What are the different university-wide AI tools, and what can I use them for?
What it is: The foundational conversational AI model capable of generating, analyzing, and transforming text based on its vast general knowledge, adapting its tone and style on command.
- Core Functions:
- Creative Content Generation: Draft professional emails, marketing copy, and presentation outlines.
- Topic Synthesis & Simplification: Research complex topics and summarize information into clear, easy-to-digest formats (lists, tables, explanations).
- Stylistic Adaptation: Instantly rewrite text to fit a different tone, style, or audience (e.g., from academic to public-facing).
- Open-Ended Brainstorming: Generate multiple ideas, suggestions, or potential solutions for unstructured problems.
2. Custom Gems (Custom Gemini Chats)
What it is: Specialized AI chat assistants that can easily be built by any user. These chats are trained on a limited, dedicated set of specific sources. They act as secure knowledge specialists for specific purposes.
- Core Functions:
- Governed Knowledge Retrieval: Provide consistent, authoritative answers based only on a specific sources it is given (e.g., official policies, handbooks).
- Repetitive Task Automation: Enforce a specific output format and persona for frequently repeated tasks (e.g., policy checks, standardized welcome messages).
- Scalable Expert Support: Turn a staff member's specialized knowledge into a 24/7 self-service tool for students or colleagues.
3. Tools in Gemini
What it is: Specialized extensions that add structured, computational, or multi-step analysis capabilities to the general Gemini model, allowing it to execute technical jobs beyond simple language tasks.
Guided Learning
What it is: An interactive study mode within Gemini that turns the AI into a personalized, step-by-step learning partner. It's designed to help users deeply master a subject rather than just providing a quick answer.
- Core Functions:
- Interactive Tutoring: Walks the user through concepts step-by-step, checking for understanding along the way.
- Concept Mastery: Helps users dig deeper into concepts and build real skills by focusing on the process of learning.
- Quizzing & Assessment: Provides interactive quizzes to test knowledge and allows for practice questions.
- Multimodal Explanations: Breaks down topics with rich responses like images, diagrams, and video links.
Deep Research
What it is: A tool designed for conducting comprehensive, in-depth, real-time research on complex subjects. It works by generating a multi-step research plan, analyzing numerous sources across the web (and optionally, private sources like Drive or Gmail), and then producing a detailed, cited report.