Introduction to Modern AI
Scope and Sequence
Version 1.0
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Contents
Target Audience 3
Prerequisites 3
Course Description 3
Equipment Requirements 4
Course Outline 5
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Target Audience
The Cisco Networking Academy "Introduction to Modern AI" is an introductory course designed to provide students
with a foundational understanding of modern artificial intelligence (AI) concepts and applications. This course is
suitable for learners with basic computer skills and an interest in exploring the world of AI.
No prior knowledge of AI or machine learning is required, making it accessible to individuals from various
backgrounds and skill levels.
The course incorporates hands-on practice with popular AI tools and platforms, empowering learners to apply
theoretical knowledge to real-world scenarios.
Individuals seeking to gain a broad understanding of AI, its potential, and its practical uses will benefit from this
course.
The course is particularly relevant for those interested in exploring specific AI areas like computer vision, machine
translation, and chatbots.
The course offers flexible learning paths, allowing learners with varying levels of familiarity with AI to tailor their
experience.
For instance, individuals already familiar with AI and machine learning concepts can skip the introductory lessons
and proceed directly to specific areas like computer vision, machine translation, and chatbots.
Prerequisites
The "Introduction to Modern AI" course has no formal prerequisites. It is recommended that learners possess basic
computer skills (the ability to use a computer and or smartphone).
Course Description
The Cisco Networking Academy "Introduction to Modern AI" course is a comprehensive online course that
introduces participants to the fascinating world of modern Artificial Intelligence. Through a series of video lectures,
interactive exercises, and hands-on practice, learners will explore how to use AI for daily tasks, in areas such as
computer vision, translation, and natural language processing.
Key features of the course include:
• Flexible Learning Paths: The course offers suggested learning paths tailored to different levels of AI
familiarity. Learners new to AI can follow the lectures sequentially, while those with prior experience can
focus on specific areas of interest, such as computer vision, machine translation, or chatbots.
• Interactive Exercises: The course integrates interactive elements, such as suggested practice activities, to
reinforce learning and encourage practical application of AI concepts.
• Apply to tasks encountered in daily life: Learners will gain insights into real-world applications of AI by
exploring examples that they may encounter in personal life or at work.
• Open-Ended Project: The course culminates in an open-ended project, providing learners with the
opportunity to apply their acquired knowledge creatively and showcase their understanding of how to use
AI to accomplish daily tasks.
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• Community Interaction: Learners can join a dedicated Discord group to connect with classmates, share their
learning experiences, and engage in discussions related to AI.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of the "Introduction to Modern AI" course, students will be able to:
• Define key AI concepts, such as machine learning, models, and generative vs. non generative AI.
• Explore computer vision techniques: Students will gain practical knowledge of computer vision
techniques, such as object detection, similarity search, image segmentation, and optical character
recognition.
• Understand machine translation challenges: Students will learn about the challenges of machine
translation, particularly concerning word order, context, idiomatic expressions, and the distance
between words.
• Use and understand chatbots: Students will gain practical experience in using various chatbots and
understand their capabilities and limitations. They will be able to utilize popular chatbots like ChatGPT,
Gemini, Claude, and others. They will learn about different chatbot functionalities, including expanding,
synthesizing, transforming, evaluating, chatting, and taking actions.
• Apply prompt engineering techniques: Students will learn about effective prompt engineering
techniques to improve chatbot performance. They will understand the importance of providing clear
instructions, breaking down tasks into sub-tasks, and setting expectations for the chatbot. They will also
learn about techniques like few-shot prompting, giving the chatbot a persona, and asking for output in
specific formats.
• Recognize chatbot limitations: Students will understand the limitations of chatbots, including issues like
hallucinations and memory limitations. They will be able to identify instances where chatbots might
provide inaccurate or fabricated information and learn strategies for mitigating these issues.
• Gain awareness of generative AI: Students will learn about generative AI and how it differs from non-
generative AI. They will understand the concept of generative AI producing new outputs based on
learned patterns, while non-generative AI relies on predefined outputs.
• Understand key vocabulary in AI: Students will gain familiarity with essential vocabulary related to AI,
including terms like transformers, foundation models, pre-training, instruction tuning, and GPT.
Equipment Requirements
Any device with Internet access (Smartphones/Tablets/Chromebooks/Laptops/Desktops).
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Course Outline
The "Introduction to Modern AI" course is structured into 7 lessons that introduce students to a variety of concepts
in modern artificial intelligence. Each lesson is comprised of several sections. Lessons may include a mix of video
lectures, suggested practice exercises, extra (optional) resources like links to the online apps used.
Module Title and Objective
Module Title/Topic Title Objective
Module 1: AI and Machine Learning Explain fundamentals AI concepts
0.1 Intro to the course Get an overview of AI.
0.2 What you will be able to do Get an overview of the course.
Define artificial intelligence and explain the Turing Test as a measure of
0.3 Definition of AI machine intelligence.
Compare tasks to better understand what tasks require more
0.4 What is Intelligence? “intelligence”.
Define machine learning and explain how it enables computer programs to
0.5 Machine Learning learn from experience to improve their performance on specific tasks.
Understand the concept of a model as a function that processes inputs to
produce outputs and explain how models use parameters and neural
0.6 Models networks to learn and improve.
Get some tips for how to study a topic, by first getting an overview of the
0.7 The Big picture (optional) topic.
Explain fundamental computer vision concepts and use computer vision in
Module 1: Computer Vision apps.
Understand the concepts of object localization, image classification, and
1.1.2 Object Detection object detection, and how they relate to one another.
Understand how embeddings are used to represent and compare images in
1.2.2 Similarity Search similarity search.
Identify all the pixels associated with a particular object in an image using
1.1.33 Image Segmentation image segmentation.
Extract text from images using Optical Character Recognition and
1.1.4 Optical Character Recognition understand its limitations.
Improve your performance on a task by taking a break, based on the
1.1.5 Take a break concept of “Incubation Theory”.
Identify challenges with machine translation accuracy, use translation
Module 1.2: Machine Translation apps and analyzing results.
Differentiate between homonyms and homographs and analyze how word
1.2.1 Words and Word Order order affects translation accuracy.
Describe the various types of network connectivity, including wired
1.2.2 Context (Ethernet and fiber optics) and wireless (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular, satellite)
Study how certain phrases can be translated either literally or idiomatically
1.2.3 Idiomatic vs literal depending on the context surrounding that phrase.
Analyze how the distance between a noun and its pronoun affects
1.2.4 Distance Between Two Words translation accuracy, particularly in languages with gendered pronouns.
Apply some study tips to enhance your understanding of a tool or concept
1.2.5 Think like a detective (optional) by interacting with that tool.
Explain chatbot design and behavior informs how your prompt and use
Module 1.3: Chatbots Overview chatbots. Practice prompting tips that apply to most scenarios.
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Module Title/Topic Title Objective
Understand the capabilities of chatbots and identify various tasks they can
perform, such as expanding, synthesizing, transforming, evaluating,
1.3.1 What you can do with Chatbots chatting, and taking actions.
Explain the transformative impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the
1.3.2 When it’s all connected importance of addressing its potential drawbacks.
Understand the concept of language modeling and how large language
1.3.3 Predict the Next Word models predict the next word based on previous words.
Recognize and evaluate the potential for hallucinations in chatbot outputs
1.3.4 Hallucinations and verify their factual accuracy.
Understand how chatbot memory affects responses and how to manage it
1.3.5 Memory by starting new chats.
Utilize different chatbots for the same task to compare results and improve
1.3.6 Use Multiple Chatbots accuracy.
Emphasize the importance of testing chatbot outputs before relying on
1.3.7 Test It Before You Rely on It them for critical tasks.
Apply effective prompt writing techniques, such as providing clear
instructions, breaking down tasks, setting expectations, and using
1.3.8 How to Write Your Prompts appropriate formatting.
1.3.9 Silver Linings Learn how certain setbacks can lead to unexpected opportunities.
Module 1.4: Ways to Use Chatbots Practice using chatbots for 16 distinct kinds of tasks.
Utilize chatbots to answer questions, ask follow-up questions, and expand
1.4.1 Expand: Answer Questions on subtopics.
Generate ideas and analyze creative concepts using chatbots, including
1.4.2 Expand: Generating Ideas exploring joke structures.
Summarize large amounts of text using chatbots and understand the
1.4.3 Synthesize: Summarize capabilities of various summarization tools.
Label and categorize information from text using chatbots to extract
1.4.4 Synthesize: Label insights and analyze trends.
Translate text into multiple languages using chatbots and compare different
1.4.5 Transform: Translate translation approaches.
Utilize chatbots to reword and rewrite text for clarity, style, and language
1.4.6 Transform: Reword and Rewrite proficiency.
Fact-check information using chatbots, recognizing the importance of cross-
1.4.7 Evaluate: Fact Check referencing and critical evaluation
Apply chatbots to assess student work, understanding their limitations and
1.4.8 Evaluate: Grading the need for human oversight.
Utilize chatbots for qualitative evaluation of open-ended tasks, including
1.4.9 Evaluate: Qualitative Scoring: debate arguments, understanding the subjectivity of such assessments.
Engage in meaningful conversations with chatbots, considering factors such
1.4.10 Chat: How’s It Going? as conversation flow and role-playing.
Simulate interview scenarios using chatbots to practice interview skills and
1.4.11 Chat: Mock Interview receive feedback.
Facilitate collaboration between chatbots for tasks like writing and editing,
recognizing the need for human supervision to ensure responsible
1.4.12 Chat: Chatbot to Chatbot Collaboration outcomes.
Integrate chatbots with tools and code to automate tasks and perform
complex operations, including data processing and mathematical
1.4.13 Take Action: Tools calculations.
Understand the concept of image generation using diffusion models and
1.4.14 Image Generation explore different image generation tools.
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Module Title/Topic Title Objective
Utilize personal assistants on smartphones for various tasks, including
1.4.15 Take Actions: Personal Assistants scheduling, communication, and navigation.
Prompting with Images and Text: Incorporate images and text in prompts to
1.4.16 Multimodal enhance chatbot understanding and task performance.
Module 1.5: Generative AI and Other Vocabulary
Words Learn basics of common vocabulary words related to AI and generative AI.
1.5.1 Generative AI and Other Vocabulary Words Define key concepts in AI, including generative AI, non-generative AI,
part 1 transformers, foundation models, pre-training, instruction tuning, GPT.
1.5.2 Generative AI and Other Vocabulary Words Define key concepts in AI, model compression techniques, GPUs, and
part 2 Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG).
1.5.3 Skill Stacking Learn how to combine your unique skills to stand out in your field.
Combine and demonstrate your skills in an open-ended project.
Module 2: Open Ended Project Document your project with a short video.
2.0.1 Open Ended Project Combine what you’ve learned to perform a daily task.
2.0.2 Create a Video Document your new skills by filming and editing a short video.
Introduction to Modern AI course assessment Multiple choice quiz to practice and demonstrate what you’ve learned.
About the course assessment Video about the course assessment
Course Assessment Complete the course assessment
End of Course Survey Complete the end of course survey
And one more thing You’ll see...
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