Yes, I do seek knowledge for other reasons, here and elsewhere. But my expectation that this will not “look like” curiosity because I expect to have few changes in my behavior based on what I read, and so the importance of it being “true” is likewise diminished. Sure, I would like to have my beliefs about the brain and AI be true, but I’m not prepared to spend a LOT of resources to do it—I’m sure if I were really curious about the role of Oxytocin in relationships, I could reach true beliefs faster by spending more resources. There are gradations between “French paintings” and “database performance” in how curious I am about things, I agree, and most of Less Wrong falls somewhere in the middle of it. The curiosity Luke was alluding to is the all consuming curiosity of “things I expect belief accuracy to have large impact on my utility”, which I doubt most of Less Wrong falls on.
Yes, I do seek knowledge for other reasons, here and elsewhere. But my expectation that this will not “look like” curiosity because I expect to have few changes in my behavior based on what I read, and so the importance of it being “true” is likewise diminished. Sure, I would like to have my beliefs about the brain and AI be true, but I’m not prepared to spend a LOT of resources to do it—I’m sure if I were really curious about the role of Oxytocin in relationships, I could reach true beliefs faster by spending more resources. There are gradations between “French paintings” and “database performance” in how curious I am about things, I agree, and most of Less Wrong falls somewhere in the middle of it. The curiosity Luke was alluding to is the all consuming curiosity of “things I expect belief accuracy to have large impact on my utility”, which I doubt most of Less Wrong falls on.