Very thought-provoking. I'm a PhD candidate trying to stay afloat in the tidal wave of AI. I was very interested to see how your AI Dry July would go because I felt convicted that I should take some time away (so many unfinished conversations, so many half-built apps that I didn't really need to waste my time on), but it's increasingly seeming as daunting as going dry from the internet. I don't like how AI fragments my attention and feeds my productivity-hunger with empty calories. In a way, I feel like less of a scientist than three years ago. But I guess you gotta catch the wave or get caught in the wash... strange new world!
Thank you so much for writing all this up; everyone is just still figuring out exactly how best to use these new tools in ways that are productive and wise, and all these details you shared are helpful in getting there. I agree that an AI-dry month is too hard, but I do think that setting aside one day per week to work AI-free is a good idea. Even that might require reconsidering in the future as specific "human-only skills" become less and less valuable but I think it makes sense for now when it really matters whether or not you remember how to "do the thing" so that you can check your agent's output.
It’s refreshing seeing how your experience panned out. AI with all its flaws is here to stay. What matters now is deciding task that worth your time and what skillset you are can afford to lose. I wrote about something similar here https://tobiaminu.substack.com/p/dont-use-ai-for-the-work-you-care?r=kj4i0&utm_medium=ios
Great essay. I should have been more succinct :)
Thank you. This compliment means a lot coming from you. Huge fan of your work.
Very thought-provoking. I'm a PhD candidate trying to stay afloat in the tidal wave of AI. I was very interested to see how your AI Dry July would go because I felt convicted that I should take some time away (so many unfinished conversations, so many half-built apps that I didn't really need to waste my time on), but it's increasingly seeming as daunting as going dry from the internet. I don't like how AI fragments my attention and feeds my productivity-hunger with empty calories. In a way, I feel like less of a scientist than three years ago. But I guess you gotta catch the wave or get caught in the wash... strange new world!
Thank you so much for writing all this up; everyone is just still figuring out exactly how best to use these new tools in ways that are productive and wise, and all these details you shared are helpful in getting there. I agree that an AI-dry month is too hard, but I do think that setting aside one day per week to work AI-free is a good idea. Even that might require reconsidering in the future as specific "human-only skills" become less and less valuable but I think it makes sense for now when it really matters whether or not you remember how to "do the thing" so that you can check your agent's output.