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I have completed and published the 10th scene of my web serial, Watchmirror. I completed a poster for my room in a new style, and did some art for that same web serial.
That is a good guess. Some of LWSH silliness includes plush toys and stuffed animals.
Yes. A number of people can recall a giant 6ft stuffed animal crocodile attacking Lachouette's head. There are plushies everywhere!
In response to
What are you working on? January 2014
There's the overall "move to Portland and start at my awesome new job" Project, which is coming along well. A friend and I drove here from Ohio (pretty much across the entire country) in a little over two days. We drove because I have a very old dog that I didn't want to fly. My POD arrives tomorrow, and I'm excited to have all my things back in my possession (I didn't bring any nice shirts or sweaters with me, so I've been feeling slovenly-ish), but I am NOT excited for having to unpack and move furniture.
More specifically, I'm working on helping to launch the Beekeeper program at Beeminder. If you want to read more about that you can read this blog post we just released on the subject.
Personal-life-wise, I've just started on the "find my tribe here" Project, which I don't like. I like HAVING a tribe (and very much miss the awesome group I left in Columbus), but actually having to go out and either find one or put one together sounds like less fun.
Any advice for someone who might be moving from the east coast to the west in the next year and a half?
In response to
What are you working on? January 2014
I'm currently writing a fantasy novel. I plan on turning it into a web serial once I get enough of it written that I'm confident I won't fall behind in posting. So far I have 30,000 words written and have 90% of the book plotted out in detail. I don't have any specific goals for this project beyond wanting to finish it. I suppose when I put it up online, I will allow people to donate, but I don't really expect it to get that many reviews/etc. It's for my own pleasure, more or less. This is the prologue, if anyone is interested.
I am working on two workshops for my college's THINK chapter. One is on procrastination and the other is on learning techniques. The one on learning techniques has been completely outlined. I'm working on adding exercises that groups can do (it is a workshop, not a lecture.) The other only has a loose outline of what I want to cover.
I'm determining where I want to go for graduate school. I want to help with research in immortality and life extension, so I'm looking up researchers and research done in those fields to try to see where I should go, and if I have the grades/experience to get in those universities.
The old death=good cached thought seems to be one of the main driving factors.
Have you read this? Might give you some useful tools to speak against that idea.
I don't know what the right thing to do in this situation is- because saving lives is very important, but respecting others' rights is also pretty important.
Would you rather act on your own preferences, or some lesswrongian's?
I'm angry with her and I don't want to give up because I'm angry.
Anger is temporary, so not a great basis for long term decisions. Also, anger will affect your tone and therefore make you less convincing.
I've read it.
I feel my own judgement is suspect on this occasion. I don't know. I want to help her and she's alternating between being incredibly blase and being furious with me. It's not like I can just point her at some books to read, because her and my dad don't like to read. And the things that convinced me, my parents regard as rubbish or nonsense and get-your-head-out-of-space-go-get-married-and-be-normal-goddamnit!
If I continue to pursue this, either the relationship between my parents and I will suffer and they won't choose to freeze themselves, or they'll choose to freeze themselves and our relationship won't suffer. Large risk, large benefit.
My other consideration is to attempt to be subtle, plant the seeds in their heads that give them the sense that maybe the world doesn't work how they think it does (I managed to convince my dad that the earth was old and that dinosaurs did not roam the earth with humans this way, so it has some merit.)
In response to
Group Rationality Diary, December 16-31
After dealing with the effects of bad procrastination over fall semester, I started working on anti-akrasia techniques last week. So far, it seems to be working.
I don't know what the right thing to do in this situation is- because saving lives is very important, but respecting others' rights is also pretty important.
First, there is no objectively right thing to do. At this point you are expending effort on an essentially selfish goal: saving your mother's life against her current wishes. Not that "selfish" is in any sense bad or negative. But if you actually cared about saving lives in general, you would apply your effort where it is more likely to pay off. Your current position is no more defensible than hers: you selfishly want her to have a chance to live in some far future with you, she selfishly disregards your wishes and wants to expire when it's her time. Certainly telling her that her wishes are less valid than yours is not likely to convince her. You can certainly point out that by deciding to forgo cryo she behaves just as selfishly as you do by wanting her to sign for cryo. Maybe then you and her can discuss what "selfish" means to each of you, and maybe have some progress from there. Of course, you should be fully prepared to change your mind and do your best to steelman her arguments. Can you make them better than she does, have her agree and then discuss potential weaknesses in them?
But if you actually cared about saving lives in general, you would apply your effort where it is more likely to pay off.
I already am. This is in addition to that.
It is definitely a good idea to talk to her about what selfish means, because my mother and I have differing views on what is selfish and what is not.
I wonder how you framed it.
Do you think that any resuscitation technology, including defibrillation is a sin (or use their favorite objection against cryonics)?
How about one that enables resuscitation on a longer time frame? How long is still OK? Hours? Days? Years?
Would you take a treatment that makes one feel younger and live longer?
Would you approve of being cooled down for a day or two until a life-saving liver/heart/kidney transplant is available? What if it requires cooling deep enough that your heart stops beating?
Their replies, if any, might give you a hint of their true objections. If they are truly religious in nature, and your family attends church regularly, consider having a talk with your local pastor (or whatever religious authority figure they look up to). To paraphrase Ender's game and HPMoR, children's opinions have zero weight, so try to engage someone actually being listened to.
They weren't arguing that it wouldn't work. They think that being revived is selfish, that spending money on having your head frozen is selfish, and my mom says she wants to die. The old death=good cached thought seems to be one of the main driving factors. She also said there'd be no place for her in the future, that the world might be inconceivably different and strange, and that she would be unable to deal with it.
When I explained that some thousand people have done it, and a lot more are signed up, she said that was only "insane rich eccentrics" and when I explained that ordinary people do it, she said some nasty things about those people, along the lines of calling them nuts.
My main question was related towards figuring out if I should keep pursuing it, and try to change their minds, or if I should respect their wishes. I don't know what the right thing to do in this situation is- because saving lives is very important, but respecting others' rights is also pretty important. But the difficulty of this situation is compounded, because I'm angry with her and I don't want to give up because I'm angry.
In response to
Open thread for December 17-23, 2013
Are there solid examples of people getting utility from Lesswrong? As opposed to utility they could get from other self-help resources?
I did self help before I joined lesswrong, and had almost no results. I'd partially attribute Lesswrong to changing me in ways such that I switched my major from graphic design to biology, in an effort to help people through research. I've also gotten involved in effective altruism in my community, starting the local THINK club for my college, which is donating money to various (effective) charities. I have a lovely group of friends from the Lesswrong study hall who have been tremendously supportive and fun to be around. There are a number of other small things, like learning about melatonin, which fixed my insomnia...etc. but those are more of a result of being around people who are knowledgeable of such things, not necessarily lesswrong-people.
In short, yes, it is helpful.
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I made a website featuring my artwork and re-opened my freelance art business. I already have people asking about commissions! Yay!
I've written 12 chapters of my web serial, Watchmirror, over the course of the summer, and it recently topped 2000 page views. It doesn't sound like much, but it was way more than I ever expected.