# Dong Liang — dliangthinks.me

> Essays by Dong Liang on AI, software, cinema, and writing — how our tools reshape the way we think, learn, and make. Dong is a Lead Instructional Designer at Stanford University with a PhD in Cinema & Media Studies (University of Chicago) and a background in Computer Science. The site spans four areas: film/cinema studies (writing), AI and software (technology), instructional design (pedagogy), and literary/academic translation.

## About the author

- [Biography](https://www.dliangthinks.me/): Lead Instructional Designer / Instructional Designer at Stanford University. PhD, Cinema & Media Studies, University of Chicago; BSc, Computer Science, Xi'an Jiaotong University. Works at the intersection of content, pedagogy, and technology.

## Technology — AI, software, and the tools of thought

- [Prompt, Context, Harness: The Three Phases of AI Engineering](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/harness/)
- [How We Build Software in the Age of AI](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/software/)
- [The Age of Disposable Software](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/disposable/)
- [Claude Code and The Rise of CLI](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/cli/)
- [The Fork in the Road: Claude Code vs CoWork](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/cc-vs-cowork/)
- [We're Still Pumping Water from Mines: The Path to Superintelligence](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/superintelligence/)
- [To Think or Not to Think: How Reasoning in LLMs Evolved](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/reasoning/)
- [Feature or Bug? Toward a Psychology of LLMs](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/psychology/)
- [Local Intelligence: An Important Step in the Future of Mass AI Deployment](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/localintelligence/)
- [Technologies of Learning, a 2024 Primer](https://www.dliangthinks.me/technology/techlearning/)

## Writing — cinema and media studies

- [PhD Dissertation: on film sound (multi-chapter)](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/dissertation/) — book-length study of sound in cinema.
- [A Crash Course on Cinematic Staging](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/staging/)
- [The Mysterious Craft of Camera Movement](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/camera/)
- [Cinematic Editing: A Viewer's Guide](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/editing/)
- [Three Lessons on Cinematic Framing](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/framing/)
- [In Praise of Laconic Cinema](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/laconic/)
- [The Work of Writing in the Age of AI](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/writing-stages/)
- [The Slop Problem](https://www.dliangthinks.me/writing/slop/)

## Pedagogy — instructional design and e-learning

- [Why E-Learning Fails the 70-20-10 Test](https://www.dliangthinks.me/pedagogy/702010/)
- [Unboxing AI: Understanding the Magic of Large Language Models](https://www.dliangthinks.me/pedagogy/unboxing/)
- [Seymour Papert's Legacy](https://www.dliangthinks.me/pedagogy/papert/)
- [E-Learning Demystified](https://www.dliangthinks.me/pedagogy/elearning-demy/)
- [The Brain Power Management Revolution](https://www.dliangthinks.me/pedagogy/brainppower/)

## Translation — literary and academic

- [In Defense of Liberal Education (为人文教育辩护)](https://www.dliangthinks.me/translation/defense/)
- [Mindstorms (思维风暴)](https://www.dliangthinks.me/translation/mindstorms/)
- [Walden (瓦尔登湖)](https://www.dliangthinks.me/translation/walden/)
- [The Pursuit of Nothingness (务虚笔记)](https://www.dliangthinks.me/translation/pursuit/)

## Elsewhere

- Medium (2016–present): https://medium.com/@dongliang
- Blogspot archive (2009–2016): https://liangdong.blogspot.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dliangthinks/
- GitHub: https://github.com/dliangthinks
- Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=nmd_UdwAAAAJ