Additional factor: availability of compatible people who didn’t move there for this group. This is important for several reasons, including:
Inflow of new ideas
Ease of joining and leaving. If rationalists take over a small town, the only thing there for them is other rationalists. That makes joining and leaving into very binary decisions. It doesn’t let people slowly notice incompatibilities and amoeba into another social group.
See also Let Me Go Back, which looks at ‘barrier to exit’ as one of the ‘barriers to entry’; trying something out is expensive not just because you have to switch to it, but also because you have to switch back if you don’t like it.
Additional factor: availability of compatible people who didn’t move there for this group. This is important for several reasons, including:
Inflow of new ideas
Ease of joining and leaving. If rationalists take over a small town, the only thing there for them is other rationalists. That makes joining and leaving into very binary decisions. It doesn’t let people slowly notice incompatibilities and amoeba into another social group.
See also Let Me Go Back, which looks at ‘barrier to exit’ as one of the ‘barriers to entry’; trying something out is expensive not just because you have to switch to it, but also because you have to switch back if you don’t like it.
New Hampshire surprised me for this reason. There’s a small group of LW types but my impression is they feel pretty isolated.