Google's new AI helps researchers explore and analyze academic papers
What's the story
Google has unveiled a new artificial intelligence (AI) tool, Scholar Labs, to help users find relevant scientific studies. The innovative search engine uses advanced AI technology to analyze the main topics and relationships in a user's query. Currently, it is available for a limited number of logged-in users. However, the tool's ability to identify "good" science studies without traditional metrics has raised some concerns among scientists.
Operation
Scholar Labs: A closer look at its functionality
In a demonstration, Scholar Labs was put to the test with a question about brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). The first result was a 2024 review paper on BCI research published in Applied Sciences. Scholar Labs explained how this paper matched the query by discussing research into noninvasive signals like electroencephalogram and surveying some leading algorithms in the field.
Explanation
Google's stance on Scholar Labs' approach
Google spokesperson Lisa Oguike explained that the goal of Scholar Labs is to dig up "the most useful papers for the user's research quest." This is done by ranking papers as researchers themselves would, weighing factors like document text, publication venue, authorship, and citation frequency in other scholarly literature. However, Oguike also clarified that the new tool won't sort or limit results based on a paper's citation count or journal's impact factor.
Criticism
Concerns over Scholar Labs's methodology
Scholar Labs has been criticized for not using common metrics to separate "good" studies from "not-so-good" ones. These metrics include citation counts and the impact factor of a journal. The original Google Scholar allows users to rank studies by "relevancy" and shows the number of citations for each result. However, Scholar Labs doesn't sort results based on these parameters.
Future prospects
Scholar Labs' potential impact on scientific research
Despite the criticism, some scientists believe AI-powered search tools like Scholar Labs could play a significant role in the scientific ecosystem. Matthew Schrag, an associate professor of neurology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said such tools could potentially surface papers that may have been overlooked otherwise. He stressed the need for a holistic appraisal of studies, something AI might be able to provide.