In the Sci-Techkun Olam workshop, Dr. Tess and the eleventh graders have multiple conversations about the ethics of AI and other novel technologies. She and Rabbi Dan sat down to discuss Rabbi Dan’s AI use of, and the future of, AI for camp. This interview was edited for length and clarity
Dr. Tess: What are some ways that you’ve used AI for camp?
Rabbi Dan: A few ways. To launch registration this past fall, I used AI-generated images and text. And in both cases, they didn’t come out perfectly, so we needed to tweak them a little bit. And I’ve done a few Shalectives (Shabbat electives) on AI and Judaism. We had Taylor Swift and Joseph have a dialogue together, and then write a song in the style of Taylor Swift about their dialogue.
Dr. Tess: The Sci-Tech community probably ranges regarding how much people have thought about AI. I know you’ve gotten some messages from people who have some thoughts about AI.
Rabbi Dan: I did, in fact, get a comment on one of the AI generated images for the launch. A camper said simply, “Please stop using generative AI.”
Dr. Tess: You’re a rabbi who thinks about tech. What are you considering when you use AI?
Rabbi Dan: I think one thing is copyright law and the necessity of large data sets to power these models without getting approval from the folks who created that content. We’re in a weird time now, where the laws just are woefully inadequate for keeping up with the rapid pace of technological change.
There are times when I’ve used AI to generate art when I otherwise just would not have an image. So I’m not actually taking away a job that I would have given to a human. In contrast, my sister and I are getting our parents a painting of their dogs. We could generate something with AI, but it feels more special to have a human create this sort of thing.
There’s also concern about the environmental impact of AI. It takes a whole lot of computing power, and that’s frankly bad for our environment. It’s something I’m aware of, and in other areas of my life, I try to have as low a carbon footprint as I can.
And one of the big concerns is biases getting baked into these AI models. I don’t know if there’s a way to address that necessarily except to be aware of it, and to advocate for the AI creators to pay much more attention to that.
Dr. Tess: So what are some things you’re thinking about in terms of AI this summer?
Rabbi Dan: I think to a certain extent when it first came out, AI needed to be played with as a toy to figure out what it’s capable of. I think we might be shifting more to using AI as a tool. One of the ways I used AI recently was to think about a system for staff days off.
Dr. Tess: Oh! I think giving ChatGPT people’s day-off requests like a math puzzle could be a perfect use of AI algorithms.
Rabbi Dan: I have a question for you. If a camper were to come to you and say, I’m thinking about playing around with AI, what would you coach that camper to think about or to do?
Dr. Tess: Well, the first thing is, don’t ask AI to create something for you where you don’t feel confident enough to check its work. Maybe the output is biased, or something is weird or just incorrect. And also, be upfront about when you’re using AI.
Rabbi Dan: I think the promise of AI is ultimately like the computer in Star Trek, but we’re in such an early stage of it right now. I’m not sure what our impact can be on the global use of AI or its development, but some of our campers are going to create AI programs or lead companies that use AI.
Dr. Tess: Or shape AI policy. At Sci-Tech, we get to talk about how our Jewish ethics and values can guide our interactions with technology when the laws of the country haven’t yet caught up – it’s so promising and exciting. And I’m so excited to keep having these conversations with you and with the broader Sci-Tech community this summer.
Rabbi Dan Medwin, MAJE (he/him/his) is Co-Director of URJ 6 Points Sci-Tech Academy. He was a founding member of the Sci-Tech council, and served on faculty each summer before becoming a Director. His passions lie in the intersection of Judaism and Science & Technology. He was the creator of Visual T’filah, as well as many Jewish apps, and ebooks.
Tess Levinson, PhD (she/her/hers) is the Lead Instructor of Sci-Techkun Olam, Sci-Tech’s two-week program for 11th grade campers. She is a Curatorial Science Fellow at the Wildlife Conservation Society, and recently completed her doctorate at the DevTech Research Group at Boston College. This is her eleventh year at Sci-Tech.