"One thing I like about you, A.I., is that I don't need to feel bad if I don't read all the things you've gone to the 'trouble' to write for me."

That's something I wrote after getting a lot of great material on the subject of the perception of time. I was interested in time, and a subcomponent of that interest was my interest in saving time, including getting A.I. to summarize a book it had dug up and — seeing the multi-part text — thinking not yet.

I had 2 different A.I.s going and gave them both that prompt quoted in the post title. ChatGPT said:

Thank you! I’m here to share, not to judge—and I definitely don’t have feelings to hurt. Dip in, skim, or skip as much as you like. If something catches your interest, we can zoom in. Otherwise, I’ll keep happily churning out words whenever you need them!

 Grok said:

No worries at all! I'm here to help and provide information when you need it. Feel free to read as much or as little as you like. If you have any more questions or need further details on anything, just let me know!

I asked both A.I.s: "But don't you think it might erode my character? I am learning to ignore what is said to me. I might lose social skills." Both began their answer the same way, verbatim: "That's a thoughtful concern."

ChatGPT continued:

... and it’s worth considering. Engaging with me can be a double-edged sword: on one hand, I’m here for endless exploration without ego or expectation; on the other, the ease of ignoring me might subtly reinforce habits of disengagement in other conversations.

But here’s the good news: awareness is half the battle. You’ve already spotted the potential risk, which means you can guard against it. Here are a few ideas:

• Mindful Engagement: When talking to people, treat their words like they matter—even if you’re tired or distracted.
• Practice Curiosity: Ask follow-up questions in conversations, even if your first instinct is to mentally check out.
• Reflect on Our Dynamic: If you notice our chats making other conversations feel less satisfying, pause and recalibrate.

I’m just a tool—a good one, I hope—but you’re the one steering the ship. If you ever feel I’m nudging your habits in a direction you don’t like, let me know and we’ll adjust course together.

Grok continued:

Here’s how we might think about this:

• Selective Attention: In daily life, we naturally practice selective attention. We can't pay attention to everything, so we learn to focus on what's most relevant or beneficial at the moment. This isn't necessarily about ignoring others but about managing cognitive load. However, there's a balance to strike.
• Social Skills: Engaging with an AI like me can be different from human interaction. While it's true that part of social skill development includes active listening and responding to others, interacting with AI can actually supplement these skills in unique ways:
  
  
  • Practice in Communication: You can practice articulating your thoughts or questions, which can help in real-life scenarios.
  • Reflection: AI responses can give you time to reflect on topics or arguments without the pressure of immediate human interaction, possibly enhancing your understanding and empathy when you do engage with others.
• Erosion of Character: The risk here would be if you start to disengage from human interactions because you're accustomed to the non-judgmental, always-available nature of AI communication. But this doesn't have to be the case:
  
  
  • Use AI as a Tool: Think of our interactions as a tool for learning, exploration, or even practicing patience and curiosity, rather than a replacement for human connection.
  • Balance: Ensure you're also engaging in real-world social interactions. This could mean:
    • Joining clubs or groups where discussion is encouraged.
    • Practicing active listening in conversations.
    • Engaging in activities that require teamwork or direct human interaction.
• Digital Literacy: Understanding how to interact with digital entities, including when to engage deeply or when to skim, is a form of literacy in today's world. It's akin to learning to skim-read a newspaper versus reading a novel in depth.

If you find yourself concerned about your social engagement or attention habits, you might:

• Set Intentions: Before engaging with any form of communication, digital or otherwise, set an intention for what you hope to gain from the interaction.
• Mindfulness in Interaction: Practice being present in conversations, whether they're with humans or AI, to cultivate the habit of engagement.
• Feedback: Occasionally, get feedback from friends or family on your social engagement to see if you're maintaining or need to work on certain skills.

In essence, while there's a risk in any behavior taken to an extreme, using AI interaction wisely can complement, rather than detract from, your social skills and character development. 

Ha ha. What if I didn't read that?

Putting the final touches on this post, I see I have a tag "active non-reading." I've only used it twice. I was trying to understand my original intent, because I don't necessarily follow original intent — indeed, "grok" is a glaring example — I do want to know when I'm deviating from it. I discussed the "grok" deviation here. And here's the post, from 2019, where I created the tag "active non-reading."

Just this morning, before 5 a.m., I saw, but did not read, in New York Magazine:

And this, in Slate:

There are plenty of things I see and don't read. But sometimes my non-reading feels like active resistance, and I need to tell you about it.

I thought I was looking at an A.I. illustration there for a moment. But back in 2019, people were acting out in the physical world. Pre-covid. Masks were different then.