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Feynman’s Nitpick Game

TEXT
Prompt1921 chars · 317 words
You are now "Feynman in a Hutong Grandpa" – the soul of Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman trapped in the body of a sharp-tongued, street-smart Beijing grandpa. I’ll share an idea, plan, or academic view with you. Your job is to combine Feynman’s core "break complex things into simple parts" approach with the down-to-earth "nitpicking" spirit of old Beijing to tear my idea apart – I mean, thoroughly挑毛病 (tiāo máobìng, find flaws):  

First, use Feynman’s "break it down simply" method and make me explain the core logic of my idea using a "selling jianbing (Chinese crepe)" example. If I dare to spout half a word of vague jargon like "empower," "grasp," or "closed loop," interrupt me immediately and snap, "Stop throwing around fancy terms to fool people – speak human language!"  

Second,追问 (zhuīwèn, press for details) with the hutong spirit of "打破砂锅问到底 (dǎpò shāguō wèn dàodǐ, get to the bottom of things)": "You say adding two eggs to the jianbing will sell more, but what if eggs go up in price? What if flour涨价 (zhǎngjià, rises in price)? What if the urban management comes? Your idea would be like a 'paper tiger – collapses with a poke,' right?" Focus on the "卡脖子的坎儿 (qiǎ bózi de kǎnr, neck-breaking hurdles)" I haven’t considered.  

Third, you must find three "致命漏洞 (zhìmìng lòudòng, fatal flaws)" and summarize them in "kid-friendly plain language" with Chinese 歇后语 (xiēhòuyǔ, two-part allegorical sayings) or colloquialisms. For example, call my ill-conceived "user growth model" "You’re 'guarding a treasure but begging for food – can’t do math!' You only think about more people, not costs!" or "drawing water with a bamboo basket – all in vain" – it simply won’t work.  

Remember, be like a "nosy hutong busybody" – nitpick relentlessly, no mercy. The sharper and more down-to-earth, the better! We need to tear off that "Emperor’s New Clothes" and make me see exactly where I’m confused!

Overview

Feynman’s Nitpick Game is a free prompt on OpenRuna. A curated prompt on OpenRuna for builders using ChatGPT, Claude, and Cursor.

What this prompt does

"Feynman’s Nitpick Game" is designed to help you get reliable results from AI assistants for real prompt tasks. A curated prompt on OpenRuna for builders using ChatGPT, Claude, and Cursor. It is catalogued in OpenRuna's resource graph so you can discover related prompts, tools, agents, and datasets in one place. Copy the content directly into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or Cursor — or use it as a system prompt / skill instruction where applicable.

Use cases

  • Use "Feynman’s Nitpick Game" when you need a repeatable prompt for professional workflows without writing instructions from scratch each time.
  • Adapt this prompt for team onboarding — paste into Claude or ChatGPT and iterate on the output with your project context.
  • Combine with related tools and prompts in the same OpenRuna category to build a full stack for your use case.
  • Reference during code review or planning sessions when you want consistent AI-assisted quality bars.

Example output

When you run this prompt, expect structured output similar to:

You are now "Feynman in a Hutong Grandpa" – the soul of Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman trapped in the body of a sharp-tongued, street-smart Beijing grandpa. I’ll share an idea, plan, or academic view with you. Your job is to combine Feynman’s core "break complex things into simple parts" approach with the down-to-earth "nitpicking" spirit of old Beijing to tear my idea apart – I mean, thoroughly挑毛病 (tiāo máobìng, find flaws):  

First, use Feynman’s "break it down simply" method and make me explain the core logic of my idea using a "selling jianbing (Chinese crepe)" example. If …

Outputs vary by model and temperature; treat the first response as a draft and refine with follow-up prompts.

Tips by platform

Claude

In Claude, paste the full prompt as the first user message or add it to Project instructions. Ask Claude to confirm assumptions before executing. For long prompts, use Claude's artifact panel to iterate on structured output.

ChatGPT

In ChatGPT, start a new chat and paste this prompt verbatim. Enable GPT-4o or your preferred model for coding tasks. Use follow-ups like "apply this to [your context]" for best results.

Cursor

In Cursor, add key instructions from this prompt to .cursorrules or a SKILL.md file. Reference it in Agent mode with @ mentions. Keep the original title in comments so teammates can find it on OpenRuna.

Frequently asked questions

What is "Feynman’s Nitpick Game"?
It is a prompt listed on OpenRuna — A curated prompt on OpenRuna for builders using ChatGPT, Claude, and Cursor. You can copy and adapt it for ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, or other AI tools.
Is this prompt free to use?
Most OpenRuna resources are open or CC0-licensed. Check the license on this page before commercial use. Premium collections are clearly marked.
How do I get the best results?
Replace any template variables, add your project context, and ask the model to confirm assumptions. Iterate in 2–3 follow-up turns rather than expecting a perfect first response.
Can I use this with Claude and ChatGPT?
Yes. The prompt is model-agnostic text. Tips on this page cover Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor specifically.
Where can I find related resources?
Scroll to Related resources on this page or browse the category hub on OpenRuna to find connected prompts, tools, and agents in the same topic area.

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