Most People Score Worse Than a Coin Flip

Good morning.
I took a quiz this week that I was pretty sure I would crush. I did fine, not perfect, and it turns out that gap between fine and perfect says more than you would think. Most people barely beat a coin flip. Keep reading and I will tell you what the quiz was, how I actually did, and why two wrong answers bothered me more than they probably should have.

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
The Ranch vs. Ketchup Debate Finally Has a Judge. Five completely pointless, genuinely fun things to ask AI tonight, including finally settling that one condiment argument your family refuses to let go.

The Skill That Now Matters in AI Art Isn't Drawing. Why having a strong sense of what looks right now matters more than knowing how to draw, and what that means for anyone who never thought of themselves as "the creative type."

The Family Game Nobody Saw Coming. Four family-tested ways to use AI this week, from dinner table trivia to the shoebox of old photos nobody's opened in years. Start with the trivia prompt if you want the fastest payoff.

PROMPTS FOR UPCOMING EVENTS
Do Try This at Home
Just copy-and-paste into your favorite AI tool. Remember to edit any brackets, then follow up with clarifying questions until you get a response that works for you.

National French Fry Day (July 10)
🍟 Crispy Fries At Home. "Act as a home fry chef. I want to make restaurant-style French fries at home tonight. Walk me through soaking, seasoning, and double-frying (or air-frying) for the crispiest result, and suggest two dipping sauces I probably already have ingredients for." · Try in ChatGPT · Try in Claude

National Pecan Pie Day (July 12)
🥧 Beginner's Pecan Pie. "Act as a Southern baking expert. Give me a foolproof pecan pie recipe for a beginner, including how to tell when the center is set without overbaking, and one twist I can add to make it feel special." · Try in ChatGPT · Try in Claude

National Beans 'n' Franks Day (July 13)
🫘 Backyard Beans and Franks. "Act as a backyard cookout planner. I am hosting a casual beans and franks dinner for six people this weekend. Give me a simple menu, a shopping list, and a timeline so everything is ready around the same time." · Try in ChatGPT · Try in Claude

National Mac & Cheese Day (July 14)
🧀 Creamier Stovetop Mac. "Act as a comfort food chef. I want a stovetop mac and cheese that is creamier than the boxed kind but does not require a dozen ingredients. Give me the recipe and one variation for picky eaters." · Try in ChatGPT · Try in Claude

National Hot Dog Day (July 15)
🌭 Grilled Hot Dog Toppings. "Act as a grill master. I am grilling hot dogs for a family get-together. Give me three topping combinations beyond ketchup and mustard, plus a tip for getting a good char without splitting the skins." · Try in ChatGPT · Try in Claude

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REAL WORLD
How We Used AI This Week
Real people, real uses—here’s how AI is quietly making life better, one small win at a time.

🛁 Judy, West Union, SC. Planning a full bathroom overhaul, tub out, walk-in shower in, single sink becoming a double, Judy uploaded photos of her space to ChatGPT and asked for vanity ideas that would fit. It picked up on her turquoise walls and coastal feel, then returned three coordinated design directions with specific vanity styles, mirror pairings, and hardware finishes. One upload, one question, three directions ready for the contractor.

🚗 Mark C., via The Rundown. After a vehicle accident left him assessed as at fault, Mark uploaded his dash cam footage to Gemini and asked it to take on the persona of a skilled traffic lawyer and build his defense. It wrote a detailed three-page letter to his insurance company, citing legislation and matching each point to a timestamp in the video. He was reassessed as not at fault.

👉How do you use AI at home? Tell us here.

Researchers at Lancaster University built a free, anonymous quiz that puts your instincts to the test. You read a handful of short passages and guess: human or AI. No account, no email, just your gut.

Most people score about as well as a coin flip. Not just casual readers either. Regular writers and editors who spend all day reading do about the same.

I took the quiz myself and got 8 out of 10 right, which felt good for about thirty seconds before I remembered that two wrong answers out of ten is not exactly mastery. See how you do, then tell me in the poll below.

READER POLL

NEWS YOU CAN USE
This Matters at Home
Short, practical summaries to help you stay updated on recent AI news—and what it means for everyday life.

🎭 Man Loses Life Savings to AI Voice Clone Scam. A Poway dad withdrew $18,000 in cash after scammers used an AI clone of his daughter's voice, sobbing apology and all. Lesson: hang up and call her back yourself.

🩺 A 75-Year-Old Doctor Explains How AI Changed His Bedside Manner. A Scottsdale physician says AI now handles his chart notes so he can look patients in the eye again. His bigger warning: AI is making every small business website sound exactly the same.

⌚ How Your Smartwatch and AI Might Detect Early Signs of Illness. Engadget breaks down what wearables are actually good at: spotting when your body veers off its normal pattern, not diagnosing you. Translation, your watch is a smoke detector, not a doctor.

👁️ A Teen's Science Fair Project Could Reshape Autism Screening. Seventeen-year-old Edward Kang built an AI tool that screens for autism and ADHD using retinal scans, hitting 89% accuracy in early testing. It won him $175,000 and a shot at earlier diagnoses down the road.

🤖 AI Can Now Beat Human Freelancers... Sometimes. A new benchmark found Anthropic's newest AI matched or beat professional freelancers on 16% of real gigs, up from under 3% last year. Your job is safe. For now.

🎙️ OpenAI's New Voice Mode Actually Listens While It Talks. GPT-Live ditches the awkward pause-and-wait routine for full-duplex, real-time conversation, complete with live translation and background reasoning. In testing, people preferred it three times out of four.

🐾 Samsung Just Put AI Pet Care on Your Fridge. Samsung updated SmartThings to add Pet Care into its AI-powered Now Brief briefing service, rolling out across Galaxy phones, newer TVs, and Family Hub refrigerators. Your morning briefing now includes the dog.

🧠 Anthropic Found a Hidden "Workspace" Inside Claude's Brain. Researchers discovered a spot inside Claude where it quietly thinks about concepts it never actually says out loud, sort of like the AI equivalent of biting your tongue before you say something you shouldn't.

TOOLS FOR YOU
🩺 Tool Spotlight: Superpower

Most of us only see the inside of our own bodies once a year, for about fifteen minutes, at a checkup. Superpower runs more than 100 biomarker blood tests, then uses AI to turn the results into an actual action plan instead of a chart full of numbers you have to Google. You also get a 24/7 care team to walk you through what it means. It runs $199 a year and qualifies for HSA or FSA funds. Start here.