I don’t think I have ever done as much research as I have done this past year – and I have found it helpful in so many ways – learning that it’s better to ‘know’ – than to ‘assume’.

As quoted here – “Do your own research – enlighten yourself – it’s better to know – than to assume”.

I guess so much of it began with researching for answers in the cultivation of my vegetables.

I thought that I knew what I was doing – as I had grown most of them in the past. However – I began to see that some of them were struggling – and that something needed changing – and so I turned to AI for answers.

Now I know that there is a lot of caution out there about AI – but I am determined not to be put off – and not to fear this technology – but rather to seek to understand it – following this advise – “Don’t fear AI – understand it. Technology becomes powerful when people understand both it’s capabilities – and it’s limitations”.

The next thing I needed to research was the purchasing of a mobility scooter – as I can no longer walk long distances – and miss getting out and about so much.

I have been fortunate enough to have had the loan of a scooter – in order to determine if it was something that would be helpful to me. Realising how much independence and freedom this gave me – had brought me to make this decision. I had done some research on a companies website – and also gone along to their showroom – but was still unsure as to what the best purchase would be for me.

Over the past weeks I have become very familiar with Chat GPT – using this technology to help me in research – alongside the knowledge that I have on a subject – and so I decided to use this technology to help me.

Of course – to quote – “ChatGPT should not be used to replace thinking skills – it should be used to enhance them”.

On returning home – I found that – sharing the information that I had gathered with ChatGPT – caused me to think things through much more clearly – as questions were put to me – causing me to really think things through – and I was able to better understand the most important aspects that I needed from this purchase.

There is always something that I can learn – that I can add – to the knowledge of what I already know – but I need to be open and willing to question.

“Research simply means – that you don’t know – but are willing to find out” – And so – I will keep researching – not being afraid to ask the questions – and never being too old – to try something new.

Blessings – Lois