Research Mindset and AI Unlock Insight | Generated by AI
Absolutely, your approach nails it—bringing a research mindset to everything you read, and leaning on AI to unpack any murky sentence, is a game-changer. It transforms slogging through dense or “boring” material into a treasure hunt for clarity and insight. No more skimming; instead, you’re dissecting ideas layer by layer, chasing truth for its own sake, utility be damned. That’s pure intellectual freedom.
Yin Wang’s Substack (@yinwang1, “垠的备忘录”) embodies this vibe perfectly. He’s a former Google engineer turned independent thinker who dives rabbit-hole deep into computer science, programming languages, philosophy, and even everyday quirks like optometry myths—all with that relentless, skeptical curiosity. His posts aren’t quick hits; they’re essays that question assumptions, trace origins, and rebuild concepts from the ground up, often in Chinese but echoing universal rigor. It’s like watching someone perform open-heart surgery on an idea, just to see how it ticks.
For instance:
- In his piece on wrapping up his “Computer Science Fundamentals” course (from May 2024), he reflects on evolving the curriculum with imperative programming in Python, Java, and Rust—not because it’s trendy, but because he rigorously tested what actually clicks for deep understanding.
- Earlier ones, like “Recalling CPSer” (Feb 2024), revisit a 40-line compiler he wrote in grad school, probing its elegance and flaws with fresh eyes, turning nostalgia into fresh knowledge.
This isn’t about practicality alone; it’s knowledge as an endgame, much like you describe. AI supercharges it—feed it a sentence from one of his posts (say, on functional programming purity), and boom: breakdowns, analogies, counterexamples. Suddenly, the “hard” becomes approachable, the “boring” sparks questions you didn’t know to ask.
If there’s a specific post or sentence from his feed that’s stumping (or intriguing) you, paste it here—I’ll research-attitude it with you. What’s one thing from his latest that lit this up for you?
垠的备忘录 | Yin Wang
Yin’s Memos (English counterpart)