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DanielLC comments on Open Thread, November 1 - 7, 2013 - Less Wrong Discussion

5 Post author: witzvo 02 November 2013 04:37PM

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Comment author: Viliam_Bur 03 November 2013 05:35:08PM *  15 points [-]

So I get home from a weekend trip and go directly to the HPMOR page. No new chapter yet. But there is a link to what seems to be a rationalist Death Note.

The way he saw it, the world was a pretty awful place. Corrupt politicians, cruel criminals, evil CEOs and even day-to-day evil acts made it that way, but everyday stupidity ensured it would stay like that. Nobody could make even a simple utility calculation. The only saving grace was that this was as true for the villains as for the heroes.

I am going to read it. Here are my next thoughts:

So, it seems like Eliezer succeeded to create a whole new genre of literature: rationalist fiction. Nice job!

Wait, what?! Is "a story where the protagonist behaves rationally" really a new genre of literature? There is something horribly wrong with this world if this is true.

Discussing with my girlfriend about which stories should be x-rationalizated next, she suggests HPMOR. Someone should make a HPMOR fanfic where the protagonist is even more rational than the rational Harry. Would that lead to a spiral of even more and more rational heroes?

What exactly could the MoreRational!Harry do? It would be pretty awesome if he could somehow deduce the existence of magic before he was contacted from Hogwarts. For example, he could start doing some research about his biological parents; after realizing they were killed he could try to find out the villain, and gradually discover the existence of magic.

Only one problem: MoreRational!Voldemort would have killed MoreRational!Harry as a baby. Using a knife.

Comment author: DanielLC 05 November 2013 04:56:18AM 3 points [-]

Erfworld is a piece of rationalist fiction not related to HP:MoR. It was discussed on here a while back. There must be others.

Also, I suggest calling it Rational!Rational!Harry.