5 Hottest FREE AI Tools for Research That Are ACTUALLY Useful!

Dr Amina Yonis
5 Sept 202311:22

TLDRDiscover the top 5 AI tools for research that are transforming the academic landscape. Unriddle allows for interactive questioning of research papers, Paper Pal enhances writing with language checks and synonyms, and Chat GPT aids in title improvements. Illicit offers comparative analysis of multiple papers, while Connected Papers generates a visual map of research connections, all designed to simplify the research process and elevate academic writing.

Takeaways

  • 🔍 Unriddle is an AI tool that allows users to upload research papers and ask tailored questions to better understand the content.
  • 📝 Unriddle simplifies complex research by explaining concepts in a basic way, providing specific questions, and offering note-taking and writing improvement features.
  • ✍️ Paper Pal is a platform that helps improve writing by identifying language issues, suggesting synonyms, rewriting sentences, and trimming text to enhance clarity and conciseness.
  • 📈 Chat GPT can be utilized for brainstorming and enhancing research titles by suggesting improvements and alternative options.
  • 🔎 Elicit is an AI tool that enables users to upload multiple research papers for comparison, providing abstract summaries, testing details, and trustworthiness assessments.
  • 📚 Elicit highlights important sections of the paper and assists in critical analysis by examining factors like funding and participant counts.
  • 🗺 Connected Papers is a website that generates a research paper map, showing connections between related papers and aiding in the discovery of pertinent research.
  • 🚫 It's important to note that AI tools should not be used for copying and pasting content but rather for understanding concepts and writing in one's own words.
  • 🎯 AI platforms can significantly aid researchers, especially those new to academia, by providing insights, summaries, and ways to improve writing and critical thinking skills.
  • 📊 The use of AI in academia is controversial, with many platforms offering various features from proofreading to research paper writing, and it's crucial to use them ethically.

Q & A

  • What is the main topic of the video?

    -The main topic of the video is about introducing and reviewing 5 hot and free AI tools that are useful for research and academia.

  • Why are AI academic apps controversial?

    -AI academic apps are controversial due to concerns about their potential impact on the research process, including issues related to originality and the ethical use of AI in academic work.

  • How does Unriddle assist researchers?

    -Unriddle allows users to upload a research paper and then ask questions about it. The platform tailors questions to the specific paper, helping users understand complex concepts and providing a deeper analysis of the paper's content.

  • What is a unique feature of Unriddle?

    -A unique feature of Unriddle is its ability to ask tailored questions about a research paper and provide detailed explanations, which can help researchers gain a better understanding of the material.

  • How does Paper Pal help with writing?

    -Paper Pal assists with writing by offering language improvement suggestions, identifying redundancy, providing synonyms, rewriting sentences, and trimming text to make it more concise.

  • What is the purpose of the 'rewrite' feature in Paper Pal?

    -The 'rewrite' feature in Paper Pal allows users to rephrase a selected portion of text in a different way, providing alternative ways to express the same idea.

  • How can Chat GPT be used in academia?

    -Chat GPT can be used to improve titles and generate new title suggestions. It can also serve as a brainstorming tool, helping researchers come up with different ways to phrase their ideas.

  • What does Elicit provide for research papers?

    -Elicit provides an abstract summary, information about the tested intervention and measured outcomes, participant details, and a trustworthiness analysis of the research paper.

  • How does Connected Papers help in research?

    -Connected Papers generates a visual map of related research papers, helping users understand how different papers connect and find additional research that may be relevant to their work.

  • What is the importance of understanding the trustworthiness of a research paper?

    -Understanding the trustworthiness of a research paper is crucial as it helps researchers assess the reliability and credibility of the study, taking into account factors like funding sources and potential biases.

  • How can these AI tools enhance the research process?

    -These AI tools can enhance the research process by providing in-depth analysis, improving writing quality, generating new ideas, and offering a comprehensive overview of related research, thus making the research process more efficient and insightful.

Outlines

00:00

🤖 Introduction to AI Academic Apps

The paragraph discusses the current controversy surrounding AI in academia and introduces various AI platforms that assist with different aspects of the research process. The speaker shares their experience with five AI apps/websites that they find particularly useful, offering a brief tutorial on each. The first app, Unriddle, is highlighted for its ability to upload research papers and generate tailored questions to help understand the content better. The speaker emphasizes the importance of using AI ethically in academia, focusing on understanding and rephrasing rather than copying and pasting.

05:01

📝 Enhancing Writing with AI Tools

This section delves into how AI can improve academic writing. The speaker discusses the Paper Pal platform, which offers language checks, redundancy removal, rephrasing, and synonym suggestions to enhance writing quality. The tool also provides insights into how often a word is used in published literature. Other features like rewrite and trim allow for rewording and condensing text, respectively. The speaker also touches on the use of Chat GPT for title improvements and the Elicit platform for understanding and comparing research papers.

10:02

🗺️ Navigating Research Connections with AI

The final paragraph focuses on the Connected Papers platform, which visualizes the connections between research papers. It allows users to trace the relationships among papers, identify key publications, and discover related research that might have been missed. The platform presents a map of academic papers related to a chosen origin paper, arranged by similarity and citing the number of citations and publishing years. This tool is beneficial for a comprehensive literature review and understanding the broader research landscape.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡AI tools

AI tools refer to artificial intelligence applications designed to assist with various tasks, such as research, proofreading, and editing. In the context of the video, these tools are particularly beneficial for academics and researchers, streamlining the process of understanding and creating academic content. The video discusses several AI platforms that are useful for enhancing research papers and improving writing skills, demonstrating the practical application of AI tools in an academic setting.

💡Academic Twitter

Academic Twitter is a term used to describe the community of scholars, researchers, and academics who use the social media platform Twitter to share and discuss research, ideas, and news related to their fields. In the video, the mention of Academic Twitter highlights the importance of staying updated with the latest trends and tools within the academic community, as it is a platform where AI tools for research are often debated and shared.

💡Unriddle

Unriddle is one of the AI platforms mentioned in the video that allows users to upload research papers and ask questions about the content. It tailors the questions to the specific paper, aiding in comprehension and critical analysis. For instance, the platform can simplify complex concepts or provide detailed explanations of certain elements within the research, which is particularly helpful for new researchers or those unfamiliar with the paper's subject matter.

💡Proofreading

Proofreading is the process of reviewing written text to detect and correct errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, and style. In the context of the video, AI tools can assist with proofreading, enhancing the quality of academic writing by identifying and suggesting corrections for language issues, thus ensuring clarity and professionalism in the final document.

💡Research papers

Research papers are scholarly writings that present original research results, typically in the form of articles that contribute to a field of study. The video emphasizes the utility of AI tools in finding, understanding, and writing research papers, as these platforms can help in summarizing content, identifying key points, and even suggesting improvements to the structure and language of the paper.

💡Paper Pal

Paper Pal is an AI platform mentioned in the video that focuses on improving writing quality. It offers features such as identifying language issues, providing synonyms, rewriting sentences, and trimming text to enhance conciseness and clarity. This tool is particularly useful for researchers and academics looking to polish their writing and ensure their work meets high academic standards.

💡Chat GPT

Chat GPT is referenced as an AI tool that can be utilized for improving titles and generating ideas for academic writing. The video suggests using it for brainstorming and enhancing the appeal of titles, rather than for direct copying and pasting. This highlights the ethical use of AI in academia, where the tool should aid in the creative process rather than replace it.

💡Illicit

Illicit, in the context of the video, is an AI platform that allows users to upload research papers for a deeper understanding. It provides abstract summaries, details about interventions, outcomes, and participant information, which is beneficial for systematic reviews or comparative studies. The platform also assesses the trustworthiness of a paper, guiding users to critically evaluate the research they are reading.

💡Connected Papers

Connected Papers is a website mentioned in the video that generates a visual map of research papers and their connections. It helps users understand the relationships between different papers and identify related research that may have been missed. The map displays the number of citations, publishing years, and similarity between papers, which can be a valuable resource for literature reviews and academic research.

💡Academic writing

Academic writing refers to the process of creating texts for scholarly communication, such as research papers, essays, and theses. The video discusses the importance of AI tools in enhancing academic writing by providing support in language improvement, structure, and clarity. These tools can assist researchers in expressing their ideas more effectively and adhering to the rigorous standards of academic publication.

Highlights

Unriddle is an AI tool that allows users to upload research papers and ask questions about the content.

The AI generates tailored questions based on the specific research paper, aiding in understanding complex concepts.

Unriddle simplifies complex research by explaining concepts as if to a five-year-old, making it accessible to a wider audience.

The platform also suggests specific and relevant questions that a researcher might need to understand before delving into the paper.

Users can write notes and ask the AI to summarize or improve their writing, enhancing the research process.

Paper Pal is an AI tool that helps improve writing by identifying language issues, redundancy, and suggesting synonyms.

The platform offers a Word add-in, allowing users to access its features directly within Microsoft Word.

Paper Pal can rewrite sentences and trim text to improve conciseness without losing the original meaning.

Chat GPT can be used to improve titles and generate alternative options for academic papers.

Elicit is a platform that allows users to upload multiple research papers for comparison and understanding.

Elicit provides summaries, highlights key aspects of the research, and helps users assess the trustworthiness of a paper.

Connected Papers is a tool that generates a research paper map, showing connections between related papers and their citations.

The research paper map can help in finding related research and including it in literature reviews.

AI tools in academia should be used ethically, with the understanding that they are meant to aid in understanding and not for copying and pasting.

These AI platforms offer a range of functionalities from proofreading to finding research papers and writing outlines, improving the research process.

The use of AI in academia is currently a topic of controversy, with many platforms offering different aspects of AI technology.

These AI tools are particularly useful for those starting their PhD, research, or university studies, providing support and guidance.