I think the word rationality could use protection against too much emotional attachment to it. It should retain a specific meaning instead of becoming ‘everything that’s useful’.
I’m not in love with using the word “rationality” for what this community means by rationality. But (1) I can’t come up with a better word, (2) there’s no point in fighting to the death for a definition, and (3) thanks to the strength of various cognitive biases, it’s quite hard to figure out how to be rational and worth the effort to try.
I think various forms of “optimization” would probably fit the bill. That is, pretty much everything this site endorses about “rationalists” it would also endorse about “efficient optimizers.”
But the costs associated with such a terminology shift don’t seem remotely worth the payoff.
I’m not in love with using the word “rationality” for what this community means by rationality. But (1) I can’t come up with a better word, (2) there’s no point in fighting to the death for a definition, and (3) thanks to the strength of various cognitive biases, it’s quite hard to figure out how to be rational and worth the effort to try.
I think various forms of “optimization” would probably fit the bill. That is, pretty much everything this site endorses about “rationalists” it would also endorse about “efficient optimizers.”
But the costs associated with such a terminology shift don’t seem remotely worth the payoff.