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The AIIRA Writing Contest AI Institute for Resilient Agriculture (AIIRA)

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AI Aspirations

Think of a career you'd like to have in the future. How might AI technology advance your field and help you perform your job within the next decade? What aspects or duties of your job may become irrelevant due to AI? Describe a day in the life of your job with AI as your new work partner.

Your submission can be either a creative nonfiction essay speculating on the changes your desired career may undergo or a fictional scene depicting what your desired job may look like in ten years.

Over $2,000 in total prizes: one first prize of $550; two second prizes of $400; and three third prizes of $250

Criteria:

· Each contestant may only submit once. In instances of collaboration on a submission (for example, an essay with two or more authors), that submission counts as the authors’ only opportunity to win the contest; neither author may submit another entry independently.

· Must be a current high school student (with proof of enrollment) to submit to the contest.

· Only United States Citizens or Permanent Residents may participate in this contest.

· Maximum of 3,500 words for both fiction and nonfiction submissions.

· If referencing any sources in your submission, please include a bibliography at the end of your submission (the bibliography will not contribute to the submission’s word count).

· We do allow simultaneous submissions, but please inform us immediately if your submitted work is accepted for publication elsewhere.

· Please ensure all submissions are written in 12 pt. font, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins.

Judging:

Contributions will be judged anonymously by a panel comprising of experts in relevant disciplinary fields and writers. All decisions made by the judges regarding the winners of the contest are final. By submitting, you are agreeing to all contest rules.

Publishing: Winning entries will be published on our website.

About AIIRA:

The AI Institute for Resilient Agriculture (AIIRA) strives to develop AI systems capable of managing and predicting plant growth and health in order to engage in more sustainable and productive agricultural endeavors. The hope is that regular incorporation of AI into agriculture will result in more sustainability, better land and resource conservation, greater food production, and many other benefits. However, successfully incorporating innovations into the fields of agriculture and agronomics requires advances in AI technology as well as making education on AI more available to the public. Therefore, AIIRA is proud to announce its first ever writing contest, focused on the influence of AI in the agricultural and agronomic sciences. The goals for this writing contest include:

  • Engaging the public in discussions and speculations on AI technology and its effects on society
  • Encouraging undergraduates to research AI and gain a basic familiarity with its potential
  • Inspiring undergraduates to express themselves creatively through writing
  • Provoking nuanced thought about AI, agriculture, and STEM.

AI Aspirations

Temp Closed

AIIRA is looking for essays speculating on how AI will change careers within the next ten years, as well as fiction stories depicting a day in the life of a job transformed by the incorporation of AI technology. Submissions should address how AI will help future professionals perform their jobs more efficiently as well as what responsibilities will become redundant due to AI. Submissions may not exceed 3,500 words. Contestants must be high school students to participate.

This contest will be distributing over $2,000 in total prizes. There will be one first place prize of $550, two second place prizes of $400 each, and three third place prizes of $250 each.

Narrative Menus and Recipes

Temp Closed

Imagine you are a restaurant owner that values transparency. Create either a menu or a recipe that features various meals/dishes and that describes the sourcing and production of ingredients. What technology was involved in producing the food? Was the food sustainably sourced? Were there any ethical dilemmas involved in producing the ingredients that should be disclosed? Who was responsible for collecting the ingredients?

Please see our website (https://aiira.iastate.edu/writingcontest/) for examples of narrative menus and recipes.

Submissions should not exceed 3,500 words in length.