Sign in Subscribe

AI and learning

How AI is changing the way developers learn, build skills, and understand their own code, and what the psychological research says about protecting skill-building, comprehension and expertise as AI tools reshape the nature of work.
22
Sep
a photo of a green forest taken from a vantage point, with low hanging cloud cover and morning sun visible over low mountains in the distance

What helps an identity crisis?

This piece is something special and different on Fight for the Human. And honestly, as a fan of collaborative thinking,
11 min read
28
Jul
A white fluffy dog runs joyfully through gentle ocean surf on a sunny day

We need more than a metaphor: here are testable diagnostics for comprehension debt

Do we understand our code? I think we need to get past symptoms and into causes. Here's a field-tested measure of one organizational condition that can erode comprehension (Overproduction Pressure) you can use to find out which world your team is living in.
26 min read
19
Mar
a photo shows a bay area landscape with a wide dirt hiking path and rolling green hills. There is a glimpse of ocean past the hills, and a blue sky streaked with white clouds

Cognitive Helmets for the AI Bicycle Part 2: The Sometimes-Wrong Bot

The Sometimes-Wrong Bot When I was a postdoc, reflective of the inability of the university to contain my multitudes,
20 min read
18
Oct
A photo shows a green landscape with rocky hills under an atmospheric grey sky with mist. There is motion blur at the bottom suggesting this was taken from a moving vehicle

Cognitive Helmets for the AI Bicycle: Part 1

I hear people name these three fears: will developers lose their problem-solving skills, learning opportunities, and critical thinking? One science-backed area can help: better metacognitive strategies.
11 min read
13
Jul
a corkboard has blue and yellow postit notes on it with handwritten notes. The blue postit note in focus reads Part 1: Developers are People.

Are developers slowed down by AI? Evaluating an RCT (?) and what it tells us about developer productivity

Seven different people texted or otherwise messaged me about this study which claims to measure “the impact of early-2025
24 min read