Meetup : Durham NC/Triangle Area: Value of Information/Curiosity
Discussion article for the meetup : Durham NC/Triangle Area: Value of Information/Curiosity
Meet at Cocoa Cinnamon for discussion and activities on Value of Information and how to apply curiosity in a useful way.
Approximate schedule:
7:00 Introductions, get beverages, general chit chat
7:30 Value of Information: theory, math, and a couple practice problems
8:00 Get Curious! We’ll pick a potentially fun / interesting topic and practice getting curious about it.
8:30 When is curiousity useful? Heuristics for when to apply the skills we’ve practiced
9:00 Meetup closing, precommitments for next meetup, etc.
9:15 or 9:30: migrate to Fullsteam for beers and socializing for those who wish
Specific suggested readings to be posted later, but any of the top returns for a LW search on “value of information” may prove useful.
Join the mailing list for possible pre-meetup discussion and to be informed of upcoming meetups: http://groups.google.com/group/rtlw
Hope to see you there!
And a map link, just to make it clear: http://goo.gl/6eFGj
(That empty garage has been converted into a coffee-oriented hangout spot since Google drove by last.)
My intent is for this meetup to be accessible and interesting without any prior reading.
(Also, I apologize for not sending this out earlier. Please don’t let my procrastination about sending it out turn into you feeling bad about not reading stuff, because I really had intended the reading to be optional from when I started planning the meeting.)
However, if you have time and feel like doing some reading, I suggest these articles as starting points: http://lesswrong.com/lw/85x/value_of_information_four_examples/ http://lesswrong.com/lw/aa7/get_curious/
And, if you feel like doing some more reading, you can search for “curiosity” on LW, or go for these: http://lesswrong.com/lw/jz/the_meditation_on_curiosity/ http://lesswrong.com/lw/9m2/the_neglected_virtue_of_curiosity/