I Want to Use My Brain

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I Want to Use My Brain

Steve Jones - SSC Editor

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June 26, 2026 at 12:00 am

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Comments posted to this topic are about the item I Want to Use My Brain

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David.Poole SSC Guru Points: 76411 More actions · Answer 1

Years ago (pre-AI), I had a conversation with a Solutions Architect who had come up through the ranks of Java development.

They had joined a company where architects had to be able to demonstrate their designs. It couldn't be marketechture or just PowerPoint decks. They were enjoying it, but their actual comment about the Java coding side was "God, I'm rusty"!

It has been a year since I touched Python, and I know that feeling well. Use it or lose it.

Another friend commented that now that he is older, his brain is no longer the infinite sponge. He described the acquisition of new skills as one-on, one-off.

I can no longer write a collection class in C#. It's still technically possible, but the need to do so was removed by the addition of generics to the language. It would be a worthless skill.

With AI, I try to use it as a leg up, not a crutch. If I'm puzzling over a problem whose solution I will need to use over and over again, then I will spend my mental effort on it. There is value in doing so.

If it is a one-off problem/solution, I'll probably use AI because the value of me doing it is low. I still have to validate what AI has done, but I won't agonise over it.

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ronaldkunenborg SSC Enthusiast Points: 190 More actions · Answer 2

I typed up a large reply but then I hit submit and it was gone. So I'll be brief.

I created 4 large projects this year. No, my skills are not atrophying, they're expanding in different directions.

frederico_fonseca SSCoach Points: 16331 More actions · Answer 3

ronaldkunenborg wrote:

I typed up a large reply but then I hit submit and it was gone. So I'll be brief. I created 4 large projects this year. No, my skills are not atrophying, they're expanding in different directions.

did you have more than 1 link to a website? if so that is why.

ronaldkunenborg SSC Enthusiast Points: 190 More actions · Answer 4

Ugh, failed again. It would be so nice if someone could use AI and create a better website. It's actually very easy now.

But once again, I learnt a great deal over the last months. Just check out an older version of the tool I'm building right now: https://casetalk.com/viewer - do you think you can build this without learning a few things?