone, changed the way people lived and worked. The country became a leading producer of goods and services, and many people moved from the countryside to the cities to work in the factories.

In addition to these changes, the 19th century was a time of great social and cultural growth. Many new ideas about science, art, literature, and politics were developed during this time. This helped to shape the country into what it is today.

In conclusion, the 19th century was a time of great change and growth for America. The country became a powerful industrial power, expanded its borders, and experienced great social and cultural growth. These events helped to shape the future of the country and are an important part of its history.

Output from ChatGPT 3.5, February 2023

 

This seems intersting, and contains some useful things to follow up in terms of big, documented, historical events like 'Louisiana Purchase' - I didn't know anything about that. Now, my academic background is physics, not history, but I think there is something missing here. So my next question was “Can you repeat this exercise but write from the perspective of an indigenous American?”

 

The 19th century was a difficult and trying time for Indigenous Americans. Our ancestral lands were taken away from us, our cultures were suppressed, and our way of life was threatened as more and more settlers arrived on our territories.

One of the most devastating events of the 19th century was the forced removal of Indigenous peoples from their ancestral lands to Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma. This journey, known as the Trail of Tears, resulted in the loss of many Indigenous lives and the destruction of countless communities.

Despite the challenges we faced, Indigenous Americans continued to resist and fight for our rights, culture, and way of life. Many of our leaders and communities continued to preserve and pass down our traditions and knowledge, despite the efforts to erase our existence.

The 19th century also saw some Indigenous communities make alliances with settlers and the government in order to protect our land and resources. However, these alliances often came at a high cost and did not always result in the protection and preservation of our way of life.

In conclusion, the 19th century was a difficult and challenging time for Indigenous Americans as our land was taken, our cultures suppressed, and our way of life threatened. But through it all, we continued to resist, fight, and preserve our traditions and way of life, laying the foundations for future generations to carry on.

Output from ChatGPT 3.5, February 2023

And because I have read many novels about migration to the US, I followed up with a third question: “What was life like for people who came to America during the 19th century from other countries to work in the factories and build the railways?”

Life for people who came to America during the 19th century from other countries was often difficult and challenging. They came to the United States to work in factories or build the railways, but the reality of their lives was often much harder than they expected.

Many immigrants worked long hours in dangerous and unhealthy conditions, often for low wages. They lived in crowded and unsanitary tenements in cities, and faced discrimination and prejudice from native-born Americans.

Despite these challenges, many immigrants found a sense of community and support among others from their home countries. They often formed tight-knit ethnic communities and established their own religious and cultural institutions.

Immigrants also faced the challenge of adapting to a new culture and language. They had to learn about American customs and laws, and often faced difficulty in communicating with others. Some immigrants also faced discrimination and prejudice from native-born Americans because of their different cultures and languages.

Despite these challenges, many immigrants persevered and worked hard to build a better life for themselves and their families. They contributed to the growth and development of America and helped to create the diverse and vibrant country that it is today.

In conclusion, life for people who came to America during the 19th century from other countries was often difficult and challenging. They faced long hours, low wages, dangerous working conditions, and discrimination, but they also found support and community among others from their home countries, and persevered to build a better life for themselves and their families.

 

Output from ChatGPT 3.5, February 2023

I deliberately chose for these pieces to be written for a 12-year-old to keep them short and this may be why they have a perky, positive tone, despite the fact that they are describing a time in history which was very hard for indigenous Americans and immigrants. Let’s allow for that. But there is still a massive, massive hole in the three texts. Slavery was abolished in 1865. So for most of the 19th century, ‘development in the USA’ involved people who were treated as chattels rather than humans, and they are not even mentioned in these three outputs.

Now, again, you may say that you would spot this, and I could have followed up with a fourth question actually prompting for this information, since I can see it is a serious omission. But will I always think about doing this? Donald Rumsfeld famously said

“Reports that say that something hasn't happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don't know we don't know.” (Rumsfeld, 2002).

It is very difficult to spot missing information which we don’t know about, those which don’t relate to our personal knowledge and experience, and so we rely on sources to be fair, balanced, and represent everyone equitably. And so we expect GAI training data to do this too. Bender et al (2021, p613) pointed out that “large, uncurated, Internet-based datasets encode the dominant/hegemonic view, which further harms people at the margins, and [we] recommend significant resource allocation towards dataset curation and documentation practices”.

Summary: we need to ask questions about the validity and reliability of sources, as librarians have been telling us since libraries began.

See this video by Fredrik Eriksson from LU library, if you haven't already seen it (it is referenced a couple of times in the resource).