What would you like me to talk about during this library session? 

What is prompting?
Simply, it's what you type into the chat box.
The way you prompt makes a huge difference in the output that ChatGPT gives you. So it's worth learning some tips.

Always verify the information it gives you.
Think of ChatGPT as your personal intern. They need very specific instructions, and they need you to verify the information.

ChatGPT sometimes makes things up. That's because it's designed to write in a way that sounds like human writing. It's not designed to know facts.

Tips for writing effective prompts

1. Give it some context or a role to play.
2. Give it very detailed instructions, including how you would like the results formatted.
3. Keep conversing and asking for changes. Ask it to revise the answer in various ways.

Examples

1. A role could be, "Act as an expert in [fill in the blank]." 
   Act as an expert community organizer.
   Act as a university scholar
    
2. Example prompt:
   Act as an expert academic librarian. I’m writing a research paper for Sociology and I need help coming up with a topic. I’m interested in topics related to climate change. Please give me a list of 10 topic ideas related to climate change.
    
3. Example of changes: (keep conversing until you get something useful)
   Now give me some sub-topics or research questions for [one of those topics]. And give me a list of keywords and phrases I can use to search for that topic in library databases and Google Scholar.
    

   Or...

   I didn't like any of those topics. Please give me 10 more.

Lo, L. S. (2023). The CLEAR path: A framework for enhancing information literacy through prompt engineering. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 49(4), 102720–. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2023.102720

Here is a graphic (created by the United States Military Academy Library) outlining the CLEAR method with examples for each criterion.

Tools to Use

• OpenAI's ChatGPT (requires a free account to use ChatGPT 4o a limited number of times and ChatGPT 4o mini, their free chatbot)

• Google AI's Gemini (formerly known as Bard, but was renamed Gemini) (requires a non-MRU Google account to use Gemini chatbot)

• Perplexity AI's Perplexity AI (doesn't require an account, but a free account is required to try Perplexity AI Pro and to save chats/threads)

• Anthropic's Claude (requires a free account)

• Microsoft's Copilot/Bing search (doesn't require an account, but supposedly works best with Microsoft account and in the Microsoft Edge browser)

• HuggingFace's HuggingChat (doesn't require an account to use the chatbot)

Keep in mind:

• These models work by performing a calculation to predict what the next most likely word in a sequence is.

• These models are not search engines. Some of them have search engine functionality now (like ChatGPT) and some will even provide footnotes (like Copilot/Bing), but it is still worth examining the linked source to see how the chatbot has represented the source as the bot normally provides its own summary of the text.  This is different than Google Search snippets where an excerpt from the actual source is provided to the user.

Things to consider

• ChatGPT is designed to provide "plausible" responses, not credible responses. You will need to apply your critical evaluation skills to any results generated.
• ChatGPT was not trained on paywalled content, which means the content the libraries subscribes to is often not reflected in ChatGPTs responses.
• ChatGPT makes up/fabricates plausible sounding citations to sources that don't actually exist. 
• ChatGPT was trained on information prior to 2021, so you will not get the most recent research relating to your topic

Some people don't use ChatGPT because of ethical considerations. Here are a few of those concerns.

• Privacy: It collects and shares a lot of data about you it draws from your account information, your IP address and your activity using it. It does allow you to opt out of having your transcripts saved.
• Copyright: ChatGPT was trained on information on the internet, including copyrighted information, with no permission from or payment to the creators. There are a lot of court cases about this as of Fall 2023.
• Unpaid Labor: .It uses the prompts you enter to continue to train its models. This means it is using your work to train its subscription model as well, so many consider this unpaid labor.
• Exploitative Labor Practices: Investigative journalists discoved that workers in Kenya, Uganda and India were paid $1-$2 per hour to review data for disturbing, graphic and violent images that were psychologically scarring.
• Bias: The majority of information on the internet is in English and presents a western perspective, which means ChatGPT is learning from a biased data set. These biases are present in ChatGPTs output.

Here is a topic search I ran in Gemini relating to police ethics and a list of possible topics to choose from:

Here is an example of a list of topics from Chat GPT

Sure! Here’s a list of 10 contemporary ethical issues in the Canadian justice system, specifically related to Canadian corrections, that touch on the code of conduct, correctional officers, and facility guidelines:

1. Use of Solitary Confinement

• Ethical Issue: The prolonged use of solitary confinement has been widely criticized for its harmful effects on mental health, particularly among Indigenous peoples and those with mental health issues.
• Example: The practice of placing inmates in solitary confinement for extended periods, despite evidence of long-term psychological damage.

2. Overrepresentation of Indigenous People in Corrections

• Ethical Issue: The disproportionate incarceration rates of Indigenous peoples in Canada raise concerns about systemic racism, unequal access to justice, and culturally appropriate rehabilitation.
• Example: Indigenous inmates are often placed in facilities far from their communities, making rehabilitation and reintegration more challenging.

3. Correctional Officer Use of Force

• Ethical Issue: The use of physical force by correctional officers can be a contentious issue, especially when it leads to allegations of abuse or excessive force.
• Example: Incidents where correctional officers use excessive physical restraint during inmate confrontations, raising concerns about human rights violations.

4. Staff Training and Mental Health Awareness

• Ethical Issue: Correctional officers may lack adequate training to effectively manage inmates with mental health issues, leading to poor treatment and potential harm.
• Example: Inmates with mental health issues being placed in general population cells instead of receiving specialized care, potentially leading to unsafe conditions for both officers and inmates.

5. Sexual Misconduct and Harassment in Correctional Facilities

• Ethical Issue: Sexual misconduct, harassment, or abuse between inmates or between officers and inmates is a significant ethical issue within the correctional system.
• Example: A correctional officer engaging in inappropriate conduct with an inmate, violating both the power dynamics and ethical guidelines.

6. Privatization of Prisons

• Ethical Issue: The privatization of correctional facilities raises questions about the profit motive influencing the rehabilitation and treatment of inmates.
• Example: Private prison companies cutting costs at the expense of inmate care, such as inadequate healthcare services or overcrowded facilities.

7. Inmate Rehabilitation vs. Punishment

• Ethical Issue: The ethical dilemma of balancing rehabilitation with punishment, particularly in a system that often focuses more on punitive measures rather than rehabilitative ones.
• Example: Correctional facilities that prioritize high-security measures and control over providing programs that promote rehabilitation, such as education or vocational training.

8. Racial Profiling and Discrimination in Inmate Classification

• Ethical Issue: Discriminatory practices in classifying inmates based on race, gender, or other personal characteristics may influence decisions about security levels or placement in certain programs.
• Example: Indigenous or Black inmates being placed in higher-security areas or denied access to certain rehabilitation programs due to implicit bias in the classification process.

9. Ethics of Body Searches and Privacy

• Ethical Issue: Invasive body searches of inmates—especially strip searches or body cavity searches—pose ethical concerns regarding the violation of personal privacy and dignity.
• Example: Routine strip searches of inmates that are not justified by security needs, but are instead used as a form of control or intimidation.

10. Inmate Access to Legal Resources

• Ethical Issue: The ethical concern over whether inmates are provided adequate access to legal resources and representation, which is critical for ensuring fair trials and legal protections.
• Example: Inmates not being given timely access to legal counsel, legal books, or computers to prepare their cases, hindering their ability to assert their rights.

These issues present ongoing challenges for the Canadian justice system and raise important questions about fairness, human rights, and the role of correctional facilities in promoting rehabilitation over punishment.

List of possible topics from a Perplexity search relating to ethics in the courts and legal system. 

Creating a paper outline is another way you can leverage AI as a research tool.  Here is an example of a GPT prompt relating to bioethics and evidence in Canadian courts. 

I'd be happy to help you get started on your paper. Below is a suggested outline that covers the key topics you mentioned, including bioethics, courtroom evidence, and landmark cases in the Canadian justice system. I'll also include some recommendations for professional guidelines and considerations related to victim dignity and privacy.

Outline for Paper on Ethics in the Canadian Justice System: Bioethics and Courtroom Evidence

Introduction

• Brief overview of the importance of ethics in the Canadian justice system.
• Define bioethics in the context of law and the courtroom.
• Importance of balancing legal principles (e.g., justice, fairness) with ethical considerations (e.g., victim dignity, privacy).
• Thesis statement: An exploration of how bioethical principles intersect with courtroom evidence and legal practices, with specific focus on cases involving violations of victim privacy and dignity.

1. Ethical Foundations of Bioethics in the Courtroom

• Definition of Bioethics: Ethical issues related to health, medical practices, and human rights in the context of legal proceedings.
• Bioethics Principles: Autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice.
• Role of Lawyers and Judges: Obligations of legal professionals to uphold ethical standards related to victim dignity and privacy.

2. Victim Dignity and Privacy in Courtroom Evidence

• Victim Dignity: Protection of victims’ psychological and emotional well-being during trial processes.
• Privacy Concerns: How evidence (e.g., medical records, personal testimonies) may impact the victim’s privacy.
• Challenges in Balancing Justice and Victim Protection: Discuss the tension between the need for evidence in criminal trials and the rights of victims to maintain dignity and privacy.

3. Landmark Canadian Cases Involving Bioethics and Courtroom Evidence

• R v. Seaboyer (1991): The case involving the rules around the admissibility of evidence concerning a victim’s sexual history, highlighting ethical considerations regarding the privacy of victims.
• R v. Sharpe (2001): The case regarding child pornography laws, which touched on ethical questions surrounding freedom of expression, privacy, and the protection of vulnerable individuals.
• R v. O’Connor (1995): The landmark decision about the disclosure of medical and psychiatric records, dealing with bioethical issues surrounding the privacy of the accused and victims.
• R v. W(D) (1991): While not strictly bioethics, this case focused on the ethical duty of lawyers to represent clients with integrity, particularly in cases involving vulnerable witnesses.

4. Ethical Violations in Legal Practice

• When Lawyers Violate Victim or Client Bioethics:
  • Discuss ethical breaches, such as the inappropriate disclosure of sensitive medical records.
  • Cases where lawyers cross the line in their conduct, leading to potential harm to the dignity or privacy of victims.
  • Legal misconduct, such as using irrelevant medical evidence to discredit a victim’s character.

5. Professional Guidelines for Lawyers in Canada

• Canadian Bar Association (CBA) Code of Professional Conduct:
  • Review how the Code guides lawyers in respecting the dignity and privacy of clients and victims.
  • Special attention to confidentiality and how it extends to medical and personal information.
• Law Society of Ontario - Rules of Professional Conduct:
  • Guidelines on how lawyers should handle sensitive evidence and protect client rights, including the issue of consent.
• Bioethics Committees and Institutional Review Boards (IRBs):
  • Discuss the role of ethics committees in overseeing the use of sensitive medical and personal evidence in legal proceedings.

6. Challenges and Controversies in the Intersection of Bioethics and the Legal System

• Balancing Justice and Ethical Concerns: Striking a fair balance between the need for compelling evidence and protecting individual rights.
• The Impact of Ethical Violations on Public Trust: How breaches in bioethics can undermine trust in the justice system.
• Conflicting Ethical Standards: Instances where the legal system’s goals conflict with ethical bioethical considerations.

7. Potential Reforms and Recommendations

• Improving Victim Privacy Protection: How to ensure that victim dignity is prioritized in trials, possibly through legislative reforms or changes in courtroom practices.
• Enhanced Training for Legal Professionals: Recommend greater bioethics education for legal professionals to ensure ethical handling of sensitive evidence.
• Role of Technology: How advances in digital evidence may pose new ethical challenges (e.g., data privacy, consent in digital medical records).

Conclusion

• Summarize the key points discussed in the paper.
• Reiterate the importance of bioethics in the courtroom.
• Call for continued attention to ethical guidelines and reform to better protect victim dignity, privacy, and overall justice.

Recommended Sources to Consult

1. "Ethics in the Canadian Legal System" by Deborah P. O'Connor: This book examines the intersection of ethics and law in Canada, providing useful frameworks for understanding bioethics in legal proceedings.
2. Canadian Bar Association (CBA) Code of Professional Conduct: Available on the CBA website, it provides essential guidance on legal ethics.
3. Law Society of Ontario - Rules of Professional Conduct: Available online, these rules provide a framework for lawyers in Ontario, with insights into how they should deal with privacy, dignity, and confidentiality issues.
4. Journals on Canadian Law and Bioethics: You may want to explore journals like the Canadian Journal of Bioethics or Journal of Legal Studies for articles that tackle ethical issues in law.
5. Case Law: Review specific case summaries from the Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII) for detailed analysis of cases mentioned above.

By following this outline, you should be able to address key concerns about ethics in the Canadian justice system related to bioethics, courtroom evidence, victim privacy, and professional misconduct. Let me know if you'd like to dive deeper into any specific section!

I am going to divide everyone into groups of 3-4.  Choose a topic (preferably a topic that someone wants to use).  Choose a GenAI tool.  It can be a tool listed in this guide or another tool that you prefer to use.  

1. Try typing a simple question in the prompt.  Eg: Can you find me sources on ethics and police in Canada?

2. Now ask the Chatbot to assume a role: "Pretend you are a student who has to write an academic paper on...." What are Canadian contemporary ethical issues relating to ....? Provide scholarly references. 

• How were your results? Better than the first prompt? How?
• Did the bot provide you with a good outline? Were there issues that you were thinking of that were missing?
• Were the sources legit? (were they academic or actually real?) What sources did the bot recommend?

Using the Library 

There are a few ways to use the library.  

• Use the library search box/Library Search - allows you to search the entire collection.  
• Search in subject-specific databases - I have them listed under the articles tab on the GNED  guide.  You will be searching a smaller collection of sources.
• Search in discipline-specific journals - This type of search will yield fewer results.  It helps to know the publication title to use this feature effectively, but you can also type in a broader topic, as long as that word is contained within the title of the journal  Eg: forensic

Search Smarter!

You can search in a way to combine or omit different terms by telling the search engine exactly what you want…this can help you save some time (and frustration!)

• Use quotation marks to keep phrases together - "Black Lives Matter"

• Use  AND to combine search terms - "police violence" AND protester

• Use OR to connect two or more similar terms - BLM OR "Black Lives Matter"

• Use wild cards to substitute a letter or suffix with a symbol - demonstr*

Things to remember when using Library Search:

1. Sign in to save searches, items, and to request materials.

2. Use the pin icon to save books and articles. 

3. Use the filters on the right. You will use Availability, Resource Type, and Date filters most often.

4. Some items won't be available. You can request unavailable items using interlibrary loan.

5. When viewing an item record, scroll down to the Get It or Full Text section to get the item.

Search Google Scholar

Google Scholar is another great way to find peer-reviewed/scholarly material. Google Scholar has a nifty citation chaining function.  The Cited by function will forward you to indexed scholarly material that has cited an article that you may be interested in.  The Related Articles link will direct you to similar articles that may have the same metadata or keywords. 

The Advanced Search is found by clicking the menu icon (top left).
Besides providing links to articles in MRU databases, Google Scholar links to online repositories that contain articles the author has been allowed to upload.  Academia.edu and ResearchGate are among the repositories searched by Google Scholar.

By clicking on the Settings icon, you can select library links to show library access for up to 5 libraries (type in Mount Royal and click on save).  If you are logged into the MRU library, links should automatically populate if you are running a Google search in another window. 

Note: Google uses different commands: ~; -; +; but AND/OR also works

If you are searching Google (not Google Scholar), you can also limit your search to show specific websites. Eg:

• site:un.org (United Nations)
• site:gc.ca (Government of Canada)
• site:en.unesco.org (UNESCO)
• site:worldbank.org (World Bank)
• site:wto.org (World Trade Organization

Organizing your Research

Synthesis Matrix

The matrix method is one way of working on your literature review. to do their literature review more efficiently. 

Use a table in Word with a row for each of your sources. Develop columns based on key themes in your paper with room for more columns that emerge from your readings. When a source relates to one of the columns, note the key point in the box, and add a page number so you can find the point again quickly.

Topic: Pet ownership during COVID-19 and impact on owners and pets

Additional Resources

• Synthesis Matrix - Florida International University

Concept Mapping

Concept mapping is another way to visualize connections between sources during your literature review. 

CanLII (The Canadian Legal Information Institute) is a freely available database powered and supported by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada.  Content focuses on Canadian primary law sources that include: 

• Jurisprudence (Federal and Provincial case law, tribunal decisions).
• Legislation (Federal and Provincial statutes and regulations).
• Commentary (both refereed and crowd-generated commentary).

Details about how to find specific formats using CanLII can be found here.

• Cite Sources: Learn the correct way to cite sources by using these guides, tutorials, and videos.
• Referencing Webinars: APA & MLA. Referencing Webinars are 75 minutes long.  Registration is required.
• Online Appointments: Personalized online 30-minute appointments with a Learning Strategist

Take an MLA or APA Referencing Tutorial on D2L!

These self-paced 90-minute tutorials covers the same content as live workshops—why citation is important along with the basics of in-text citations and reference entries. Students who complete the tutorial will gain access to a form they can fill out and submit as proof of completion.

Access the tutorial on D2L: Using Google Chrome as your web browser, log in to D2L (learn.mru.ca) with your @mtroyal.ca account. Click the “Discover” tab, then type “APA”  or "MLA" in the search bar. Click on the “APA Referencing Tutorial”  or "MLA Referencing Tutorial" link and then the “Enroll in Course” button. If you have any questions about the tutorial, contact sls@mtroyal.ca.