AlexSchell comments on The Noddy problem - Less Wrong

35 Post author: Apprentice 12 January 2012 10:18PM

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Comment author: AlexSchell 13 January 2012 01:36:18AM 4 points [-]

Nice illustration. It also lends itself to drawing an analogy between a solution to the Noddy Problem and real life akrasia. In the Noddy problem, the obvious solution is to make sure that the duplicate is not identical (or rather, that their environment is not close enough to yours in the relevant ways). One way to do this is by changing incentives -- you know that you would pick up Noddy if your life depended on it, so you can create a duplicate that believes that it will explode if they don't do the job. In the real world, you can apply the same sort of solution by using self-binding to coerce your future selves into doing your bidding.