ACX
Fake Tradition Is Traditional
Scott Alexander defends the practice of looking to idealized traditions for inspiration, arguing it's a common and useful human approach to creativity and innovation.
10 min read 1,539 words
A thread through the archive
creativity
Essays tagged “creativity”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Essays on creativity
7 essaysACX
The Psychology Of Fantasy
Scott examines why fantasy universes share common elements, arguing they're designed to let ordinary people imagine becoming heroes without exceptional skills.
14 min read 2,108 words
SSC
Book Review Review: Little Soldiers
Scott Alexander reviews a book about Chinese education, comparing it to criticisms of US schools and examining evidence for discipline-focused vs. creativity-focused approaches to education.
24 min read 3,627 words
SSC
My Plagiarism
Scott Alexander discusses unintentional plagiarism in his writing, reflecting on how writers blend their influences at various levels of recognition.
4 min read 489 words
SSC
GPT-2 As Step Toward General Intelligence
Scott Alexander explores GPT-2's unexpected capabilities and argues that it demonstrates the potential for AI to develop abilities beyond its explicit programming, challenging skepticism about AGI.
23 min read 3,491 words
SSC
Random Noise Is Our Most Valuable Resource
Scott Alexander argues that creativity comes from mining external sources of 'noise' or 'disruption' rather than just thinking hard.
9 min read 1,389 words
SSC
Negative Creativity
Scott Alexander suggests humans have 'negative creativity' due to cognitive 'ruts', and explores ways to escape these ruts, arguing that AI might have an advantage in creative thinking.
7 min read 935 words