Hey, Comets! Spring break is officially over which means the weather is getting warmer and you’ll be hearing “I can’t believe finals are next week” pretty soon. The semester is wrapping up soon and so much has happened! 

If you’re a college student, it’s likely you’ve heard about ChatGPT at some point this past semester. ChatGPT is artificial intelligence (AI) developed by OpenAI that is used to answer questions and give human-like responses. It’s become really popular for writing professional emails and essays. For obvious reasons, this is a nightmare for the faculty in charge of addressing academic dishonesty on campus. Students could technically use this AI to write their assignments and even use it on exams. However, there is already new AI that can detect when ChatGPT has been used so ultimately this AI is useless in completing schoolwork. Besides the fact that it is unethical to cheat, you will more than likely get caught, so Comets, please don’t use ChatGPT on your assignments.

Another piece of technology that seems to be blowing the older population away is TikTok. Recently, there was a congressional hearing centered around the interrogation of TikTok’s CEO Shou Chew. During this hearing, Mr. Chew was asked questions about “creepy” tactics TikTok uses to spy on Americans. He had to explain what TikTok filters were to congressmen that were voting during the Reagan Administration and was told by them that this app he had created is an extension of the Chinese Communist Party. This fear mongering of TikTok that’s being spread in right-wing communities is especially popular in Texas. Texas public schools have already had to ban TikTok on our campuses, making us students get off the school’s WiFi when accessing TikTok. This congressional hearing, however, has brought out a different side of the whole discourse surrounding TikTok. The members of Congress advocating for the complete removal of TikTok in America are being blatantly xenophobic. They’re creating hysteria around TikTok and purposely using the fact that a foreign country owns the app to scare Americans into thinking we have something to be afraid of. Racism is fueling their words, but hopefully it will do little to change our circumstances.