The independent Scott Alexander archive
Essays, arguments, and unexpected connections. An independent archive of Slate Star Codex, Astral Codex Ten, and LessWrong.
Scott Alexander shares and comments on key passages from Piketty's 'Capital in the Twenty-First Century', discussing historical economic trends and their modern implications.
Scott Alexander reviews Piketty's 'Capital in the Twenty-First Century', finding its analysis of long-term economic trends and inequality compelling but pessimistic about proposed solutions.
Scott Alexander proposes a hypothetical low-cost psychiatric practice to combat medical cost disease, exploring its potential and the barriers to its implementation.
Scott Alexander argues that public outrage over specific misdeeds is not arbitrary, but a strategic way to enforce important social norms with limited resources.
Scott Alexander writes two satirical sequels to GATTACA, critiquing discrimination based on epigenetics and educational background.
Scott Alexander shares a diverse collection of interesting links on topics ranging from science and politics to economics and culture, with brief commentary on many items.
Scott Alexander explores Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) and other conditions where drugs cause permanent effects, discussing potential mechanisms and their implications.
Scott Alexander explores why US suicide rates aren't higher despite high gun ownership, concluding that the US likely has a low base rate elevated by gun availability.
Scott Alexander summarizes and responds to reader comments on his previous post comparing basic income to basic job guarantee programs.
Scott Alexander argues that the Intellectual Dark Web can be both popular and silenced, explaining various mechanisms of social censorship and how they apply to controversial thinkers.
Scott Alexander examines whether psychiatrists should test for lead more often, concluding that while it could be relevant in some cases, there's not enough evidence to justify universal testing.
Scott Alexander argues strongly for basic income over basic jobs guarantees, citing numerous advantages of basic income and potential pitfalls of basic jobs programs.
Scott Alexander shares a diverse collection of links and brief commentaries on topics ranging from ancient calendars to fusion research, social trends, and economic analyses.
Scott Alexander proposes a hierarchy of types of disagreements, from low-level meta-debate to high-level philosophical differences, and discusses how to engage in more productive arguments.
Scott announces a classified thread for advertisements, personals, and success stories, with uncertain frequency.
Scott Alexander reviews 'History of the Fabian Society', examining how this socialist organization became influential and why its ideas were compelling in late 19th century Britain.
Scott Alexander provides instructions for participants to connect, register for the adversarial collaboration contest, and mentions potential additional prizes.
Scott Alexander announces a contest for adversarial collaborations, offering prizes for teams who write balanced summaries on controversial topics they disagree about.
Scott Alexander offers various strategies for obtaining affordable mental health care and medication in the US, including discount programs, therapy alternatives, and supplement options.
Scott Alexander examines Vinay Gupta's ideas on enlightenment, comparing them with other sources and discussing the challenges of interpreting mystical experiences from a scientific viewpoint.
Scott Alexander reviews and responds to comments on his survey about sexual harassment rates in different fields, addressing methodological issues and presenting additional demographic data.
Scott Alexander analyzes survey data showing lower sexual harassment rates in STEM fields compared to other industries, contradicting media narratives, while urging caution and calling for more research.
The post discusses comments on DC's low graduation rates, focusing on strict attendance policies, challenging teaching environments, and systemic issues in the school district.
Scott Alexander argues for the broader use of guidelines instead of simple recommendations in fields outside medicine, explaining their benefits and why they're underutilized.
Scott analyzes the projected drop in DC's high school graduation rates, exploring various explanations and comparing DC to other states, ultimately suggesting widespread inflation of graduation rates elsewhere.
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