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In­fini­ties In Ethics

TagLast edit: Sep 25, 2020, 10:57 PM by Swimmer963 (Miranda Dixon-Luinenburg)

Infinities in ethics pose some difficult problems. For example, if the universe is infinite, there are already infinite numbers of good and bad things. Adding or removing finitely many of them leaves infinitely many of both. This means aggregative consequentialist theories (those that maximize the sum of the values of individual structures) will be indifferent between any acts with merely finite effects. If you save the whales, there will be infinitely many whales, but if you don’t save the whales, there will also be infinitely many whales.

Nick Bostrom wrote a paper discussing various possible solutions to this problem of “infinitarian paralysis” (as well as the “fanaticism” problem of theories that would sacrifice anything for a small chance of an infinite payoff). The solutions fall into three classes:

The best-known use of infinity in ethics is probably Pascal’s wager, which has a finite variant in Pascal’s mugging.

Blog posts

External links

See also

On in­finite ethics

Joe CarlsmithJan 31, 2022, 7:04 AM
128 points
71 comments51 min readLW link1 review

Con­trived in­finite-tor­ture sce­nar­ios: July 2010

PlaidXJul 23, 2010, 11:54 PM
31 points
139 comments1 min readLW link

Sum­mary: Sur­real Decisions

Chris_LeongNov 27, 2018, 2:15 PM
29 points
20 comments3 min readLW link

Keep­ing it (less than) real: Against ℶ₂ pos­si­ble peo­ple or worlds

quiet_NaNSep 13, 2024, 5:29 PM
17 points
3 comments9 min readLW link

In­finite Ethics: In­finite Problems

omnizoidAug 16, 2023, 2:44 AM
−2 points
25 comments23 min readLW link

Pas­cal’s Mug­ging: Tiny Prob­a­bil­ities of Vast Utilities

Eliezer YudkowskyOct 19, 2007, 11:37 PM
112 points
354 comments4 min readLW link

Un­bounded util­ity func­tions and precommitment

MichaelStJulesSep 10, 2022, 4:16 PM
4 points
3 comments1 min readLW link

Ar­gu­ments for util­i­tar­i­anism are im­pos­si­bil­ity ar­gu­ments un­der un­bounded prospects

MichaelStJulesOct 7, 2023, 9:08 PM
7 points
7 comments21 min readLW link

Satis­ficers want to be­come maximisers

Stuart_ArmstrongOct 21, 2011, 4:27 PM
38 points
70 comments1 min readLW link

Bet­ter im­pos­si­bil­ity re­sult for un­bounded utilities

paulfchristianoFeb 9, 2022, 6:10 AM
33 points
22 comments5 min readLW link

Im­pos­si­bil­ity re­sults for un­bounded utilities

paulfchristianoFeb 2, 2022, 3:52 AM
167 points
109 comments8 min readLW link1 review

Non­stan­dard anal­y­sis in ethics

Alok SinghJan 12, 2023, 5:58 AM
−1 points
0 comments78 min readLW link
(nickbostrom.com)

Big Ad­vance in In­finite Ethics

bwestNov 28, 2017, 3:10 PM
32 points
13 comments5 min readLW link

The Pas­cal’s Wager Fal­lacy Fallacy

Eliezer YudkowskyMar 18, 2009, 12:30 AM
44 points
128 comments3 min readLW link

In­finite ethics comparisons

Stuart_ArmstrongMay 6, 2017, 7:24 PM
1 point
2 comments3 min readLW link

[Question] Math­e­mat­i­cal mod­els of Ethics

VictorsMar 8, 2023, 5:40 PM
4 points
2 comments1 min readLW link

How To Prevent a Dystopia

ankJan 29, 2025, 2:16 PM
−3 points
4 comments1 min readLW link

Ra­tional Utopia, Mul­tiver­sal AI Align­ment, Steer­able ASI, Ul­ti­mate Hu­man Free­dom (V. 2: Place ASI, some pic­tures)

ankFeb 11, 2025, 3:21 AM
12 points
7 comments26 min readLW link

In­fra-Bayesi­anism nat­u­rally leads to the mono­ton­ic­ity prin­ci­ple, and I think this is a problem

David MatolcsiApr 26, 2023, 9:39 PM
19 points
6 comments4 min readLW link

eHeaven 1st, eGod 2nd: Mul­tiver­sal AI Align­ment & Ra­tional Utopia

ankFeb 13, 2025, 10:35 PM
0 points
0 comments11 min readLW link

In­tro­duc­tion to Ex­pected Value Fanaticism

Petra KosonenFeb 14, 2025, 7:05 PM
9 points
7 comments1 min readLW link
(utilitarianism.net)

On the im­por­tance of tak­ing limits: In­finite Spheres of Utility

asperaOct 12, 2013, 9:18 PM
35 points
59 comments8 min readLW link

Model Uncer­tainty, Pas­calian Rea­son­ing and Utilitarianism

multifoliateroseJun 14, 2011, 3:19 AM
35 points
155 comments5 min readLW link

Shock Level 5: Big Wor­lds and Mo­dal Realism

RokoMay 25, 2010, 11:19 PM
39 points
158 comments4 min readLW link

[Question] How could the uni­verse be in­finitely large?

amaraiJul 13, 2022, 1:45 PM
0 points
8 comments1 min readLW link

Does “Ul­ti­mate Neart­er­mism” via Eter­nal In­fla­tion dom­i­nate Longter­mism in ex­pec­ta­tion?

Jordan ArelAug 17, 2024, 10:28 PM
6 points
1 comment3 min readLW link
No comments.