ACX
My Heart Of Hearts
Scott discusses how moral principles emerge from the relationship between emotional responses and rational consistency, using reactions to Gaza as a central example.
12 min read 1,784 words
A thread through the archive
rationality
Essays tagged “rationality”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Essays on rationality
76 essaysACX
"But" vs. "Yes, But"
Scott explains why it's important to explicitly acknowledge when you're wrong in an argument before moving on to your next point, rather than just continuing with 'but...'
4 min read 476 words
ACX
Bayes For Everyone
Brandon Hendrickson presents a method to teach Bayes' theorem effectively to everyone by making it visual, intuitive, emotionally engaging, and a tool for rational discourse.
32 min read 4,864 words
ACX
Everyone's A Based Post-Christian Vitalist Until The Grooming Gangs Show Up
Scott critiques self-proclaimed moral nihilists who claim to not care about strangers' suffering, by pointing out their passionate response to the British grooming gangs scandal reveals they actually do care.
11 min read 1,625 words
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In Continued Defense Of Non-Frequentist Probabilities
Scott Alexander defends using probabilities for hard-to-model events, arguing they aid clear communication and decision-making even in uncertain domains.
23 min read 3,438 words
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Mantic Monday 3/11/24
The post explores recent advances in AI forecasting, discusses the concept of 'rationality engines', reviews a study on AI risk predictions, and provides updates on various prediction markets.
27 min read 4,080 words
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Against Learning From Dramatic Events
Scott Alexander argues against significantly updating beliefs based on single dramatic events, advocating for consistent policies based on pre-existing probability distributions.
26 min read 3,919 words
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In The Long Run, We're All Dad
Scott Alexander recounts his journey to fatherhood, blending personal experiences with broader reflections on progress, rationality, and the future his newborn twins will face.
26 min read 4,000 words
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In Defense Of Describable Dating Preferences
Scott Alexander argues that describable dating preferences are valuable, despite studies suggesting otherwise, by pointing out flaws in research and emphasizing real-world evidence.
32 min read 4,885 words
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Your Book Review: The Laws of Trading
A review of 'The Laws of Trading' by Agustin Lebron, examining trading principles and their broader applications to decision-making and life.
44 min read 6,685 words
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Your Book Review: The Educated Mind
Kieran Egan's educational theory proposes rebuilding school curricula around five kinds of understanding to create more engaging and effective learning experiences.
165 min read 25,503 words
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Contra Kavanagh On Fideism
Scott Alexander defends his thorough analysis of ivermectin studies, arguing that dismissing controversial topics without addressing evidence can inadvertently promote conspiracy theories.
23 min read 3,470 words
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Absurdity Bias, Neom Edition
Scott Alexander examines the use of absurdity arguments, reflecting on his critique of Neom and offering strategies to balance absurdity heuristics with careful reasoning.
13 min read 1,990 words
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A Guide To Asking Robots To Design Stained Glass Windows
Scott Alexander experiments with DALL-E 2 to create stained glass window designs, exploring the AI's capabilities and limitations in interpreting complex prompts.
29 min read 4,495 words
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What Are We Arguing About When We Argue About Rationality?
Scott Alexander examines various interpretations of rationality, concluding it might be best understood as 'the study of study' - a meta-level examination of truth-seeking methods.
23 min read 3,496 words
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Heuristics That Almost Always Work
Scott Alexander discusses the dangers of relying on 'Heuristics That Almost Always Work' through various examples, highlighting their limitations and potential consequences.
15 min read 2,258 words
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There's A Time For Everyone
Scott Alexander announces his marriage and reflects on finding love, introducing 'micromarriages' as a motivational concept and exploring the rational and romantic aspects of marriage.
18 min read 2,661 words
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Book Review: The Scout Mindset
Scott Alexander reviews 'The Scout Mindset' by Julia Galef, a book on rationality that emphasizes seeking truth over defending beliefs and addresses both intellectual and emotional aspects of clear thinking.
35 min read 5,421 words
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Highlights From The Comments On Missing School
Scott Alexander discusses and responds to comments on his article about the effects of missing school, exploring various perspectives and reflecting on education's value and impact.
41 min read 6,239 words
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If You Can Be Bad, You Can Also Be Good
Scott Alexander argues against the claim that 'rationality free from ideology doesn't exist', asserting that recognizing irrationality implies the existence of rationality.
7 min read 961 words
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Trapped Priors As A Basic Problem Of Rationality
Scott Alexander explores the concept of 'trapped priors' as a fundamental problem in rationality, explaining how it leads to persistent biases and suggesting potential solutions.
33 min read 5,057 words
ACX
Mantic Monday: Judging April COVID Predictions
Scott Alexander evaluates the accuracy of COVID-19 predictions made by himself and two others in April 2020, discussing the results and their implications for forecasting.
15 min read 2,184 words
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You're Probably Wondering Why I've Called You Here Today
Scott Alexander introduces his new blog, Astral Codex Ten, centered around the concept of ṛta and exploring topics related to rationality, science, and human cognition.
5 min read 739 words
SSC
What Intellectual Progress Did I Make In The 2010s?
Scott Alexander reviews his intellectual progress in the 2010s across various fields, crediting his blog for accelerating learning.
32 min read 4,854 words
SSC
Mental Mountains
The post explores how emotional learning creates hard-to-update mental models, drawing parallels between psychotherapy, psychedelics, and rationality techniques in overcoming these 'mental mountains'.
31 min read 4,789 words