No injuries were reported 432 implied HN points • 12 Feb 23 📰 News Survival Reporting Press A fire broke out but thankfully no injuries were reported. The fire resulted in the loss of over a hundred thousand chickens. Even though the barn was destroyed, the workers were safe as they had already left.
What the fuck 491 implied HN points • 19 Oct 22 Factory farming is a moral abomination involving gruesome and cruel treatment of animals. The horror of factory farming challenges societal progress and moral consistency. To combat factory farming, consider supporting effective animal welfare organizations or reducing meat consumption.
A simple explanation of why advanced AI could be incredibly dangerous 255 implied HN points • 25 Mar 23 🕹 Technology AI Machine Learning Ethics Research Development Transformative AI may be created soon via machine learning. We (currently) don’t know how to reliably control the goals that AI systems learn. Risks arising from AI systems pursuing the wrong goals could range from harmful to catastrophic.
Yeah, we should probably care more about shrimp welfare 334 implied HN points • 02 Dec 22 Shrimp welfare is important to consider because they may be capable of feeling pain and suffering. Scientific evidence supports the idea that shrimp can feel pain and distress. Thinking about shrimp welfare can help expand our moral circle and consider the well-being of beings different from ourselves.
Are AI systems conscious? I interviewed Rob Long, a philosopher studying digital minds, to find out 176 implied HN points • 27 Apr 23 🕹 Technology AI Ethics Language Models Rob Long is a philosopher studying digital minds, focusing on consciousness, sentience, and desires in AI systems. Consciousness and sentience are different; consciousness involves subjective experiences, while sentience often relates to pain and pleasure. Scientists study consciousness in humans to understand it; empirical testing in animals and AI systems is challenging without direct self-reports.
We are still in triage 334 implied HN points • 30 Aug 22 Helping others involves unavoidable triage due to limited time and resources. The expansion of moral concern in the effective altruism community has elevated the stakes of triage decisions. Despite the widening moral circle, the core mission remains reducing suffering while navigating challenging ethical dilemmas.
The perils of overestimating second-order effects 235 implied HN points • 07 Nov 22 Overemphasizing second-order effects can lead to motivated reasoning. Default to assuming first-order effects are more important without evidence of second-order effects. Second-order reasoning should not be used to justify intuitive reasoning.
Defending date me docs 294 implied HN points • 03 Sep 22 Date me docs are a way for individuals to describe themselves and what they're looking for romantically. Date me docs are not cringe but efficient and offer an alternative dating strategy. Date me docs can signal positive traits like valuing time and being direct to potential partners.
Announcing my blog's new name: Muddy Clothes 196 implied HN points • 29 Oct 22 The blog's new name is Muddy Clothes. The shallow pond thought experiment raises ethical questions about helping others. Muddy Clothes encourages caring and doing your best to make a positive impact.
My straightforward case for effective altruism 196 implied HN points • 10 Oct 22 At least some of our time should be spent making the world better. The possible altruistic actions you can do differ in how much good they do in the world. It is preferable to do altruistic actions that do more good in the world rather than less.
The perils of underestimating second-order effects 157 implied HN points • 11 Nov 22 Underestimating second-order effects can have serious consequences. Naive utilitarianism can lead to reckless decision-making. Consider adding deontological guardrails to prevent irrational choices.
The (behavioural) economics of ineffective giving 98 implied HN points • 07 Dec 22 Donors may struggle to understand the cost-effectiveness of different charities, influenced by biases like scope insensitivity and evaluability bias. Search costs and relational switching costs can make it hard for donors to find and switch to more effective charities. Charities lack incentives to do cost-effectiveness analyses, and the market lacks a mechanism for pushing out ineffective charities.
A better case for the EA focus on longtermism 117 implied HN points • 21 Sep 22 Being transparent about the reasons for focusing on longtermism is crucial in effective altruism discussions. The shift in priorities with many EAs focusing on longtermism is acceptable and fits the definition of effective altruism. Improving communication about the importance of protecting future generations and addressing critiques leads to a stronger defense of longtermism.
Appeals to nature should not limit our ambition 39 implied HN points • 31 Oct 22 Just because something is natural doesn't mean it's good - nature can create awful things like plagues and cancer. Historically, appeals to nature led to moral errors like slavery and sexism justified by natural grounds. Avoid suffering and moral errors by not blindly following nature and using reasoning to create a better world.