Google has launched "Learn About" — an AI tool designed specially for students and teachers.

You can use it to create interactive articles and guides on any topic.

Here's how to use it: 1. Go to learning•google•com/experiments/learn-about

(If you are outside the US, you will need to use a VPN.)

Type in your topic and it will give you:

• Introduction to the topic
• Relevant terms
• Topic's significance
• Suggested topics (on the left)

Don't ask ChatGPT for any references or citations. It generates fake references to papers that don't even exist.

Instead, use Scite — an AI-powered app designed for researchers.

It answers your questions with references to real, published papers.

Here's how to use it: 1. Go to scite[.]ai and sign up for an account.

Scite gives you a 7-day free trial.

Limitation of Google Scholar: You can only look up articles with keywords. It doesn't work if you paste a sentence or a paragraph.

Sourcely is an AI-powered app that lets you look up papers using whole paragraphs.

Here's how to use it: 1. Go to sourcely[.]net and click on "Find Sources Now."

Log in to your account or sign up if you don't have one already.

ChatGPT generates fake references to papers that don't exist.

So, researchers at Stanford built Storm.

It's an AI-powered app that generates well-researched articles with references to published sources.

Here's how to use it: 1. Go to storm[.]genie[.]stanford[.]edu and click on "Get Started."

Create a account and log in.

This post calling for a ban on Benedict Anderson's book "Imagined Communities" went viral recently.

Here's why you should read it:

It's the single most important book if you want to understand modern identity, nationalism, and the world we live in today.

Thread: The most important chapter in "Imagined Communities" is titled "Cultural Roots" and is only 27 pages long.

Anderson starts by talking about communities that preceded modern nations. He calls them religious or classical communities.

Zotero's new Note Editor can supercharge your note-taking and writing processes.

But many academics don't know about it.

Here's how to take notes with Zotero's Note Editor: 1. Open your Zotero desktop app and select a relevant collection.

Drag and drop the paper you want to read and take notes on.

Open the paper by double-clicking on it.

PodAnyWhere can convert any research paper or webpage into a podcast.

And it's totally free.

Here's how to use it:

1. Go to Chrome Web Store and type in "podanywhere" in the search bar.

Add the extension to your browser. 2. Once you've added the extension, you will see a black icon in the bottom-right corner.

Open a research paper you want to convert to a podcast.

Map This is an AI app that turns any piece of writing into a graph.

This can help you brainstorm ideas, develop your research projects, and prepare impressive presentations.

Here's how to use it: 1. Go to map-this(dot)com and sign up for a free account.

Map This will give you 5 free credits to get started.

ChatGPT just introduced Canvas, a collaboration tool for writers.

It can adjust the reading level of any piece from kindergarten to graduate. It can also help you with editing and polishing your writing.

Here's how to use it: 1. Log in to your ChatGPT account and click on the name of the model in the top-left corner.

Select "GPT-4o with canvas" and ask it to give you a short write-up on any topic.

It will give you the write-up in the middle and a chat column in the left side bar.

This Nature article shows that most Nobel Prize winners are part of one big, incestuous academic network.

Out of 736 Nobel Prize winners in science and economics, 702 are "part of the same academic family."

Only 32 researchers out of this network have won the Nobel Prize. English physicist, John W. Strutt (1842-1919) won the Nobel in 1904.

Strutt's student J. J. Thomson (1856-1940) won the Nobel in 1906.

Thomson's nine students won the Nobel Prize and went on to train many more Nobel prize winners.

228 Nobel laureates are connected to Stutt.

Google's NotebookLM can turn any research paper into an engaging podcast.

This can help you simplify complex topics in a matter of minutes.

Best part: NotebookLM is totally free.

Here's how to do it: 1. Go to notebooklm(dot)google(dot)com.

If you have a Google account, you will be signed in automatically.

Click on "Create" at the bottom of your screen. NotebookLM will ask you to upload documents.

Zotero can help you build and organize libraries for all kinds of research projects.

But many academics don't know about it.

Here are 4 ways to build and organize your Zotero library: Before we dive in:

If you are new to Zotero, here's a tutorial to help you get started on it:

https://x.com/MushtaqBilalPhD/status/1835296209386217965

The new version of Zotero was recently released. It's more powerful and versatile than ever.

It can help you organize your reading lists, take notes, and automate your citations and bibliography.

And it's totally free.

Here's how to get started with Zotero: 1. Go to zotero(dot)org.

Download and install it on your computer.

Want to use a free AI app to summarize research papers and chat with them?

Try Google NotebookLM.

It can summarize articles, prepare study guides and briefing documents.

Here's how to use it: 1. Go to notebooklm(dot)google(dot)com. It will open NotebookLM for you.

Click on "Create" and it will ask you to upload sources. You can upload up to 50 papers.

Once you upload, NotebookLM will summarize the paper for you. You can also ask questions about the paper.

Google Gemini just introduced Gems — custom chatbots for specific tasks.

Gems are similar to ChatGPT's custom GPT and Claude's Projects.

Here's how to create a Gem (and how it compares with custom GPT and Claude Project): Open Gemini Advanced and click on the "Gem manager" in the left taskbar.

This will open the Gem manager.

Don't use Sci-Hub — it's a "controversial" website with 84M+ research papers freely available.

We should all try to make billion-dollar academic publishers richer.

Anyway, here's a thread on how to integrate Sci-Hub with Zotero 7 to get free papers.

DO NOT DO IT! 1. Don't go to this link:
github(dot)com/syt2/zotero-scipdf

But if you do, replace the word "dot" with an actual [.]

Don't scroll down and click on "latest release xpi file."

This will download an "xpi" file to your computer.

Accessing paywalled research articles can cost $30-$50 per article.

Here are four ways you can access paywalled article for free:

1. Sci-Hub

Contains 84M+ "pirated" articles. Don't use it 😉

We should all try to make billion-dollar academic publishers richer. 2. JSTOR

Gives you free access to 100 articles every month.

You can sign up with your personal email. You don't need any institutional affiliation.

A list of 50 AI apps for academic writing and research: For Finding Research Gaps

• Research Kick Start, Pricing: $9/month, $99/year. No free plan.

Sci-Hub: a "pirate" website with access to 84M+ research papers. Free.

Zotero: a reference manager. Free.

NotebookLM: an AI-powered research assistant. Free.

Here's how to integrate Zotero 7 with Sci-Hub and NotebookLM to supercharge your research: 1. Download Zotero Sci-Hub plugin

Go to this link: github(dot)com/syt2/zotero-scipdf
Replace the word "dot" with an actual [.]

Scroll down and click on "latest release xpi file."

This will download an "xpi" file to your computer.

Ernest Hemingway was one of the most influential American writers of the 20th century.

Wrote 9 novels. Won a Pulitzer and the Nobel Prize. Then shot himself to death.

In 1958, The Paris Review featured an interview with him.

Here are his ten insights on the writing process: 1. Stop writing for the day when you know what is going to happen next, when you still have some juice.

This way you will know where to start the next day and won't get stuck.

Google NotebookLM is a powerful tool for academic writers.

It can help you summarize papers, extract relevant data, and find common across multiple papers. And it's free to use.

But many academics don't know about it.

Here's how to use NotebookLM for academic writing: 1. Go to notebooklm(dot)google and click on "Try NotebookLM" in the top-right corner.

This will open NotebookLM for you.