Dipping into and dabbling with AI

I didn’t set out with a need or reason to find an image of a killer whale, however, when Rich suggested using a killer whale as a test search, I thought, lets see if AI can emulate a child’s drawing of a whale. These are some of the attempts.

Interestingly, a similar search in Google produced better results.

Finally, I asked AI to draw a line drawing of a killer whale. Here is what I got (And I don’t have time or need to try following the instructions because I have no time, and because I know how to draw an orca…but, it would be interesting to test the results to see if the steps are easy enough to follow and result in a decent killer whale drawing.)

Certainly! Let’s create a simple line drawing of an orca (killer whale). 🐋

  1. Begin by drawing a long, curved line. Note that one side of the line dips down farther than the other. This outlines the shape of the orca’s back, tail, and head.
  2. Next, draw another long, curved line continuing from the end of the first. Loop the line around, following the basic outline of the first line. Narrow the space between the two lines, but do not connect them. This outlines the whale’s face, belly, and tail. Then, draw a shorter line near the tip of the whale’s head, forming the mouth.
  3. Use a series of curved lines to sketch the tail fin. Enclose the bottom of the fin using a curved line like the punctuation mark braces or curly brackets – {.
  4. Draw a long, curved line from the base of the tail to the tip of the mouth.
  5. Sketch the shape of the pectoral, or side, fin using a long curved line. Notice how the fin is shaped like an irregular triangle with rounded corners.
  6. Erase guide lines from the fin.
  7. Use a long curved line to enclose the dorsal, or back, fin. Notice how this fin, too, is roughly shaped like an irregular triangle.
  8. Draw the pectoral fin on the orca’s far side. Use two curved lines that meet at a point, enclosing an irregular triangle shape.
  9. Detail the snout with a curved line. Draw a small dot to indicate the eye. Sketch in the eyespot – a false eye – using two curved lines to enclose a double teardrop shape.
  10. Color your orca. Killer whales are black and white in color. The upper portions are dark, providing camouflage from above, while the underbelly is white, blending in with sunlight when viewed from below. The white eyespot tricks both predators and prey, protecting the actual eye from attack and giving the whale an intimidating appearance.

Feel free to give it a try, and don’t worry if it’s not perfect! 🎨🌊

I also tried to see if the AI would draw a characture of Eminem/Marshall Mathers. It pointed me to follow-along YouTube videos.

What do I think?

I spent a while trying to get just what I wanted from my Copilot searches. Nothing I was hoping to find came close to what I found via Google, or better, what I could have done myself. Better. Because I use my brain and have practiced doing, finding and honing to get exactly what I envision in my own *non-status quo brain*.

It feels like the AI generated images that my searches turned up were very status quo, and generic. I felt like they were exactly what I avoid when searching for images–clip art-esque.

It was an interesting discussion in class regarding learning about and using AI. I haven’t had a justifiable need to use AI yet: My desire and need for AI has not outweighed the time I spent fussing and creating accounts and navigating, and today’s experience hasn’t sold me…

As I spoke about in class, I am curious about the correlation/relationship/comparison between technological advancements/enhancements for physical and mental human tasks and propagation of knowledge. I am interested in how these advancements have helped human “progress” and if/when these technologies have been/will be a detriment to human “progress”.

I put progress in quotations because the idea of progress feels colonial, and seems to favor privilege and power. This is a whole other aspect to consider.

I continue to return to the Indigenous ways of knowing and being. AI and such advanced technologies obfuscate important human function and behavior such as interaction, connection with others and the natural world, physical activity, creativity, curiosity and problem solving, etc., which are all fundamental aspects of what it is to be human.

I understand and appreciate learning about and how to use AI so that as an educator, I know what this tool is and how it can be used. It definitely has benefits, and can be very helpful/powerful when used intentionally for specific purposes.

I also think that systems must change and teaching has to adapt. This is what I was speaking about in the first post about the importance of considering all contexts and factors in teaching–relationality. Medicine wheel teachings highlight the balance of the four aspects of our being: spiritual, emotional, physical, mental.

Source: James Dumont (1993); “Justice and Aboriginal People”

Interestingly, when I searched “medicine wheel” and “medicine wheel indigenous / first nations”, there were no images even close to this one. This one comes from the pen library textbook called Historical and Contemporary Realities: Movement Towards Reconciliation found here.

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