ChatGPT vs. Google: Which Tools Is best For Research?

 

When it comes to conducting research, there is a surplus of resources available at our fingertips. 

With the rise of artificial intelligence, we now have two powerful tools at our disposal: ChatGPT and Google.

Since the release of the OpenAI artificial intelligence language model, ChatGPT, many controversies topic has raised many on which is better among the two. Or whether to switch to ChatGPT for their research making or still stick to Google?

I have experimented with both ChatGPT and Google Search Engine. And I want to share with you my experience with these two powerful AI tools

Here in this article, I analyzed the pros and cons of both ChatGPT and Google Search in terms of conducting research. 

You will agree with me that since the birth of Google, there have not been any search engines as powerful as it is. 

Although with so much competition like Microsoft Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo!, etc Google still stands as the most popular and most used search engine in the world till now. 

Will Google still be the most popular search engine or will ChatGPT overshadow it? Let see.

While both have their advantages, it's important to consider which tool is best suited for your specific research needs. But which tool should one choose for research?

But first let us know why the Google search engine and ChatGPT were created, after it, we will talk about what these two AI tools can be used for.

ChatGPT vs. Google?

ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence chatbot developed by OpenAI. It is a language model that can generate text based on the input given to it. ChartGPT is trained to follow instructions in a prompt and provide a detailed response. It can be helpful for tasks such as language generation, language translation, and language understanding. If your research question requires natural language processing, text generation or analysis, or an understanding of language patterns, then ChatGPT could be a valuable resource for your research.

According to the OpenAI note, the ChatGPT model was trained using Reinforcement Learning from Human Feedback (RLHF), using the same methods as InstructGPT, but with slight differences in the data collection setup.

Although the main function of a chatbot is to imitate a human conversationalist, ChatGPT can write and debug computer programs, compose music, teleplays, fairy tales, and student essays, answer test questions, write poetry and song lyrics, emulate a Linux system, simulate an entire chat room; play games like tic-tac-toe, and simulate an ATM.

Google, on the other hand, is a search engine that can provide access to a wide range of information, including websites, academic journals, books, and news articles. It can be helpful for research that requires a broad range of information, or for finding specific sources of information, such as academic papers or government reports.

ChatGPT and Google serve different purposes in research and can complement each other in certain contexts.

Take a look at the interaction I had with both ChatGPT vs. Google

ChatGPT vs. Google - #1: Review Check

Here I asked both Google and ChatGPT, "The best Physics textbook " 

Although both gave me a list of Physics textbooks, ChatGPT's response seems to be more precise than that of Google. For example, Google only showed the result of the textbooks without any recommendation of the academic level (unless I visited the site read or watch it)  whereas ChatGPT did.

On the other hand, ChatGPT may be more expertized in review research but is limited to some data compared to the Google search engine which has tens of thousands of data available in its algorithm

Winner: It’s a tie between ChatGPT & Google

List of best physics textbooks according to Google search showing the author's names, and published dates but without academic level 

List of best Physics textbooks according to ChatGPT with a recommended academic level 

ChatGPT vs. Google - #2: Real-time trends

When it comes to real-time updates, Google will confidently surpass ChatGPT. This is because ChatGPT was only built as an AI language model. Because of this, it is limited to information from 2021. Therefore, it is recommended that you use Google if you are looking for any real-time updates

Winner: Google.

pros and cons

As noted at the beginning, ChatGPT and Google both have advantages and disadvantages. Below are some pros and cons of using ChatGPT and Google for research.

Pros and cons of using ChatGPT

Pros	Cons
Language generation: ChatGPT can be useful for generating summaries, paraphrases, or even entirely new content based on existing information.	Since the chatbot responses are based on the input it has been trained on, it may not cover some subjects or topics.
Language Translation: ChatGPT can translate multiple languages(including non-English languages) allowing researchers to be able to access information in a non-English language	Data biased: ChatGPT's responses may reflect biases present in the data it was trained on, which could impact the accuracy of its generated text
Language Understanding: ChatGPT is an AI that can identify different language usage. For example, it can identify keywords and phrases. It is also useful for tasks such as sentiment analysis	Lack of Context: ChatGPT may sometimes generate technically correct responses but lack context or nuances. But as time goes on, all these cons will be fixed.

Pros and cons of using Google search

Pros	Cons
Diverse Information: With Google, you can have access to different information at a time including academic papers, books, images, news articles, and websites	Google can provide an overwhelming amount of information, which can make it difficult to identify relevant sources or narrow down search results.
Validation of Information: Google can be used to validate the accuracy of information obtained from other sources. Google can be used to validate the accuracy of information obtained from other sources	Data biased: Google's search algorithm is not completely transparent, and there is evidence to suggest that search results can be biased based on factors such as location or personal search history
Relevant searches: Google search shows information based on relevance and can filter out the ones that are not useful	Sometimes Google's search results may not include all relevant sources of information, which could impact the accuracy and completeness of the research.

In many cases, researchers may use both ChatGPT and Google in combination to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of their research question. For example, a researcher may use Google to find relevant academic papers and then use ChatGPT to analyze the language patterns within those papers or generate new text based on the insights gained from the literature review.