Interlude: Making Sense, Reading Papers, and Prolific Débutante Authors
After you explain something to someone, do you ever ask, "Does that make sense?"
I hear this question all the time, especially among smart, well-intentioned people who want to be clear.
But here's the thing: while you might be checking whether you explained something well, the listener may hear a different message.
To listeners, this question might sound like you're questioning their ability to understand. That tiny shift can create distance between you and the person you're trying to connect with.
So instead of saying "Does that make sense?", try asking:
"What questions are coming up for you?"
"Is there anything you'd like me to expand on?"
"Would it help to go into more detail on anything I discussed?"
Small shifts in language can create big connections in communication.
Now onto this week's round-up...
Round-up
From My Desk
How to Actually Read a Scientific Paper
I've heard a lot of questionable advice out there about how to read a scientific manuscript. And I disagree with most of it. In this video, I share some of the strategies I’ve heard people advise, why those strategies are problematic, and what I recommend doing instead.
Reading
A Comparative Analysis of Author Guidelines on the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence for Manuscript Preparation in the Top 100 Medical Journals
“Although most journals require disclosure of GAI [generative artificial intelligence] use, there is considerable heterogeneity in permitted applications, disclosure formats, and alignment with external ethical frameworks. Our correlation analyses showed that policies permitting broader use of GAI, especially for language editing and manuscript generation, tend to cluster together and are often accompanied by mandatory disclosure and explicit authorship prohibitions.”
Letters to scientific journals surge as ‘prolific debutante’ authors likely use AI
“They found that from 2023–25, a small group of 'prolific debutante' authors suddenly appeared in the top 5% of letter writers. They suspect much of the rise was driven by programs such as ChatGPT. . . this study appears to be the first to examine the phenomenon among letters to the editor—a key venue for postpublication reviews, but also a potential avenue for exploitation by unscrupulous authors aiming to pad their CVs.”
Listening
How Leaders Sound Smart Without Saying Too Much
I often talk about the curse of knowledge and how it contributes to poor writing. Through this podcast episode, I also learned about the curse of passion and how the combination of these two curses leads to "expertitis" that can get in the way of communicating well.
Quote
"Mastery is not only about getting better at your craft, but also about finding ways to eliminate the obstacles, distractions, and other annoyances that prevent you from working on your craft. Top performers find ways to spend as much time as possible on what matters and as little time as possible on what doesn't. It is not someone else's responsibility to create the conditions for success. You have to actively work to eliminate the things that don't matter from your workload. If you haven't figured out how to do that, you haven't mastered your craft." –James Clear
Thank you so much for reading.
Warmly,
Crystal
