Meetup : Shanghai Meetup

2 Barry_Cotter 30 March 2013 01:56PM

Discussion article for the meetup : Shanghai Meetup

WHEN: 02 April 2013 07:30:00PM (+0800)

WHERE: Boxing Cat Brewery, 82 Fuxing Xi Lu, near Yongfu Lu, Shanghai, China

I will be here_shanghai)) from 7. I look like this. The food has been decent every time I've been and it's non smoking inside. If you want, read the Checklist of Rationality Habits before you come and we can discuss that. No compulsion to do so, one of the important things is to have fun. The nearest metro station is Shanghai Library. 82 Fuxing Xi Lu, near Yongfu Lu 复兴路82号, 近永福路

Discussion article for the meetup : Shanghai Meetup

Meetup : Shanghai Meetup Wednesday, 7:30

5 Barry_Cotter 18 February 2013 05:18AM

Discussion article for the meetup : Meetup Wednesday, 7:30

WHEN: 20 February 2013 01:07:30PM (+0800)

WHERE: Salley Garden, 480 Yongjia Lu, near Yueyang Lu, Shanghai

Salley Garden 480 Yongjia Lu (near Yueyang Lu), (map), at 7:30 p.m

If someone else has a topic they want to talk about for a bit before we just talk, say it in the comments, otherwise I'll edit this next lunchtime with what we'll spend a while talking about before just chatting.

Last time we had four people from the mailing list show up apart from me and a friend. There was good conversation and good food but unfortunately we didn't get to board games.

All two times I've been there the food has been good. I hope to see some of you there.

I look like this, and will have a piece of paper with Shanghai Rationalists/ Less wrong on it.

It can be hard to find so directions are below

It's exactly in the middle of the block between Yueyang Lu & Taiyuan Lu, on the north side of Yongjia Lu. There's a Salley Garden sign at the entrance to the alleyway - head down there and it's on the left, next to Inferno. Here is what the entrance to the alleyway looks like. If you're coming from Yueyang Lu and you hit the police station, you've gone too far.

Discussion article for the meetup : Meetup Wednesday, 7:30

Meetup : Shanghai Meetup

6 Barry_Cotter 26 January 2013 04:10AM

Discussion article for the meetup : Shanghai Meetup

WHEN: 28 January 2013 07:00:00PM (+0800)

WHERE: 45 Yue Yang Road, near Dong Ping Road, Shanghai

There's going to be a meetup 7p.m. Monday evening at Abbey Road. Two other people have said they'll be attending as well. I'll be giving a short talk on cognitive biases and the we can discuss it and chat. The food is good, and they have board games too for slightly later. I look like this and will have a copy of Thinking, Fast and Slow on the table.

Discussion article for the meetup : Shanghai Meetup

[LINK] Why You Should Keep Your Goals Secret

8 Barry_Cotter 03 March 2012 01:40PM

Popularisation, extremely short

Original Article [pdf]

 

When intentions go public: does social reality widen the intention-behavior gap?

Source

New York University, Psychology Department, New York, NY 10003, USA. peter.gollwitzer@nyu.edu

Abstract

Based on Lewinian goal theory in general and self-completion theory in particular, four experiments examined the implications of other people taking notice of one's identity-related behavioral intentions (e.g., the intention to read law periodicals regularly to reach the identity goal of becoming a lawyer). Identity-related behavioral intentions that had been noticed by other people were translated into action less intensively than those that had been ignored (Studies 1-3). This effect was evident in the field (persistent striving over 1 week's time; Study 1) and in the laboratory (jumping on opportunities to act; Studies 2 and 3), and it held among participants with strong but not weak commitment to the identity goal (Study 3). Study 4 showed, in addition, that when other people take notice of an individual's identity-related behavioral intention, this gives the individual a premature sense of possessing the aspired-to identity.

 

If you have tags to suggest please do and I'll edit them in.

 

 

Meetup : Dublin, IE, Meetup

1 Barry_Cotter 07 October 2011 12:34PM

Discussion article for the meetup : Dublin, IE, Meetup

WHEN: 15 October 2011 02:00:00PM (+0100)

WHERE: College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland

Meet at Starbucks on College Green here

I'll be there even if noone replies, for an hour. My phone number is 086 3561738

Discussion article for the meetup : Dublin, IE, Meetup

Influence = Manipulation

2 Barry_Cotter 14 June 2011 05:47PM

Influence and manipulation are both attempts to alter the actions or propensity to act of another agent. The only difference between the two that can generally relied upon is that the one who calls it manipulation finds it distasteful or immoral. If you disagree I invite you to find a general principle cleanly dividing the following examples into manipulation and influence; all the better if it can be made uncontroversial.

 

A woman telling her long-term boyfriend that they're not getting married before he gets his doctorate.

A man teasing a friend.

A man teasing a female friend.

A man teasing a female friend, flirting.

A man teasing a female friend, flirting with intent.

A man teasing a woman he met ten minutes ago, flirting with intent.

A woman encouraging her son to become a teacher because the job security is good.

A woman encouraging her son to become a lawyer because he'll be better able to support her in her old age.

 

I'm not denying that manipulation and influence can be usefully distinguished. I do not believe they can but I haven't spent the last month thinking about it on and off. There might exist a Schelling point dividing bidirectional communication into socially acceptable influence and unacceptable manipulation, a lawyerly thing, useful but without any defensible reason to be there exactly but that it must be somewhere and we have come to an agreement that here will do. If you believe that there is a point that actually is pragmatically better than another by a real margin, please state it, and defend your proposition.

[LINK] Clothing as status signalling, logos and co-operation

9 Barry_Cotter 02 April 2011 03:41PM

http://www.economist.com/node/18483423?story_id=18483423&CFID=160796263&CFTOKEN=71303356

After reading this, I'm seriously considering finding someplace online that sells those little Lacoste crocodiles and sewing them onto all my shirts. The power of logos appears to be ridiculous for the trivial outlay.

New Month's Resolutions

5 Barry_Cotter 02 November 2010 04:15PM

If you have a goal that can be credibly achieved by the end of the month reply to this post. At the end of the month everybody who posted writes up their experiences, lessons in overcoming akrasia etc. as a reply to their original comment or by editing the original.

Whether you want to share the goal before the end of the month is up to you, pros, you are accountable, cons, you may feel a sense of accomplishment just by saying it and not do anything.