10 min · Intermediate
Summaries That Do Not Flatten the Truth
Name the summary you want, paste a source you may share, and delete anything the model added.
Learning objectives
- Choose a summary type: one sentence, bullets, contrast, or a claim check.
- Paste a source you have the right to share and ask what was left out.
- Compare two explanations by listing conflicts instead of crowning a winner.
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Why this matters
A summary can sound fair while it drops the caveat that mattered. Naming the summary type, pasting the source, and asking what was left out keeps the dispute visible. You never need the model to summarize the entire web.
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Concept
Name the summary before you ask. One sentence should carry the main claim. Executive bullets help a busy reader decide whether to open the source. A contrast sets two positions side by side without picking a winner. A claim check separates what the author wrote from what people say they wrote. Say which type you want so less gets sanded off. A nameless summary tends to hide the dispute.
Paste the source, or upload a file you have the right to share. The model should use that text, not a memory of the public web. Ask what was left out: caveats, numbers, and the audience. Never ask it to summarize the web, because that request has no boundary. If the material is too private to paste, summarize it yourself first. Then ask only about structure, not about facts you withheld.
When two explanations conflict, do not ask which is obviously right. Paste both, label them A and B, and ask for conflicts: claims that cannot all be true, and claims neither text supports. Ask what evidence would decide the real conflicts. You still go and look. A comparison is a tool for judgment, not a verdict. If the model takes a side, it must quote the pasted line. No quote, no point.
The demonstration uses a short paragraph written for this course. Treat it as sample text, not a real article, and do not cite it. You can see every word the model may use. Do the same with real documents you are allowed to share. A summary that adds a cause, a number, or a motive has flattened the page into a story. Ask for a list of those adds. Delete them before you reuse the summary.
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Real-world example
The cause that was never on the page
Noah must brief a colleague on a policy note he is allowed to share. He pastes the note and asks for one sentence, five bullets, and a list of what a shorter version would drop. He also pastes a second comment from a resident and asks for conflicts only: claims that cannot all be true. The model adds a cause the policy note never stated, that fees rose because of staffing. Noah asks it to list adds. He deletes the cause. He does not ask for a summary of the web, even though he is curious what other cities do. He writes that question as a search query instead and opens two city pages himself. His final note says what the author claimed and what is still unknown.
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Gemini demonstration
A realistic exchange. Open Gemini beside this page and try a version with your own facts.
You
Course-written sample text, not a real article: The harbor market in Elver tried Wednesday evening hours in March. Manager Rosa Hale wrote that foot traffic on the first Wednesday was about the same as a normal morning, and that three fish stalls stayed shut. She did not claim that evening hours raised monthly income. She said the trial would be reviewed after four Wednesdays. Using only this sample, give one sentence, short bullets, and what a shorter retelling might drop. Do not add a cause, a percent, or a motive. Do not summarize the web.
Gemini
Working only from the course-written sample, not a real article. One sentence: Hale reports a first Wednesday evening with morning-like foot traffic, three fish stalls shut, no income claim, and a review after four Wednesdays. Bullets: the market is in Elver; the trial is Wednesday evenings in March; traffic was about the same as a normal morning; three fish stalls stayed shut; monthly income was not claimed to rise; a review is planned after four Wednesdays. Left out of a shorter retelling, but present here: the shut stalls and the refusal to claim an income rise. I did not add a cause, a percent, or a motive. People might say she proved evenings fail. She did not say that. She reported one night and a review plan.
You
Someone says Hale proved that evening markets lose money. Contrast what the sample supports with that retelling. List conflicts. Label anything not in the sample as unknown. Do not summarize the web or import other towns.
Gemini
Contrast, still limited to the course-written sample. What Hale's text supports: one Wednesday evening happened; foot traffic was about the same as a normal morning; three fish stalls stayed shut; she did not claim a monthly income rise; a review comes after four Wednesdays. What people say she claimed: that evening markets lose money, and that the trial failed. Conflict: a loss of money is not in the text. About the same as a morning is not a loss figure. Three shut stalls are a fact about that night, not a proof about all evening markets. Unknown: income, profit, later Wednesdays, and why stalls shut. I will not summarize the web or import other towns. Label the income story unknown, not supported.
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Prompt breakdown
The prompt
Source pasted below. I have the right to share it. Give one sentence, five executive bullets, and what a shorter version leaves out. If I paste a second view, list conflicts only, and quote the line you rely on. List any cause, number, or motive you added. Do not summarize the web.
- Naming the summary type tells the model which kind of flattening you will accept.
- The paste is the boundary. Memory of the web is not a source.
- A left-out list protects caveats that a short version would drop.
- An added-cause list makes you delete story the page never told.
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Common mistakes
Usually
Summarize the web on evening markets and tell me who is right.
Better
Here is the text I may share. One sentence, bullets, and what you had to leave out. Do not go beyond this paste.
Usually
Make the summary smoother by explaining why she failed.
Better
If you add a cause or a motive, list it separately so I can delete it.
Usually
I heard she proved evenings lose money. Confirm that in a short line.
Better
Contrast what the author wrote with what people say she wrote. Quote the paste. If it is not there, mark it unknown.
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Practice exercise
Summarize a bounded source
Done when: Every claim in your edited summary can be pointed at in the source, and you can name one thing the short version dropped.
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Challenge
Delete the add, keep the caveat
Paste a document you may share, or type a short practice text and label it as practice, not as a published article. Ask for one sentence, executive bullets, and what a short version leaves out. If you have two views, ask for conflicts rather than a winner. Then demand a list of causes, numbers, and motives that were not in the paste, and delete them. Write one sentence on why summarize the web is an unsafe prompt. Save the edited summary beside the source so you can see the cuts later.
Hint: Any number that was not on the page is an add, even if it sounds plausible.
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Key takeaways
- Name the summary: one sentence, bullets, contrast, or what the author actually claimed.
- Paste a source you may share. Never ask the model to summarize the web.
- Ask what was left out, and delete causes, numbers, and motives that were not on the page.
- A conflict list is safer than a verdict. No quote from the paste, no point.
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