Michael Dowding (@MGDowding) header
Michael Dowding (@MGDowding) profile picture

Writer, teacher, and book #ghostwriter. Dad, #hockey nut, #U2 fanatic. The order is variable.

Joined August 2011
Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)Photo by Michael Dowding (@MGDowding)
Michael Dowding retweeted
Here’s the thing about spotting the horrendous, soulless AI-generated writing infecting every corner of the internet now: it’s not just about the words — it’s about the patterns. And once you start noticing them, you can’t unsee them. The unnecessary em dashes. The polished transitions. The examples given in groups of three. The weird metaphors that kind of make sense but kind of don’t — like a parachute opening inside a submarine. The load-bearing use of the term “load-bearing.” The random one sentence paragraphs. The way a bunch of bland gibberish is quietly reframed as a profound insight. The on-going and un-necessary hyphenation of every-day words that really don’t need it. The cliches. Read that again. Cliches. Louder for people in the back. Tons of cliches. That’s not a typo. Sit with that for a moment. And the biggest red flag? Asking yourself a question and answering it. Because honestly? No sentient human writes like this. And truthfully? If you can’t identify these red flags, you might not actually be sentient yourself. Because really? If this formatting doesn’t immediately strike you as awkward and artificial, it means you don’t read books. Ever. Seriously. But here’s where it gets interesting: It doesn’t. The point has been made but I’ll keep going. That’s what AI writing is all about. Let’s delve into real problem. It isn’t the technology. It’s the people using it because they’re too retarded to generate an original thought of their own. That’s not thoughtfulness. It’s intellectual laziness wearing digital makeup. It doesn’t make the internet more fun. It makes me want to throw my phone in the river and forsake all of humanity and live as a hermit in the woods for the rest of my life. Seriously this shit fills me with despair. I’m not kidding. And the distinction matters. Especially when you’re saying the distinction matters without actually drawing a distinction. But here’s what nobody tells you. When you ask a machine to manufacture your personality, you’re not just automating your writing. You’re quietly announcing that you’re a boring, insipid dork with nothing interesting to say. Let that sink in. The uncomfortable truth? AI didn’t turn these people into tedious midwits. It quietly revealed what they already were. And perhaps — just perhaps — that’s quietly the most important takeaway of all. But what do you think? Let's unpack this together in the comments. 👇
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AI must not be used to: draft stories, quotes, or leads…” Glad to see the AP’s latest AI guidelines are…
We have new artificial intelligence guidelines on Stylebook Online, informed by the AP's own policies on what we do and don't do with AI. One tip: Any output from an AI tool should be treated as unvetted source material. You must apply your editorial judgment and sourcing standards when considering and editing any information for publication. For the full list of considerations, subscribe to AP Stylebook Online. store.stylebooks.com/apstyle…
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I'm looking forward to a great session on writing and storytelling with the great @fontbandit Adam Ritchie. I hope you can join us. Get details and reg info here: prclub.org/event/story-makin…
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🎩🎶🎭…..IT’S ALWAYS BEEN…. IT IS…. IT ALWAYS WILL BE…. THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH!!!! #U2 ~~ NEVER DISAPPOINTS …. GIVE IT UP FOR THE LADS, Y’ALL!!!!😁 /The vid is so beautiful it makes me shiver….🫠🫠🫠🤭/. @U2 #U250 #CDL
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Fifty years later. Still going strong. Still the best band ever. #U250
U2 I Will Follow (Grafton Street)#U250
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Absolutely beyond parody. Dartmouth’s provost has been turning in 70-100-percent AI-written work (in academic journals, newspapers, and even in email correspondence!) since LLMs came out, the student paper reports. He even used AI to write an op-ed about how universities are dealing with AI cheating.
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Or, more narrowly: When no one has properly learned how to write carefully and thoughtfully... how will anyone even have the cognitive skills to assess or verify AI's written output? (We've already felt this impact from the 50-year decline in reading.)
This paper gives a fancy name to a problem you can already feel in your bones "The Tragedy of the Cognitive Commons." Checking AI output requires deep expertise. Deep expertise comes from doing grunt work for years. And grunt work is the first thing AI eats So we're building systems that need expert supervision while dismantling the only known process for making experts The paper calls the shared pool of human expertise the "cognitive commons." Every profession drinks from it. Nobody's refilling it. By eliminating junior roles, each company is acting totally rationally, and the collective result: a profession that can't catch AI's mistakes anymore because it never learned to do the work in the first place Who checks AI's homework in 15 years?
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Some Kids are Alright? My "Mini-Mester" Teaching at the Intersection of Al and Writing michaeldowding.substack.com/…
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Michael Dowding retweeted
As we head for Miami, we want to say a heartfelt thank you to the city & people of Boston. You’ve made us feel more than welcome in the time we’ve spent with you; you’ve made us feel part of your incredible city. Thank you for your generosity and your wonderful hospitality. 💙

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Michael Dowding retweeted
Berkeley law has introduced a new, much stricter AI policy law.berkeley.edu/wp-content/…
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Out now: The Friction Imperative Episode No. 2: "Are We Focusing on Process or Output?" I hope you'll read and share your thoughts. #GenAI #WritingProcess open.substack.com/pub/michae…
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Michael Dowding retweeted
The first major university that publicly commits to a total AI ban in its undergrad teaching (no AI in class, in creating syllabi or class prep, creating & completing assignments, or grading) and makes that part of its brand will see a major surge in applications & enrollment.
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Michael Dowding retweeted
My grad school Final Exam for one class was typing a 15-page paper, supervised in a computer lab. We were allowed one page of hand written notes, no electronics, no internet access, 8 hours to complete. And the prompt was not given to us until the day of the exam. And it had to be APA format with references contrasting two books of required reading. The books were not allowed into the exam lab.
I was told by a 22yr old today that there was no way people were writing 10 page papers without AI.
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Ready for yet another Substack? I'd be honored if you'd consider checking out "The Friction Imperative." I'm dishing out sometimes-contrarian thoughts about the role of generative AI in college writing instruction. Let's hear your thoughts, too. #GenAI open.substack.com/pub/michae…
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