A thread through the archive

wanting vs liking

Essays tagged “wanting vs liking”. Follow an idea across the archive.

Essays on wanting vs liking

2 essays

Jul 9, 2011LW

Wanting vs. Liking Revisited

Scott explains why 'wanting' and 'liking' diverge by examining reinforcement learning mechanisms like context-dependence, intermittent reinforcement, and hyperbolic discounting, concluding that this undermines the concept of stable preferences.

8 min read 1,231 words

Jan 1, 2010LW

Are wireheads happy?

Scott discusses the neuroscientific split between 'wanting' and 'liking', showing how wireheads might not actually be happy, and explores the troubling implications this has for economics, philosophy, and AI alignment.

11 min read 1,606 words

AI goals dopamine neuroscience