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Artificial Intelligence: For Students

AI Features in Library Databases

Several academic databases have begun to integrate AI features into their platforms, while others have announced plans to release AI features in the near future. Read more in the box below to learn how some of our library databases have integrated AI. 

Important: Students should consult with their Professor to determine whether utilizing these AI tools is allowed for the course and/or assignment.  

Database AI Integrations

ProQuest Research Assistant is a recently released research companion that integrates AI-powered capabilities into research workflows, offering suggestions and prompts. Please note that not all content within ProQuest databases has access to ProQuest Research Assistant.  

AI features are embedded within some documents, supporting their review, analysis, and examination. Here’s how:

  • A key takeaway of the full-text document is presented, allowing users to quickly determine relevance and then guide the next steps in their research.

  • Important concepts in the document – explaining each term and why it’s relevant – are instantly available. Users can easily search a key concept, leading to deeper research and investigation.

  • Recommendations act as idea generation partners, suggesting relevant research topics and prompting users with a Boolean search that can easily be conducted. 

Learn More

Try the ProQuest Research Assistant Tool

Statista Research AI is a generative artificial intelligence tool located within Statista that allows users to access and interpret information from Statista's database by asking questions in natural language, providing answers with relevant statistics, infographics, and insights based on the queried topic, all while citing its data sources for verification; acting as a "data concierge" powered by AI within the Statista platform. 

Key differences between "regular" Statista and Statista Research AI:

  • Both platforms access the same underlying Statista data, but Research AI uses AI to generate insights from it, going beyond simple data retrieval.

  • Regular Statista relies on keyword-based search to find specific data points, while Research AI uses natural language processing to understand complex questions and is designed to provide more nuanced answers.

  • Regular Statista presents data in tables, charts, and graphs, whereas Research AI can provide summaries, interpretations, and generate text responses based on the query. 

Learn More:

Try the Statista Research AI Tool 

JSTOR's interactive research tool uses AI to enhance research and understanding of the materials within JSTOR's corpus. The tool is still in its beta development phase and is not yet available for use on images, audio, video, and text-based primary sources. Access to this beta tool is at the vendor's discretion and can change at any time. A JSTOR account and access request is required (please instructions below).

AI features are embedded in content pages and in the standard keyword search function. Here's how:

  • The beta search feature appears after you complete your initial search. You can click on the BETA button at the top of the results list to see the 25 most relevant results determined by the beta tool. This feature will also give you results for natural language searches. 

  • When you open an item, the research tool window appears on the right side of the document. The window will explain the relationship between your search term and the document, as well as suggest follow-up prompts.  You can also write your question directly into the box. JSTOR offers guidance on asking questions about a text. 

  • These features allow you to find relevant material more quickly, expand content discovery, use conversational language to understand the text, and search in a new way. 

To request access to participate in the JSTOR's interactive research tool beta:

  1. Visit www.jstor.org and log in to your personal JSTOR account. Be sure to use your Iona University email address. 

    1. Don’t have an account yet? See how to register for a free account.

  2. Confirm you’re logged in by looking for Iona University’s name at the top of the page. See how to tell if you’re logged in to JSTOR.

  3. When the sign-up window appears, click the Sign up button.

    1. If you just created your account, it may take up to five minutes for the window to display. Try coming back in a few minutes.

    2. Clicking the No thanks option will permanently dismiss the sign-up window.

Not seeing the sign-up window? You can also email JSTOR’s beta team using the email address associated with your personal JSTOR account.

Learn more:

About JSTOR's interactive research tool

Video demo of JSTOR's interactive research tool

JSTOR guidance on asking questions about a text

JSTOR Research Tool Beta Overview

Britannica Academic Edition uses AI to power its ASK Britannica research tool. The tool answers questions using Britannica content. With an educational focus that allows for natural language questions. 

When you click on the new ASK Britannica box, you can type in your question and get a response from the chatbot In addition to the text response, features include:

  • Links to supporting Britannica articles
  • Suggested follow up questions
  • Ability to ask multiple queries and click back and forth between questions
  • Save chat feature that downloads a plain text file of the chat, links, and follow up questions

Britannica notes that while "ASK Britannica is designed to provide information only from Britannica’s content. However, in cases where the AI misinterprets a question or experiences an error, it might inadvertently include information from non-Britannica sources. Such instances are unintentional and do not align with the system’s intended functionality. As a result, users are advised to verify any AI-generated responses using Britannica’s official published content."