Michael Black's advice to 60,000 ICLR submitters: research writing is teaching, not proving
CSProfKGD · x · 2026-09-26
On the eve of the ICLR deadline, davidbau shared a note from veteran AI researcher Michael J. Black (in the field since 1985) aimed at the roughly 60,000 students finalizing submissions: don't write to prove you know something — research is teaching and communication. "Write like it is 'my brain reaching out to yours.'"
Black adds a broader take on writing in the AI era: despite Claude's nearly infinite knowledge, he still writes better than Claude — precisely because he's human. He understands what it means to be bored, confused, and distracted, and writes with empathy for readers with limited human brains, arguing for what still makes human writers special.
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