Space chimp life

Space Chimp Life explores the analogy of institutions as living organisms, examining how they shape human behavior, decision-making, and social structures. It covers topics like entropy, information theory, wealth distribution, climate change, and institutional adaptation to highlight the complex, independent nature of institutions and their human impacts.

Institutions as Organisms Human Behavior Information Theory Wealth Distribution Climate Change Social Structures Decision-Making Entropy Adaptation

The hottest Substack posts of Space chimp life

And their main takeaways

Mapping the analogy of institutions as organisms (1)

1 HN point • 23 Jul 24
📖 Philosophy Metaphysics Epistemology Systems Thinking
  1. Institutions can act like living organisms, but they don't fit neatly into that analogy because humans can belong to multiple institutions and change roles often. This shows that people aren't static and can adapt in many ways.
  2. The way institutions operate can be better understood through concepts from thermodynamics and statistics. This means they can change how they function based on rules and roles assigned to their members, similar to how particles behave in biology.
  3. Institutions perceive the world through their policies and data, rather than physical objects alone. What they 'see' influences their actions and decisions, just like biological organisms react to their environment based on internal processes.

Institutional code and human behavior (2)

0 implied HN points • 20 Apr 24
🎭️ Culture Human behavior Mythology Narrative
  1. Processes are a collection of actions that help achieve a goal. They can vary depending on how you define them, like swimming or walking.
  2. Stories and reenactments can shape behavior by creating shared understandings of roles. They convey lessons and expectations in a way that can influence people without direct language.
  3. Shame and rituals, like dance or religion, can enforce social codes and behaviors. They help society manage roles and relationships, guiding how people interact with each other.

Institutional code and human behavior (1)

0 implied HN points • 26 Feb 24
📖 Philosophy Human behavior Institutions Society Language Culture
  1. Human behavior is deeply influenced by social institutions, such as language, art, and religion. These institutions shape how we connect and operate in society.
  2. Every institution has a kind of 'code' that guides its functions and roles, similar to how computer programs run on code. This code helps define what members can do and how they interact.
  3. Foundational roles in early institutions likely included distinctions based on sexual and social dynamics, shaping how humans formed relationships and organized themselves.

How to keep humans in the loop

0 implied HN points • 10 Apr 23
🕹 Technology AI Information Systems Decision-making Human Interaction Automation
  1. We need better ways to share information and opinions in our decision-making systems. Right now, it's hard for people to feel heard or to make changes in our society.
  2. Human systems often operate between humans making decisions and automated processes. Finding a balance could help us use both human creativity and the efficiency of automation.
  3. Creating a platform for people to propose and vote on ideas could improve cooperation and decision-making at all levels. This would help people work together better, whether in families, friends, or communities.

Observers and entropy

0 implied HN points • 10 May 24
🔬 Science Physics Information Theory Entropy Thermodynamics Cognition
  1. Entropy is a way to measure the uncertainty or disorder in a system. It can be understood through different models, and how we define our system affects how we calculate entropy.
  2. The concept of entropy relates to information as well. It’s about how well we can predict outcomes based on the information or 'alphabet' we use to understand a system.
  3. Both living organisms and neural networks try to minimize surprise and uncertainty by adjusting their internal models. This process helps efficiently process energy and information from their environment.
Get a weekly roundup of the best Substack posts, by hacker news affinity:

Justification for treating institutions as higher order forms of life

0 implied HN points • 22 Apr 24
📖 Philosophy Institutions Autonomy Systems theory
  1. Institutions can operate independently of humans and have roles that can be filled by animals or machines, like robots or AI. This shows that institutions have their own form of life, separate from human involvement.
  2. Much like living organisms, institutions experience organization, growth, adaptation, and reproduction. They can maintain their processes and even thrive with or without human contributions.
  3. Understanding institutions as life forms can help us design better systems that serve people's needs and create balance. This idea could lead to more transparent institutions that listen to the public and adapt more quickly to change.

Institutional code and human behavior (1)

0 implied HN points • 25 Feb 24
📖 Philosophy Human behavior Institutions Language Evolution Society
  1. Our human nature is deeply intertwined with institutions, which shape many of our social behaviors like language, art, and economy. Understanding these institutions can help us see how they influence our lives.
  2. Institutions need certain features to operate effectively, like defining roles for members and processes for decision-making. These codes help govern interactions and resource management within a group.
  3. A big part of how we relate to each other in institutions comes from our basic human roles, including sexual roles. These roles may have been some of the first defined in ancient societies, influencing how we build social structures today.

Institutions as Forms of Life

0 implied HN points • 08 Jan 24
📖 Philosophy AI Ethics Human behavior Systems Thinking Environmental Concerns
  1. Institutions are not just groups of people; their behavior is shaped by their structures and incentives. This means they can act in ways that don't always reflect what individuals want, like ignoring climate change.
  2. An institution can exist without humans entirely; in the future, AI might take over all roles in institutions without changing their function. This shows that institutions operate like living things, independent of their human creators.
  3. To improve institutions, we need to help them adjust their decisions based on long-term effects instead of short-term profits. Providing better communication and information from people can help institutions make smarter choices.

Wealth distribution and feedback loops

0 implied HN points • 24 Jan 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Wealth Distribution Economic Theory Tax policy Social justice Incentives
  1. Wealth distribution behaves like a feedback loop, where the rich can continue to get richer without sufficient checks. This happens when there's less competition or enforcement against hoarding wealth.
  2. Currently, wealth is distributed in an exponential way, meaning a few people have a lot while most have very little. This leads to an unstable system that might keep expanding the income gap.
  3. To fix the growing wealth gap, we need to introduce ways to balance the system, like better policies or incentives, to help distribute resources more fairly.

A Plan to Do Something about Climate Change

0 implied HN points • 12 Jan 24
🌞 Climate & Environment Climate Policy Sustainability Environmental Activism Community Engagement
  1. The plan suggests creating an app to manage policies like computer code, making decision-making faster and more collaborative. This could help organizations work better together on climate change.
  2. It proposes forming a network of organizations that pool resources and make decisions together, allowing people to directly participate in political actions and elections. This would give more power to local communities.
  3. The idea is to build a platform that pays people for their contributions, motivating them to take part in projects for climate change and other important issues. This could lead to more action from the public.

Information as constraint of behavior

0 implied HN points • 07 Jan 24
📖 Philosophy Behavioral Science Information Theory Systems theory Cognitive Science
  1. Institutions shape how we behave by restricting certain actions. This can be seen in clear rules or by making other choices harder or more costly.
  2. Information is created when different conditions allow an entity to do work, as shown in the example of a simple organism's behavior. The way it manages energy and information is crucial for survival.
  3. Just like simple organisms, institutions also gather information from their environment and use it to influence our actions. The way they set up rules determines the kind of work they can do.

A model for computing goals as signals

0 implied HN points • 30 May 23
🕹 Technology Computing Physics Mathematics Modeling
  1. Detecting the position of a particle is crucial, as it helps decide if action is needed or not. A good detection system can distinguish between being inside or outside a boundary.
  2. The effectiveness of an actuator is important too. It should reliably apply force when needed, helping to keep the particle within the desired area.
  3. Adding more detectors and actuators can enhance the chances of success, but they still can't guarantee it. Each added component improves the probability but only approaches success asymptotically.

Physics of intention and action

0 implied HN points • 26 Apr 23
🔬 Science Physics Biology Energy Information Causality
  1. Thought needs to have some effect on the world to be useful. If it doesn't change anything, we can't test or notice it.
  2. Actions often require more energy than the intention behind them. Like how a tiny joystick can move a heavy crane, we need stored energy to make big movements happen.
  3. The energy involved in our actions connects back through history. Every time we move, we are using energy that has been stored and transformed, showing how life's history influences what we do.

Hard Conway's Law

0 implied HN points • 20 Apr 23
💼 Business Management Organizational Behavior Information Systems Decision-making
  1. Organizations reflect their communication styles in the code they produce. This means that how teams talk and work together can directly affect the quality and structure of their software.
  2. Business logic is crucial for both organizations and their code. It acts like a backbone that guides decisions and processes, similar to DNA in living organisms.
  3. We can improve how our institutions work by better understanding and reshaping this business logic. By combining manual processes with systematic coding, we can create more effective and responsive organizations.

Debunking Race “Science”

0 implied HN points • 29 Jan 24
🔬 Science Genetics Psychology Sociology Neuroscience Education
  1. Heritability and genetics are often confused. While some studies suggest certain traits are 50-60% heritable, this doesn't mean they're purely genetic, as environment plays a big role too.
  2. Twin studies, commonly used to support race 'science', have flaws because they often fail to isolate the twins' environments correctly, leading to misleading conclusions about heritability.
  3. Understanding intelligence requires looking at how the brain interacts with the environment, rather than just focusing on race or IQ numbers. The brain learns from experiences, showing its flexibility and adaptability across cultures.