Most people ask a chatbot a question and read the answer. That is the slowest way to learn from it. Put a short code at the start of the message and the same model changes how it teaches.
We tested each code below in ChatGPT (Free plan), Claude and Gemini on 18 October 2026, on the same topic, neural networks. ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini are not made by webridgeAI. Answers change from run to run and from account to account, and a model with memory turned on may tailor its answer to you.
Download the one-page PDF with all four codes.
1. ELI5: understand it first
Type: ELI5: how does a neural network learn?
ELI5 means "explain like I'm five". The model drops the jargon and explains the idea with an everyday example. In our test, ChatGPT used a child learning to recognise cats and drew a small diagram of the network; Gemini used learning to shoot a basketball. Use it on the one thing you don't get yet, not the whole subject.
2. 80/20: know what to learn first
Type: 80/20: learn machine learning
This asks for the small part of a subject that gives you most of the understanding, and what you can leave for later. ChatGPT and Claude both returned "the 20% that gives you 80%" plus a list of what to skip for now.
Keep the word learn. With 80/20: machine learning alone, Gemini explained where the 80/20 rule shows up inside machine learning (the 80/20 train and test split) instead of what to study. Adding "learn" fixed it in all three.
3. Mind map: see how it fits together
Type: Mind map: neural networks
The model lays the topic out as one map: the main idea in the middle and its branches around it. ChatGPT drew a visual map with six branches, Claude built one as cards, and Gemini made an interactive map you can expand. It is the fastest way to see what you don't know yet.
4. Quiz me: make it stick
Type: Quiz me: neural networks
The model turns the topic into questions and checks your answers. ChatGPT gave an eight-question multiple-choice quiz with an explanation for each answer; Gemini made a ten-question quiz.
This is the code with the strongest research behind it. Taking a test on material improves how much you remember later, more than studying it again. This is called the testing effect (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006). A review of ten common study techniques rated practice testing as high utility and rereading as low (Dunlosky and colleagues, 2013).
When to use which
| You want to | Code |
|---|---|
| Understand one confusing idea | ELI5: |
| Plan what to learn and what to skip | 80/20: learn |
| See the whole subject at once | Mind map: |
| Check what you actually remember | Quiz me: |
Two cautions
A chatbot can be confidently wrong. Use these codes to learn faster, and check anything important (a medical, legal or money question) against a primary source.
The quiz is only useful if you answer before you look. Reading the answers is rereading.