You're looking at Less Wrong's discussion board. This includes all posts, including those that haven't been promoted to the front page yet. For more information, see About Less Wrong.

Utilitarianism Subreddit

6 Post author: Tuxedage 31 July 2012 06:23AM

Utilitarianism seems to be a common topic here. Many here are also familiar with Reddit.

I suggest checking out /r/utilitarianism and consider subscribing. That is all.

Comments (8)

Comment author: [deleted] 31 July 2012 11:27:59AM 5 points [-]

Is CEV really a form of utilitarianism?

Comment author: peter_hurford 31 July 2012 03:44:34PM 3 points [-]

I was thinking that too, but I suppose it has similar properties to a sort of ideal preference utilitarianism.

Comment author: rocurley 31 July 2012 04:42:26PM 2 points [-]

Did the post change? I don't see any mention of CEV.

Comment author: Oscar_Cunningham 31 July 2012 05:29:14PM *  5 points [-]

I think that paper-machine is suggesting that utilitarianism isn't in fact a common topic here because (paper-machine alleges) many LessWrongers believe that CEV is the correct form of ethics and CEV is not a form of utilitarianism.

I don't think that CEV is commonly held on LessWrong to be the correct ethics, especially since it was originally introduced as a way to build an FAI, and not as a form of ethics at all. However, I might well hold CEV up as having the right kind of idea (combining preferences while allowing for change in beliefs). It isn't well specified enough to be a morallity.

As peter_hurford says, it is pretty close to preference utilitarianism.

EDIT: Wrong on all counts.

Comment author: [deleted] 31 July 2012 11:02:03PM 3 points [-]

The sidebar of /r/utilitarianism mentions CEV as a kind of utilitarianism.

Oscar_Cunningham is more or less incorrect in his guesses about me. I didn't allege that many LWers believe in CEV, I don't believe CEV is the correct form of ethics, and I didn't say anything about whether or not utilitarianism is a common topic on LW.

I don't even know if CEV is a kind of utilitarianism or not -- that's why I asked.

Comment author: Lightwave 01 August 2012 07:57:12AM *  1 point [-]

CEV is more of an algorithm that is supposed to produce the correct ethics. I guess some people here would argue that the product will necessarily be a consequentialist form of ethics.

Comment author: [deleted] 01 August 2012 09:01:09AM 0 points [-]

I don't think there's much use in distinguishing CEV from its results, as far as the "popular" usage of the term goes. Certainly the sidebar isn't using it in this sense.

I have yet to see an argument that CEV (or whatever CEV produces if you like) will be consequentialist; indeed, sometimes I have seen people argue that CEV will value certain abstract things almost as if they were virtues, e.g., fun.

Comment author: Oscar_Cunningham 31 July 2012 11:21:43PM 1 point [-]

Oh, okay.