LessWrong

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You are an ape with pretensions. Playing a "let's pretend" game otherwise doesn't mean you win all arguments, or any. Even if it's a very elaborate one, you won't transcend being an ape.
 
You are an ape with pretensions. Playing a "let's pretend" game otherwise doesn't mean you win all arguments, or any. Even if it's a very elaborate one, you won't transcend being an ape.
  
Also, we really don't want to join your website religion. Thanks. Thank you for your concern. Thank you.
+
Also, we really don't want to join your website <s>religion</s> way of thinking. Thanks. Thank you for your concern. Thank you.
  
 
==Nevertheless==
 
==Nevertheless==

Revision as of 22:07, 4 May 2010

LessWrong is, in its own words, a community blog "devoted to refining the art of human rationality." In reality, it is a blog where scientists have rather dry chats about Bayesianism, artificial intelligence, cognitive biases, and what "rationalists" should and shouldn't do.

LessWrong is dominated by Eliezer Yudkowsky, a research fellow for the Future of Humanity Institute. Yudkowsky generally blogs about cognitive science, something called "fun theory," and AI, which is his field of study. As a whole, LessWrong has some good things going for it, but it also has some rather annoying features.

Contents

The good

  • Most of the articles are very interesting, and Yudkowsky's work in particular is very thought-provoking. He really is pretty damn smart and clueful.
  • The board has a "karma" system which alleviates trolling and keeps the discussions reasonably intelligent.

The bad

  • Reading a Yudkowsky piece can result in a unwitting tab explosion, as his posts invariably link to several more of his own writings.
  • The community isn't always kind to newbies, and they often snub people who have only a basic understanding of Bayesian inference, which is their preferred method of truth-seeking. They also expect newbies to have a basic understanding of almost every scientific field and a firm grasp on math.
  • It is often hard to understand what LessWrongers are talking about unless you frequent the site; many of the articles build upon previous ones. Yudkowsky's work is generally a bit easier to comprehend, but it is no exception to the rule.
  • The annoying practice of stating what "rationalists" should and shouldn't do. The "should" generally includes "read more Eliezer Yudkowsky!"
  • The personality cult of Eliezer Yudkowsky.

The ugly

  • Claiming ownership of the word "rationalism." It's entirely unclear whether Descartes, Spinoza or Leibniz would have lasted a day without being voted down into oblivion.[1]
  • When the acolytes, minds freshly blown, metastasize to other discussion spaces to evangelise the Good News for Modern Rationalists.

How to spot a LessWronger in your sceptical discussion

Sceptical discussion spaces will often have people show up labelling themselves "rationalist" and being as irritating as teenage nerds who've just discovered Ayn Rand. Take one drink for each of:

  • "As rationalists, we should ..."
    • "As a rationalist, you should ..."
  • "Bayesian" (particularly when they seem to have picked a real doozy of a prior probability; no working will ever be shown)
  • Preaching "rationalism" as if it's a religion substitute.[2]
  • Attempting to argue their points with them results in being told to take a communications course study several LessWrong "sequences"[3] and read hundreds of LessWrong articles rather than addressing whatever the point was.[4]
  • "Eliezer Yudkowsky suggests ..."
  • A zillion links to LessWrong articles.
  • Will disappear in disgust if you say "personality cult."

The moral

You are an ape with pretensions. Playing a "let's pretend" game otherwise doesn't mean you win all arguments, or any. Even if it's a very elaborate one, you won't transcend being an ape.

Also, we really don't want to join your website religion way of thinking. Thanks. Thank you for your concern. Thank you.

Nevertheless

LessWrong nevertheless makes for a very enlightening read. Just make sure you take it in moderation.

External links

Footnotes

  1. Obviously, we need to work through the sequences on Descartes' wiki before even asking this question.
  2. e.g. Eliezer Yudkowsky on fanfic.net. At least he's using Harry Potter fanfic rather than a new Atlas Shrugged.
  3. http://wiki.lesswrong.com/wiki/Sequences
  4. Less is More - or: the sorry state of AI friendliness discourse (Stefan Pernar, Rational Morality blog, 2009-11-06)
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