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Recipe №038 · reading

Read a confusing article like you’re 12.

Paste a dense article and get a version a smart 12-year-old would actually understand.

by mike·Jan 21, 2026·2 min read
① The goal

Understand a jargon-heavy article well enough to explain it to someone else.

② The prompt
Rewrite this article so a smart 12-year-old would understand it.

Rules:
- Keep every fact. Don't add opinions.
- Replace jargon with plain words. If a term matters, define it in parentheses.
- Break long paragraphs into 2-3 sentences max.
- End with: "The one thing to remember: [one sentence summary]."
③ How it goes
Try 1

"Simplify this" dumbed it down too much — lost important details.

Try 2

"Rewrite for a 12-year-old" was closer but added cheerful filler ("Isn’t that cool?").

Try 3

"Keep every fact, don’t add opinions" locked in accuracy. The summary line is the real win.

④ Variations

Academic papers

Add: "Ignore the methodology section. Focus on what they found and why it matters."

Legal documents

Add: "Flag any sentence that creates an obligation for me with [ACTION NEEDED]."

Multiple articles

Paste 2-3 articles and add: "What do they agree on? Where do they disagree?"

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