The independent Scott Alexander archive
Essays, arguments, and unexpected connections. An independent archive of Slate Star Codex, Astral Codex Ten, and LessWrong.
The post examines the compatibility of Islam and liberal democracy by analyzing six Muslim-majority countries, finding a wide spectrum of outcomes and concluding that Islam often acts as an obstacle to liberal democracy.
TracingWoodgrains and Michael Pershan analyze the effectiveness of ability grouping, acceleration, and personalization software in serving advanced students in the education system.
Scott Alexander introduces four adversarial collaboration contest entries to be published over the week, with a subsequent reader vote to determine the $1000 prize winner.
Scott examines the possibility that bureaucracy sometimes serves as an intentional barrier to discourage unnecessary requests, particularly in healthcare, but questions how widely this concept applies.
Scott Alexander discusses the ethical dilemma of writing doctor's notes for back pain as a psychiatrist, leading to reflections on 'bullshit jobs' and procedural inefficiencies in the economy.
Scott Alexander shares a diverse collection of links covering AI, economics, politics, science, and culture, offering brief comments and insights on each topic.
Scott Alexander writes a satirical poem about John McCain's passing, imagining him continuing his warmongering ways in the afterlife.
Scott Alexander explores research on how high indoor CO2 levels may impair cognition and sleep, suggesting simple solutions like better ventilation.
Scott Alexander reviews the EA Hotel, a project offering free accommodation to effective altruists in Blackpool, England, discussing its potential benefits and challenges.
Scott analyzes a surprising age-related trend in responses to a parentheses riddle on the SSC survey, exploring possible explanations for why younger respondents were more likely to answer correctly.
Scott Alexander reports on weak correlations and inconclusive results from the latest SSC survey on optical illusions and visual perception.
Scott analyzes survey data to test the claim that rejection sensitivity is a key feature of ADHD, finding limited support and emphasizing caution in adopting such ideas without formal research.
Scott Alexander critiques a misreported study on trigger warnings, highlighting its flaws and limited relevance to the broader debate on their use in colleges.
Scott Alexander examines conflicting narratives about cancer treatment progress, analyzing data to show that while some improvements are due to social factors, there's evidence of genuine advancements in cancer treatment and outcomes.
Scott Alexander presents a diverse collection of links and brief commentary on topics ranging from historical anecdotes to recent scientific studies and political developments.
Scott Alexander reimagines Coleridge's 'Kubla Khan' as a modern TripAdvisor review of Xanadu, blending classical poetry with contemporary tourism.
Scott proposes that value differences arise from people crystallizing heuristics at different levels, rather than from fundamental, incomprehensible differences in values.
Scott Alexander showcases and advocates for 'sentimental cartography', the art of creating geographic-style maps for non-geographic concepts, presenting various modern examples and lamenting its relative obscurity.
Scott Alexander argues that fundamental value differences are less common and less aligned with political tribes than often assumed, emphasizing the need for coexistence despite varying values.
Scott Alexander examines the concept of 'laziness' and value differences, exploring how semantic debates can obscure practical communication and understanding.
Scott Alexander examines and expresses skepticism about a theory that attributes high-dose melatonin supplements to patent avoidance, while reflecting on the challenges of evaluating such claims.
Scott Alexander examines melatonin's effects, proper dosage, and uses for sleep disorders and circadian rhythm issues, emphasizing its dual role as a hypnotic and chronobiotic.
Scott Alexander discusses how his blog contributes to developing rationality skills through analysis of complex issues and community discussion, despite not focusing directly on core rationality techniques.
Scott Alexander reviews a paper that claims to solve the Fermi Paradox by using probability distributions instead of point estimates in Drake Equation calculations.
Scott Alexander summarizes and analyzes various critiques of Thomas Piketty's 'Capital in the Twenty-First Century', finding that many of Piketty's key claims don't hold up well under scrutiny.
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