Moving on……

This blog post is the start of something new, on a topic that is less about faking-till-you-make-it, but more about organic creativity. In one of the past, much-opinionated, blog post, I stated that generative artificial intelligence programs intrinsically lack the ability to form new content. Us human possess the immense power to compose pieces that are distinct in nature - we hold the power of creativity. How can we polish this unique craft to write better articles?

The magic behind nostalgic childhood stories

How about we travel back to our childhood. Remember the bedtime stories that you craved for every night? The stories were so simple yet catchy and I’m sure you still remember a fair number of them now. An important reason is that you get to actively picture a scene as the story develops, rather than simply listening. That involves a careful worldbuilding, the use of metaphors, and vivid descriptions of movements or facial expressions. Although cannot copy the exact strategy in scientific writings, you can still make an attempt create a cohesive story. A scientific concept can be foreign to an average person without relevant background knowledge, and the best way to connect with the reader is to employ real-world examples, bringing life to the bland literatures.

Simplicity is another pillar in effective science communication. The only occasion that the use of jargons brings efficiency is between likeminded professionals in the same field, and should be maximally avoided when facing a broad audience. Not only are jargons not effective in explaining the concepts, it will also scare your readers away. Especially in this attention economy, you’d want to do whatever you can to prolong the time they spent on admiring your works.

The Infinite (or Finite?) Monkey Theorem

A recent news article titled Could Monkeys Really Type All of Shakespeare?¹, written by Alexander Nazaryan of the New York Times, explored the Infinite Monkeys Theorem, a mathematical concept and a thought experiment that later diverged into other fields, including astrophysics and computer science. Seemingly out of touch from an average person’s daily life, the article instead employed an overall relaxed and humorous tone.

It started by diving into the historical aspect of the theorem, a great way to stress the importance and humanize the works that happened behind the scenes for over a century. The clever inclusion of quotes from Dr. Woodcock, who co-authored the original research publication, elevated the authenticity of the article while fostering a sense of conversation when reading the article. The article also mentioned that the inspiration for this research, in particular, was a result of a “lunchtime discussion”, a rare exhibit that abstract ideas could have stemmed from such casual interactions.

The news article employed a popular culture reference from “The Simpsons” to illustrate the idea that the sentence the monkey typed down was a pure coincidence. The reference is useful for the comprehension of the concept as it contrasts with the slim likelihood in the real world. At the end, the article made connections between the mathematical concept and a contingent topic of our days, the possibility of AI gaining cognition based on pure chance.

Through these elements of writing, the author crafted an engaging article, shortening the distance between the newsreaders and the scientific minds.

Sometimes you need to take the backseat

When I write an article, I am always certainly clear-minded about the topic that I’m focusing on. This creates a fallacy once I finish a piece, where the ideas that I try to convey seem crystal clear, but to someone who does not share my exact thought processes, the logic of the piece may be flawed. I found the best way to mitigate this lack of outsider perspective is to let friends to proofread my essays. It is especially effective when someone outside my area of research, since everything is fresh to them and it is easier for them to point out any gaps in delivery.

Don’t Give Up

Afterall, the best way to improve on writing is to practice. Similar to conducting a scientific research, you take the data as the feedback and adjust your expectations appropriately. Then, you start a new round of experiment to gather updated data. Rinse and repeat. One should go into practicing writing with the same mindset, the best possible way to polish the craft of this form of non-verbal communication.