Really interesting take comparing yourself as a ghostwriter to a primitive version of AI. When working with AI (and wondering if we're using it mindfully), I think it's helpful to ask ourselves: would we be okay with a colleague doing this for us? So it's fine for help, guidance, or corrections, but maybe not okay if it does all the work. I think the big problem is when people try to use AI for things they never learned themselves - like writing. Not only are we declining our cognitive skills, but the result isn't even that useful if we can't evaluate it critically (since we never learned the skill in the first place). Thanks for the thought-provoking article!
Besides the fact that we're all screwed, really appreciated the historical parallel, which shows how quickly it's all accelerating. Though don’t know what’s shocked me more: the photo of you from back then, or the fact the Florida Flambeau digitised its publications from 1915 onwards (and that a publication with a name like THAT exists at all ;).
I was not shocked at all by your criminal activities.
When I worked there I was very proud of the Flambeau name. I used to say it with a flourish, the accent on the last syllable, when I'd call people for interviews. Unfortunately, though, the paper is no longer with us after a nearly-85-year run. But Flambeau alums remain a close-knit group.
No comment on the criminal activities except to say that the statute of limitations has long since expired.
Really enjoyed your piece! I completely agree that using AI can make us lazier, and that's especially troubling for younger generations who might skip the hard part of learning altogether, as your friend Pete’s case suggests.
But there’s also a smarter way to use these tools. The most effective use isn’t delegating what we don’t know (classic GIGO: garbage in, garbage out), but rather what we know very well — we’re just slower than the machine. That’s when collaboration with AI becomes a real productivity multiplier.
(Credit to Nicola Rossi for putting it perfectly: outsource your slowness, not your ignorance.)
Outsource your slowness, not your ignorance ... that's perfect!
I didn't know that Nicola Rossi quote.
I hope people will use AI as a tool rather than a total replacement for their critical faculties. But I'm not too concerned about our generation; I worry a lot more about those coming of age with these technologies.
A friend who works in SAR (sonic aperture radar) demonstrated this time-saving use of AI to me recently. I don't think he was exaggerating when he said the information he pulled up via AI in 2 minutes would would have taken a post-doc in the field weeks or months.
That's a perfect example of what @ricpuglisi wrote about using it to outsource slowness rather that ignorance. The more I think about that "rule" the more I like it.
Love this so much ❤️ I think I knew about your criminal activity back then, but I viewed it as plucky, rather than shady. The Pete story is the best ever! Especially imagining you reading the article and learning how his lack of writing ability landed him a job and then lost him a job. Too funny.
My Florida Flambeau story is the embarrassing part for me. You probably got me the gig, and I totally flaked. I was supposed to write an article about a professor's recent trip to Russia. I even interviewed the professor, taking notes, asking questions, trying to look interested when I was really thinking about boys or lip gloss. At the end of the interview, he asked me, "When will this come out in the newspaper?" Ugh. Poor guy. He wasted his time on a girl who wasn't ready to be a writer. Or at least not a published writer. I never wrote the article and feel guilt and embarrassment about that the whole thing til this day. If only AI had been around back then....
Your story about flaking out on that assignment for the 'Beau vaguely rings a bell! I think you should try to finish that story by Friday. I assume you still have your notes, right?
I'm gad you liked the post so much! You were there back when I was doing that illegal writing and I'm sure you were privy to some of what was going on. It was just doing the period when you were living a block away.
Yeah, the "Pete" story is pretty strange. I'll tell you more about that next time we're in touch in private.
Really interesting take comparing yourself as a ghostwriter to a primitive version of AI. When working with AI (and wondering if we're using it mindfully), I think it's helpful to ask ourselves: would we be okay with a colleague doing this for us? So it's fine for help, guidance, or corrections, but maybe not okay if it does all the work. I think the big problem is when people try to use AI for things they never learned themselves - like writing. Not only are we declining our cognitive skills, but the result isn't even that useful if we can't evaluate it critically (since we never learned the skill in the first place). Thanks for the thought-provoking article!
Besides the fact that we're all screwed, really appreciated the historical parallel, which shows how quickly it's all accelerating. Though don’t know what’s shocked me more: the photo of you from back then, or the fact the Florida Flambeau digitised its publications from 1915 onwards (and that a publication with a name like THAT exists at all ;).
I was not shocked at all by your criminal activities.
When I worked there I was very proud of the Flambeau name. I used to say it with a flourish, the accent on the last syllable, when I'd call people for interviews. Unfortunately, though, the paper is no longer with us after a nearly-85-year run. But Flambeau alums remain a close-knit group.
No comment on the criminal activities except to say that the statute of limitations has long since expired.
Careful how much criminality you reveal on Substack, Eric - having the Pope around the corner won't absolve you :)
Haha. Luckily this happened in the U.S. and being a black-market ghostwriter isn't an extraditable offense!
Dear Eric,
Really enjoyed your piece! I completely agree that using AI can make us lazier, and that's especially troubling for younger generations who might skip the hard part of learning altogether, as your friend Pete’s case suggests.
But there’s also a smarter way to use these tools. The most effective use isn’t delegating what we don’t know (classic GIGO: garbage in, garbage out), but rather what we know very well — we’re just slower than the machine. That’s when collaboration with AI becomes a real productivity multiplier.
(Credit to Nicola Rossi for putting it perfectly: outsource your slowness, not your ignorance.)
Outsource your slowness, not your ignorance ... that's perfect!
I didn't know that Nicola Rossi quote.
I hope people will use AI as a tool rather than a total replacement for their critical faculties. But I'm not too concerned about our generation; I worry a lot more about those coming of age with these technologies.
A friend who works in SAR (sonic aperture radar) demonstrated this time-saving use of AI to me recently. I don't think he was exaggerating when he said the information he pulled up via AI in 2 minutes would would have taken a post-doc in the field weeks or months.
That's a perfect example of what @ricpuglisi wrote about using it to outsource slowness rather that ignorance. The more I think about that "rule" the more I like it.
Love this so much ❤️ I think I knew about your criminal activity back then, but I viewed it as plucky, rather than shady. The Pete story is the best ever! Especially imagining you reading the article and learning how his lack of writing ability landed him a job and then lost him a job. Too funny.
My Florida Flambeau story is the embarrassing part for me. You probably got me the gig, and I totally flaked. I was supposed to write an article about a professor's recent trip to Russia. I even interviewed the professor, taking notes, asking questions, trying to look interested when I was really thinking about boys or lip gloss. At the end of the interview, he asked me, "When will this come out in the newspaper?" Ugh. Poor guy. He wasted his time on a girl who wasn't ready to be a writer. Or at least not a published writer. I never wrote the article and feel guilt and embarrassment about that the whole thing til this day. If only AI had been around back then....
Your story about flaking out on that assignment for the 'Beau vaguely rings a bell! I think you should try to finish that story by Friday. I assume you still have your notes, right?
I'm gad you liked the post so much! You were there back when I was doing that illegal writing and I'm sure you were privy to some of what was going on. It was just doing the period when you were living a block away.
Yeah, the "Pete" story is pretty strange. I'll tell you more about that next time we're in touch in private.
This is my favorite post of yours I have read. So nice.
Really? Thank you! I think it's my most personal story. Thanks for reading.
That's a helluva lot of research you had to do to ghost write papers. How long was the average one? I forgot how long mine were.
If I remember correctly, the length was measured by pages, not words as in journalism. I think papers were in the range of six to eight pages.
Is that really you in the first photo??
Nice to see Italy taking the lead in a very important area like AI.
Yup, believe it or not, that's me. In the photo I think I must be working on the exact term paper I mentioned in the post-scriptum section.