Tom Thought

Tom Thought is a multidisciplinary blog exploring a wide array of subjects from artificial intelligence, economics, free speech, morality, and the social implications of technology to fantasy racism and popular culture critiques. It delves into how these areas intersect with personal beliefs, societal norms, and ethical considerations.

Artificial Intelligence Economics Free Speech Morality Social Impact of Technology Fantasy Racism Popular Culture Philosophy History Politics

The hottest Substack posts of Tom Thought

And their main takeaways

Holistic Ethics

19 implied HN points • 05 Dec 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics Policy Cooperation Character
  1. Moral questions are complex and involve considerations about goals, rules, obligations, praise, punishment, emulation, habits, and associations.
  2. Outcomes and rules are both important in ethics, with goals being critical for motivation and rules for guidance, but bad outcomes lead to the need to revise rules.
  3. Morality is a process involving preferences, policies, cooperation, values, character, rules, and actions, aimed at aligning behavior to produce beneficial outcomes.

A Case for Moderate IQ Skepticism

19 implied HN points • 31 Oct 23
🔬 Science Psychology Intelligence Measurement Bias
  1. Performance on cognitive tasks is correlated, so individuals who excel in one area tend to excel in others as well.
  2. IQ tests are useful in predicting various life outcomes, but it's important to recognize that they are not a direct measure of intelligence.
  3. It's crucial to be skeptical of assigning deep meaning to specific IQ scores, especially when comparing across different populations.

Fair Price Theory

39 implied HN points • 26 May 23
💼 Business Economics Pricing Market Dynamics Value Creation Labor Market
  1. Every good or service has a fair price, whether it's labor dependent on skill or a product based on cost of parts and labor.
  2. There is no definitive 'fair' price, only the market price determined by what people are willing to pay.
  3. Value of a product depends on consumer demand, not just on the labor or materials that went into it. Pay isn't determined solely by skill, but by usefulness and rarity of the skill in demand.

Meditations on Consciousness

39 implied HN points • 28 Apr 23
📖 Philosophy Consciousness AI
  1. Our belief in consciousness is deeply tied to our own experiences, making it hard to determine the consciousness of others or non-human entities.
  2. Determining the consciousness of AI is important as it could impact how we view and treat these entities.
  3. Our tendency to assign moral worth based on anthropic similarity raises questions about how we extend moral consideration to non-human entities.

On Apologies

19 implied HN points • 10 Jun 23
🎭️ Culture Community Conflict resolution Online Culture
  1. Apologies aim at restoring relationships within a community, not necessarily at being perfectly sincere or compensating fully for harm.
  2. Communities function best when conflicts are resolved judiciously; regular expulsion of members can lead to community fracture.
  3. Online apologies can lack satisfaction as internet outrage is diffused with no clear leadership; each person decides for themselves if an apology is sufficient.
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I'm writing about stuff

19 implied HN points • 28 Apr 23
📖 Philosophy Ideas Mind History Politics
  1. The author writes about various topics like history, philosophy, politics, and tech, sharing thoughts that are on their mind.
  2. They are primarily writing for their own benefit, even if nobody reads it, but open to connecting with like-minded individuals who vibe with their ideas.
  3. The newsletter serves as a platform for the author to share ideas separate from their area of expertise, a space to explore and discuss different topics openly.

Fantasy Racism

19 implied HN points • 28 Apr 23
🎭️ Culture Fantasy Racism
  1. A racialized worldview is a mental model that simplifies human diversity into distinct groups based on combined biological and cultural traits.
  2. Fantasy, especially influenced by Tolkien, often presents a racialized utopia where different races cooperate, each bringing unique strengths to the table.
  3. Despite recent D&D rules changes around racial stereotypes, fantasy racism is deeply ingrained in the game's identity, offering a way to play with racial tropes in a fantasy setting.

Free Speech II

19 implied HN points • 02 May 23
🎭️ Culture Discourse Social norms Freedom of Speech Controversy
  1. Cities have different approaches to free speech: some prioritize open expression even if offensive, while others value avoidance of offense.
  2. Freedom of speech is shaped by cultural norms more than legal rules, requiring a balance between expression and consequences.
  3. Creating spaces for healthy discourse involves balancing free expression with a commitment to fostering diverse ideas and viewpoints.

Free Speech

19 implied HN points • 28 Apr 23
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Free speech First Amendment Government Censorship Debate
  1. Free speech is more than just the first amendment; it's about physical constraints, tools, and audience access, freedom from reprisal, and cultural receptiveness to new ideas.
  2. Freedom of speech is heavily influenced by financial and social resources, where those who are well-financed and well-connected are heard more clearly than those who are not.
  3. Free speech is practical and useful for generating robust dialogue, debate, and embracing new ideas, but it isn't the only thing that matters in society; there are tradeoffs to consider.

The Moral Burden of Choice

19 implied HN points • 28 Apr 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Medical Ethics
  1. In challenging situations, the burden of choice can impact individuals differently, affecting their sense of peace and satisfaction.
  2. High prices for advanced treatments and drugs can create moral dilemmas, raising questions about access, affordability, and benefits.
  3. The modern world's complexity can lead to individuals feeling overwhelmed by the need to constantly make decisions, potentially impacting their sense of responsibility and well-being.

Moral drain

1 HN point • 05 Jun 23
🎭️ Culture Ethics Society Morality Organizations Influence
  1. It's important to consider the impact of good people leaving bad organizations, as it can lead to a decline in overall moral character within the organization.
  2. Loyalty to an organization, even when it does something wrong, has shifted from being seen as honorable to being perceived as weak and cowardly.
  3. To prevent 'moral drain,' it's suggested to either ensure organizations always do the right thing or encourage people of good character to stay even when the organization behaves badly.

What's up with ancient cities?

0 implied HN points • 10 Jan 24
💾 History Urbanization Cultural Institutions
  1. Ancient cities were often more urbanized than medieval cities, despite medieval advancements in agriculture.
  2. The density needed for a city can be calculated based on land requirements for family units, which allows for different living arrangements between city and countryside.
  3. Early cities were primarily for collective defense, with amenities and cultural institutions evolving over time; the decline of urbanism in medieval Europe was due to changing values and security situations.

If you want people to listen to you, avoid saying things that are obviously wrong

0 implied HN points • 29 May 23
  1. Avoid saying things that are obviously wrong if you want people to listen to you.
  2. Middle-class families stress over things like the quality of schools and specific parenting choices, but these may not have as much impact as believed.
  3. When encountering claims that sound obviously stupid, there might be a kernel of truth hidden within that you may not immediately see.

Looking back at the Star Wars sequel trilogy

0 implied HN points • 25 Aug 23
🎭️ Culture Film Analysis Review
  1. The Force Awakens was a good start to the trilogy, introducing iconic characters, but lacked depth in worldbuilding and character arcs.
  2. The Last Jedi had interesting storytelling and character dynamics, but caused problems for the trilogy as a whole due to divisive creative decisions and backlash.
  3. The Rise of Skywalker is widely criticized for retroactively ruining the previous films, showcasing a lack of understanding of what makes Star Wars compelling.

Thoughts on pre-modern family economics

0 implied HN points • 08 Jan 24
🎭️ Culture Economics History Gender Roles
  1. A single person in pre-modern times could grow more food than they needed, allowing for the support of non-working dependents as well.
  2. Labor was not typically the bottleneck for agricultural output in households, leading to significant labor surpluses.
  3. In pre-modern societies, women were responsible for a large portion of non-agricultural activities within the household, especially in manufacturing clothing.