The Learning Harness
An opinionated (but malleable) system for learning a technical field properly, run by an AI agent in a terminal.
How it works
What we believe a harness for learning should behave like
01A chain
Every topic sits on one ordered path. The next topic is the smallest step from what you already hold, and nothing is taught before its prerequisites.
Two topics complete, one in progress, the rest ahead. The path is an order, not a timeline.
02Lessons written for one learner
The harness asks what you know, then writes to fit: a self-contained page, a diagram in every part, one worked example throughout, the field's own terminology. A review pass corrects it before you read.
03We take verification very seriously
A concept is not understood because you read it. It passes a quiz the same day, then an explain-back on a later day, after a night of sleep. A concept that fails either one is taught again and tested again the next day.
04We are spaced repetition-pilled
Once a concept passes, its cards enter a review queue ordered so each day spans several concepts instead of burying you in one. Retention is then measured by review data rather than by vibes.
Guides
- How to learn with AI, properly
Four rules separate learning with AI from being answered by it. Two randomized trials in 2025 show what each side costs.
- The best way to learn in 2026
The two techniques the evidence ranks highest, what people do instead, and a daily routine that follows the ranking.
- How to learn fast and remember what you learned
Speed is measured a week later. The method with the least re-learning is the fastest.
- Upskilling in 2026: how to learn a technical field while working
Thirty to forty-five minutes a day, one concept in prerequisite order, measured by what you can explain.
- What an AI tutor must do, and why a chat window is not one
Six requirements from two trials with opposite results.
- Spaced repetition with AI
Cards made from what you were just taught, after it passed a test, into Anki.
- The Feynman technique with AI
An explain-back graded against the lesson, the day after you read it.
The rules the harness runs, in order, are on the method page. Practical questions are in the FAQ.
The Learning Harness is early and not yet available.