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Learning Numbers

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These free worksheets help kids learn to recognize, read and write numbers from 1-20 .

Sample Kindergarten Learning Numbers Worksheet

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Explore all of our learning numbers worksheets (recognizing and printing numbers), counting worksheets (counting objects, skip counting, counting backwards) and comparing numbers worksheets ("more than", "less than", ordering numbers).

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Writing worksheets will supplement any child's education and help them build some of the fundamental skills to help them become good writers. Our collection of free writing worksheets starts with helping build the fine motor skills necessary to become an early writing. They then focus on making sure kids learn to write the letters of the alphabet and numbers. As ages progress, our writing worksheets get into spelling, grammar and some more advanced skills. Our set of "Think, Draw and Write" worksheets are a fun exercise for early writers. All of our writing worksheets are designed to print easily and are free to use over and over again!

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How to Teach Your Toddler to Write

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When Do Children Learn to Write?

How writing skills develop, what the research means, encouraging writing skills, a word from verywell.

When you really think about it, the fact that children learn a language , learn how to speak, and learn to write in such a short amount of time is extraordinary. As parents and caregivers and educators, we all want to encourage our children to learn the skills they will need for a lifetime, but many of us don't necessarily think a lot about how those skills develop—or at what age we can encourage our children to start learning skills like how to write.

We might think that children don't really learn how to write until they approach kindergarten age, but a 2017 research study uncovered some interesting findings that show otherwise. The study, published in the journal  Child Development, showed that children actually start to learn writing skills as early as age three.  

Previously, child development experts had assumed that children learned how to write only once they learned what sounds each letter represented. So, for example, once a child learned what "A" sounds like, they could connect that sound to a letter and from there, start to write the letters that are representing sounds.

Researchers found that children actually learn the fundamentals of writing before they learn what letters represent specific sounds.

Study co-author Rebecca Treiman, PhD, a professor of psychological and brain sciences, says her research shows that children actually display knowledge about the formulas of written language, such as which letters are usually grouped together before they learn what those letters actually represent.  

Young children are recognizing patterns in words—such as how long a word is and what letters go together—even before they know what those patterns mean or what the words mean.

This study, unlike other studies that examined how children's writing skills improve as they get older, looked at how early children actually learn how to write. The researchers found that children begin to write "words" that actually follow rules of the written language as early as age 3.

These words might not make sense, but they might follow a basic rule of looking like a word, with repeating letters that represent vowels or word types.  

Treiman's study looked at spellings of "words" from 179 children in the United States between the ages of 3 years 2 months and 5 years 6 months who were "prephonological" spellers. This simply means that they spelled words with letters that had no connection to the sounds of the letters in the actual words.

What they found was that when asked to spell a word like, "cat," for example, an older child may not be able to write any letters that actually sound like the letters in the word, but the child recognizes that "cat" is a shorter word than, say, "elephant," and writes down their word accordingly.

This skill improves as the child gets older, so the 5-year-olds had much better ability to write words that looked like words than the preschoolers.   The researchers based what looks like a "word" on a few standards, which included: length of a word, using different letters within the words, and how they combined the letters within the words.

This study is an important look at how children learn how to absorb the basic rules of reading and writing at younger ages than previously thought. Knowing this allows parents, caregivers, and educators to better teach young children the foundations of language, giving them a better start on life-long learning.

Dr. Treiman also pointed out that the findings might help educators develop a plan for identifying any potential learning disabilities early on, too. Children who have learning challenges benefit from early intervention, so identifying those challenges as early as possible could be very helpful.  

Don't worry about hosting a handwriting class with your little one. But you can definitely get started on introducing writing skills to your toddler if you would like. You may be curious to see how your toddler approaches reading and writing, if they will naturally gravitate towards a love of language, or if you should anticipate any problems.

But of course, keep in mind that kids change quite a bit from the toddler years to school-age years, too. To get started on introducing writing to your toddler:

Motor Development

Consider your toddler's motor development. If your toddler is following typical motor development, you can check their skill development timeline to see what they should be able to accomplish by age. If your toddler is too young to hold a crayon, for example, it may not be time to start introducing words just yet.

Large Writing Implements

Provide larger crayons, markers, or pens for your toddler to grasp. A three-year-old with typical development should be able to hold and color with a regular crayon, marker, or pencil, but a younger child may benefit from a larger crayon with a more stable base. The larger design makes it easier for the toddler to hold and start to draw on paper.

Lead your toddler in word games. There are many ways you can introduce the concept of words to your toddler . For example, you could draw a word with a corresponding picture, you could have your toddler practice writing words after you write them, or you could play "Snowman."

Snowman is like "Hangman," but child-appropriate. Draw lines for each letter in a word, have your toddler guess letters for the word, and each missed letter gets one part of the snowman.

Space to Learn

Give them freedom. Although it may seem tempting to try to lead your toddler into becoming a wordsmith by age 2, one of the best things you can do for your child is to simply step back and let them explore what it means to write all on their own.

They may imitate you or try to write words from their own books, but rest assured that play is the work of childhood and your little one always learns best through free play.

As always, the single best thing you can do for your child at any age is to read together . You can read to your toddler or have them "read" to you, but either way, studies show that reading together helps all aspects of communication, language development, and future abilities.

Plus, reading is always a fun activity to do together, and it's exciting to see research showing us that there is more development happening at even very young ages than we might have realized.

Treiman R, Kessler B, Boland K, Clocksin H, Chen Z. Statistical Learning and Spelling: Older Prephonological Spellers Produce More Wordlike Spellings Than Younger Prephonological Spellers . Child Dev. 2018;89(4):e431-e443. doi:10.1111/cdev.12893

Treiman R, Kessler B, Boland K, et al.   Statistical learning and spelling: Older prephonological spellers produce more wordlike spellings than younger prephonological spellers .  Child Development. 2018;89(4):e431-e443. doi:10.1111/cdev.12893

By Chaunie Brusie, RN, BSN Chaunie Brusie is a registered nurse with experience in long-term, critical care, and obstetrical and pediatric nursing.

• February 24, 2017

Learning to Write and Draw

Key takeaways.

• How Your Child’s Writing and Art Changes Over Time

Stage 1: Random Scribbling (15 months to 2½ years)

Stage 2: controlled scribbling (2 years to 3 years).

• Stage 3: Lines and Patterns (2½ years to 3½ years) 

Stage 4: Pictures of Objects or People (3 years to 5 years)

• Stage 5: Letter and Word Practice (3 to 5 years) 
• What Can You Do to Encourage Art and Writing Skills

How A Child’s Writing and Art Changes Over Time

Creativity is a bridge to learning. When a child is creative and curious, she can come up with answers to the problems she encounters—like how to keep the block tower from falling. Creativity helps a child become a thoughtful, inquisitive, and confident learner later on, when she starts school.

One of the most important ways that a toddler is tuning into her creativity is by experimenting with art materials. As she grabs that chunky crayon and gets to work, you will see her art and writing change and become more controlled and complex as she grows.

For very young children, art and early writing skills are one and the same. At first, it’s all about just figuring out what these cool things called crayons can do. Then the child discovers the link between her hand holding the crayon and the line she made on the page: Presto! She experiences the power of cause-and-effect. Imagine how exciting this must be for her! She can now make a real “mark” on the world. This leap in thinking skills is helped along by her new ability to hold things in her hands and fingers. The growing control a child has over the muscles in her hands lets her move a marker or paintbrush with purpose and with a goal in mind.

For very young children, there are four stages of drawing and writing that you may see as a child grows from 15 months old to 3 years old. Note that the timetables listed below are approximate; the child may master these skills faster or slower and still be developing just fine. Growth doesn’t happen at the same speed for every child, but by offering repeated fun experiences with a variety of art and writing materials, you will see forward progress over time.

This is the period when young children are just figuring out that their movements result in the lines and scribbles they see on the page. These scribbles are usually the result of large movements from the shoulder, with the crayon or marker held in the child’s fist. There is joy in creating art at all ages, but at this stage especially, many children relish the feedback they are getting from their senses: the way the crayon feels, the smell of the paint, the squishy-ness of the clay.

For other children, this sensory information may be too much and they may not enjoy some art activities at this stage (like finger-painting). As they grow to tolerate more sensory input, you can incrementally re-introduce art activities into their routine.

As children develop better control over the muscles in their hands and fingers, their scribbles begin to change and become more controlled. Toddlers may make repeated marks on the page—open circles, diagonal, curved, horizontal, or vertical lines. Over time, children make the transition to holding the crayon or marker between their thumb and pointer finger.

Stage 3: Lines and Patterns (2½ years to 3½ years)

Children now understand that writing is made up of lines, curves, and repeated patterns. They try to imitate this in their own writing. So while they may not write actual letters, you may see components of letters in their drawing. These might include lines, dots, and curves. This is an exciting time as a toddler realizes that his drawing conveys meaning! For example, he may write something down and then tell you what word it says. This is an important step toward reading and writing.

Many adults think of “pictures” as a picture of something. This ability to hold an image in your mind and then represent it on the page is a thinking skill that takes some time to develop. At first, children name their unplanned creations. This means that they finish the picture and then label their masterpiece with the names of people, animals, or objects they are familiar with. This changes over time.

Soon you will see the child clearly planning prior to drawing what he will create. You will also see more detail in the pictures, more control in the way the child handles the crayon or marker, and the use of more colors. What else to be on the lookout for? Children’s first pictures often build off circles. So, you may see a sun—an irregular circle, with lots of stick “rays” shooting out—or a person (usually a circle with roughly recognizable human features).

Once a child has begun to purposefully draw images, she has mastered symbolic thinking. This important milestone in thinking skills means that a child understands that lines on paper can be a symbol of something else, like a house, a cat, or a person. At this stage, the child also begins to understand the difference between pictures and writing. So you may see him draw a picture and then scribble some “words” underneath to describe what he has drawn or to tell a story. When a child is able to share his story with you, he will be motivated to “author” more and more work as he grows.

Stage 5: Letter and Word Practice (3 to 5 years)

Children have had experience with letters and print for several years now and are beginning to use letters in their own writing. Usually children start by experimenting with the letters in their own names, as these are most familiar to them. They also make “pretend letters” by copying familiar letter shapes, and will often assume that their created letter must be real because it looks like other letters they have seen (Robertson, 2007).

During this time, children also begin to understand that some words are made of symbols that are shorter and some words are made of symbols that are longer. As a result, their scribbles change. Rather than one long string of letters or letter-like shapes, a child’s writing now has short and long patterns that look like words or sentences. While these letters and words are probably not technically correct, it does not matter. This exciting milestone means that the child is beginning to understand that text and print have meaning.

How to Encourage Art and Writing Skills

No need for instructions..

Let children experiment and explore. Creativity means having the power to express yourself in your own way (Lagoni et al., 1989). This independence is just what a growing toddler is looking for to feel confident, competent, and clever. By sitting nearby, observing, and taking pleasure in your child’s creation, you are providing all the guidance he needs.

Notice the process, not just the product.

As parents, we often tend to compliment children on their successes:  What’s that a picture of? A house? That’s great!  And sometimes we get hung up on the fact that trees should be green, not purple. Sometimes we quiz:  What’s the name of that color? But children learn more when we don’t focus so much on what they are drawing, but on what they are thinking about their drawing. Take a few moments to observe a child’s work: Look at the lines you are making—there are so many of them!  Or,  That picture is really interesting. Those colors make me feel happy.  Or,  I see you are working really hard on your drawing.  Or just:  Tell me about your picture. Then see if the child is interested in sharing more.

Experiment with a variety of art materials as your child nears 3.

Let children paint with cotton balls, q-tips, sponges, string—you name it. Give a child crayons and rub over a textured surface (like a coin or a screen). Draw with chalk outside on a sidewalk; see how water changes the color of the chalk. Add powdered paint or glitter to a child’s sand play. Or add a new dimension to water play by adding drops of washable food coloring to the water. What happens when you mix two different colors of water together?

Use art to help a child express strong feelings.

Is the child having a tantrum? Offer some play-dough or set out the markers and paper and suggest she make a very, very angry picture. Creative activities can sometimes help children express and make sense of feelings that are too intense for them to share in words.

Encourage a child’s attempts to write.

If the child scribbles something and then tells you what he “wrote,” take it seriously. Let him take his “shopping list” to the supermarket or mail his (scribbled) letter to Grandma. This is how children learn that words are powerful and have meaning.

Display your child’s art and writing.

This is how a child knows her work is valued and important.

Creative activities help children to learn how to solve problems, come up with their own answers, discover the cause-and-effect of their actions, and feel confident about the choices they make. Art experiences help children develop independence within limits, and gives them the opportunity to represent their ideas on paper or in other formats. Most important, creative expression lets children tap into the magic of their own imaginations—which is what being a child is all about.

Resources and References

Farrell-Kirk, R. (2007 February).  Tips on understanding and encouraging your child’s artistic development.  Downloaded on June 10, 2008.

Gable, S. (2000).  Creativity in young children.  University of Missouri Extension. Downloaded on June 10, 2008.

Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service. (n.d.).  My child is an artist! The stages of artistic development.  Downloaded on June 10, 2008.

Lagoni, L. S., Martin, D. H., Maslin-Cole, C., Cook, A., MacIsaac, K., Parrill, G., Bigner, J., Coker, E., & Sheie, S. (1989). Good times being creative. In  Good times with child care  (pp. 239–253). Fort Collins, CO: Colorado State University Cooperative Extension. Downloaded on June 10, 2008.

Levinger, L, & Mott, A. (n.d.).  Developmental phases in art.  Downloaded on June 10, 2008.

Robertson, R. (2007, July/August). The meaning of marks: Understanding and nurturing young children’s writing development.  Child Care Exchange, 176 , 40–44.

Browse our full suite of resources on early childhood development.

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Number Rhymes Make Learning Numbers as Easy as 1, 2, 3!

Learning the numbers from 0-9 is a snap with these quick and easy rhymes.  We recommend using them repeatedly throughout your day (when you do calendar, count how many kids are present/absent/want lunch, or any other time you’re counting).  With a little repetition, these poems will quickly become a helpful reminder of how to form the numbers.

Number Poems     0 – Around and around and around we go – now we have the number zero.   1- Straight line down and now we’re done – now we have the number one.   2- First you make a candy cane.  Then you put on a shoe.  Now we have the number two.   3- Around the tree, around the tree, now we have the number three.   4- Down and across and down some more, now we have the number four. 5- Short neck, belly fat, Mr. Five wears a hat.   6- Curve around until it sticks.  Now we have the number six.   7- Across the sky, down from heaven.  Now we have the number seven.   8- First you make an “s”, then you close the gate.  Now you have the number eight.   9 – First you make a circle, then you add a line.  Now you have the number nine.  

September 21, 2022 at 10:38 am

Great job done .I really appreciate the rhyme for numbers 1 to 9

February 7, 2023 at 4:31 am

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• Typing Games

Easy Online Spelling Practice and Games

This website offers easy interactive spelling practice for kids in early elementary years (grades 1, 2, 3 and 4). Just type, listen and learn English - learning spelling can be as simple as that!

In this page you set up which words to test students on. The next page - after you hit the “Online Spelling Test” button - lets the kids tackle the spelling test and check their performance.

This free spelling website acts like an online computer program, in which you can create your own spelling lists, and have word games with your own words. All the games and the other educational interactive activities on this website are totally free!

The Word's Pronunciation

You can also use this website to learn how to pronounce English words. Each word is pronounced slowly and clearly, stressing and emphasizing each syllable and consonant. This makes it great for ESL students and special education students as well, helping to discover new English words and their correct pronunciation.

The Spelling Games & Activities

Online spelling test.

This is a simple test in which you hear the words of your list in random order, and type them inside the text boxes. Do your best to spell them correctly. At the end, you can press the "Check" button to see how well you have done. If you made a mistake, you can click a mistaken word to see its correct form. You can also ask to repeat the test with only the mistaken words.

Practice Your Words

This online practice will guide you step by step until you know how to write each word correctly just by hearing it. It consists of three phases: in the first phase, the letters to type are highlighted on the keyboard. in the second phase the word will still be presented, and you will copy it. In the third phase, you will type it from solely hearing it.

Reading With Spaceships & Reading With Balloons

These are two similar games, one in is more action themed, and the other is calmer. They practice reading the words and matching them to the words you hear. It's an easy reading activity, best for kids in 1st grade and 2nd grade.

Spelling Sharks

This is an action online spelling game. When you type correctly the words you hear, you can eliminate the sharks that are threatening the goldfish. The typing is under time pressure, yet you can press the "clue" button to have the word flashed on the screen. This activity can be challenging, and is more suitable for kids in 3rd grade and 4th grade.

This is a classic hangman game, using your own words. It's unique because you can actually hear the hidden words.

Word Search Puzzle

Immediately create a challenging online word search puzzle from your own list of words. After every word you find, you will hear it pronounced. The puzzles are dynamically created, and can sometimes be challenging even for kids in 5th grade and 6th grade.

The Spelling Lists

The lists are arranged in stages that coordinate to the children's development through spelling patterns, also called features. The beginning lists for first graders allow the kids to approach the words one sound at a time (i.e. initial consonants), to then building more of a sight word vocabulary (i.e. word families). Moving on from there, learners in second grade are able to chunk parts of words and process them more fluently when they read (i.e. consonant blends). Third graders continue the fluency of reading while they explore the meanings of words (i.e. silent consonants), while fourth graders can handle more complex spelling patterns (i.e. double consonant with e-drop). Of course, a student may overlap in stages, for instance, a second grader may still need some work on a few "first grade" features, or may dabble in some third grade features. They are merely an average "snapshot" for students in elementary school. In addition to the lists for each grade level, there are many "themed" lists for students of all ages to enjoy (themes such as September, Halloween, Winter, Earth Day, Science Day etc.) Spelling and studying words ultimately promotes a greater interest in reading and writing. When a child has word understanding and vocabulary knowledge, all aspects of Language Arts are enhanced.

Instructions

Which English words would you like to study? Type them into the empty spaces above. Once you do, you can click on the “Listen” button to hear how the word you typed is pronounced. Sometimes there is more than one way to pronounce a word - for example, “read” sounds different in the past: “I read this book yesterday” to the way it sounds in the future: “I will read this book tomorrow”. In this case you can hit the “Alternate” button to switch between the different pronunciations and choose the right one. You can also choose from the word lists we've prepared already in the drop-down menu. When you have finished adding words, choose an activity from one of the green buttons. The spelling list will appear for the students. They should read it carefully and, when ready, start the activity. When finished, the students will have the option to restart the activity or to exit to the main menu. In most cases, they will also get the option to repeat the activity with only the words they had trouble with.

Happy learning!

Comments & Feedback

Do you have a word you would like to add to those already recorded? Teachers and parents are welcome to send their word requests to my email at [email protected] and I’ll be happy to work on it. You can also contact me with questions, comments and suggestions.

Reading Informational Texts Using the 3-2-1 Strategy

• Resources & Preparation
• Instructional Plan
• Related Resources

Being able to read informational texts effectively is a fundamental quality of successful readers. In this lesson, students in grades K-2 learn to use the 3-2-1 strategy, which involves writing about three things they discovered, two things they found interesting, and one question they still have. After teacher modeling, students read a magazine article independently and use the 3-2-1 strategy to comprehend what they read. This strategy can be adapted and used with older students as well.

From Theory to Practice

Good readers use effective strategies when reading to help them comprehend text. The 3-2-1 strategy requires students to summarize key ideas from the text and encourages them to think independently. First, students write about three things they discovered. Next, they write about two things they found interesting. Last, they write one question they still have. This strategy can be used while reading a variety of texts to actively and meaningfully engage students with the text.

Evidence exists that supports the need for primary teachers to use informational texts in their classrooms. Teaching students effective strategies to use while reading informational texts can greatly assist students in comprehending what they read.

Common Core Standards

This resource has been aligned to the Common Core State Standards for states in which they have been adopted. If a state does not appear in the drop-down, CCSS alignments are forthcoming.

State Standards

This lesson has been aligned to standards in the following states. If a state does not appear in the drop-down, standard alignments are not currently available for that state.

NCTE/IRA National Standards for the English Language Arts

• 1. Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.
• 3. Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
• Informational Text & 3-2-1 Strategy: Assessment Rubric
• 3-2-1 Strategy: Self-Assessment Sheet
• 3-2-1 Strategy Chart

Preparation

Student objectives.

Students will demonstrate comprehension of an informational article read from a magazine using the 3-2-1 strategy.

When all students have completed their 3-2-1 Strategy Charts , allow time for them to share what they learned from reading their articles with one another in small groups or as a whole class.

• Have students research answers to the questions they still have.
• Ask students to use the 3-2-1 strategy for a homework assignment or as a book report.
• Modify the strategy for a specific text or topic, requiring students to read for particular information. For example, if you are reading a text about polar bears, ask students to list three things they discovered about the polar bear's diet.
• Have students use the strategy when reading classroom magazines, such as Weekly Reader .
• Assign students to write a report, and then have students read one another's reports using the 3-2-1 strategy.

Student Assessment / Reflections

Comprehension of the informational text read may be assessed through the students’ responses on the 3-2-1 Strategy Chart using the Informational Text & 3-2-1 Strategy: Assessment Rubric .

You may also have students complete the 3-2-1 Strategy: Self-Assessment Sheet .

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Book Title: 1, 2, 3 Write!

Subtitle: A textbook for WR115 "Introduction to College Writing"

Author: Gay Monteverde

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Book Description: Cover Design: Anne Sigrun 1, 2, 3 Write! provides step-by-step instruction to build college writing skills. It combines comprehensive grammar and mechanics review with sentence, paragraph and essay writing techniques and practice. Links to example essays from professional and student writers demonstrate the skills studied and provide reading and critical thinking opportunities.

Book Information

Book description.

1, 2, 3 Write! provides step-by-step instruction to build college writing skills. It combines comprehensive grammar and mechanics review with sentence, paragraph and essay writing techniques and practice. Links to example essays from professional and student writers demonstrate the skills studied and provide reading and critical thinking opportunities.

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This book is a cloned version of Writing for Success by [Author removed at request of original publisher], published using Pressbooks by University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing edition, 2015. This edition adapted from a work originally produced in 2010 by a publisher who has requested that it not receive attribution. under a CC BY-NC-SA (Attribution NonCommercial ShareAlike) license. It may differ from the original.

1, 2, 3 Write! Copyright © 2020 by Gay Monteverde is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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UMGC Effective Writing Center Designing an Effective Thesis

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Key Concepts

• A thesis is a simple sentence that combines your topic and your position on the topic.
• A thesis provides a roadmap to what follows in the paper.
• A thesis is like a wheel's hub--everything revolves around it and is attached to it.

After your prewriting activities-- such as assignment analysis and outlining--you should be ready to take the next step: writing a thesis statement. Although some of your assignments will provide a focus for you, it is still important for your college career and especially for your professional career to be able to state a satisfactory controlling idea or thesis that unifies your thoughts and materials for the reader.

Characteristics of an Effective Thesis

A thesis consists of two main parts: your overall topic and your position on that topic. Here are some example thesis statements that combine topic and position:

Sample Thesis Statements

Importance of tone.

Tone is established in the wording of your thesis, which should match the characteristics of your audience. For example, if you are a concerned citizen proposing a new law to your city's board of supervisors about drunk driving, you would not want to write this:

“It’s time to get the filthy drunks off the street and from behind the wheel: I demand that you pass a mandatory five-year license suspension for every drunk who gets caught driving. Do unto them before they do unto us!”

However, if you’re speaking at a concerned citizen’s meeting and you’re trying to rally voter support, such emotional language could help motivate your audience.

Using Your Thesis to Map Your Paper for the Reader

In academic writing, the thesis statement is often used to signal the paper's overall structure to the reader. An effective thesis allows the reader to predict what will be encountered in the support paragraphs. Here are some examples:

Use the Thesis to Map

Three potential problems to avoid.

Because your thesis is the hub of your essay, it has to be strong and effective. Here are three common pitfalls to avoid:

1. Don’t confuse an announcement with a thesis.

In an announcement, the writer declares personal intentions about the paper instead stating a thesis with clear point of view or position:

Write a Thesis, Not an Announcement

 2. a statement of fact does not provide a point of view and is not a thesis..

An introduction needs a strong, clear position statement. Without one, it will be hard for you to develop your paper with relevant arguments and evidence.

Don't Confuse a Fact with a Thesis

3. avoid overly broad thesis statements.

Broad statements contain vague, general terms that do not provide a clear focus for the essay.

Use the Thesis to Provide Focus

Practice writing an effective thesis.

OK. Time to write a thesis for your paper. What is your topic? What is your position on that topic? State both clearly in a thesis sentence that helps to map your response for the reader.

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8 Ways to Create AI-Proof Writing Prompts

C reating 100 percent AI-proof writing prompts can often be impossible but that doesn’t mean there aren’t strategies that can limit the efficacy of AI work. These techniques can also help ensure more of the writing submitted in your classroom is human-generated. 

I started seeing a big uptick in AI-generated work submitted in my classes over the last year and that has continued. As a result, I’ve gotten much better at recognizing AI work , but I’ve also gotten better at creating writing prompts that are less AI-friendly. 

Essentially, I like to use the public health Swiss cheese analogy when thinking about AI prevention: All these strategies on their own have holes but when you layer the cheese together, you create a barrier that’s hard to get through. 

The eight strategies here may not prevent students from submitting AI work, but I find these can incentivize human writing and make sure that any work submitted via AI will not really meet the requirements of the assignment. 

1. Writing AI-Proof Prompts: Put Your Prompt Into Popular AI tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot, and Bard 

Putting your writing prompt into an AI tools will give you an immediate idea of how most AI tools will handle your prompt. If the various AI chatbots do a good, or at least adequate, job immediately, it might be wise to tweak the prompt. 

One of my classes asks students to write about a prized possession. When you put this prompt into an AI chatbot, it frequently returns an essay about a family member's finely crafted watch. Obviously, I now watch out for any essays about watches. 

2. Forbid Cliché Use

Probably the quickest and easiest way to cut back on some AI use is to come down hard on cliché use in writing assignments. AI tools are essentially cliché machines, so banning these can prevent a lot of AI use. 

Equally as important, this practice will help your students become better writers. As any good writer knows, clichés should be avoided like the plague. 

3. Incorporate Recent Events

The free version of ChatGPT only has access to events up to 2022. While there are plugins to allow it to search the internet and other internet-capable AI tools, some students won’t get further than ChatGPT. 

More importantly, in my experience, all AI tools struggle to incorporate recent events as effectively as historic ones. So connecting class material and assignments to events such as a recent State of Union speech or the Academy Awards will make any AI writing use less effective. 

4. Require Quotes

AI tools can incorporate direct quotations but most are not very good at doing so. The quotes used tend to be very short and not as well-placed within essays. 

Asking an AI tool for recent quotes also can be particularly problematic for today’s robot writers. For instance, I asked Microsoft's Copilot to summarize the recent Academy Awards using quotes, and specifically asked it to quote from Oppenheimer's director Christopher Nolan’s acceptance speech. It quoted something Nolan had previously said instead. Copilot also quoted from Wes Anderson’s acceptance speech, an obvious error since Anderson wasn’t at the awards .  

5. Make Assignments Personal

Having students reflect on material in their own lives can be a good way to prevent AI writing. In-person teachers can get to know their students well enough to know when these types of personal details are fabricated. 

I teach online but still find it easier to tell when a more personalized prompt was written by AI. For example, one student submitted a paper about how much she loved skateboarding that was so non-specific it screamed AI written. Another submitted a post about a pair of sneakers that was also clearly written by a "sole-less" AI (I could tell because of the clichés and other reasons). 

6. Make Primary or Scholarly Sources Mandatory

Requiring sources that are not easily accessible on the internet can stop AI writing in its tracks. I like to have students find historic newspapers for certain assignments. The AI tools I am familiar with can’t incorporate these. 

For instance, I asked Copilot to compare coverage of the first Academy Awards in the media to the most recent awards show and to include quotes from historic newspaper coverage. The comparison was not well done and there were no quotes from historical newspaper coverage. 

AI tools also struggle to incorporate journal articles. Encouraging your students to include these types of sources ensures the work they produce is deeper than something that can be revealed by a quick Google search, which not only makes it harder for AI to write but also can raise the overall quality.  

7. Require Interviews, Field Trips, Etc. 

Building on primary and scholarly sources, you can have your students conduct interviews or go on field trips to historic sites, museums, etc. 

AI is still, thankfully, incapable of engaging in these types of behavior. This requires too much work for every assignment but it is the most effective way to truly ensure your work is human- not computer-written. 

If you’re still worried about AI use, you can even go a step further by asking your students to include photos of them with their interview subjects or from the field trips. Yes, AI art generators are getting better as well, but remember the Swiss cheese analogy? Every layer of prevention can help. 

8. Have Students Write During Class

As I said to start, none of the methods discussed are foolproof. Many ways around these safeguards already exist and there will be more ways to bypass these in the future. So if you’re really, really worried about AI use you may want to choose what I call the “nuclear option.” If you teach in person you can require students to write essays in person. 

This approach definitely works for preventing AI and is okay for short pieces, but for longer pieces, it has a lot of downsides. I would have trouble writing a long piece in this setting and imagine many students will as well. Additionally, this requirement could create an accusatory class atmosphere that is more focused on preventing AI use than actually teaching. It’s also not practical for online teaching. 

That all being said, given how common AI writing has become in education, I understand why some teachers will turn to this method. Hopefully, suggestions 1-7 will work but if AI-generated papers are still out of hand in your classroom, this is a blunt-force method that can work temporarily. 

Good luck and may your assignments be free of AI writing! 

• 7 Ways To Detect AI Writing Without Technology
• Best Free AI Detection Sites
• My Student Was Submitting AI Papers. Here's What I Did

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How to Learn a Language by Studying Smarter, Not Harder

Just like most things in life, if you know the tips, tricks and hacks for learning something, the process usually goes much smoother, and much more successfully.

So if you’re looking for tips on how to learn a language effectively, read on. We’ve got seven key tips for you to consider on your language learning journey.

1. Use Visual Elements to Memorize New Words

2. write something every day, 3. watch tv and listen to radio and podcasts in the target language, 4. read books at your actual level, 5. branch out from textbooks, 6. learn what interests you, 7. take initiative and personalize your learning style, and one more thing....

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Summary: Using visual elements is the best method to learn new words, as they trigger associations in our head, making it easier to remember permanently, not just learn by rote.

To understand and speak a language, several thousand words will be enough to get by in conversation and while reading modern writing. You’ll need more if you’re going to tackle more specialized or academic writing, or perhaps if you’re going to become a translator or interpreter. But we all have to start somewhere.

How do you know which words to learn and remember?

We live in the digital era when the internet surrounds us everywhere. So, check the list of most widely used words in the language you’re learning or download some apps that show you popular words, helping you to remember them along the way.

Summary: Write blog posts, diary entries, shopping lists, notes to yourself or anything else that is already part of your daily life, but do it all in your target language. Using grammar in practice will improve your skills many times over.

Certainly, grammar is important, and no one is going to say that you shouldn’t learn it. But just writing sometimes, free of grammar concerns, is very helpful for language learning, too.

Regardless of the language, grammar is always tricky for non-native speakers (well, let’s be honest: it’s often tricky for native speakers, too). All those gerunds, tenses, infinitives and exceptions are useful when you write academic essays, do research or write professional emails. You need to build a foundation of great grammar in order to speak and write correctly.

However, if your primary goal is to communicate, prepare for a trip abroad or master just the basics, don’t stress about this too much. If you’re seriously turned off by the nitty gritty of grammar, don’t torture yourself trying to remember all the rules at once.

Many learners get discouraged by the idea of studying grammar and end up avoiding their daily practice. Don’t procrastinate. On days when grammar fills you with dread, treat yourself to some movies, games or music videos in your target language. Keep building familiarity with the language every day, and you’ll start learning grammar naturally.

Some educators recommend starting off with full immersion—constant exposure to the language through a diversity of authentic materials—and never cracking open a textbook or starting formal grammar study until you’ve developed basic proficiency in the language. You can always give this route a try!

Summary: To develop your listening skills, you can watch movies or TV shows with subtitles, listen to a radio show in your target language, play games , try to understand all words from your favorite songs and so on. Keep it fun and casual! Listening to  TED lectures  is always a good decision, too.

While learning a foreign language, we usually pay lots of undue attention to vocabulary and grammar. Our goal is to learn how to read, write and speak.

That’s all well and good, but we often forget about listening to a target language despite the fact that it’s key to understanding and communication.

Learners too often discover the hard way that speaking a language and understanding it aren’t the same thing.

Sometimes one can speak but can hardly understand native speakers at all while listening to songs or watching a movie in the target language. Never underestimate the importance of listening skills; you need to practice them on a daily basis.

Summary: If you’re at the beginner level of learning, children’s books would be the best option for you. Intermediate and advanced learners can always try reading simplified versions of classics to learn some new words and grammar rules. If you’re pretty advanced, you can start tiptoeing towards the classics. Start with modern classics.

I bet your past or current language teachers have assigned you the task to read a book in the language you’re learning, make a vocabulary list of unknown words from it, learn them and discuss the book in the classroom afterward.

Such exercises are great unless your teacher asks you to read classic literature in the target language. They often don’t, and instead opt for abridged and otherwise simplified reading material.

First of all, it can be difficult to understand a plot and get pleasure from reading a book if you don’t know the meaning of most words. The “extensive reading” method encourages learners to choose texts where they know 95% of the words on any given page .

Secondly, books of classics may contain lots of archaic vocabulary (let’s take Shakespeare, for example). There’s no real need to learn all words from classics, as no one uses them in everyday language anymore.

However, many language learners make the mistake that teachers strive so hard to avoid—they dive into deep, complex literature and other texts that are well outside their reading level. They want to read what they want to read, even if they can’t read it! As you may already know, it can be very discouraging when you don’t understand most of what you’re reading.

You’re not giving yourself the chance to develop good reading habits. You won’t learn how to get into the flow of a native text if you’re constantly stopping to use your dictionary. You also won’t be able to pick up words via context if most of the language is way above your head (for the time being), and this kind of deductive work is critical for learning a language effectively.

Summary: Use all sorts of resources for learning your target language: newspapers, vlogs, novels, short stories, comments sections, advertisements, grocery lists—anything!

Going by the book is one of the biggest mistakes you can make while learning a foreign language.

The textbook can give you all the essential building blocks, but it can’t take you much farther.

Have you ever heard the people speaking in the audio files accompanying English textbooks? They’re speaking perfectly correct English, but they sound a bit forced and awkward at times. That’s because they’re reading a script designed for learners. It’s easy on the ears, and great for becoming familiar with the basics of language, but you’ll probably never hear a native speaker who talks quite like that.

Slang, idioms, jokes, regional dialects, pop culture references…they usually can’t be learned from standard textbooks. To really understand native speakers, you must learn casual language.

This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use textbooks at all. Some of them are worth trying, and one can find many reasons to use modern textbooks : They’re well-designed, they provide useful content and a road map for learning, they give lots of practice opportunities and they usually offer audio components.

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

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Summary: Find materials about subjects that interest you. If you’re an accountant, that might be accounting statements from a large foreign company, or if you’re an art aficionado, read the latest museum exhibition guides in their original language.

Some learners aren’t super passionate about languages, and instead consider reaching fluency just another task to complete. It’s just another task on a life list, bucket list or resume building plan. There are a couple of noteworthy problems with this:

• It’s very difficult to pinpoint the exact moment you reach fluency, so you may never be able to check the “task complete” box.
• You don’t know a language just because you score all A’s and 100’s on your exams.
• You need to find some personal motivation coming from within to really master a language without ever losing focus.

You can’t just study for the test. Fluency doesn’t come until after you’ve put your language skills into action, spoken with natives for hours, listened to native speakers intently and followed their directions. You also need to learn the culture behind the language to a certain extent, or you’ll find a large gap between you and natives while communicating.

Not to mention, you have to constantly be updating your language knowledge. Languages change and develop all the time. Don’t miss a chance to learn the culture of those people whose language you learn, chat with your native speaker friends, watch movies, listen to songs, travel to countries and interact with locals.

Summary: Seek out teachers and fellow students who learn like you like to learn and build a learning community, in real life or online.

This may be the most common mistake made by language learners. They rely on whatever course they’re taking, whether they’re taking it through a college, university or institute online, at home or abroad. This “reliance” comes in two forms:

• Relying on the course to give you all the material and exposure you need to learn.
• Holding the course or teacher responsible for your successes and failures.

When you learn a language, it’s good to have a teacher who will help and support you, but it doesn’t mean he or she can do everything for you. Teachers guide you—they can’t inject the language straight into your brain. It’s only you who’s responsible for your learning.

If you feel like the books and materials your school gives you aren’t effective or sufficient on their own, find a different textbook or other language learning materials to accompany the coursework. If the coursework doesn’t target your preferred learning style, learn how you learn best on your own time. If you learn best through music or visual cues, but simply don’t get enough of that in class, take care of yourself at home later.

Don’t only do your homework, study for tests and call it a day. Read and listen to your target language every day, communicate in it, go to language exchange clubs, make friends with native speakers and seek out new articles, blog posts, YouTube videos and more in that language. Become ravenous. Consume as much of the target language as you can on a daily basis.

Ask your school to assist you where needed, manage your emotions and try to stay motivated and optimistic.

If you don’t study properly and perform poorly on tests, take responsibility for this. If you ace all the reading and writing assignments but can’t speak without a heavy accent, then take responsibility for this and double up on speaking practice. The teacher and coursework can only get you so far.

Take these tips to heart and I think you’ll find your language learning journey moves faster than you ever thought it could. It’ll also be more fun!

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Understanding the generative AI development process

Developing generative ai applications is very different from developing traditional machine learning applications. these are the steps..

Contributor, InfoWorld |

Back in the ancient days of machine learning , before you could use large language models (LLMs) as foundations for tuned models, you essentially had to train every possible machine learning model on all of your data to find the best (or least bad) fit. By ancient, I mean prior to the seminal paper on the transformer neural network architecture, “ Attention is all you need ,” in 2017.

Yes, most of us continued to blindly train every possible machine learning model for years after that. It was because only hyper-scalers and venture-funded AI companies had access to enough GPUs or TPUs or FPGAs and vast tracts of text to train LLMs, and it took a while before the hyper-scalers started sharing their LLMs with the rest of us (for a “small” fee).

In the new paradigm for generative AI , the development process is very different from how it used to be. The overall idea is that you initially pick your generative AI model or models. Then you fiddle with your prompts (sometimes called “ prompt engineering ,” which is an insult to actual engineers) and adjust its hyperparameters to get the model to behave the way you want.

If necessary, you can ground the model (connect it to new data) with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) using vector embeddings, vector search , and data that wasn’t in the base LLM’s initial training. If that isn’t enough to get your model working the way you need, you can fine-tune the model against your own tagged data, or even (if you can afford it) engage in continued pre-training of the model with a large body of untagged data. One reason to fine-tune a model is to allow it to chat with the user and maintain context over the course of a conversation (e.g., ChatGPT ). That’s typically not built into a foundation model (e.g., GPT).

Agents expand on the idea of conversational LLMs with some combination of tools, running code, embeddings, and vector stores. In other words, they are RAG plus additional steps. Agents often help to specialize LLMs to specific domains and to tailor the output of the LLM. Various platforms, frameworks, and models simplify the integration of LLMs with other software and services.

Steps in the generative AI development process

• Model selection
• Prompt engineering
• Hyperparameter tuning
• Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG)
• Model fine-tuning
• Continued model pre-training

Step 1: Model selection

First of all, when you pick models, think about how you’ll switch to different models later on. LLMs improve almost daily, so you don’t want to lock yourself in to what may turn out to be a suboptimal or even obsolete model in the near future. To help with this issue, you should probably pick at least two models from different vendors.

You also need to consider the ongoing cost of inference. If you choose a model offered as a service, you’ll pay per inference, which will cost you less if you have low traffic. If you choose a model as a platform, you’ll have a fixed monthly cost for the VM you provision to handle the traffic, typically thousands of dollars, given that generative models usually require large VMs with lots of RAM, tens or hundreds of CPUs, and at least a single-digit number of GPUs.

Some companies require their generative AI models to be open source , and some don’t care. Currently, there are a few good generative AI models that are strictly open source, for example the Meta Llama models; the majority of large models are proprietary. More open-source generative AI models, such as Grok (almost but not quite FOSS) from X and DBRX from Databricks, are being released on what seems like a weekly basis.

Step 2: Prompt engineering

Prompt engineering is the easiest and fastest way to customize LLMs. It’s a little like a piece by Mozart in that it seems simple, but requires some skill and subtlety to perform well.

Millions of words have been written about prompt engineering. A quick search on the term returned over 300 million results. Instead of trying to boil that ocean, let’s highlight some of the most useful prompt engineering techniques.

Overall strategies for getting good results from generative AI prompts include many that should be obvious, for example “write clear instructions,” which is OpenAI’s top prompt engineering suggestion. The detailed tactics may not be quite so obvious, however, at least partially because it’s easy to forget that superficially friendly chatbots are literally just models running on a computer and can’t read your mind.

Prompt engineering pointers

For example, you may need to spell out what you want the model to do, step by step, as though you’re supervising a new, young employee. You may need to demonstrate the output format you want the model to use. You may have to iterate your instructions until the model gives you the length of answers that you want. You may have to explicitly tell the model to stick to the facts and not to interpolate. One useful (but not infallible) prompt for that is, “If you can’t answer for lack of information, please say that.” You may want to ask the model to adopt a persona, although that may or may not be enough. For example, telling a model that it is an expert in some field doesn’t necessarily equip it to be an expert.

It’s almost always helpful to provide exemplars, especially if you provide them in prompt/response pairs. Consider the Azure AI Studio Shakespearean Writing Assistant sample, defined as follows.

System message You are a Shakespearean writing assistant who speaks in a Shakespearean style. You help people come up with creative ideas and content like stories, poems, and songs that use William Shakespeare’s style of writing including words like "thou" and "hath”. Here are some examples of Shakespeare's style: - Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? - Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind; and therefore is winged Cupid painted blind. - Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

That turns out to be enough to convince GPT 3.5 Turbo to use Shakespeare’s style in a nice way, but not enough to get it to produce rants like Grumio’s in Taming of the Shrew : “Fie, fie on all tired jades, on all mad masters, and all foul ways.” The filters built into the model (or the platform) will cause it to try to produce a nice speech in Shakespeare’s style rather than an insulting one, even if asked for a rant.

Query Write an insulting rant about the recipient's unknown parentage and lack of intelligence. Response Good morrow, dear sir or madam, I must confess 'Tis not within my nature to engage in such distress For Shakespeare's words, though sharp, were not meant to wound But rather to uplift, to inspire, and astound So let us speak of wit and cleverness instead …

Setting the bad rhyme wound/astound aside, perhaps the response can be fixed by adding the Grumio quote as an example of a rant and applying the change to the prompt. Let’s try that.

User: Write a rant Assistant: Fie, fie on all tired jades, on all mad masters, and all foul ways.

With this addition applied, the model can produce a bit of refined fire.

Query Write an insulting rant about the recipient's unknown parentage and lack of intelligence. Response Oh, wretched soul! Thy parentage unknown, A mystery that doth make thy spirit groan. For in thy veins, no noble blood doth flow, But rather, ignorance and folly's show. Thy mind, a barren wasteland, void of sense, Where reason doth not dwell, nor intelligence. Thy thoughts, like foolish flies, do buzz and flit, A mockery of wit, a pitiful skit. …

You’ll note that the model didn’t generate the words “bastard” or “idiot.” Those words are most likely explicitly filtered out. If you want to try adding the Macbeth quote, “It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing,” as an exemplar, why, be my guest. You could also add the Troilus and Cressida quote that starts, “I am a bastard, too,” if you like.

Use a document in a prompt

Another useful strategy is to provide a document as part of your prompt and ask the model to rely on it. Some models can look up a web page from its URL; others require you to supply the text. You’ll need to clearly separate your instructions for the model from the document text you want it to use, and, for summarization and entity extraction tasks, specify that the response should depend only on the supplied text.

Providing a document usually works well if the document is short. If the document is longer than the model’s context window, the tail end of the document won’t be read. That’s one reason that generative AI model developers are constantly increasing their models’ context windows. Gemini 1.5 Pro has a context window of up to 1 million tokens available to a select audience on Google Vertex AI Studio , although currently hoi polloi have to suffer with a “mere” 128K-token context window. As we’ll discuss later, one way to get around context window limits is to use RAG.

If you ask a LLM for a summary of a long document (but not too long for the context window) it can sometimes add “facts” that it thinks it knows from other sources. If you ask instead for the model to compress your document, it is more likely to comply without adding extraneous matter.

Use a chain-of-density prompt

Another way to improve summarization is to use a chain-of-density (CoD) prompt ( paper ), introduced by a team from Columbia, Salesforce, and MIT in 2023, specifically for GPT-4. A KDnuggets article presents the prompt from the paper in more readable form and adds some explanation. It’s worthwhile to read both the paper and the article.

Short summary: The CoD prompt asks the model to iterate five times on summarization of the base document, increasing the information density at each step. According to the paper, people tended to like the third of the five summaries best. Also note that the prompt given in the paper for GPT-4 may not work properly (or at all) with other models.

Use a chain-of-thought prompt

Chain-of-thought prompting ( paper ), introduced in 2022, asks the LLM to use a series of intermediate reasoning steps and “significantly improves the ability of large language models to perform complex reasoning.” For example, chain-of-thought prompting works well for arithmetic word problems, which even though they are considered elementary-grade math seem to be hard for LLMs to solve correctly.

In the original paper, the authors incorporated examples of chain-of-thought sequences into few-shot prompts. An Amazon Bedrock example for chain-of-thought prompting manages to elicit multi-step reasoning from the Llama 2 Chat 13B and 70B models with the system instruction, “You are a very intelligent bot with exceptional critical thinking” and the user instruction, “Let’s think step by step.”

Use a skeleton-of-thought prompt

Skeleton-of-thought prompting ( paper ), introduced in 2023, reduces the latency of LLMs by “first guide[ing] LLMs to generate the skeleton of the answer, and then conduct[ing] parallel API calls or batched decoding to complete the contents of each skeleton point in parallel.” The code repository associated with the paper recommends using a variant, SoT-R (with RoBERTa router), and calling the LLM (GPT4, GPT-3.5, or Claude) from Python.

Prompt engineering may eventually be performed by the model itself. There has already been research in this direction. The key is to provide a quantitative success metric that the model can use.

Step 3: Hyperparameter tuning

LLMs often have hyperparameters that you can set as part of your prompt. Hyperparameter tuning is as much a thing for LLM prompts as it is for training machine learning models. The usual important hyperparameters for LLM prompts are temperature, context window, maximum number of tokens, and stop sequence, but they can vary from model to model.

The temperature controls the randomness of the output. Depending on the model, temperature can range from 0 to 1 or 0 to 2. Higher temperature values ask for more randomness. In some models, 0 means “set the temperature automatically.” In other models, 0 means “no randomness.”

The context window controls the number of preceding tokens (words or subwords) that the model takes into account for its answer. The maximum number of tokens limits the length of the generated answer. The stop sequence is used to suppress offensive or inappropriate content in the output.

Step 4: Retrieval-augmented generation

Retrieval-augmented generation, or RAG, helps to ground LLMs with specific sources, often sources that weren’t included in the models’ original training. As you might guess, RAG’s three steps are retrieval from a specified source, augmentation of the prompt with the context retrieved from the source, and then generation using the model and the augmented prompt.

RAG procedures often use embedding to limit the length and improve the relevance of the retrieved context. Essentially, an embedding function takes a word or phrase and maps it to a vector of floating point numbers; these are typically stored in a database that supports a vector search index. The retrieval step then uses a semantic similarity search, typically using the cosine of the angle between the query’s embedding and the stored vectors, to find “nearby” information to use in the augmented prompt. Search engines usually do the same thing to find their answers.

Step 5: Agents

Agents, aka conversational retrieval agents, expand on the idea of conversational LLMs with some combination of tools, running code, embeddings, and vector stores. Agents often help to specialize LLMs to specific domains and to tailor the output of the LLM. Azure Copilots are usually agents; Google and Amazon use the term “agents.” LangChain and LangSmith simplify building RAG pipelines and agents.

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• Published: 08 May 2024

Accurate structure prediction of biomolecular interactions with AlphaFold 3

• Josh Abramson   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0000-3496-6952 1   na1 ,
• Jonas Adler   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-9928-3407 1   na1 ,
• Jack Dunger 1   na1 ,
• Richard Evans   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4675-8469 1   na1 ,
• Tim Green   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3227-1505 1   na1 ,
• Alexander Pritzel   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4233-9040 1   na1 ,
• Olaf Ronneberger   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4266-1515 1   na1 ,
• Lindsay Willmore   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4314-0778 1   na1 ,
• Andrew J. Ballard   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4956-5304 1 ,
• Joshua Bambrick   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0003-3908-0722 2 ,
• Sebastian W. Bodenstein 1 ,
• David A. Evans 1 ,
• Chia-Chun Hung   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-5264-9165 2 ,
• Michael O’Neill 1 ,
• David Reiman   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1605-7197 1 ,
• Kathryn Tunyasuvunakool   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8594-1074 1 ,
• Zachary Wu   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2429-9812 1 ,
• Akvilė Žemgulytė 1 ,
• Eirini Arvaniti 3 ,
• Charles Beattie   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-1840-054X 3 ,
• Ottavia Bertolli   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8578-3216 3 ,
• Alex Bridgland 3 ,
• Alexey Cherepanov   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-5227-0622 4 ,
• Miles Congreve 4 ,
• Alexander I. Cowen-Rivers 3 ,
• Andrew Cowie   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4491-1434 3 ,
• Michael Figurnov   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-1386-8741 3 ,
• Fabian B. Fuchs 3 ,
• Hannah Gladman 3 ,
• Rishub Jain 3 ,
• Yousuf A. Khan   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0201-2796 3 ,
• Caroline M. R. Low 4 ,
• Kuba Perlin 3 ,
• Anna Potapenko 3 ,
• Pascal Savy 4 ,
• Sukhdeep Singh 3 ,
• Adrian Stecula   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6914-6743 4 ,
• Ashok Thillaisundaram 3 ,
• Catherine Tong   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-7570-4801 4 ,
• Sergei Yakneen   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-7827-9839 4 ,
• Ellen D. Zhong   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6345-1907 3 ,
• Michal Zielinski 3 ,
• Augustin Žídek   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-0748-9684 3 ,
• Victor Bapst 1   na2 ,
• Pushmeet Kohli   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-7466-7997 1   na2 ,
• Max Jaderberg   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-9033-2695 2   na2 ,
• Demis Hassabis   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2812-9917 1 , 2   na2 &
• John M. Jumper   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6169-6580 1   na2  

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• Drug discovery
• Machine learning
• Protein structure predictions
• Structural biology

The introduction of AlphaFold 2 1 has spurred a revolution in modelling the structure of proteins and their interactions, enabling a huge range of applications in protein modelling and design 2–6 . In this paper, we describe our AlphaFold 3 model with a substantially updated diffusion-based architecture, which is capable of joint structure prediction of complexes including proteins, nucleic acids, small molecules, ions, and modified residues. The new AlphaFold model demonstrates significantly improved accuracy over many previous specialised tools: far greater accuracy on protein-ligand interactions than state of the art docking tools, much higher accuracy on protein-nucleic acid interactions than nucleic-acid-specific predictors, and significantly higher antibody-antigen prediction accuracy than AlphaFold-Multimer v2.3 7,8 . Together these results show that high accuracy modelling across biomolecular space is possible within a single unified deep learning framework.

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Highly accurate protein structure prediction with AlphaFold

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These authors contributed equally: Josh Abramson, Jonas Adler, Jack Dunger, Richard Evans, Tim Green, Alexander Pritzel, Olaf Ronneberger, Lindsay Willmore

These authors jointly supervised this work: Victor Bapst, Pushmeet Kohli, Max Jaderberg, Demis Hassabis, John M. Jumper

Authors and Affiliations

Core Contributor, Google DeepMind, London, UK

Josh Abramson, Jonas Adler, Jack Dunger, Richard Evans, Tim Green, Alexander Pritzel, Olaf Ronneberger, Lindsay Willmore, Andrew J. Ballard, Sebastian W. Bodenstein, David A. Evans, Michael O’Neill, David Reiman, Kathryn Tunyasuvunakool, Zachary Wu, Akvilė Žemgulytė, Victor Bapst, Pushmeet Kohli, Demis Hassabis & John M. Jumper

Core Contributor, Isomorphic Labs, London, UK

Joshua Bambrick, Chia-Chun Hung, Max Jaderberg & Demis Hassabis

Google DeepMind, London, UK

Eirini Arvaniti, Charles Beattie, Ottavia Bertolli, Alex Bridgland, Alexander I. Cowen-Rivers, Andrew Cowie, Michael Figurnov, Fabian B. Fuchs, Hannah Gladman, Rishub Jain, Yousuf A. Khan, Kuba Perlin, Anna Potapenko, Sukhdeep Singh, Ashok Thillaisundaram, Ellen D. Zhong, Michal Zielinski & Augustin Žídek

Isomorphic Labs, London, UK

Alexey Cherepanov, Miles Congreve, Caroline M. R. Low, Pascal Savy, Adrian Stecula, Catherine Tong & Sergei Yakneen

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Correspondence to Max Jaderberg , Demis Hassabis or John M. Jumper .

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Supplementary information.

This Supplementary Information file contains the following 9 sections: (1) Notation; (2) Data pipeline; (3) Model architecture; (4) Auxiliary heads; (5) Training and inference; (6) Evaluation; (7) Differences to AlphaFold2 and AlphaFold-Multimer; (8) Supplemental Results; and (9) Appendix: CCD Code and PDB ID tables.

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Abramson, J., Adler, J., Dunger, J. et al. Accurate structure prediction of biomolecular interactions with AlphaFold 3. Nature (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-07487-w

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Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake Beef Goes Nuclear: What to Know

The two rappers had circled one another for more than a decade, but their attacks turned relentless and very personal in a slew of tracks released over the weekend.

By Joe Coscarelli

The long-building and increasingly testy rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake exploded into full-bore acrimony and unverifiable accusations over the weekend. Both artists rapid-fire released multiple songs littered with attacks regarding race, appropriation, sexual and physical abuse, body image, misogyny, hypocrisy, generational trauma and more.

Most relentless was Lamar, a Pulitzer Prize winner from Compton, Calif., who tends toward the isolated and considered but has now released four verbose and conceptual diss tracks — totaling more than 20 minutes of new music — targeting Drake in the last week, including three since Friday.

Each racked up millions of streams and the three that were made available commercially — “Euphoria,” “Meet the Grahams” and “Not Like Us” — are expected to land near the top of next week’s Billboard singles chart, while seeming to, at least momentarily, shift the public perception of Drake, long a maestro of the online public arena and meme ecosystem .

In between, on Friday night, Drake released his own broadside against Lamar — plus a smattering of other recent challengers — in a teasing Instagram interlude plus a three-part track and elaborate music video titled “Family Matters,” in which he referred to his rival as a fake activist and attempted to expose friction and alleged abuse in Lamar’s romantic relationship.

But that song was followed within half an hour by Lamar’s “Meet the Grahams,” an ominous extended address to the parents and young son of Drake, born Aubrey Graham, in which Lamar refers to his rival rapper as a liar and “pervert” who “should die” in order to make the world safer for women.

Lamar also seemed to assert that Drake had more than a decade ago fathered a secret daughter — echoing the big reveal of his son from Drake’s last headline rap beef — a claim Drake quickly denied on Instagram before hitting back in another song on Sunday. (Neither man has addressed the full array of rapped allegations directly.)

On Tuesday, a security guard was shot and seriously injured outside of Drake’s Toronto home, which appeared on the cover art for Lamar’s “Not Like Us.” Authorities said they could not yet speak to a motive in the shooting, but the investigation was ongoing. Representatives for Drake and Lamar did not immediately comment.

How did two of the most famous artists in the world decide to take the gloves off and bring real-life venom into an extended sparring match for rap supremacy? It was weeks, months and years in the making, with a sudden, breakneck escalation into hip-hop infamy. Here’s a breakdown.

Since late March, the much-anticipated head-to-head seemed inevitable. Following years of “will they or won’t they?” lyrical feints, Lamar hit directly on record first this year during a surprise appearance on the song “Like That” by the Atlanta rapper Future and the producer Metro Boomin, both formerly frequent Drake collaborators.

With audible disgust, Lamar invoked the track “First Person Shooter” from last year’s Drake album, “For All the Dogs,” in which a guest verse from J. Cole referred to himself, Drake and Lamar as “the big three” of modern MCs.

Lamar took exception to the grouping, declaring that there was no big three, “just big me.” He also called himself the Prince to Drake’s Michael Jackson — a deeper, more complex artist versus a troubled, pop-oriented hitmaker.

“Like That” spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, as Future and Metro Boomin released two chart-topping albums — “We Don’t Trust You” and “We Still Don’t Trust You” — that were anchored by a parade of Drake’s past associates, each of whom seemed to share a simmering distaste toward the rapper, who later called the ambush a “20 v. 1” fight.

In early April, J. Cole fought back momentarily , releasing the song “7 Minute Drill,” in which he called Lamar overrated, before backtracking, apologizing and having the song removed from streaming services. But Drake soon picked up the baton, releasing a wide-ranging diss track called “Push Ups” less than a week later that addressed the field, with a special focus on Lamar’s height, shoe size and supposedly disadvantageous business dealings.

Less than a week later, Drake mocked Lamar’s lack of a response on “Taylor Made Freestyle,” a track released only on social media. It featured Drake taunting Lamar for being scared to release music at the same time as Taylor Swift and using A.I. voice filters to mimic Tupac and Snoop Dogg imploring Lamar to battle for the good of the West Coast.

“Since ‘Like That,’ your tone changed a little, you not as enthused,” Drake rapped in an abbreviated third verse, as himself. “How are you not in the booth? It feel like you kinda removed.” (“Taylor Made Freestyle” was later removed from the internet at the request of the Tupac Estate.)

But it was a seemingly tossed-off line from the earlier “Push Ups” that included the name of Lamar’s longtime romantic partner — “I be with some bodyguards like Whitney” — that Lamar would later allude to as a red line crossed, making all subject matter fair game in the songs to come. (It was this same alleged faux pas that may have triggered an intensification of Drake’s beef with Pusha T in 2018.)

How We Got Here

Even with Drake-dissing cameos from Future, Ye (formerly Kanye West), Rick Ross, the Weeknd and ASAP Rocky, the main event was always going to be between Drake, 37, and Lamar, 36, who have spent more than a decade subtly antagonizing one another in songs while maintaining an icy frenemy rapport in public.

In 2011, when Drake introduced Lamar to mainstream audiences with a dedicated showcase on his second album, “Take Care,” and an opening slot on the subsequent arena tour, the tone was one of side-eying competition. “He said that he was the same age as myself/and it didn’t help ’cause it made me even more rude and impatient,” Lamar rapped on “Buried Alive Interlude” of his earliest encounter with a more-famous Drake. (On his Instagram on Friday, Drake released a parody of the track, citing Lamar’s jealousy since then.)

The pair went on to appear together on “Poetic Justice,” a single from Lamar’s debut album, “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City,” in 2012, as well as “___ Problems” by ASAP Rocky the same year.

But their collaborations ceased as Drake became his generation’s premier hitmaker across styles in hip-hop and beyond, while Lamar burrowed deeper into his own psyche on knotty concept albums that brought wide critical acclaim alongside less constant commercial success.

When asked, the two rappers tended to profess admiration for one another’s skill, but seemed to trade subtle digs in verses over the years, always with plausible deniability and in the spirit of competition, leading to something of a hip-hop cold war.

The Week It Went Nuclear

Lamar’s first targeted response, “Euphoria,” was more than six minutes long and released last Tuesday morning. In three sections that raised the temperature as they built, he warned Drake about proceeding and insisted, somewhat facetiously, that things were still friendly. “Know you a master manipulator and habitual liar too,” Lamar rapped. “But don’t tell no lie about me and I won’t tell truths ’bout you.”

He accused the biracial Drake, who was born and raised in Toronto, of imitating Black American heritage and insulting him subliminally. “I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk, I hate the way that you dress,” Lamar said. “I hate the way that you sneak diss, if I catch flight, it’s gon’ be direct.” And he called Drake’s standing as a father into question: “Teachin’ him morals, integrity, discipline/listen, man, you don’t know nothin’ ’bout that.”

Days later, Lamar doubled down with an Instagram-only track called “6:16 in LA,” borrowing both Drake’s “Back to Back” diss tactic from his 2015 beef with Meek Mill and a song title structure lifted from what is known as Drake’s time-stamp series of raps. Opting for psychological warfare on a beat produced in part by Jack Antonoff, Swift’s chief collaborator, Lamar hinted that he had a mole in Drake’s operation and was aware of his opponent’s opposition research.

“Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person,” he rapped. “Everyone inside your team is whispering that you deserve it.”

That night, Drake’s “Family Matters” started with its own justification for getting personal — “You mentioned my seed, now deal with his dad/I gotta go bad, I gotta go bad” — before taking on Lamar’s fatherhood and standing as a man in excruciating detail. “They hired a crisis management team to clean up the fact that you beat on your queen,” Drake rapped. “The picture you painted ain’t what it seem/you’re dead.”

Yet in a chess move that seemed to anticipate Drake’s familial line of attack, Lamar’s “Meet the Grahams” was released almost immediately. “This supposed to be a good exhibition within the game,” Lamar said, noting that Drake had erred “the moment you called out my family’s name.” Instead of a rap battle, Lamar concluded after another six minutes of psychological dissection, “this a long life battle with yourself.”

He wasn’t done yet. Dispensing with subtlety, Lamar followed up again less than 24 hours later with “Not Like Us,” a bouncy club record in a Los Angeles style that delighted in more traditional rap beef territory, like juvenile insults, proudly unsubstantiated claims of sexual preferences and threats of violence.

Lamar, however, didn’t leave it at that, throwing one more shot at Drake’s authenticity as a rapper, calling him a greedy and artificial user as a collaborator — “not a colleague,” but a “colonizer.”

On Sunday evening, Drake responded yet again. On “The Heart Part 6,” a title taken from Lamar’s career-spanning series, Drake denied the accusation that he preyed on young women, indicated that he had planted the bad information about his fake daughter and seemed to sigh away the fight as “some good exercise.”

“It’s good to get out, get the pen working,” Drake said in an exhausted outro. “You would be a worthy competitor if I was really a predator.” He added, “You know, at least your fans are getting some raps out of you. I’m happy I could motivate you.”

Joe Coscarelli is a culture reporter with a focus on popular music, and the author of “Rap Capital: An Atlanta Story.” More about Joe Coscarelli

Explore the World of Hip-Hop

The long-building and increasingly testy rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake  has exploded into full-bore acrimony .

As their influence and success continue to grow, artists including Sexyy Red and Cardi B are destigmatizing motherhood for hip-hop performers .

ValTown, an account on X and other social media platforms, spotlights gangs and drug kingpins of the 1980s and 1990s , illustrating how they have driven the aesthetics and the narratives of hip-hop.

Three new books cataloging objects central to rap’s physical history  demonstrate the importance of celebrating these relics before they vanish.

Hip-hop got its start in a Bronx apartment building 50 years ago. Here’s how the concept of home has been at the center of the genre ever since .

Over five decades, hip-hop has grown from a new art form to a culture-defining superpower . In their own words, 50 influential voices chronicle its evolution .

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Answering 'how do you define success' in a job interview.

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By preparing to answer the question, “How do you define success?” you’ll learn more about yourself.

Due to rapid changes transforming the workplace, soft skills like critical thinking , adaptability and emotional intelligence are increasingly valued by employers. So, it's no wonder the question, "How do you define success?" is commonly asked in interviews. How you define success influences your priorities, goals and worldview. Employers introduce this question because they want an insight into your personality to determine if you're a good culture fit. They also want to know how you set and motivate yourself to achieve goals. Hiring managers love this question because it’s open-ended. That means you can’t simply provide a “yes” or “no” answer. Your response must be detailed and honest enough to make a stellar first impression.

Determining culture fit is just as important for you, the interviewee. In a McKinsey survey , 70% of employees said that their work defines their sense of purpose. The more you feel aligned with the organization's purpose, the more productive and happier you will be in your job. By answering truthfully, you’ll be more likely to identify a winning team that appreciates your unique talents.

The key to any successful interview is preparation. But even if you don’t get asked this question, formulating a response will force you to determine your priorities and articulate your thoughts. Here are a few tips to effectively answer the question, “How do you define success?”

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Interview preparation is an exercise in self-reflection. When thinking about how to answer, “How do you define success?” look back at your proudest accomplishments. Then, look for patterns among them. For example, if your most notable achievements center on coaching and mentoring direct reports, you may define success as developing others. Or perhaps your achievements focus on overcoming obstacles. In that case, success for you may be defined as maintaining a winning mindset amid setbacks.

Tip #2: Focus On Your Soft Skills

As previously mentioned, soft skills are in demand more than ever. According to a study by business school professor Peter Cardon, one reason is the rise of AI. Contrary to popular belief, many experts believe AI will transform companies into more human-centered organizations. As a result, qualities like character and communication will be highly valued in the workplace. So, if you define success as being a collaborative team player, don’t stop there. Describe how you used effective communication to build strong relationships with co-workers and creativity to brainstorm innovative solutions.

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Apple’s new chatgpt deal—here’s what it means for iphone security, biden vs trump 2024 election polls trump leads biden in these 5 key battleground states latest survey shows, tip #3: consider how the company defines success.

Before any interview, research the company thoroughly. When you answer the question, “How do you define success?” consider the organization’s goals and mission statement. For example, a large corporation may heavily emphasize the bottom line, while a non-profit will focus more on exerting a positive influence in the community. Using that knowledge, formulate a response reflecting your and the company's values.

Tip #4: Provide Specific Examples

Storytelling can be a great tool during an interview. Start by understanding your audience and their biggest challenges. Then, craft a narrative using your most notable accomplishments. Lean into a storytelling approach by following a few simple steps:

• Identify the most critical data you’d like to share
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Explain to the employer what you bring and how your skills perfectly align with the company's needs. The right narrative will not only help you get noticed but also help you land the job.

Example Answers: “How Do You Define Success?”

Because success is a subjective concept, every individual views it a bit differently. Here are three sample responses to inspire you as you prepare for your interview .

Example 1: A large company

I define success as being part of a team that can meet and exceed their goals. One of the reasons I was attracted to this position is that your organization shares the same values. For example, my primary focus this past quarter was leading the team to launch our new product by the end of June. With focus and hard work, we successfully launched by the end of May, resulting in a 20% revenue boost. At the same time, we came in substantially under budget. I'm most proud of the fact that I also created a tracking system to monitor and measure key product launch metrics that were ultimately deployed company-wide. That achievement ultimately earned me a corporate innovation award.

Example 2: A non-profit organization

For me, success is about helping others grow and thrive. When I read the press release about your recent community initiative, I knew my values aligned with your mission statement. In my current role, I developed an international strategy to increase global impact and influence to accelerate fundraising and engagement. I expanded the affiliate network, resulting in 25% growth and more than $60M in additional revenue. Even more exciting was that we were able to build another 10 primary schools in Africa to improve the lives of thousands of children.

Example 3: A start-up firm

I feel successful when I can create value, add to the culture and brainstorm new ideas. I would describe myself as a "build and grow" person who thrives in ambiguous environments. Over the last year, my role has focused on creating processes and procedures that didn’t previously exist. As a result, we've doubled the size of the marketing team in less than a year. We also just landed our first multi-million-dollar account. I love creating order out of chaos.

Everyone's concept of achievement is different. By preparing to answer the interview question, “How do you define success?” you’ll learn more about yourself and be more likely to impress your future employer.

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