timtyler comments on If it looks like utility maximizer and quacks like utility maximizer... - Less Wrong

14 Post author: taw 11 June 2009 06:34PM

You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.

Comments (24)

You are viewing a single comment's thread. Show more comments above.

Comment author: MichaelBishop 12 June 2009 04:57:13PM 2 points [-]

One of the distinctions that was not clear enough on that the thread, were the different types of utility functions. For example, I find it useful to talk about:

  1. the function I feel ethically obliged to maximize, a.k.a. my philosophy.

  2. the function(s) my behavior actually appears to maximize (approximately) at various levels of analysis.

  3. the function I would maximize if I was more instrumentally rational, and/or less concerned about other people's utility.

Comment author: timtyler 13 June 2009 05:06:17AM 0 points [-]

Ben calls those "implicit" and "explicit" goals here:

http://cosmistmanifesto.blogspot.com/2009/01/goals-explicit-and-implicit.html

Not great terminology - can we do better?

Another big one is: the goal(s) we want others to believe we have. Often "save the whales" - or some other piece of selfless signalling.