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After filtering to make it into a proper TV show, the -best- that could happen is the rationalist would be cast into a 'straw vulcan' role and ridiculed; more likely is that the whole rationalist community is made out to be a screwy cult to be ridiculed.
That makes sense since the producers are openly saying they are looking for people that fit stereotypes.
I think it's because it doesn't strongly relate to rationality. Also, the expected payoff of applying to the show is going to be extremely small given how many people probably will be applying.
Thank you for your answer. I will try not to post things that don't strongly relate to rationality in the future.
For the record, my reasoning was the following: There has been 5000 candidates so far. If one rationalist applies, let's say s/he has a probability of 1/5000 to be chosen. If s/he is chosen, s/he will be seen by probably millions of viewers. So in average, every application would reach something like 1000 viewers.
In response to
[link] Reality Show 'Utopia'
Could the -1 be justified so I can adjust my future articles? Is it because you think it's not a good idea, or because I don't explain my idea well enough, or simply because such topics shouldn't be post on LW (or something else)?
Also, should someone delete an article as soon as it gets say -5 karma, since it means it's probably not a good one, and therefore other people shouldn't pay attention to it?
[link] Reality Show 'Utopia'
The TV series 'Utopia' just started.
"The series follows a cast of 15 men and women who are placed in isolation and filmed twenty-four hours a day for one year. The cast must create their own society and figure out how to survive. The series will be shown twice a week, but there will be online streaming 24/7 with 129 hidden and unhidden cameras all over the Utopia compound. The live streams will begin on August 29, the day when the 15 pioneers will enter Utopia. Over 5,000 people auditioned for the series. Every month three pioneers will be nominated and could be sent back to their everyday lives. The live streamers will decide which new pioneers get their chance to become Utopian." (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utopia_(U.S._reality_TV_series))
Since every month new 'pioneers' will be introduced, you can still audition for the series; here's how: http://www.utopiatvcasting.com/how-to-audition. I would love to see a well-trained rationalist teaching "the world" some applied rationality principles, and I think this TV show would be an excellent medium to reach the "average person". It would also be nice to see someone explaining what Utopia means to a transhumanist. Let us know if you apply.
Find a study partner - May 2014 Thread
For reasons mentioned in So8res article as well as for other reasons: studying with a partner can be very good.
So if you're looking for a study partner for an online course, reading a manual or else (whether it's in the MIRI course list or not) tell others in the comment section.
The past threads about finding a study partner can be found under the tag study_thread. However, you have higher probability of finding a study partner in the most recent thread. If you haven't found a study partner last month, you are welcome to post the same comment again here.
First, I should note that all the most common/obvious questions have been thoroughly answered (where thorough refers to length). For many of these questions, you could get a better answer from reading what has already been written about it. Edit: you probably don't want to ask these questions as bluntly as I've worded them.
Why is choice of god mainly determined by which country a person was raised in, like eg language but unlike eg science? Does belief in God help one make more accurate predictions (not "better explanations") than using a secular model?
Why is wisdom praised throughout the Bible, except for a reversal in the New Testament, where standard wisdom is condemned as an opponent to Godly wisdom? Why is it that higher education leads to lower rates of theism, and what is this evidence of?
Why are various good traits assigned to God? For example, why is God considered forgiving if He demands a blood sacrifice (human sacrifice according to Christians) before He can forgive sins? I know humans who can forgive without requiring any sacrifice, nor even a request for forgiveness, remorse, etc. Why is God considered just, when He is willing not only to excuse evildoers, but actually punish the innocent in their place as a sacrifice (and eternally reward people for a trivial thing with no moral value like believing in Jesus)? Why is God considered merciful what with going out of His way to eternally punish people in Hell? I've heard that the answer to this sort of question is that God is holy -- is holiness some sort of terrible character flaw that we must avoid at all costs, or something to be emulated?
Why do people say that Jesus willingly died for our sins, when He clearly didn't (Matthew 26:39) and don't forget that disobeying God is frequently regarded as resulting in eternal damnation. Some people say that Jesus suffered in our place -- shouldn't that mean eternal damnation, not being dead for 3 days? Why can't I die for everyone's sins, or at least my own? Why all the confusion with what exactly "death" means in the Bible, especially if it starts in Genesis 3 yet is prevented by believing in Jesus?
Compare Genesis 3:3-5 vs Genesis 3:22. Why is the serpent considered a liar? Why is God upset at humans knowing good and evil in Genesis, yet elsewhere wants that distinction taught?
Consider the sort of worlds created by humans to interact without other humans -- eg the worlds in which MMORPGs are set. These worlds have moral laws, unbreakable ones. For example, in many MMORPGs, theft is simply against the laws of physics in that universe, as is murder but not dueling, much like in our universe traveling faster than the speed of light is forbidden. Why wasn't our universe designed with moral laws of some kind to protect one person from another (eg such a universe could allow dueling to the death, gambling, and adultery, but not murder, theft and rape, as part of the laws of physics). Free will and choice are not the answer, as I am not free to travel faster than the speed of light, regardless of my will or choice, nor is the ability to violate another's will necessarily and improvement in free will.
How would the world be different if someone else (eg the listener, or Mother Teresa) were made omnipotent and omniscient in place of God?
In response to
comment
by
on
Questions to ask theist philosophers? I will soon be speaking with several
Nice questions. Could you please explain me how "Matthew 26:39" is related to "Jesus' willingness to die for our sins"?
It would be nice if you could do an article on their answers.
EDIT: Read my first comment and not this post because I've improved the structure of the text.
Here are some questions:
How confident are you that God exists? (anytime they say 100%, you could ask them if they would bet all human "souls" against one carrot that God exists to be 'sure' that they really mean 100%)
If someone, who is "otherwise" a very good person, is X% confident that God exists, for what minimum X are you at least 75% sure that s/he will go to paradise?
How confident are you that we live in a many-worlds interpretation of quantum physics? If more than 0% you could ask: if it is true, how confident are you that all "souls" from all universes go to (the same) paradise/hell? (if the same, it means you would encounter other versions of yourselves).
Does an evidence for the many-worlds interpretation (would be) an evidence against God? Does an evidence for alien life (would be) an evidence against God?
How confident are you that humans evolved from non-living matter?
How confident are you that chimps have souls? If low you could ask: If we bio-engineer an animal that is X% chimp and (1-X)% human, for what X are you 90% confident that the animal would have a soul and go to paradise or hell?
How confident are you that extremely severely mentally handicapped people have souls? If high, how intelligent do you think they become in paradise?
How confident are you that we can create a conscious being in silico? If an AI was created tomorrow, how would that affect your confidence that God exists?
How confident are you that there are fermions and bosons in paradise/hell? (if low: does that mean there is not concept of: temperature, light, sound, pressure? can time be meaured?)
In the "counter-factual" world were God doesn't exist, would you want to believe in it?
What are the advantages to believe in God (beside going to paradise)? What are the disadvantages?
If you could live for any amount of time, how would you want to live? If you could live for any amount of time, how long would you want to live on Earth? If more than 1 day, you could ask them why wouldn't you rather be in paradise? How confident are you that you will go to paradise? How scare are you to go to Hell?
How confident are you that we cannot feel pain in paradise?
After 3^^^3 years in paradise, how much do you think we can remember?
How confident are you that one can commit suicide in paradise if one wants to?
What do you consider as "playing God"? In what case do you think it is good to play God? How well do you think we can (possibly/physically) play God?
How confident are you that we are in a simulation?
What set of memories do you think we bring with us in paradise (the ones we have before we die? all the ones we made in our life? etc.)
How confident are you that cryonised humans keep their soul?
How sad are you sad when someone near you dies? Why?
What would be different in the world if there was no God?
In response to
comment
by
on
Questions to ask theist philosophers? I will soon be speaking with several
PRAYERS
How confident are you that prayers can work? Even if controlled for the placebo effect?
How often do prayers work for you?
How much time should one pray versus work? (for example, on an exam)
It would be nice if you could do an article on their answers.
EDIT: Read my first comment and not this post because I've improved the structure of the text.
Here are some questions:
How confident are you that God exists? (anytime they say 100%, you could ask them if they would bet all human "souls" against one carrot that God exists to be 'sure' that they really mean 100%)
If someone, who is "otherwise" a very good person, is X% confident that God exists, for what minimum X are you at least 75% sure that s/he will go to paradise?
How confident are you that we live in a many-worlds interpretation of quantum physics? If more than 0% you could ask: if it is true, how confident are you that all "souls" from all universes go to (the same) paradise/hell? (if the same, it means you would encounter other versions of yourselves).
Does an evidence for the many-worlds interpretation (would be) an evidence against God? Does an evidence for alien life (would be) an evidence against God?
How confident are you that humans evolved from non-living matter?
How confident are you that chimps have souls? If low you could ask: If we bio-engineer an animal that is X% chimp and (1-X)% human, for what X are you 90% confident that the animal would have a soul and go to paradise or hell?
How confident are you that extremely severely mentally handicapped people have souls? If high, how intelligent do you think they become in paradise?
How confident are you that we can create a conscious being in silico? If an AI was created tomorrow, how would that affect your confidence that God exists?
How confident are you that there are fermions and bosons in paradise/hell? (if low: does that mean there is not concept of: temperature, light, sound, pressure? can time be meaured?)
In the "counter-factual" world were God doesn't exist, would you want to believe in it?
What are the advantages to believe in God (beside going to paradise)? What are the disadvantages?
If you could live for any amount of time, how would you want to live? If you could live for any amount of time, how long would you want to live on Earth? If more than 1 day, you could ask them why wouldn't you rather be in paradise? How confident are you that you will go to paradise? How scare are you to go to Hell?
How confident are you that we cannot feel pain in paradise?
After 3^^^3 years in paradise, how much do you think we can remember?
How confident are you that one can commit suicide in paradise if one wants to?
What do you consider as "playing God"? In what case do you think it is good to play God? How well do you think we can (possibly/physically) play God?
How confident are you that we are in a simulation?
What set of memories do you think we bring with us in paradise (the ones we have before we die? all the ones we made in our life? etc.)
How confident are you that cryonised humans keep their soul?
How sad are you sad when someone near you dies? Why?
What would be different in the world if there was no God?
In response to
comment
by
on
Questions to ask theist philosophers? I will soon be speaking with several
I improved the structure of the questions:
GOD
How confident are you that God exists?
Does an evidence for [---] (would be) an evidence against God? (How would evidence for [---] affect your confidence that God exists) How confident are you that [---] is true? 1. the many-worlds interpretation 2. aliens existence 3. evolution of humans from non-living matter 4. bad things happening
GOING TO PARADISE
How confident are you that you will go to paradise? How scare are you to go to Hell?
How confident are you that [---] have souls (and/or would go to paradise or hell)? 1. advanced artificial intelligence of some sort 2. extremely severely mentally handicapped humans 3. a crionised human
For what minimum X are you at least 90% sure that someone will go to paradise if... 1. someone, who is "otherwise" a very good person, is X% confident that God exists, 2. someone that is (1-X)% chimp and X% human
If it we live in a multiverse, how confident are you that all "souls" from all universes go to (the same) paradise/hell? (if the same, it means you would encounter other versions of yourselves).
What set of memories do you think we bring with us in paradise (the ones we have before we die? all the ones we made in our life? etc.)
BEING IN PARADISE
How intelligent do you think intelligent humans and extremely severely mentally handicapped humans become in paradise?
How confident are you that there are fermions and bosons in paradise/hell? (if low: does that mean there is not concept of: temperature, light, sound, pressure? can time be measured?)
How confident are you that we cannot feel pain in paradise?
After 3^^^3 years in paradise, how much do you think we can remember?
How confident are you that one can commit suicide in paradise if one wants to?
If you could live for any amount of time in paradise, how would you want to live?
ADVANTAGES
What are the advantages to believe in God (beside going to paradise)? What are the disadvantages?
In the "counter-factual" world were God doesn't exist, would you want to believe in it?
ON EARTH
If you could live for any amount of time, how long would you want to live on Earth? (If more than 1 day, you could ask them why wouldn't you rather be in paradise?)
What do you consider as "playing God"? In what case do you think it is good to play God? How well do you think we can (possibly/physically) play God?
How confident are you that we are in a simulation?
How sad are you when someone near you dies? Why?
What would be different in the world (on Earth) if there was no God?
It would be nice if you could do an article on their answers.
EDIT: Read my first comment and not this post because I've improved the structure of the text.
Here are some questions:
How confident are you that God exists? (anytime they say 100%, you could ask them if they would bet all human "souls" against one carrot that God exists to be 'sure' that they really mean 100%)
If someone, who is "otherwise" a very good person, is X% confident that God exists, for what minimum X are you at least 75% sure that s/he will go to paradise?
How confident are you that we live in a many-worlds interpretation of quantum physics? If more than 0% you could ask: if it is true, how confident are you that all "souls" from all universes go to (the same) paradise/hell? (if the same, it means you would encounter other versions of yourselves).
Does an evidence for the many-worlds interpretation (would be) an evidence against God? Does an evidence for alien life (would be) an evidence against God?
How confident are you that humans evolved from non-living matter?
How confident are you that chimps have souls? If low you could ask: If we bio-engineer an animal that is X% chimp and (1-X)% human, for what X are you 90% confident that the animal would have a soul and go to paradise or hell?
How confident are you that extremely severely mentally handicapped people have souls? If high, how intelligent do you think they become in paradise?
How confident are you that we can create a conscious being in silico? If an AI was created tomorrow, how would that affect your confidence that God exists?
How confident are you that there are fermions and bosons in paradise/hell? (if low: does that mean there is not concept of: temperature, light, sound, pressure? can time be meaured?)
In the "counter-factual" world were God doesn't exist, would you want to believe in it?
What are the advantages to believe in God (beside going to paradise)? What are the disadvantages?
If you could live for any amount of time, how would you want to live? If you could live for any amount of time, how long would you want to live on Earth? If more than 1 day, you could ask them why wouldn't you rather be in paradise? How confident are you that you will go to paradise? How scare are you to go to Hell?
How confident are you that we cannot feel pain in paradise?
After 3^^^3 years in paradise, how much do you think we can remember?
How confident are you that one can commit suicide in paradise if one wants to?
What do you consider as "playing God"? In what case do you think it is good to play God? How well do you think we can (possibly/physically) play God?
How confident are you that we are in a simulation?
What set of memories do you think we bring with us in paradise (the ones we have before we die? all the ones we made in our life? etc.)
How confident are you that cryonised humans keep their soul?
How sad are you sad when someone near you dies? Why?
What would be different in the world if there was no God?
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For Super Extra Bonus Questions: (feel free to modify the answer choices)
With which of these metaethical positions do you most identify?
With which ethical position do you most closely identify?
With which of these broad political groupings do you most closely identify?
"Moral nihilism is the meta-ethical view that nothing is intrinsically moral or immoral." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_nihilism) Utility functions (aka morality) are (is) in the mind, not in Nature. That would probably be the answer of most LWers. Otherwise, you'll have to tell me what you mean by morality.
Is utilitarianism used as "maximizing happiness" or "maximizing utility". If it's "maximizing utility", well isn't that everyone's position? What differs is simply what counts as "utility".