Why read this: This piece introduces students to a debate they are already inside: whether using AI tools for school work is quietly weakening the thinking skills they are meant to be building. The article does not lecture. It walks through real research, contrasting expert voices that disagree, and ends with practical, classroom-friendly tips. For Upper B2 readers, it is a chance to follow a hedged science argument (could, may, apparently) without losing the writer's stance, and to reflect on their own habits with chatbots.
What to notice: Three features stretch students at this level. First, the article runs hedging modals throughout, because the science is new. Track every could, may, and apparently to recover the writer's actual confidence in each claim. Second, named experts disagree: Green warns of atrophy, Benge says the meta-analysis shows no clear evidence, and Lee adds nuance about expertise. Use the named-expert tracker to keep claims separated. Third, several Tier 3 phrases (cognitive friction, cognitive surrender, the Google Effect, digital dementia) are coined research terms; the article defines each in context, and the GlossTerm chips give learners a side panel for retention.
Skills practised: Following a hedged argument, separating attributed claims from one another, and lifting the central thesis from a feature article. Students also rehearse vocabulary judgment: which Tier 3 cognitive-science terms are worth memorising, and which can be paraphrased on the fly. The two open questions push readers to evaluate the gym metaphor and weigh which of the writer's tips would be hardest in a teenager's daily life, both of which require building a short argument with textual evidence rather than re-stating what the article said.
Think outside the bots: how to use AI without your brain turning to mush
Some scientists worry that asking AI to do our thinking for us is making our minds duller. Here is how to keep yours sharp.
Tap any green word in the article to see its meaning.
GPS once dulleddull: To soften, moderate or blunt; to make dull, stupid, or sluggish; to stupefy — 使变迟钝；使减弱 our sense of direction. Search engines weakenedweaken: to make or become less strong, powerful, or effective — 削弱；减弱；使变弱 our memory. Now scientists warn that AI could compound the problem, threateningthreaten: To state an intention to take hostile action; to seem likely to cause harm. — 威胁；恐吓；危及 everything from creativitycreativity: The use of imagination or original ideas to create something. — 创造力；创意 and critical thinking: the ability to think carefully about information and judge whether it is true or useful — 批判性思维 to attention span: how long a person can stay focused on one task without getting distracted — 注意力持续时间. A few years ago, I started using AI tools every day, partlypartly: To some extent; not completely. — 部分地；在一定程度上 because I write about them for a living. Recently, though, an emergingemerge: To come into view or existence; to become known or apparent — 出现；浮现 cropcrop: A plant grown in large quantities for food or other commercial purposes. — 庄稼；农作物 of studies has me worried. Am I quietly turning my own brain to mushmush: to crush or press something into a soft, shapeless mass — 压成糊状；捣烂?
The concernsconcern: A matter of interest or importance; worry or anxiety. — 关注；担忧 come with a lot of nuancenuance: Subtlety or fine detail — 微妙之处；细节. "On a high level, yes," says Adam Green, a professor of neuroscienceneuroscience: the scientific study of the structure and function of the brain and nervous system — 神经科学 at Georgetown University. "If you are not doing as much of the actualactual: Existing in fact; real, as opposed to what is expected or assumed. — 实际的；真实的 thinking, then your capabilitycapability: The power or ability to do something; the extent of someone's or something's potential. — 能力；才能；（设备的）性能 to do that kind of thinking is going to atrophyatrophy: A reduction in the functionality of an organ caused by disease, injury or lack of use — 因疾病、损伤或缺乏使用而导致的器官功能减退." Other researchers worry that students who leanlean: To incline from the vertical; to rest against something for support. — 倾斜；靠 too heavily on chatbotschatbot: a computer program designed to simulate conversation with human users, especially over the internet — 聊天机器人 may quietly surrendersurrender: [World War II] to yield to the power of another — 投降; 屈服 the cognitive friction: the mental effort and resistance that comes from thinking hard, which the brain needs to stay sharp — 认知阻力 that keeps thinking sharp, producing fewer original, novelnovel: Original, especially in an interesting way; new and striking; not of the typical or ordinary type — 新颖的；独创的；尤指以有趣的方式令人耳目一新的 ideas as a society. The science is brand new, and the answers are far from settledsettle: To resolve or reach an agreement about; to make one's home in a new place. — 解决；定居；安顿.
Not every expert agrees the danger is real. Twenty years ago, an idea cropped up about digital dementia: the disputed idea that heavy use of digital technology causes long-term memory loss — 数字痴呆, with researchers warning that overrelianceoverreliance: too much trust in or dependence on something — 过度依赖 on technology could damage memory and cognitioncognition: the mental process of knowing, including thinking, learning, remembering, and judging — 认知；认知过程. A recent meta-analysis of 57 studies covering more than 411,000 adults, co-authored by Jared Benge of Dell Medical School, foundfound: To establish an institution or organisation, especially by providing money. — 创立；创办 no clear evidence for it. In fact, technology use seemed to lowerlower: To move something to a less high position; to reduce in amount or degree. — 降低；减少 the risk of cognitive impairmentimpairment: a state in which a part of the body or a function works less well than normal; damage or weakening — 损害；机能减退. The picture is not all or nothing: either fully one way or fully the opposite, with no middle ground — 全有或全无. Still, related effects do emergeemerge: To come into view or existence; to become known or apparent — 出现；浮现 in narrower studies. People who relyrely: To depend on someone or something with full trust or confidence. — 依赖；依靠 on satellitesatellite: An artificial body placed in orbit around the earth or another planet to collect information or for communication. — 卫星 navigationnavigation: The process of planning and following a route; the skill of directing a ship or aircraft. — 导航；航行 stop building their own spatial memory: the brain's memory of places, layouts, and how to move through them — 空间记忆 of the world around them. The Google Effect describes how readers retainretain: To continue to have or hold something; to keep in one's memory. — 保留；保持；记住 less of what they look up, because almost no effort is required.
Don't take AI's word for it. Heavier AI users have scored worse on standard critical thinking tests, apparentlyapparently: As far as one knows or can see; seemingly. — 显然地；看起来 because they offloadoffload: to give a task or burden to someone or something else to do for you — 卸载；转嫁（任务或责任） their reasoningreasoning: the process of thinking logically and drawing conclusions from facts or premises — 推理；论证；逻辑思维 onto robots. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania call this cognitive surrender: the habit of trusting AI over your own thinking, even when AI is wrong — 认知投降: trustingtrust: To place confidence in; to rely on, to confide, or have faith, in — 信任；信赖 AI over your own thinking and intuitionintuition: the feeling that something is true or right without using clear reasoning or evidence — 直觉, eveneven: Exactly, just, fully — 正好 when AI is wrong. Microsoft Research found the danger sharpenssharpen: to (sometimes figurative) To make sharp — 使锐利;加强 when you know little about a subject. The fix starts before you open the app. Form your own rough view first, then use AI to challenge it. That way the technology is pressure-testing your judgmentjudgment: the ability to make careful, well-considered decisions or form sensible opinions — 判断力；判断 rather than replacing it.
Add friction to your research. "If something is in front of you and you see it, you often think it is in long-term memory: the part of memory that stores information for a long time, sometimes for a lifetime — 长期记忆 when it is not," says Barbara Oakley, an emeritusemeritus: used to describe someone who has retired but keeps their professional title as an honour — 荣誉退休的；名誉的（用于头衔） professor at the University of Oakland. Some light problem solving before opening a chatbotchatbot: a computer program designed to simulate conversation with human users, especially over the internet — 聊天机器人 can sharpensharpen: to (sometimes figurative) To make sharp — 使锐利;加强 retentionretention: the ability to keep something in memory; the act of keeping something — 记忆保持；保留 later, one unpublishedunpublished: not yet published or made public, especially of academic research — 未发表的 study suggests. When you do reach for AI to remember information, slow down. Take notes by hand if possible. Ask the chatbot to quizquiz: To hoax; to chaff or mock with pretended seriousness of discourse; to make sport of, as by obscure questions — 戏弄盘问 you. It sounds fussyfussy: too concerned about small or unimportant details; hard to please — 挑剔的；过于讲究的, but the small effort is the point.
Leave the blank page blank a little longer. Research suggests people who use AI for creative tasks produce ideas that are more predictablepredictable: Able to be foreseen or expected; behaving in a way that is easy to anticipate. — 可预测的；意料之中的 and less original. Your brain builds creative capacitycapacity: The maximum amount that something can contain or produce; ability or power to do something — 容量；能力 by reaching across experience, memory, and false starts to make connections only you could make. Hand that work to AI, and you skipskip: To disregard, miss or omit part of a continuation (some item or stage) — 略过 the workoutworkout: a session of vigorous physical exercise or training — 锻炼；健身训练. One simple fix: write your own rough notes first, however ugly, before opening any chatbot. Then use AI to refinerefine: To reduce to a pure state; to free from impurities — 提炼；精炼, develop, or pokepoke: to push something forward, especially something pointed; figuratively, to find weaknesses in an idea — 戳；找出（漏洞） holes in what you have got.
Pay attention. The onslaughtonslaught: a powerful, overwhelming attack or rush of something — 猛攻；涌入 of technology, including AI, is making focus harder. So apply the same logiclogic: A method of human thought that involves thinking in a linear, step-by-step manner about how a problem can be solved. Logic is the basis of many principles including the scientific method — 逻辑 everywhere: do things the slow way on purpose. Don't let an AI summarisesummarise: to give a short statement of the main points of something — 概括；总结 that long article. Sit with a hard problem before asking a robot. Tech giants are rushingrush: To move with urgent haste; to do something too quickly. — 匆忙；冲；赶 to shoveshove: to push something into a place, often roughly or forcefully — 推；挤；塞 more AI onto our phones, but you can still keep your brain in the driver's seat: in control of the situation — 处于主导地位. Green argues that human thinking is structurally different from AI in ways that really matter: we make connections that are personal, unexpectedunexpected: Not expected or regarded as likely to happen. — 意外的；出乎意料的, and genuinelygenuinely: In a truthful and sincere way; truly. — 真正地；真诚地 original, in ways that digital probabilityprobability: The likelihood or chance that something will happen. — 概率；可能性 machinesmachine: A vehicle operated mechanically, such as an automobile or an airplane — 交通工具 simply cannot replicatereplicate: To make a copy (replica) of — 复制；仿制. The desiredesire: A strong feeling of wanting something or wishing for something to happen. — 愿望；渴望 to think, create, and figure things out for ourselves, it seems, is harder than ever to outsourceoutsource: To transfer the management and/or day-to-day execution of a business function to a third-party service provider — 外包；外判.
GPS once dulleddull: To soften, moderate or blunt; to make dull, stupid, or sluggish; to stupefy — 使变迟钝；使减弱 our sense of direction. Search engines weakenedweaken: to make or become less strong, powerful, or effective — 削弱；减弱；使变弱 our memory. Now scientists warn that AI could compound the problem, threateningthreaten: To state an intention to take hostile action; to seem likely to cause harm. — 威胁；恐吓；危及 everything from creativitycreativity: The use of imagination or original ideas to create something. — 创造力；创意 and critical thinking: the ability to think carefully about information and judge whether it is true or useful — 批判性思维 to attention span: how long a person can stay focused on one task without getting distracted — 注意力持续时间. A few years ago, I started using AI tools every day, partlypartly: To some extent; not completely. — 部分地；在一定程度上 because I write about them for a living. Recently, though, an emergingemerge: To come into view or existence; to become known or apparent — 出现；浮现 cropcrop: A plant grown in large quantities for food or other commercial purposes. — 庄稼；农作物 of studies has me worried. Am I quietly turning my own brain to mushmush: to crush or press something into a soft, shapeless mass — 压成糊状；捣烂?
The concernsconcern: A matter of interest or importance; worry or anxiety. — 关注；担忧 come with a lot of nuancenuance: Subtlety or fine detail — 微妙之处；细节. "On a high level, yes," says Adam Green, a professor of neuroscienceneuroscience: the scientific study of the structure and function of the brain and nervous system — 神经科学 at Georgetown University. "If you are not doing as much of the actualactual: Existing in fact; real, as opposed to what is expected or assumed. — 实际的；真实的 thinking, then your capabilitycapability: The power or ability to do something; the extent of someone's or something's potential. — 能力；才能；（设备的）性能 to do that kind of thinking is going to atrophyatrophy: A reduction in the functionality of an organ caused by disease, injury or lack of use — 因疾病、损伤或缺乏使用而导致的器官功能减退." Other researchers worry that students who leanlean: To incline from the vertical; to rest against something for support. — 倾斜；靠 too heavily on chatbotschatbot: a computer program designed to simulate conversation with human users, especially over the internet — 聊天机器人 may quietly surrendersurrender: [World War II] to yield to the power of another — 投降; 屈服 the cognitive friction: the mental effort and resistance that comes from thinking hard, which the brain needs to stay sharp — 认知阻力 that keeps thinking sharp, producing fewer original, novelnovel: Original, especially in an interesting way; new and striking; not of the typical or ordinary type — 新颖的；独创的；尤指以有趣的方式令人耳目一新的 ideas as a society. The science is brand new, and the answers are far from settledsettle: To resolve or reach an agreement about; to make one's home in a new place. — 解决；定居；安顿.
Not every expert agrees the danger is real. Twenty years ago, an idea cropped up about digital dementia: the disputed idea that heavy use of digital technology causes long-term memory loss — 数字痴呆, with researchers warning that overrelianceoverreliance: too much trust in or dependence on something — 过度依赖 on technology could damage memory and cognitioncognition: the mental process of knowing, including thinking, learning, remembering, and judging — 认知；认知过程. A recent meta-analysis of 57 studies covering more than 411,000 adults, co-authored by Jared Benge of Dell Medical School, foundfound: To establish an institution or organisation, especially by providing money. — 创立；创办 no clear evidence for it. In fact, technology use seemed to lowerlower: To move something to a less high position; to reduce in amount or degree. — 降低；减少 the risk of cognitive impairmentimpairment: a state in which a part of the body or a function works less well than normal; damage or weakening — 损害；机能减退. The picture is not all or nothing: either fully one way or fully the opposite, with no middle ground — 全有或全无. Still, related effects do emergeemerge: To come into view or existence; to become known or apparent — 出现；浮现 in narrower studies. People who relyrely: To depend on someone or something with full trust or confidence. — 依赖；依靠 on satellitesatellite: An artificial body placed in orbit around the earth or another planet to collect information or for communication. — 卫星 navigationnavigation: The process of planning and following a route; the skill of directing a ship or aircraft. — 导航；航行 stop building their own spatial memory: the brain's memory of places, layouts, and how to move through them — 空间记忆 of the world around them. The Google Effect describes how readers retainretain: To continue to have or hold something; to keep in one's memory. — 保留；保持；记住 less of what they look up, because almost no effort is required.
Don't take AI's word for it. Heavier AI users have scored worse on standard critical thinking tests, apparentlyapparently: As far as one knows or can see; seemingly. — 显然地；看起来 because they offloadoffload: to give a task or burden to someone or something else to do for you — 卸载；转嫁（任务或责任） their reasoningreasoning: the process of thinking logically and drawing conclusions from facts or premises — 推理；论证；逻辑思维 onto robots. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania call this cognitive surrender: the habit of trusting AI over your own thinking, even when AI is wrong — 认知投降: trustingtrust: To place confidence in; to rely on, to confide, or have faith, in — 信任；信赖 AI over your own thinking and intuitionintuition: the feeling that something is true or right without using clear reasoning or evidence — 直觉, eveneven: Exactly, just, fully — 正好 when AI is wrong. Microsoft Research found the danger sharpenssharpen: to (sometimes figurative) To make sharp — 使锐利;加强 when you know little about a subject. The fix starts before you open the app. Form your own rough view first, then use AI to challenge it. That way the technology is pressure-testing your judgmentjudgment: the ability to make careful, well-considered decisions or form sensible opinions — 判断力；判断 rather than replacing it.
Add friction to your research. "If something is in front of you and you see it, you often think it is in long-term memory: the part of memory that stores information for a long time, sometimes for a lifetime — 长期记忆 when it is not," says Barbara Oakley, an emeritusemeritus: used to describe someone who has retired but keeps their professional title as an honour — 荣誉退休的；名誉的（用于头衔） professor at the University of Oakland. Some light problem solving before opening a chatbotchatbot: a computer program designed to simulate conversation with human users, especially over the internet — 聊天机器人 can sharpensharpen: to (sometimes figurative) To make sharp — 使锐利;加强 retentionretention: the ability to keep something in memory; the act of keeping something — 记忆保持；保留 later, one unpublishedunpublished: not yet published or made public, especially of academic research — 未发表的 study suggests. When you do reach for AI to remember information, slow down. Take notes by hand if possible. Ask the chatbot to quizquiz: To hoax; to chaff or mock with pretended seriousness of discourse; to make sport of, as by obscure questions — 戏弄盘问 you. It sounds fussyfussy: too concerned about small or unimportant details; hard to please — 挑剔的；过于讲究的, but the small effort is the point.
Leave the blank page blank a little longer. Research suggests people who use AI for creative tasks produce ideas that are more predictablepredictable: Able to be foreseen or expected; behaving in a way that is easy to anticipate. — 可预测的；意料之中的 and less original. Your brain builds creative capacitycapacity: The maximum amount that something can contain or produce; ability or power to do something — 容量；能力 by reaching across experience, memory, and false starts to make connections only you could make. Hand that work to AI, and you skipskip: To disregard, miss or omit part of a continuation (some item or stage) — 略过 the workoutworkout: a session of vigorous physical exercise or training — 锻炼；健身训练. One simple fix: write your own rough notes first, however ugly, before opening any chatbot. Then use AI to refinerefine: To reduce to a pure state; to free from impurities — 提炼；精炼, develop, or pokepoke: to push something forward, especially something pointed; figuratively, to find weaknesses in an idea — 戳；找出（漏洞） holes in what you have got.
Pay attention. The onslaughtonslaught: a powerful, overwhelming attack or rush of something — 猛攻；涌入 of technology, including AI, is making focus harder. So apply the same logiclogic: A method of human thought that involves thinking in a linear, step-by-step manner about how a problem can be solved. Logic is the basis of many principles including the scientific method — 逻辑 everywhere: do things the slow way on purpose. Don't let an AI summarisesummarise: to give a short statement of the main points of something — 概括；总结 that long article. Sit with a hard problem before asking a robot. Tech giants are rushingrush: To move with urgent haste; to do something too quickly. — 匆忙；冲；赶 to shoveshove: to push something into a place, often roughly or forcefully — 推；挤；塞 more AI onto our phones, but you can still keep your brain in the driver's seat: in control of the situation — 处于主导地位. Green argues that human thinking is structurally different from AI in ways that really matter: we make connections that are personal, unexpectedunexpected: Not expected or regarded as likely to happen. — 意外的；出乎意料的, and genuinelygenuinely: In a truthful and sincere way; truly. — 真正地；真诚地 original, in ways that digital probabilityprobability: The likelihood or chance that something will happen. — 概率；可能性 machinesmachine: A vehicle operated mechanically, such as an automobile or an airplane — 交通工具 simply cannot replicatereplicate: To make a copy (replica) of — 复制；仿制. The desiredesire: A strong feeling of wanting something or wishing for something to happen. — 愿望；渴望 to think, create, and figure things out for ourselves, it seems, is harder than ever to outsourceoutsource: To transfer the management and/or day-to-day execution of a business function to a third-party service provider — 外包；外判.
Questions
Check your understanding
- 01
According to the article, what does Adam Green say is the main risk of letting AI do our thinking?
- 02
What does Jared Benge's meta-analysis suggest about "digital dementia"?
- 03
Which strategy does the article recommend BEFORE opening a chatbot to use AI well?
- 04
The article uses the gym as a metaphor for thinking. Explain why the writer thinks this metaphor matters, and decide whether you find it convincing.
Suggested length: ~80 words
- 05
Choose two of the writer's tips (for example, "add friction" or "leave the blank page blank") and evaluate which one would be hardest for a teenager today to follow, giving reasons.
Suggested length: ~80 words
Questions
Check your understanding
- 01
According to the article, what does Adam Green say is the main risk of letting AI do our thinking?
- 02
What does Jared Benge's meta-analysis suggest about "digital dementia"?
- 03
Which strategy does the article recommend BEFORE opening a chatbot to use AI well?
- 04
The article uses the gym as a metaphor for thinking. Explain why the writer thinks this metaphor matters, and decide whether you find it convincing.
Suggested length: ~80 words
- 05
Choose two of the writer's tips (for example, "add friction" or "leave the blank page blank") and evaluate which one would be hardest for a teenager today to follow, giving reasons.
Suggested length: ~80 words