6 ms·

'PDF to Brainrot' study tools are an iteration on a TikTok trend

43 points by ZeljkoS 2y ago

Elfener 2y ago
oh no
- Woeps 2y ago
  Oh no indeed. And my first reaction was:"Naaaaaah ... This can't be a thing people actually use right?" But I haven't been a student in decades so what do I know.
  - j4hdufd8 2y ago
    Why not? What's your point?
  - Cthulhu_ 2y ago
    The article itself casts doubt upon it as well - is it actually used, or is it rage bait and marketing that tries to tell people that it is a thing?
- exophoric 2y ago
  oh no, oh no no no no no
aaron695 2y ago
[dead]
- GTP 2y ago
  [dead]
tux3 2y ago
I, for one, welcome our new dopamine overlords. It is still early days, but the oncoming flood of AI content is inevitable at this point. Since modern content is meticulously engineered to snipe children into jumping for the beef with perfect efficiency, killing their reward center instantly, we are well on track to revolutionize education. The Adtech era is over. Addiction science as an industry shall bring forth the age of brainrot maxxing.
- notTooFarGone 2y ago
  gl getting developers for high complexity products or experts in general in the future with less and less attention spans and frustration tolerance.
  - j4hdufd8 2y ago
    Implying these study apps will reduce attention spans and tolerance to frustration?
    - whythre 2y ago
      Implying that everyone in the future will be incapable of sustaining a thought beyond 15 seconds; it’s not just the study apps, but yeah.
- gtvwill 2y ago
  He who controls the spice controls the universe. Honestly can't wait. Feed me info in dopamine adjusted methods. My spicy meatball brain finds old methods boring af and an absolute chore. Can learn at 10x with the new ways. Much like the meme watch a 4hr movie in one go? Meh. Feed me a 10 hour movie in 14 40ish min episodes? Hell yeah! Education needs to strap itself in and get with the times. No point holding onto the old ways just because it's what we did as kids. Wanna feed em a 60 min lecture? Give em 30 to 60 small clips of high interest action!
  - Iulioh 2y ago
    ____ Feed me a 10 hour movie in 14 40ish min episodes? Hell yeah! ____ I can't get myself to watch a film but will watch an entire 12ep anime in a day... I'm fucked.
  - tgv 2y ago
    I don't think there's much evidence you'll learn a lot that way, and certainly not 10 times as much as someone who hasn't been turned into a "spicy meatball" by a social media addiction. > Give em 30 to 60 small clips of high interest action! That's such a glib remark. How do you propose to make 30 to 60 small clips per teaching hour? There's over 1200 of those per year. Shortest path through school is 12 years. Good luck making 500,000 of those clips for "what's the capital of Kenia?" And I'm fairly sure that once you're exposed to them, they'll get boring pretty quickly, and the effect will be nil. In case you need any more conviction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5RsaOOsZFk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5RsaOOsZFk
jumpoddly 2y ago
As always, the eternal refrain: “the kids are alright”, but wow, the adults, they look like they’ve lost it. I think these adults are misguided at best. ~“Kids diets are causing an obesity epidemic so teacher brings sweets to class to encourage them to eat.” Was there a subtle insinuation that they are being paid off to promote these tools? I am all for getting creative with teaching, but I think the creativity should stem from the actual material. Subway surfing is incredibly dangerous with zero upside. Bringing videos of people doing that into a classroom is despicable.
- bananicorn 2y ago
  Absolutely with you on the last point, but the Subway Surfers mentioned in this Article is a mobile game which has been around since 2012 - they don't splice in videos with actual subway surfing. Not that that changes much about the article in general^^
  - jumpoddly 2y ago
    What a relief. Thanks for the correction. I legitimately tried to watch the linked vids multiple times, but the social media site where they are located kept booting me to install their app. I even tried searching for reuploads to other, more open, social media, but was unable to find the same teacher.
wccrawford 2y ago
> (you can choose from voices like “Sam Sigma,” “Gabi Gyatt,” or “Sara Skibidi,” referring to somewhat meaningless words that are popular among young people who spend a lot of time online) I find this hilarious because kids know what these words mean as much as they know what any word means. It's adults that don't know what they mean. Unless, of course, they bothered to stop and educate themselves. Edit: The more I read of this "article" the more I realize it's just rage-bait. sigh
cullumsmith 2y ago
There is a small segment of parents who completely prevent their children from accessing these brainrot platforms. Usually these kids are in homeschool groups with other like-minded families, with no phones or screen time. I often wonder if this cohort will be the future elite class, or if they will be so incompatible with their peers that they'll end up forming insular communities amongst themselves (like the Amish).
- llm_trw 2y ago
  Remember the kids who weren't allowed to watch television in the 80s and 90s? It's them all over again.
  - rrr_oh_man 2y ago
    Tiktok is a different kind of emotional brainrot.
    - pier25 2y ago
      Absolutely. Plus there's content available 24/7 and it's a lot more addictive than anything on television. I was a kid in the 80s and there wasn't that much content for kids back then. At least in my country.
  - GeoAtreides 2y ago
    oh my god, it's always the same thing Socrate-the-youths this, television that No, social media is not like anything else before it. Algorithmic informational hoses are not like television and the harm they do is not like whatever Socrates complained 2500 or so years ago. Can we try to at least have a normal discussion without repeating the same tired platitudes over and over again
    - llm_trw 2y ago
      We could, but you're just repeating what everyone from a previous generation said about the next generations preferred entertainment medium. Also Socrates wasn't the one complaining, he was the one killed by those doing the complaining. A simple mistake to make when one is looking for reasons to do the same.
Qem 2y ago
Does it work? What is content retention like?
- 4gotunameagain 2y ago
  [flagged]
  - rnewme 2y ago
    Is this snark or based on actual data? Is there relevant research? I would logically assume person would just zone out and retention would be nil
    - 4gotunameagain 2y ago
      [flagged]
    - jumpoddly 2y ago
      Is there relevant research? For torture?! The gp is referencing a famous scene from Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of A Clockwork Orange.
      - rnewme 2y ago
        After learning about nazi torture experiment camps, Japanese torture experiment camps, American torture tests on own citizens etc, yea, I would sadly expect that there is a body of knowledge on the topic :/ Thank you for elaborating on the reference, I still haven't had the chance to see that movie
- throwawayqqq11 2y ago
  I suspect it doesnt really work. Maybe you know the mind numbing state of brainrot clips or excessive TV watching, back in the old days. Your alpha brainwaves go up as your consciousness tunes down. I cannot imagine this mind numbing state to create complex and lasting new knowledge.
0x20cowboy 2y ago
Welcome to Costco. I love you.
sourcepluck 2y ago
https://archive.fo/Nxzp8 https://archive.fo/Nxzp8
Pigalowda 2y ago
Attention building requires work and discipline. It’s really hard to build it up and so easy to lose it. This is just more idiocracy. More and more. Oh well.
xtiansimon 2y ago
> “‘PDF to Brainrot’ trend, which will read the text of a document you upload…” I’m curious if this could make Lacan or Derrida understandable. Joking/not joking
greatgib 2y ago
Perfect trend on our speedway run to Idiocracy... I guess it is just lacking having students drinking Gatorade at the same time that they "PDF to brainrot" study to ensure that they will be well educated. Because, as you know, "it gots electrolytes"...
schwartzworld 2y ago
I am going to go against the grain and say I think these sound great. Reading isn’t that easy for everybody, judging by the large numbers of adults I know who consume audiobooks over print/kindle. Sure, it sounds worse to have your information come as brainrot, but it will probably help lots of students. Reminds me of when I was a kid and you’d see newspaper articles about how note taking by hand is more effective than using a computer (it’s not). As to the videos, as an adhd kid who studied with the tv on, I guess I just don’t see the problem.
rldjbpin 2y ago
quite interesting to see the application of language and speech models for automating current trends. i wonder about its efficacy, however. don't recall any brainrot videos whose information ever retained with me after the fact. while i don't actively consume such content, this is definitely an evolution of past internet trends that many of us might have interacted with. like the someone speaking over an unrelated game playing in the background is reminiscent of "commentary" channels on youtube. this is why i would refrain from making any active criticism for those who enjoy this.

43 points by ZeljkoS 2y ago

Elfener 2y ago

oh no

Woeps 2y ago
Oh no indeed. And my first reaction was:"Naaaaaah ... This can't be a thing people actually use right?" But I haven't been a student in decades so what do I know.
- j4hdufd8 2y ago
  Why not? What's your point?
- Cthulhu_ 2y ago
  The article itself casts doubt upon it as well - is it actually used, or is it rage bait and marketing that tries to tell people that it is a thing?
exophoric 2y ago
oh no, oh no no no no no

aaron695 2y ago

[dead]

GTP 2y ago
[dead]

tux3 2y ago

I, for one, welcome our new dopamine overlords. It is still early days, but the oncoming flood of AI content is inevitable at this point. Since modern content is meticulously engineered to snipe children into jumping for the beef with perfect efficiency, killing their reward center instantly, we are well on track to revolutionize education. The Adtech era is over. Addiction science as an industry shall bring forth the age of brainrot maxxing.

notTooFarGone 2y ago
gl getting developers for high complexity products or experts in general in the future with less and less attention spans and frustration tolerance.
- j4hdufd8 2y ago
  Implying these study apps will reduce attention spans and tolerance to frustration?
  - whythre 2y ago
    Implying that everyone in the future will be incapable of sustaining a thought beyond 15 seconds; it’s not just the study apps, but yeah.
gtvwill 2y ago
He who controls the spice controls the universe. Honestly can't wait. Feed me info in dopamine adjusted methods. My spicy meatball brain finds old methods boring af and an absolute chore. Can learn at 10x with the new ways. Much like the meme watch a 4hr movie in one go? Meh. Feed me a 10 hour movie in 14 40ish min episodes? Hell yeah! Education needs to strap itself in and get with the times. No point holding onto the old ways just because it's what we did as kids. Wanna feed em a 60 min lecture? Give em 30 to 60 small clips of high interest action!
- Iulioh 2y ago
  ____ Feed me a 10 hour movie in 14 40ish min episodes? Hell yeah! ____ I can't get myself to watch a film but will watch an entire 12ep anime in a day... I'm fucked.
- tgv 2y ago
  I don't think there's much evidence you'll learn a lot that way, and certainly not 10 times as much as someone who hasn't been turned into a "spicy meatball" by a social media addiction. > Give em 30 to 60 small clips of high interest action! That's such a glib remark. How do you propose to make 30 to 60 small clips per teaching hour? There's over 1200 of those per year. Shortest path through school is 12 years. Good luck making 500,000 of those clips for "what's the capital of Kenia?" And I'm fairly sure that once you're exposed to them, they'll get boring pretty quickly, and the effect will be nil. In case you need any more conviction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5RsaOOsZFk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5RsaOOsZFk

jumpoddly 2y ago

As always, the eternal refrain: “the kids are alright”, but wow, the adults, they look like they’ve lost it. I think these adults are misguided at best. ~“Kids diets are causing an obesity epidemic so teacher brings sweets to class to encourage them to eat.” Was there a subtle insinuation that they are being paid off to promote these tools? I am all for getting creative with teaching, but I think the creativity should stem from the actual material. Subway surfing is incredibly dangerous with zero upside. Bringing videos of people doing that into a classroom is despicable.

bananicorn 2y ago
Absolutely with you on the last point, but the Subway Surfers mentioned in this Article is a mobile game which has been around since 2012 - they don't splice in videos with actual subway surfing. Not that that changes much about the article in general^^
- jumpoddly 2y ago
  What a relief. Thanks for the correction. I legitimately tried to watch the linked vids multiple times, but the social media site where they are located kept booting me to install their app. I even tried searching for reuploads to other, more open, social media, but was unable to find the same teacher.

wccrawford 2y ago

> (you can choose from voices like “Sam Sigma,” “Gabi Gyatt,” or “Sara Skibidi,” referring to somewhat meaningless words that are popular among young people who spend a lot of time online) I find this hilarious because kids know what these words mean as much as they know what any word means. It's adults that don't know what they mean. Unless, of course, they bothered to stop and educate themselves. Edit: The more I read of this "article" the more I realize it's just rage-bait. sigh

cullumsmith 2y ago

There is a small segment of parents who completely prevent their children from accessing these brainrot platforms. Usually these kids are in homeschool groups with other like-minded families, with no phones or screen time. I often wonder if this cohort will be the future elite class, or if they will be so incompatible with their peers that they'll end up forming insular communities amongst themselves (like the Amish).

llm_trw 2y ago
Remember the kids who weren't allowed to watch television in the 80s and 90s? It's them all over again.
- rrr_oh_man 2y ago
  Tiktok is a different kind of emotional brainrot.
  - pier25 2y ago
    Absolutely. Plus there's content available 24/7 and it's a lot more addictive than anything on television. I was a kid in the 80s and there wasn't that much content for kids back then. At least in my country.
- GeoAtreides 2y ago
  oh my god, it's always the same thing Socrate-the-youths this, television that No, social media is not like anything else before it. Algorithmic informational hoses are not like television and the harm they do is not like whatever Socrates complained 2500 or so years ago. Can we try to at least have a normal discussion without repeating the same tired platitudes over and over again
  - llm_trw 2y ago
    We could, but you're just repeating what everyone from a previous generation said about the next generations preferred entertainment medium. Also Socrates wasn't the one complaining, he was the one killed by those doing the complaining. A simple mistake to make when one is looking for reasons to do the same.

Qem 2y ago

Does it work? What is content retention like?

4gotunameagain 2y ago
[flagged]
- rnewme 2y ago
  Is this snark or based on actual data? Is there relevant research? I would logically assume person would just zone out and retention would be nil
  - 4gotunameagain 2y ago
    [flagged]
  - jumpoddly 2y ago
    Is there relevant research? For torture?! The gp is referencing a famous scene from Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of A Clockwork Orange.
    - rnewme 2y ago
      After learning about nazi torture experiment camps, Japanese torture experiment camps, American torture tests on own citizens etc, yea, I would sadly expect that there is a body of knowledge on the topic :/ Thank you for elaborating on the reference, I still haven't had the chance to see that movie
throwawayqqq11 2y ago
I suspect it doesnt really work. Maybe you know the mind numbing state of brainrot clips or excessive TV watching, back in the old days. Your alpha brainwaves go up as your consciousness tunes down. I cannot imagine this mind numbing state to create complex and lasting new knowledge.

0x20cowboy 2y ago

Welcome to Costco. I love you.

sourcepluck 2y ago

https://archive.fo/Nxzp8 https://archive.fo/Nxzp8

Pigalowda 2y ago

Attention building requires work and discipline. It’s really hard to build it up and so easy to lose it. This is just more idiocracy. More and more. Oh well.

xtiansimon 2y ago

> “‘PDF to Brainrot’ trend, which will read the text of a document you upload…” I’m curious if this could make Lacan or Derrida understandable. Joking/not joking

greatgib 2y ago

Perfect trend on our speedway run to Idiocracy... I guess it is just lacking having students drinking Gatorade at the same time that they "PDF to brainrot" study to ensure that they will be well educated. Because, as you know, "it gots electrolytes"...

schwartzworld 2y ago

I am going to go against the grain and say I think these sound great. Reading isn’t that easy for everybody, judging by the large numbers of adults I know who consume audiobooks over print/kindle. Sure, it sounds worse to have your information come as brainrot, but it will probably help lots of students. Reminds me of when I was a kid and you’d see newspaper articles about how note taking by hand is more effective than using a computer (it’s not). As to the videos, as an adhd kid who studied with the tv on, I guess I just don’t see the problem.

rldjbpin 2y ago

quite interesting to see the application of language and speech models for automating current trends. i wonder about its efficacy, however. don't recall any brainrot videos whose information ever retained with me after the fact. while i don't actively consume such content, this is definitely an evolution of past internet trends that many of us might have interacted with. like the someone speaking over an unrelated game playing in the background is reminiscent of "commentary" channels on youtube. this is why i would refrain from making any active criticism for those who enjoy this.