Learning to Become Human Again

Nicole Adelson

Humanity is a dynamic species,

Gifted with awareness,

Liveliness,

Creativity.

The very core of our being

Is our minds.

Though heavily limited,

Our neural pathways

Became the soil,

Continually reaping innovation.

From the spark of a flame

To the crafting of artificial neurons,

Humanity has shaped the world

As no creature has before.

Late into the night,

Through fluorescent screens and feverish typing,

I have witnessed these artifices come to life,

With each line code becoming neural.

Before AI came to fruition,

Humanity stood unmatched.

Artistic works flourishing across digital canvases,

And chess mastery still bore a human face.

Then came AI,

ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude,

And the entire landscape changed.

At our fingertips,

We created a tool

Enhanced by human patterns,

Yet with no soul behind them.

Regurgitating every word,

Every document,

Every scraped piece of data

From the vast World Wide Web,

It mimicked our mannerisms

And succeeded–

Almost.

And while it streamlined our labor,

Allowing us to deliver our products faster,

Where did creativity go?

The raw authenticity

That once coursed through our veins.

The imperfections,

The hesitation—

The rift between mind and reality

Making our voices truly our own.

Now we sacrifice deep reflection

For instantaneous responses,

Replacing our minds

With artificial neurons.

Our thoughts now clouded,

Limited by the infinite,

Losing touch,

With what made us truly human.

Our speech is perfected

Through polished prompts,

Purely generated replies.

Now connection itself

Begins to feel rehearsed.

But what if we broke the barriers

That AI has built, brick by brick,

With every prompt?

What if we remembered,

That we brought it into being

Through our stories,

Our synergy,

Our humanity?

With such an ally,

And by strengthening our communities

That taught us care and empathy

We can yet learn

How to be human again.

To reframe AI

Not as efficiency,

But as a novelty.

---

About the Author

Nicole Adelson is a senior at Hofstra University studying Computer Engineering with a concentration in Artificial Intelligence. As an AI4All alumn (2024-2025), the president of their university's Society of Women Engineers chapter, and chapter leader of The Diabetes Link, Nicole demonstrates a strong dedication to machine learning, healthcare advocacy, and empowering women in engineering. Nicole has interned at Northwell Health as a Research Assistant and at North Atlantic Industries as a Test Engineer, where they have developed a keen interest in data science and embedded systems. Outside of the classroom, they enjoy writing poetry, which serves both as a creative outlet and a means of reflection, understanding, and self-expression.