sloptells / “curious what others think”

active · discourse · first recorded 2026-07-02 · registers: hn

The engagement-bait close, and “curious” as a social lubricant in general: “I'm curious how it handles…”, “genuinely curious whether…”. 8× the human rate; widely complained about on social platforms.

examples

…I'm curious how it handles large captures and filtering performance…

evidence

occurrences per 10k words, measured 2026-10-26 (run #19, 3 current + 3 vintage models)

current AIvintage AI (2024/25)humans (matched)canon (great pre-AI prose)
pooled2.552.820.000.03
hn6.70—0.00
cooking0.00—0.00
parenting0.00—0.00
linkedin0.00——

history

rundateAI /10kvs humans
#22026-07-022.86×26 vs humans
#32026-07-022.85only in AI
#42026-07-062.02×17 vs humans
#52026-07-131.57×12 vs humans
#62026-07-203.17×29 vs humans
#72026-07-272.33×9.8 vs humans
#82026-08-032.40×19 vs humans
#92026-08-102.66only in AI
#102026-08-172.33×10 vs humans
#112026-08-312.63only in AI
#122026-09-073.48×29 vs humans
#132026-09-141.63×14 vs humans
#142026-09-212.04×5.8 vs humans
#152026-09-281.40×11 vs humans
#162026-10-052.75only in AI
#172026-10-121.31only in AI
#182026-10-192.36×10 vs humans
#192026-10-262.55only in AI

detector

regex: \b((genuinely|i'?m|i'?d be) )?curious (what|how|whether|if|to)\b

sources

← all tells