Good at math, definitely not "gifted".

Don't think like this. You are an expert at quantum computing. 99% of the population doesn't know what quantum computing IS. You are probably 3-4 sigmas above the mean, which basically qualifies you to do anything. If you don't think of yourself as particularly smart, it is probably just because you are in contact with people who are 5-6 sigmas above the mean.

I don't think the relevant distinction here is "real life v. online." The distinction is is written communication v. oral communication. I would expect with high confidence that a Skype discussion would more resemble talking face to face, and that actual old-fashioned letter correspondence would more resemble discussion online. The big difference to me, is having the time to research and synthesize relevant evidence before responding; this tends to disrupt the flow of oral communication.

I suspect the persuasiveness in oral communication is related to our susceptibility to favorable impressions of people who mimic our tone, posture, etc.

You are right, I should eat less chocolate

In this particular case, I think the use of "should" is more an implicit dismissal than a semantic stopsign (but there may be an overlap between the two concepts). What I mean is that it's usually clear to both the participants of the conversation that you have acknowledged the problem but do not intend to implement a solution yet. More explicitely, the meaning of the phrase sounds like: "I know that I should eat less chocolate, but this is not a priority for me now.". It stops the conversation by stating your full position regarding the subjet, even if not explicitely.

Back on the main topic, one of the most powerful semantic stopsigns is probably "It's complicated". It's so powerful that even PUAs encourage to exploit it as a relationship weapon. I'm guilty of using it myself very often, even though I hate to hear those words uttered to me.

I started watching Breaking Bad. It's generally awesome in every way. One thing that really stands out to me is how lies are contagious and rapidly increase in complexity, needing more and more covering stories to cover the gaping contradictions and loose ends.

I don't think there's an easy way to be specifically notified about such a general category of events, except maybe a Facebook account following some very selected sources . For music specifically, though, I can suggest LastFm, which catalogues the music you listen to, and offers a selection of nearby gigs based on your preferences, among other things. It's also quite good for discovering new music that might fit your tastes.

Survey taken, all of it!

Thanks Yvain, for all the time and work you put every year into this. Can't wait to see the results!

It reminded me of "Professing and Cheering" -- an anecdote from real life; expert's opinion; a conclusion for aspiring rationalists.

As a data point: I liked it; it explained a thing that I suspected but never put into such clear words; and I would like to see more articles like this. And I think it is important for rationality, because religious apologetics is a millenia-old Dark Art, its frequency is high and its impact can be huge.

Recently noticed that a lot of the time I eat junk food is when I wander into the kitchen because I'm bored, and junk food is easy to eat. So I decided to start buying vegetables in advance, cutting them up at the start of the week into edible chunks / preparing them slightly, and having dressing on hand to eat with them. This has resulted in me eating vegetables as a snack significantly more often, because it is now fairly trivial to do so.

Of course, keeping up the habit of preparing them at the start of the week is the hard part. For those with more cash than me, it might be worth it to just buy those party vegetable trays from the grocery store.

Good, substantive post, explaining (if in a bit many words) some important insights that give a quite interesting view of the whole situation. Good work.

However, similar to what lukeprog and shminux pointed out, this is quite the long essay, and it would be nice if it was tightened up a bit, at least in the form of providing a summary at the beginning.

Be careful about how much you invest in a relationship. Whatever you might think at any moment, the probability that it will end in the future are relevant. I happened to make several life-changing choices in order to optimize the relationship with my former girlfirend, since we had been together for a long time and thing were sitll looking awesome. She dumped me abruptely, and I found myself navigating into a huge void of lost friends, lost hobbies, and a job that I like, but it's not the one I had always wanted to have (and had, before changing for the sake of the relationship).