All articles from Overcoming Bias
Beware Macro Decay Modes
When a house burns, it is in a decay mode. As it is when it is abandoned. The large systems in which houses are embedded try to prevent and resist such decay modes, but even so such modes still happen at times.When our bodies get sick they are in decay modes, modes we try to prevent and resist. But
Beware Moral Confidence
Predators naturally try to kill as many prey as they can eat. But if they could reflect on what is in their collective interest, the set of all predators on an isolated island should want to avoid killing all of the island's prey. And even in a famine, all the farmers on such an island should want t
Moral Compromise
Yesterday, I talked on cultural drift, w/o slides, for 90min (~1/2 time in Q&A) to 75 smart engaged elite teens. Happily, they seemed to mostly understand me, suggesting that I've found sufficient ways to explain the issue at their level.However, their most common objection, by far, suggests a big c
Ngram Diversity Trends 1960+
Ngram shows how often words and phrase are used in English books over time. "Diversity" has been rising steadily since 1960:But different kinds rose at different times. First was "ecological diversity", plausibly from environmentalism:Next was "ethnic diversity", plausibly combining racial and envir