Would you read this book if a computer wrote it? Would you even know? And why would it matter?
Today's eerily impressive artificial intelligence writing tools present us with a crucial
challenge: As writers do we unthinkingly adopt AI's time-saving advantages or do we stop to
weigh what we gain and lose when heeding their siren call? To understand how AI is redefining
what it means to write and think linguist and educator Naomi Baron leads us on a journey
connecting the dots between human literacy and today's technology. From nineteenth century
lessons in composition to mathematician Alan Turing's work creating a machine for deciphering
war-time messages to contemporary engines like ChatGPT Baron gives readers a spirited
overview of the emergence of both literacy and AI and a glimpse of their possible future. As
the technology becomes increasingly sophisticated and fluent it's tempting to take the easy
way out and let AI do the work for us. Baron cautions that such efficiency isn't always in our
interest. As AI plies us with suggestions or full-blown text we risk losing not just our
technical skills but the power of writing as a springboard for personal reflection and unique
expression. Funny informed and conversational Who Wrote This? urges us as individuals and as
communities to make conscious choices about the extent to which we collaborate with AI. The
technology is here to stay. Baron shows us how to work with AI and how to spot where it risks
diminishing the valuable cognitive and social benefits of being literate--
