Alex Loftus's Shortform 2023-10-04T01:03:53.371Z

Comment by Alex Loftus (alex-loftus) on "It's a 10% chance which I did 10 times, so it should be 100%" · 2024-11-20T19:39:08.011Z · LW · GW

The excellent book Algorithms to Live By has an entire chapter dedicated to this concept, using the secretary problem as an example: https://www.amazon.com/Algorithms-Live-Computer-Science-Decisions/dp/1627790365 

Comment by Alex Loftus (alex-loftus) on Making History Available · 2024-08-29T17:07:33.515Z · LW · GW

Photons and history books both descend by causal chains from the event itself.

Right, but history books are a much lossier source of information.

Comment by Alex Loftus (alex-loftus) on Making History Available · 2024-08-29T17:06:25.504Z · LW · GW

I realized that the invention and destruction of vitalism—which I had only read about in books—had actually happened to real people, who experienced it much the same way I experienced the invention and destruction of my own mysterious answer

This realization makes the Stephen Pinker-esque stories about the extent of violence in the middle ages and earlier that much more surreal.

Comment by Alex Loftus (alex-loftus) on Chapter 45: Humanism, Pt 3 · 2023-10-03T21:07:11.795Z · LW · GW

This chapter made me feel things.

Comment by Alex Loftus (alex-loftus) on Alex Loftus's Shortform · 2023-01-26T21:05:08.619Z · LW · GW