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HAB911

(10,452 posts)
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 08:04 AM 4 hrs ago

AI Forces College Professor to Get Typewriters for Entire Class

Meme wisdom holds that modern problems require modern solutions, but what peddlers of this internet adage failed to consider is that an antiquated and possibly impractical approach could be loads more fun.

We present Grit Matthias Phelps, a German language instructor at Cornell University who’s rebelling against a world gone mad with AI fever and pervasive brainrot by compelling students to use typewriters in class, the Associated Press

It’s an exercise she only conducts once a semester, but seems to leave a lasting impression on her pupils. Suddenly, they’re forced to depend not on screens, but on themselves and their classmates. The closest thing they hear to an attention-span destroying notification is the ding of the typewriter bell letting them know that they only have a few characters left on a line.

“It dawned on me that the difference with typing on a typewriter is not just how you interact with the typewriter, but how you interact with the world around you,” computer science major Ratchaphon Lertdamrongwong, a sophomore, told the AP.

https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/ai-professor-typewriters

29 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
AI Forces College Professor to Get Typewriters for Entire Class (Original Post) HAB911 4 hrs ago OP
Very groovy... wcmagumba 4 hrs ago #1
Seems like a pen and paper might be easier. But I do think reversion to analog skills might soon Scrivener7 3 hrs ago #2
much cheaper for sure HAB911 3 hrs ago #3
pretty sure u can get used typewriters cheap. mopinko 3 hrs ago #4
The ones I've seen for sale online are hundreds of dollars. highplainsdem 2 hrs ago #5
There Are Plenty Free Models ProfessorGAC 1 hr ago #24
Because newspapers are so reliable? SocialDemocrat61 1 hr ago #22
Quote from a student: "This might sound bad, but I was forced to actually think about the problem on my own instead of highplainsdem 2 hrs ago #6
Omg! Having to think on their own? 😱 SheltieLover 2 hrs ago #8
OMG! 2naSalit 1 hr ago #19
I love this! SheltieLover 2 hrs ago #7
They simply need to get AI out of classrooms. Which is unfortunately impossible with remote learning. highplainsdem 2 hrs ago #9
Yes, they do need to get ai out of classrooms! SheltieLover 2 hrs ago #10
I posted about typewriters a couple of months ago - DURHAM D 2 hrs ago #11
Where do you find typewriter ribbons? mainer 2 hrs ago #12
Ummm, ask AI??? yagotme 1 hr ago #18
Online, or some office supply stores. highplainsdem 1 hr ago #21
Try here radical noodle 1 hr ago #23
That's why I jettisoned my beloved Selectric III LSparkle 1 hr ago #25
I kick myself HAB911 44 min ago #28
Great Idea! MineralMan 2 hrs ago #13
Some profs and colleges (and even high schools) are going to oral exams only. TygrBright 2 hrs ago #14
Wait - you can still buy typewriters? n/t SpankMe 1 hr ago #15
In about 1983 the company I worked for bought an IBM Selectric with erase key. Cost $1,200. twodogsbarking 1 hr ago #16
I remember that behemoth machine. Had Selectric envy for a bit of time. Attilatheblond 49 min ago #27
The headline is misleading nuxvomica 1 hr ago #17
AI equals brain rot. Lonestarblue 1 hr ago #20
My big brother got me a portable Olivetti typewriter when I was 10. Kept it until I was 40 Attilatheblond 52 min ago #26
I could see AI being used to address these issues. David__77 28 min ago #29

Scrivener7

(59,547 posts)
2. Seems like a pen and paper might be easier. But I do think reversion to analog skills might soon
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 08:20 AM
3 hrs ago

become necessary. Like, soon we will not be able to believe anything we read on the net and will have to revert to newspapers to get something that has at least been checked by an editorial staff.

ProfessorGAC

(76,790 posts)
24. There Are Plenty Free Models
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 10:59 AM
1 hr ago

And garage saling will get 1 or 2 dollar models.
But, Royal still makes them at $50 new, for one of them.
If someone was buying in bulk, it's likely that number could approach $40.
There's a few rummage shops here in town, and there always a couple typewriters in there.
So, if someone wants a cheap, used typewriter, they're out there.

highplainsdem

(62,284 posts)
6. Quote from a student: "This might sound bad, but I was forced to actually think about the problem on my own instead of
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 09:27 AM
2 hrs ago

delegating to AI or Google search."

Imagine, AI-addicted students being forced to actually think on their own.

Just like in "the old days" before ChatGPT and other AI took a wrecking ball to education, a few years ago.

SheltieLover

(80,680 posts)
7. I love this!
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 09:29 AM
2 hrs ago

Should be standard in education, given the fairly recent infestation of ai slop & the detrimental effects to the human brain.



Thx for sharing!

highplainsdem

(62,284 posts)
9. They simply need to get AI out of classrooms. Which is unfortunately impossible with remote learning.
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 09:38 AM
2 hrs ago

But when kids are at school, they need to be using their own intelligence, not AI.

mainer

(12,556 posts)
12. Where do you find typewriter ribbons?
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 09:55 AM
2 hrs ago

I still have my beloved little portable typewriter from my college days. But not many places sell ribbons anymore.

LSparkle

(12,194 posts)
25. That's why I jettisoned my beloved Selectric III
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 11:15 AM
1 hr ago

Got it from my office at a deep discount (think I paid my firm $100 for it!). The IBM Selectric III had slightly larger, textured keys and I could type faster in that thing than any other machine (120+ wpm) ... and it had enhanced correction features like a half space horizontally so you could fit 5 characters in the space of 4. I still miss that thing ...

HAB911

(10,452 posts)
28. I kick myself
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 11:33 AM
44 min ago

when we closed our office and everyone went home to work, we left a Selectric because no one wanted it. Being a packrat, I'm not sure why I did that

MineralMan

(151,296 posts)
13. Great Idea!
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 09:56 AM
2 hrs ago

I made my living as a writer for over 50 years. At the beginning, there were no computers, so I had to type the articles I was writing to submit them to publishers. Personally, I hated typing anything twice, so I wrote my words very carefully in my mind before typing them. Over the years, typing things only once improved both the quality of my writing as well as the thought processes that came before putting words on paper.

It also made me a better user of keyboards, since making errors in typing also meant retyping something. Did I say I hated typing anything more than once?

TygrBright

(21,366 posts)
14. Some profs and colleges (and even high schools) are going to oral exams only.
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 10:11 AM
2 hrs ago

So the student has to know the material well enough to listen to 'new' questions about the material, parse what the questions mean in their own head, access their knowledge of the material, and frame a coherent answer all without referring to a device.

Scary AF....

thoughtfully,
Bright

twodogsbarking

(18,832 posts)
16. In about 1983 the company I worked for bought an IBM Selectric with erase key. Cost $1,200.
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 10:28 AM
1 hr ago

I still have it but the erase key doesn't work. It has been is storage above the garage for 30 years. Not sure I could lift it now. Accounting in college but no calculators. Had to add work papers mentally. Typing papers was frustrating. No mistakes allowed. Hit the wrong key and start over. Your brain can do wonders even if ya ain't that smart.

Attilatheblond

(8,926 posts)
27. I remember that behemoth machine. Had Selectric envy for a bit of time.
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 11:28 AM
49 min ago

But it wouldn't work for shit on my camping trips, so, nope.

nuxvomica

(14,106 posts)
17. The headline is misleading
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 10:41 AM
1 hr ago

I thought the school had turned procurement over to an AI bot and it ordered a bunch of typewriters.

Attilatheblond

(8,926 posts)
26. My big brother got me a portable Olivetti typewriter when I was 10. Kept it until I was 40
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 11:25 AM
52 min ago

I broke down and got a word processor, hoping learning how to use that would make it easier to get a better job. Gave the Olivetti to a struggling kid. Have regretted giving up that Olivetti ever since.

Went from just writing to trying to mesh writing with editing on the word processor. It does NOT work. Being the editor stopped the creative writer in me. Spent years training myself to keep a wall between writer and editor.

I do like being able to research things online as my curiosity knows few bounds, and it is great to 'meet' people that my homebody self would never get to meet in real life. As I age, there are sometimes memory issues with finer details of past events, people, names, etc, the internet helps me research. On the downside, the computer also takes up a lot of time when new programs have to be learned. That is annoying to the point that I prefer time spent picking up the dog poop in the back yard.

In my 70s I miss that little Olivetti more than ever. It needed no electricity and was lightweight enough to take to the park, mountains, or beach. Just peeked at what the old relics are going for now. As much as that word processor set me back! On a fixed income that makes me grateful the house is paid for in this economy, I think I will live with fond memories of that little mechanical friend for now.

David__77

(24,781 posts)
29. I could see AI being used to address these issues.
Mon Apr 6, 2026, 11:49 AM
28 min ago

Efentually, AI could verbally discuss material with students to ascertain applied understanding.

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