AI Snips
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Science As Social Attire
- Many people treat science as a social badge rather than a model-driven inquiry.
- Scott Alexander warns 'science as attire' leads people to adopt scientific-sounding beliefs to join an in-group, not because they seek truth.
Rationality Means Getting Less Wrong
- Rationality is a process of making models less wrong, not achieving instant perfection.
- Incremental model improvements accumulate toward the ideal; aim to be a bit more accurate whenever possible.
Why Fake Explanations Fail Prediction
- Fake explanations (like phlogiston) feel like answers but don't enable prediction or extension.
- Eliezer's post: theories must predict tomorrow, not just explain yesterday, or hindsight will fool you.