I needed clean data on how people react to various commentary here. I falsified several anti-LW hypotheses (if I think you guys are the Scientology 2.0 I want to see if I can falsify that, ok?), though at some point I was really curious to see what you do about two accounts in same place talking in exact same style, that was entirely unscientific, sorry about this.
Furthermore, the comments were predominantly rated at >0 and not through socks rating each other up (I would want to see if first-vote effect is strong but that would require far too much data). Sorry if there is any sort of disruption to anything.
I actually have significantly more respect for you guys now, with regards to considering the commentary, and subsequently non cultness. I needed a way to test hypotheses. That utterly requires some degree of statistical independence. I do still honestly think this FAI idea is pretty damn misguided (and potentially dangerous to boot), but I am allowing it much more benefit of the doubt.
edit: actually, can you reset the email of Dmytry to dmytryl at gmail ? I may want to post article sometime in the future (I will try to offer balanced overview as I see, and it will have plus points as well. Seriously.).
Also, on the Eliezer, I really hate his style but like his honesty, and its a very mixed feeling all around, i mean, its atrocious to just go ahead and say, whoever didn't get my MWI stuff is stupid, thats the sort of stuff that evaporates out a LOT of people, and if you e.g. make some mistakes, you risk evaporating meticulous people. On the other hand, if that's what he feels, that's what he feels, to conceal it is evil.
I needed clean data on how people react to various commentary here. I falsified several anti-LW hypotheses
So presumably we can expect a post soon explaining the background & procedure, giving data and perhaps predictions or hash precommitments, with an analysis of the results; all of which will also demonstrate that this is not a post hoc excuse.
edit: actually, can you reset the email of Dmytry to dmytryl at gmail ?
I can't, no. I'd guess you'd have to ask someone at Trike, and I don't know if they'd be willing to help you out...
My friend, hearing me recount tales of LessWrong, recently asked me if I thought it was simply a coincidence that so many LessWrong rationality nerds cared so much about creating Friendly AI. "If Eliezer had simply been obsessed by saving the world from asteroids, would they all be focused on that?"
Obviously one possibility (the inside view) is simply that rationality compels you to focus on FAI. But if we take the outside view for a second, it does seem like FAI has a special attraction for armchair rationalists: it's the rare heroic act that can be accomplished without ever confronting reality.
After all, if you want to save the planet from an asteroid, you have to do a lot of work! You have to build stuff and test it and just generally solve a lot of gritty engineering problems. But if you want to save the planet from AI, you can conveniently do the whole thing without getting out of bed.
Indeed, as the Tool AI debate as shown, SIAI types have withdrawn from reality even further. There are a lot of AI researchers who spend a lot of time building models, analyzing data, and generally solving a lot of gritty engineering problems all day. But the SIAI view conveniently says this is all very dangerous and that one shouldn't even begin to try implementing anything like an AI until one has perfectly solved all of the theoretical problems first.
Obviously this isn't any sort of proof that working on FAI is irrational, but it does seem awfully suspicious that people who really like to spend their time thinking about ideas have managed to persuade themselves that they can save the entire species from certain doom just by thinking about ideas.