By Mary Crystalline T. Araracap, DOST-STII, S&T Media Service
Around 150 students and professionals participated in the DOST-ASTI ASTIg AI Tech Talks during the National Youth Science, Technology, and Innovation Festival (Photo by: Roberto Manuel Jr., DOST-STII)
In search of knowledge and further understanding, humans keep on upgrading their technology. But what if this technology, they originally created, has the ability to think or act just like them? The phenomenon called Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now a reality that we need to address for our benefit.
The Department of Science and Technology-Advanced Science and Technology Institute (DOST-ASTI) hosted the ASTIg AI Tech Talks during the National Youth Science, Technology, and Innovation Festival last 28 October 2023,to give clarity and remove the doubts of students and professionals on using AI in our daily lives.
AI on a regular basis
Eduardo Piedad Jr., AI expert, and DOST S&T Fellow, define AI as any system that can optimize the three faculties of human being: (1) the knowledge/intellect (truth), (2) will (attracted to something good in itself), and (3) affectivity (beauty) in which a perfect example is an auto-generated painting. Piedad said that AI gives an efficient system that can accelerate processes like household chores and rapid transport system that can give us more time to facilitate priorities in life such as dreams, relationships, sports, and hobbies. AI can affect our future through weather forecasting, predicting stock markets, and mitigating possible destructions brought by calamities and disasters. Lastly, AI can also elicit emotions by providing entertainment and convenience to its users.
In technology, we cannot separate the fact that there are always risks. It happened during the discovery of Albert Einstein's famous equation E=mc², which aims to make us understand that energy and mass (matter) are interchangeable. However, it was used to create the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II.
With the use of AI, some risks must be considered to prevent misinformation, especially through online social media, that can, in some instances, feed people with wrong information. The overreliance on AI may also hinder a person's potential to manifest their talents on their own. The Bias and Fairness in AI were disregarded, as it depends on the encoded data on its system. AI depends on human intelligence, and humans are far from being perfect and we can lose control of the system. Lastly, there is economic inequality, wherein robots can replace workers. Piedad reminded the listeners that AI is just a tool that aids humans in achieving efficiency while living our normal lives.
Eduardo Piedad Jr. enumerates the advantages and risks of AI as abbreviated as P-E-A-C-E and M-O-B-I-L-E (Photo by: Roberto Manuel Jr., DOST-STII)
Saving Philippine agricultural products and food security through AI
Stephanie Alves shows the capability of ROAMER on Autonomous Navigation and Mapping (Photo by: Roberto Manuel Jr., DOST-STII)
Stephanie Alves, DOST-ASTI Project Manager of Robot for Optimized and Autonomous Mission-Enhancement Responses (ROAMER) discussed ROAMER— which started in June 2021— and an ongoing project funded by the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD) and ASTI. Using AI, ROAMER is an unmanned ground vehicle that can track, and monitor, map, and survey banana plantations that may be affected by Fusarium wilt — a plant disease that causes millions in loss of revenue to banana farmers and exporters in the Philippines. ROAMER was tested in various banana plantations in the country and helped farmers find those infected banana plants, and enabled them to respond through mitigating pest control.
(L) Unmanned ground vehicle ROAMER, (R) ROAMER distinguishing infected banana plant by observing its leaves, Bottom: Bananas affected by Fusarium wilt (Photo: Nature.com)
Jefferey A. Aborot tallies the benefits of AI in agriculture (Photo by: Roberto Manuel Jr., DOST-STII)
AI can also be used as a tool for a greater understanding of the learning environment on growing certain agricultural plants. Jefferey A. Aborot discussed the project Gul.ai, which aims to support universities and R&D to combine Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies on plant phenotyping for instructional purposes. The Gul.ai system is composed of the hydroponics module, the computer box module, and the peripherals. The IoT sensors were deployed on various fields to continuously monitor environmental and crop conditions to provide dynamic insights that can affect the growth of the plants within the dynamic nature of the farm. A camera sensor was also included to detect plant diseases present, without the need to personally inspect the crops in the farm. The data sets of such analysis may be used to generate plant growth models. The University of Rizal System is the partner university of Gul.ai.
Sensors used for Gul.ai to collect real-time data on environmental conditions on soil health and crop status (Photo by: DOST-ASTI)
Eduardo Piedad Jr. addresses the statement: “AI can steal jobs from the people” by saying in every technology, there’s always a shift of career, and focus. Instead of focusing on manual labor, AI helps the workers focus on better decision-making, and technology itself can open new doors for career options in operating AI.
From left, seated Eduardo Piedad Jr., Stephanie Alves, and Jefferey A. Aborot address the fear of participants in using AI. (Photo by: Roberto Manuel Jr., DOST-STII)
