Technology & media
Social media, artificial intelligence, privacy and human connection.
Social Media and Teen Mental Health: What the Evidence Actually Says
An evidence-based explanation of what U.S. teens report about social media’s benefits and harms, and why those reports do not by themselves establish cause and effect.
Will Artificial Intelligence Do More Harm Than Good? Weighing AI’s Social Effects
An argumentative essay contending that advanced AI can benefit society, but only when high-stakes uses are subject to meaningful human oversight, risk testing, and public accountability.
Should AI Help With Your Homework? Benefits, Risks, and School Rules
An argument that students should be allowed to use AI for limited homework support, with clear boundaries that protect independent thinking, honest work, and accuracy.
Do Digital Tools Distract from Learning in Schools? GRE Issue Essay
A qualified argument that digital tools can distract when they fragment attention or substitute for thought, but can support learning when they are deliberately matched to instructional goals and used with clear boundaries.
AI in Public Services: Why Context Matters Before Adoption
An explanatory essay arguing that public agencies should assess AI according to the stakes, explainability, and oversight needs of each use rather than adopting it simply because it is available.
Why Online Popularity Is Not the Same as Reliable Information
An evidence-based explanation of why likes, repetition, and social approval cannot establish that online information is true, and how readers can check claims more carefully.
Selfies as Visual Diaries: Evaluating J Wortham’s Claim
An argumentative essay evaluating how selfies can preserve personal memories and affirm presence, while explaining why a camera image alone cannot guarantee either meaningful remembrance or recognition.
The Digital Divide Is Also a Divide in How Tools Are Used
A developed explanation of how digital access, patterns of use, and information-evaluation skills differ—and what a national survey of U.S. teens can and cannot show.
GRE Practice: Can Living People Still Be Heroes in the Media Age?
An argumentative essay arguing that media scrutiny complicates judgments of heroism without making them impossible. It uses supplied National Archives evidence to examine Eisenhower’s invasion decision and Kennedy’s public-service appeal, while distinguishing scrutiny of documented choices from unsupported claims about personal flaws.
Should AI-Generated Work Always Be Labeled?
An argument for labeling AI-generated material when its origin could affect how people judge, trust, or act on it, while rejecting the idea that a label guarantees accuracy.
Why Screen-Time Debates Need More Than a Single Number
A developed explanation of why screen-time debates should distinguish what people do online, how they experience it, and what a survey can—and cannot—show.