From complexity to clarity: How AI enhances perceptions of scientists and the public's understanding of science.

ABSTRACT: This article evaluated the effectiveness of using generative AI to simplify science communication and enhance the public's understanding of science. By comparing lay summaries of journal articles from PNAS, yoked to those generated by AI, this work first assessed linguistic simplicity differences across such summaries and public perceptions in follow-up experiments. Specifically, study 1a analyzed simplicity features of PNAS abstracts (scientific summaries) and significance statements (lay summaries), observing that lay summaries were indeed linguistically simpler, but effect size differences were small. Study 1b used a large language model, GPT-4, to create significance statements based on paper abstracts and this more than doubled the average effect size without fine-tuning

SUBMITTER: Markowitz DM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11406778 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature