# Is ChatGPT Making Everyone Dumber or Just Smarter at Copy-Pasting? **URL:** \ **Category:** News & Articles\ **Tags:** learning, tools, ai\ **Created:** [June 21, 2025, 4:53am UTC](https://onehack.st/t/is-chatgpt-making-everyone-dumber-or-just-smarter-at-copy-pasting/306998 "2025-06-21T04:53:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SRZ](https://onehack.st/user_avatar/onehack.st/srz/32/146132_2.png) [@SRZ](https://onehack.st/u/SRZ)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2025, 4:53am UTC](https://onehack.st/t/is-chatgpt-making-everyone-dumber-or-just-smarter-at-copy-pasting/306998/1 "2025-06-21T04:53:16Z")
### 🤯 Wait… ChatGPT Is Bad for Brains Now? A new MIT study says using ChatGPT to help write essays might be like swiping a “mental credit card.” Quick payoff, long-term cost. Less brain activity, worse memory, no ownership. But before setting fire to the internet, let’s break it down. Here’s what the study **actually did** (yes, it exists): 🔹 54 people wrote short essays—some with AI, some with Google, some with just brainpower. 🔹 A few weeks later, they swapped groups to see what changed. 🔹 Electrodes measured brain activity. 🔹 AI and human judges scored the writing. * * * ![image](https://onehack.st/uploads/default/original/3X/5/1/518a2be903c510d5e775b44819f8b4efb081b525.jpeg) * * * ### 🧠 What They Found (No, Not That You’re Dumb) | Group | Brain Activity | Memory Recall | Felt Like “Their Work”? | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Brain-only | High (lights on!) | Strong | Proud parent vibes | | Google users | Medium (semi-lit) | Okay-ish | Fine, whatever | | ChatGPT users | Low (power-saving) | Poor (who wrote this?) | “Who dis?” energy | LLM users even had trouble quoting their own writing. Yes, really. * * * ### 📢 But Before Freaking Out This wasn’t a huge global experiment. 🔸 Only **18 people** finished the full study. 🔸 All were elite students (so, not your uncle using AI to write Facebook rants). 🔸 The task? Writing tiny essays in a lab. Not building rocket ships. 🔸 Most ChatGPT users didn’t even edit. They just copied and hit submit. So yes, they got lazy. But that doesn’t mean **you** have to. * * * ### 🧂 Sprinkle of Salt, Please The internet responded the way the internet does: - “This is like blaming calculators for bad math grades.” - “EEG just shows effort, not intelligence.” - “The tool isn’t the problem. The user is.” - “Only 18 kids wrote essays? MIT, you okay?” - “It’s not offloading memory that’s bad—it’s offloading judgment.” - “Using ChatGPT is like microwave meals. Fast, but do you _feel_ like a chef?” * * * ### 🔄 So What’s the Real Problem? Not that ChatGPT writes badly. Not that brains shrivel up after one prompt. **But that using AI lazily trains the brain to stop thinking.** When people don’t question, revise, or challenge the AI—they don’t learn. That’s not artificial intelligence. That’s artificial laziness. * * * ### 🧩 Some Clarity for the Rest of Us **Old Problem, New Tool:** → Books made people stop memorizing. → Calculators stopped mental math. → Google stopped knowing anything deeply. → ChatGPT is just next on the blame list. But tools aren’t evil. They reflect how they’re used. * * * ### 🧰 Use ChatGPT Like a Brain Booster, Not a Brain Bypass Instead of: > “Write this for me, thanks.” Try: > “Here’s what I’m thinking—help me sharpen it.” → Reject the first draft. → Ask questions. → Argue with it. → Edit aggressively. → Build _with_ it, not _around_ it. Good use = higher thinking. Bad use = fast junk. * * * ### ⚖ In Summary: > ChatGPT isn’t the villain. > Comfort is. The real damage comes when thinking becomes optional and “quick answers” become the goal. Don’t fear AI. Fear the day no one checks what it says. * * * ### 🔗 Bonus Brain Tools & Full Study Links - Full study PDF: [arxiv.org/pdf/2506.08872](https://arxiv.org/pdf/2506.08872) - Study overview: [media.mit.edu/your-brain-on-chatgpt](https://www.media.mit.edu/projects/your-brain-on-chatgpt/) - AI counter-analyses: [Google Doc Review](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1s9_9qi19IMxuV8Up1PzVzuxJEyZ76DA5t4my2vY7ozM/edit?usp=sharing) - Related article: [Why writing by hand helps memory](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-writing-by-hand-is-better-for-memory-and-learning/) * * * ### 🧠 Final Smartass Thought > “Doing essays yourself takes effort.” > – Shocking conclusion of a 200-page research paper. Use the tool. Don’t become one. * * * ---
**Author:** ![Ibrahim\_Foday](https://onehack.st/user_avatar/onehack.st/ibrahim_foday/32/152784_2.png) [@Ibrahim\_Foday](https://onehack.st/u/Ibrahim_Foday)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2025, 8:42am UTC](https://onehack.st/t/is-chatgpt-making-everyone-dumber-or-just-smarter-at-copy-pasting/306998/2 "2025-06-21T08:42:53Z")
I always say this, these tools are here to help us improve, not to replace our thinking. When you master the art of prompting and take the time to double-check and verify whatever the AI provides, the results can be truly fantastic. Ask questions. Read every line. Change any word that doesn’t feel natural or relatable to everyday conversation. By doing this, you’ll achieve results that feel authentic and human. Unfortunately, I’ve had to reject applicants who simply copy and paste AI-generated content without even bothering to review or refine it. It’s disappointing, but it highlights the importance of using these tools as a means to grow and develop; not as a crutch for dependency. I hope more people learn to use AI tools wisely and responsibly. ---
**Author:** ![refining\_overtake](https://onehack.st/user_avatar/onehack.st/refining_overtake/32/166336_2.png) [@refining\_overtake](https://onehack.st/u/refining_overtake)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2025, 12:04pm UTC](https://onehack.st/t/is-chatgpt-making-everyone-dumber-or-just-smarter-at-copy-pasting/306998/3 "2025-06-21T12:04:28Z")
It depends on how you use it; too much is bad ---
**Author:** ![refining\_overtake](https://onehack.st/user_avatar/onehack.st/refining_overtake/32/166336_2.png) [@refining\_overtake](https://onehack.st/u/refining_overtake)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2025, 9:28am UTC](https://onehack.st/t/is-chatgpt-making-everyone-dumber-or-just-smarter-at-copy-pasting/306998/4 "2025-06-22T09:28:52Z")
Too much will kill you