A Hu­man’s Guide To Words

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A series on the use and abuse of words; why you often can’t define a word any way you like; how human brains seem to process definitions. First introduces the Mind projection fallacy and the concept of how an algorithm feels from inside, which makes it a basic intro to key elements of the LW zeitgeist.

A guide to this sequence is available at 37 Ways That Words Can Be Wrong.

• The Parable of the Dagger

• The Parable of Hemlock

• Words as Hidden Inferences

• Extensions and Intensions

• Similarity Clusters

• Typicality and Asymmetrical Similarity

• The Cluster Structure of Thingspace

• Disguised Queries

• Neural Categories

• How An Algorithm Feels From Inside

• Disputing Definitions

• Feel the Meaning

• The Argument From Common Usage

• Empty Labels

• Taboo Your Words

• Replace the Symbol with the Substance

• Fallacies of Compression

• Categorizing Has Consequences

• Sneaking in Connotations

• Arguing “By Definition”

• Where to Draw the Boundary?

• Entropy, and Short Codes

• Mutual Information, and Density in Thingspace

• Superexponential Conceptspace, and Simple Words

• Conditional Independence, and Naive Bayes

• Words as Mental Paintbrush Handles

• Variable Question Fallacies

• 37 Ways That Suboptimal Use Of Categories Can Have Negative Side Effects On Your Cognition

Alternative formats

• Podcast: http://​​castify.co/​​channels/​​16-less-wrong-a-human-s-guide-to-words

• ReadLists: http://​​readlists.com/​​9c3edb18