MugaSofer comments on The Level Above Mine - Less Wrong

42 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 26 September 2008 09:18AM

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Comment author: MugaSofer 23 June 2014 01:32:59PM *  2 points [-]

As I said, I can only comment on my general impression of the field. I'm not an expert - in anything - and I don't move in philosophy circles.

Worse still, because of my experiences with e.g. theology, I may be unusually biased towards criticising philosophers without properly engaging with them. "My experience of philosophy" is more valuable than a high-schooler's, but it's probably nothing special as experience-of-philosophy goes.

Nevertheless, as I said, in my experience of philosophy there are few philosophers at EY's level.

I think that's relevant, and hey, if someone with better evidence disagrees then all the more data for me. But the grandparent didn't provide evidence; it used underhanded tactics to deflect away from it instead.


John Conway ... is awesome and much higher-level than me, but I'm not sure how that relates to the above discussion. As you say, he's a mathematician; I'm not sure who Philosopher!John Conway would be, even if I had met them. Which I haven't.

Comment author: TheAncientGeek 24 June 2014 08:48:06AM 0 points [-]

It takes some engagement with philosophy to know how to rate a philosopher. OTOH, someone can always gain popularity by telling people what they want to hear. Someone once told me that the Best Philosopher was Timothy Leary.