The Battle for Alt:� Bots vs Brains
Mark C. Marino & Yasser Tamer Atef
In chat: describe this photo in a sentence.
Try to describe it from a particular perspective:
Put your answer in chat like this:
Botanist: Albizia Julibrissin, aka Persian silk flower, in bloom.
A man, estimated to be in his 20s or 30s, likely of Arab or Middle Eastern background based on facial structure and environment, stands in direct sunlight on a university campus. He is wearing a checkered button-up shirt and mustard-colored pants, which may reflect casual or locally typical attire. The surrounding architecture, palm trees, and clear skies suggest a location in the Middle East or North Africa. His facial expression appears neutral or serious.
How can alt text be used to make connections, to extend access, and to build community?
Experiment:
Try adjusting length. How does the machine do with 100 words? How about 15 words?
Try adjusting its emphasis. Ask for cultural information?
What happens when you ask it to identify what’s important?
What happens when you ask it to emphasize background details?
Before we try to do it right, let’s try to do it poorly.
Describe this image as poorly as you can in 150 characters or less.
Group 1: Worst Description
Description:
A brown tree with a lot of numbered blue people on its branches. It could symbolize stages of life or our relationships to others.
Group 2: Worst Description
This is a picture of a tree with a bunch of blue blobs doing random things. Some are on the tree, some are under it, and one is falling for some reason. There’s also a rope. Everyone looks kind of confused or lazy. Not sure what’s going on, but it looks like a weird climbing competition with no rules.
A drawing of a brown mostly barren tree with 16 human-shaped characters expressing different emotions.
I’m so sad. This tree represents how sad I am. I tend to count when I’m sad. Count things I’m sad about. Sometimes I’m up a tree. Sometimes not.
Group 3: Worst Description
Description:
Jellybeans on a tree.
Jelly beings on a tree.
Group 4: Worst Description
Poor Description: A bunch of weird blue jellybeans are doing parkour on a giant broccoli stick. Some are lazy, some are clingy, one is face-planting, another one is auditioning for a circus act and falling off. There’s also a random plank for no reason, and one jellybean is just vibing on the top like it owns the place.
Another playful Description: each character is a music note in a quirky symphony:
Group : Best Description
Your description
Group 1: Best Description
Your description
A circle diagram that shows types of flowers and the months they should be planted. In warm climates the diagram shows to plant the flowers earlier in the year, and later in the year for colder climates.
Alt Text:
A circular planting calendar chart showing planting, growing, and blooming times for various flowers across warm, moderate, and cold climates. The chart is divided radially by flower types (e.g., tulip, daffodil, peony, iris, rose, sunflower, etc.) and concentrically by time (months, over two years). The inner circle represents planting time, with colors indicating climate zones: red for warm, orange for moderate, and blue for cold. A key in the center indicates how to read the chart: for example, "Warm climates: plant in February. Cold climates: plant in April." Green arcs show growing time, and light green circles indicate blooming periods.
Flower examples and their timelines:
The chart visually compares the timelines of different flowers and their adaptability to climates using a combination of color and shape, intended to help gardeners plan year-round planting and blooming strategies.
Group 2: Best Description
Incredibly complex circular infographic describing the optimum time to plant and grow 18 flowers – showing months, temperatures, climate, and flower assignments
AI description��A circular planting guide showing when 20 flowers grow and bloom across two years, color-coded by climate: cold, moderate, and warm. A visual tool for seasonal, regional garden planning.
Group 3: Best Description
Your description -
We gave up - too much
AI description
Just done Chat Gpt Alt Text:
A circular planting and blooming calendar for various flowers, segmented by climate: cold (blue), moderate (orange), and warm (red). The chart starts from the center with planting months for different climates and expands outward showing growing periods and blooming times (marked in green). Flowers listed clockwise include Snapdragon, Rose, Chrysanthemum, Aster, Kale, Marigold, Hydrangea, Sunflower, Poinsettia, Carnation, Larkspur, Dahlia, Winter Jasmine, Iris, Anemone, Peony, Daffodil, and Tulip. An example shows that for warm climates, planting is in February; for cold climates, in April. Months are labeled for two years to show progression from planting to
Group 4: Best Description
Your description
AI description
Tips
Source: https://www.nngroup.com/articles/write-alt-text/