multifoliaterose comments on Existential Risk and Public Relations - Less Wrong

36 Post author: multifoliaterose 15 August 2010 07:16AM

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Comment author: multifoliaterose 15 August 2010 04:16:54PM 4 points [-]

I think multifoliaterose is right that there's a PR problem, but it's not just a PR problem. It seems, unfortunately, to be a problem with having enough justification for claims, and a problem with connecting to the world of professional science. I think the PR problems arise from being too disconnected from the demands placed on other scientific or science policy organizations. People who study other risks, say epidemic disease, have to get peer-reviewed, they have to get government funding -- their ideas need to pass a round of rigorous criticism. Their PR is better by necessity.

I agree completely. The reason why I framed my top level post in the way that I did was so that it would be relevant to readers of a variety of levels of confidence in SIAI's claims.

As I indicate here, I personally wouldn't be interested in funding SIAI as presently constituted even if there was no PR problem.