The world has been transformed by the power of AI tools like ChatGPT. These tools are increasingly prominent in different stages of writing, including academic work and conference paper submissions.
We know some of our potential speakers are using ChatGPT to get inspiration and help with their papers. Therefore, we made two updates to our call for papers policy and requirements. The first is that all submissions must be uploaded with a short video explaining their proposal; this helps us to know a person better in terms of his/her stage presence, content delivery, and overall tone of the content. Many ideas look great on paper but not in a presentation. This also helps the potential speakers in doing a self-evaluation so that they can tweak the ideas during the submission process itself. The second one is a ban and we won't accept papers written by AI tools (more on this topic below).
We have created a guideline on using ChatGPT to support your writing process rather than letting AI tools do the whole job.
Our aim with this guideline is not to condemn AI tool use but rather acknowledge its presence. This is a guide on effectively and ethically incorporating AI tools such as ChatGPT into your writing proposal process for the Agile Testing Days conference.
Ethics of AI Assistance
Before we start with the guidelines, addressing the ethical implications of using AI tools for conference paper submissions is crucial.
Is it ethical to use ChatGPT for paper submission?
The increase of AI tools that help us in writing raises questions about the ethical implications of their uses. We, Agile Testing Days, forbid the use of plagiarism and papers created 100% from AI tools. Here are a few thoughts to back up our standpoint.
Plagiarism and Originality
- ChatGPT can generate original content but is trained on diverse sources. There is a blurred line between originality and plagiarism. We recommend constantly checking the generated content for any similarities with existing content (in the form of blog posts and talks).
- Now, more than ever, we value our program committee's work as they are experts in different software testing fields and can help us predict when AI tools create a paper among criteria.
- We value originality and uniqueness. The AgileTD community wants to hear your personal experience, thoughts, intellectual input, and expertise. ChatGPT should not shut down your mind!
ChatGPT as a tool for support
# 1 Help you Brainstorm
We know that starting to write a paper can be challenging. This is where ChatGPT steps in as a powerful ally. It can suggest, expand, and even refine your ideas.
While ChatGPT can offer help and valuable input, the essence of yourself, your personal perspective, experience and creativity should be present in the paper. It is crucial to trust your intuition and expertise. ChatGPT is there to supplement not to substitute your creativity and original ideas!
Prompt: “You are helping me write an excellent proposal for the Agile Testing Days conference. The submission must be around [specify the length, e.g., 500 words, jargon-free, audience-relatable, simple English ].
Here are my ideas for the paper so far [Insert Topic].
I'd like five key takeaways that would be valuable for this audience
#2 Help you with the Outline
Providing a well-structured outline is essential for your paper. ChatGPT can assist you by providing a clear structure, ensuring your paper has a logical narrative.
We know you have tons of experience and ideas. Still, sometimes, it is hard to transform your knowledge and those stories into a coherent narrative, especially when there is time pressure, as our call for papers closes on February 11, 2024.
ChatGPT can assist in organizing your thoughts in a way that resonates and appeals to your audience.
Example Prompt: I need help structuring my proposal for the Agile Testing Days conference. The topic of my paper is [Insert Topic].
I'd like to start with a catchphrase that will attract my audience's attention. Considering the audience will primarily be software testing professionals and engineers.
It should also include a short introduction, highlighting the key takeaways, and a conclusion.
Based on the topic, what would be an effective outline?
Please suggest headings and subheadings that will help me cover my Topic comprehensively and engage the software testing professionals in the audience.
#3 Help with Co-Editing Your Text
Once you have your ideas, structure, and some content written, ChatGPT can step in as a co-editor to help polish and refine your proposal.
ChatGPT is well known for generating content, improving, and fine-tuning what you've written.
Once again, we want to remind you that the goal is to keep your personality and experience vivid in the text. ChatGPT can assist in rephrasing for clarity, fixing grammatical errors, and suggesting stylistic improvements, but retaining the essence of your unique voice is crucial.
Believe it or not, our program committee can identify when a paper lacks its uniqueness and voice.
Prompt: You are helping me improve my Agile Testing Days conference proposal. I'd like to refine my draft. Here is a section of my text:
[Insert Text Section].
Can you suggest clarity, conciseness, and impact improvements while maintaining my style and voice? I want to ensure the proposal reflects my experience and insights clearly and engagingly.
#4 Importance of reviewing and refining AI-generated content
After letting ChatGPT provide its feedback, it is crucial to always verify the content.
AI is smart but you are smarter! You know your content, however we recommend checking for grammar and spelling but also coherence and consistency.
Ask some friends to review your draft. If you don't have someone to have a look at your proposal ask the AgileTD community either on social media (Linkedin or Twitter) or in our Slack channel, there is always someone who can give you feedback.
Conclusion:
As AI tools are available for everyone, we know that there is a big chance that some of the submissions we receive are supported by ChatGPT or any other AI tools. Therefore we updated our call for papers process and now request to upload a video for every submission, this way we can have a better understanding of the topic and the speaker.
Ps: We also use Chatgpt for the creation (content structure and improvement in texts) for this blog post.
Submit your proposal for a talk and workshop for Agile Testing Days 2024. Deadline is February 11, 2024.
About Isabel Maldonado
Born in Latin America, Isabel Maldonado brings the fire of the Caribbean to the AgileTD team.
She is fearless when it comes to new topics and challenges, however, she is afraid of driving the bicycle on the wild streets of Berlin.
During her free time, she creates new ideas for her blog. As the time goes she has become a tester! She loves to eat and write therefore every time she tries a new restaurant she will test the food, decoration, location, and customer service!