Houshalter comments on Say Not "Complexity" - Less Wrong

34 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 29 August 2007 04:22AM

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Comment author: Houshalter 06 May 2013 10:45:44PM 0 points [-]

I think when your friend was talking about "complexity" he didn't mean the word literally. He may have meant that you would have to create a complicated solution, as opposed to finding a nice and elegant solution. The difference is you try to hammer out every detail and special case, one at a time, and adding "complexity" as you go, as opposed to just thinking about a single solution which would handle every case.

This is what I think most people mean when they talk about "complexity" as a solution to their problem. They don't literally mean that adding more complexity will solve the problem. It is just a different approach to problem solving. And sometimes that approach is easier and gets things done, even if it is more messy. Sometimes it is not.

Different approaches to solving problems is an interesting subject in itself. I've seen it create huge divisions in both artificial intelligence and politics. I tend to prefer nice elegant solutions. But when the problem seems complicated, it's tempting to run to the complexity side of things. There is no guarantee you will ever find an elegant solution, but if you just handle special case after special case, you can make progress over time for sure.