Groundbreaking technology, inaccurate sales pitch

It's a basic problem in technology, that if something is totally unlike anything which came before it, then it will be difficult to accurately describe it. People often opt for analogies, and model it after what they know. Unfortunately, these "metaphors" for the project can often take on a certain mythology which obfuscates the actual … Continue reading Groundbreaking technology, inaccurate sales pitch →

Beyond Determinism: A Treatise (Freedom, Fate, or Both?)

1. Introduction 1.1. Compatibilism I feel more comfortable with the free-will-existence debate than any other topic in philosophy. I personally have convinced several people to, if not change their mind, at least reconsider their position. The people I convinced were not philosophers, but still. My position on free will is the following: I am a … Continue reading Beyond Determinism: A Treatise (Freedom, Fate, or Both?) →

The Body of the Universe

Let me give you some context to the below document. I have a friend on discord who has been experimenting with very unconventional machine learning models. He recently confided in me some frankly sensationalistic and hard to believe claims of breakthrough. He claims that his model has tapped into a previously invisible “information field“. He … Continue reading The Body of the Universe →

Reasonable Reasons to NOT be THAT Worried about AI Doomsday

Edit: I wrote this post a while ago, when I wasn't as well-read on the theory of AI alignment, and my positions weren't all fully formulated. I would still agree with maybe 80% of what's written here. I hope you get value from it. But if you come to the opinion that I'm misunderstanding something, … Continue reading Reasonable Reasons to NOT be THAT Worried about AI Doomsday →

No, self-driving cars don’t require we solve “trolley problem” moral dilemmas

Stop me if you've heard this: Now with self-driving cars, engineers will be faced with dilemmas. They will have to decide the answers to certain contentious questions in moral philosophy. For example, should a car go straight and hit the child, or divert and hit the man? How should the software be programmed to behave? … Continue reading No, self-driving cars don’t require we solve “trolley problem” moral dilemmas →

Find the Absurdities in Your Own Arguments

Part 1: Modus-Tollens Moral arguments are hard because often you are arguing with someone who simply has different fundamental presuppositions than you do. It’s hard to apply formal logic to morality because when reach those base axioms, you’re at an impasse. However, one thing that we can do is show that the opponent’s moral system, … Continue reading Find the Absurdities in Your Own Arguments →