shokwave comments on What I've learned from Less Wrong - Less Wrong

79 Post author: Louie 20 November 2010 12:47PM

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Comment author: Vladimir_Nesov 20 November 2010 07:59:10PM *  19 points [-]

I wonder if the main reason for why a post like Yvain's is upvoted is not because it is great but because everyone who reads it instantly agrees. Of course it is great in the sense that it sums up the issue in a very clear and concise manner. But has it really changed your mind?

That's how great arguments work: you agree with every step (and after a while you start believing things you didn't originally). The progress is made by putting such arguments into words, to be followed by other people faster and more reliably than they were arrived at, even if arriving at them is in some contexts almost inevitable.

Additionally, clarity offered by a carefully thought-through exposition isn't something to expect without a targeted effort. This clarity can well serve as the enabling factor for making the next step.

Comment author: shokwave 21 November 2010 09:59:06AM 6 points [-]

That's how great arguments work: you agree with every step (and after a while you start believing things you didn't originally).

And to avoid people giving in to their motivated cognition, you present the steps in order, and the conclusion at the end. To paraphrase Yudkowsky's explanation of Bayes Theorem:

By this point, conclusion may seem blatantly obvious or even tautological, rather than exciting and new. If so, this argument has entirely succeeded in its purpose.

This method of presenting great arguments is probably the most important thing I learned from philosophy, incidentally.