Nicole and Diana discuss how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used in report writing for genealogy research. They talk about the different roles AI can play, such as a coworker, creative assistant, tutor, and coach. Diana and Nicole acknowledge the challenges of using AI, including the need to track its use, fact-check responses, and maintain a personal writing style. Nicole shares how to use AI for various sections of a research report, such as...
As genealogists, we constantly seek ways to enhance our research and streamline our writing process. Writing a research report can seem overwhelming, so using artificial intelligence (AI) tools can help us overcome writer’s block. This is the final blog post in my series on how I used AI for a complete project about Isabella Weatherford. Previously, I wrote about writing the objective, transcribing a lengthy pension document for the timeline, making a locality guide, creating...
In this episode of the Research Like a Pro Genealogy podcast, Diana and Nicole discuss using Airtable AI tools to evaluate DNA matches. They explain that Airtable AI can make writing about DNA much more efficient and explore how these cutting-edge features can be integrated into genealogical workflows. The hosts focus on Airtable AI’s capabilities in long text fields, where users can write paragraphs, summarize information, and extract details into lists. They provide step-by-step instructions...
Exploring the use of artificial intelligence chatbots for creating written content is the new frontier – full of uncertainties and unknowns. Organizations that once prohibited the use of LLMs for research papers are now allowing them, as long as authors are fact-checking the output and attempting to cite potentially copyrighted materials included in the output. In 2023, the International Conference on Machine Learning prohibited the use of LLMs in their call for papers. In 2024,...
By Laura Clark Murray Since the release of ChatGPT in late 2022, this artificial intelligence “bot” has been wowing users by engaging in detailed conversations, answering questions, and even writing stories and essays. But at its core, ChatGPT lacks the ability to distinguish between fact and fiction. Since facts are critical to what we do as genealogists, it’s important to understand how to keep the tool in the realm of reality. If you do that,...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about writing a research reports that incorporate DNA evidence. We talk about the elements of a research report, including tables and diagrams, the conclusion, and suggestions for future research. We also discuss tips for making your writing better and how to include document images. Transcript Nicole Elder Dyer (0s): This is Research Like a Pro, episode 249 RLP with DNA part 11 research reports. Welcome to Research...
Excellent writing doesn’t just happen – we write, edit, and rewrite until the finished product meets our standard. As genealogists, we write research reports, ancestor stories, proof arguments, and much more. Several tips can help us write clearly and concisely and make it more likely that we’ll engage our readers. Tip 1: Write We all get writer’s block; when that happens, the best solution is to start writing. Don’t worry about wordsmithing the perfect introduction....
The final step in a research project is writing a source-cited report. Although that may sound intimidating, after you’ve worked through an entire research project, writing helps to clarify what you discovered and make connections. If you have to leave the research for a time, the report will help you remember what you did and the future research steps provide a starting point for the next project. I’m working to prove a longstanding parent-child link...
Have you been wanting to use DNA evidence to help solve a genealogical research question? Maybe you have learned about the types of DNA but haven’t tried researching matches and incorporating DNA evidence into a report. The Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR) is offering a course this summer that will help you do exactly that. Intermediate DNA: Planning for and Conducting Research Using DNA and Documentary Sources is a unique course. You will...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to write a research report at the end of a research project. This is an underused skill and many of us need to practice! The benefits of report writing far outweigh the challenges. This is a replay of episode 119 with new commentary at the beginning. Transcript Nicole (1s): This is episode 190 revisiting report writing Again. Welcome to Research Like a Pro a Genealogy...