Know the Limits
Double-check the arithmetic
Language models write about numbers more fluently than they compute them. The prose will be lovely; the total can still be wrong.
When an answer involves math that matters — totals, percentages, dates, anything with money — ask it to show the calculation step by step, then reproduce the final arithmetic yourself with a calculator or spreadsheet before acting on it.
Why it works
Fluent text and reliable computation are different abilities. Showing steps exposes errors, and redoing the last mile catches what fluency hides.
Watch out
This includes AI features inside spreadsheets — a generated formula deserves the same scrutiny as a generated total.
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