Write it like an aircraft manual (ASD-STE100)

Writing

Andrej Karpathy's tip: ask for ASD-STE100, the controlled language of aerospace maintenance manuals, and wordy, vague AI prose turns short and clear. The spec is strict, so this asks for "80% of the way". For explanations, docs and reports.

Explain the following in ASD-STE100 (Simplified Technical English, the controlled language of aerospace maintenance manuals). Go about 80% of the way to the full specification so it still reads naturally.

- Keep sentences short: at most 20 words for instructions, 25 for descriptions.
- One idea per sentence; one instruction per sentence.
- Use the active voice and the present tense. Make the subject clear.
- Use each word with one meaning only, and keep using the same word for the same thing.
- Use common words. Define a technical term the first time you use it.
- Remove vague words, idioms, filler and decoration.
- Put steps in a numbered list.

[Paste what to explain or the text to rewrite]

Source: Andrej Karpathy (X, 2026-10) idea · Original ↗