From the Journal of Near-Death Studies, Volume 43-1
Alternative Link: https://doi.org/10.17514/JNDS-2025-43-1-p69-70
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Follow-Up to “Response to ‘Fabrication and Falsification in AI-Generated Manuscripts'”
To the Editor:
As a follow-up to my response to Bruce Greyson’s (2024) Guest Editorial, “Fabrication and Falsification in AI-Generated Manuscripts,” I would like to point out some additional findings and resources. As Greyson highlighted in a personal communication on December 21, 2025, even Rolling Stone magazine (Klee, 2025) has addressed the issue of artificial intelligence (AI) accuracy and the associated challenges. Inaccuracies in a single article can lead to subsequent articles building upon and perpetuating these inaccuracies, adversely affecting any scholarly work that relies on this information (Klee, 2025). Additionally, it impacts the work of those whom we rely on to provide accurate information. “Fake citations have turned into a nightmare for research librarians, who by some estimates are wasting up to 15 percent of their work hours responding to requests for nonexistent records that ChatGPT or Google Gemini alluded to” (Klee, 2025). That estimate highlights the importance for scholars to engage critically with AI and to assert and maintain ultimate ownership of their work.
To achieve this goal, ongoing continuing education is necessary. Staying current on tools and issues related to the use of AI in research can be a daunting task. However, some YouTube channels regularly post review videos of AI tools for research and can keep researchers informed. My personal favorite is Andy Stapleton’s channel, titled simply “Andy Stapleton” (Stapleton, n.d.).
In a recent video, Stapleton (2025) stated about large language model (LLM) AI systems, “These are plausibility machines” (8:59) and pointed out that thorough checking down to the actual content of a specific article, not just its abstract or introduction, is always required to ensure accuracy. Even using more expensive and supposedly better versions of AI platforms cannot stop LLMs from hallucinating, and costs are not always a reliable indicator of accuracy, as the comparison in this video shows. Stapleton explicitly recommended that authors avoid using LLMs for references and pointed to AI systems specializing in literature search based on real databases, such as Elicit, SciSpace, or Consensus. Despite being a strong proponent of AI for research, he is a critical user of this technology and strongly advocates for its ethical use. Because this video is both informative and less than 12 minutes long, I recommend that researchers take the time to view it.
My own experience matches Stapleton’s (2025) findings. Additionally, I have observed that not every AI tool is equally suitable for specific areas of research. An environmental scientist might get greater benefit from one literature search-focused AI platform, and a consciousness researcher might get better results from another tool. To reap the benefits from using these tools, an investment of time and money is required. Scholars will have to determine which path is right for them in their research area and whether the benefits will justify the effort. In many cases, I think they will.
However, merely testing one or two tools over a brief period is insufficient. A more extensive engagement and experience are required. Using Stapleton’s video channel or similar sources offers a good starting point for scholars to build their own AI-supported workflow.
References
Greyson, B. (2024). Fabrication and falsification in AI-generated manuscripts. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 42(3).
Klee, M. (2025, December 17). AI is inventing academic papers that don’t exist—And they’re being cited in real journals. Rolling Stone. https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/ai-chatbot-journal-research-fake-citations-1235485484/
Stapleton, A. (Director). (2025, October 27). The ultimate AI showdown: ChatGPT vs Claude vs Gemini [Video recording]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDN_XVcdCLo
Stapleton, A. (n.d.). Andy Stapleton. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFqXmQ56-Gp1rIKa-GoAJvQ
Norman Klaunig, MA, MBA, LPC (TX), NCC, PhD Candidate Department of Counseling University of the Cumberlands nklaunig6986@ucumberlands.edu norman@klaunig.com