Practice & Philosophy of Science

TagLast edit: Feb 8, 2025, 12:33 AM by lesswrong-internal

Practice and Philosophy of Science is for posts that discuss how science is done or should be done; examples include Building Intuitions on Non-Empirical Arguments in Science and the Science and Rationality sequence. (It is not for posts that simply report on a new scientific result.)

Shotgun Book Reviews: Against Method, The Knowledge Machine and Understanding Nature

adamShimiMar 14, 2022, 8:13 AM

28 points

3 comments8 min readLW link

On Solving Problems Before They Appear: The Weird Epistemologies of Alignment

adamShimiOct 11, 2021, 8:20 AM

110 points

10 comments15 min readLW link

Epistemological Framing for AI Alignment Research

adamShimiMar 8, 2021, 10:05 PM

58 points

7 comments9 min readLW link

Science in a High-Dimensional World

johnswentworthJan 8, 2021, 5:52 PM

295 points

53 comments7 min readLW link 1 review

12 interesting things I learned studying the discovery of nature’s laws

Ben PaceFeb 19, 2022, 11:39 PM

268 points

40 comments9 min readLW link 1 review

Intuitions about solving hard problems

Richard_NgoApr 25, 2022, 3:29 PM

105 points

23 comments6 min readLW link

Science Isn’t Strict Enough

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 16, 2008, 6:51 AM

61 points

64 comments5 min readLW link

Beware The Man Of One Study

Scott AlexanderDec 12, 2014, 9:04 AM

69 points

1 comment8 min readLW link

Scientific Wrestling: Beyond Passive Hypothesis-Testing

adamShimiMar 7, 2022, 12:01 PM

43 points

6 comments8 min readLW link

You Are Not Measuring What You Think You Are Measuring

johnswentworthSep 20, 2022, 8:04 PM

409 points

44 comments8 min readLW link 2 reviews

Is Science Slowing Down?

Scott AlexanderNov 27, 2018, 3:30 AM

129 points

77 comments9 min readLW link 1 review

(slatestarcodex.com)

Towards a Bayesian model for Empirical Science

Yair HalberstadtOct 7, 2021, 5:38 AM

11 points

7 comments7 min readLW link

The Scientific Approach To Anything and Everything

Rami RustomMar 9, 2023, 11:27 AM

6 points

5 comments16 min readLW link

Honest science is spirituality

pchvykovJul 1, 2024, 8:33 PM

−1 points

10 comments4 min readLW link

Requirements for a STEM-capable AGI Value Learner (my Case for Less Doom)

RogerDearnaleyMay 25, 2023, 9:26 AM

33 points

3 comments15 min readLW link

Ed Boyden on the State of Science

Ben PaceMay 13, 2019, 1:54 AM

62 points

2 comments10 min readLW link

Paper reading as a Cargo Cult

jem-mosigAug 7, 2022, 7:50 AM

70 points

10 comments5 min readLW link

Assessment of AI safety agendas: think about the downside risk

Roman LeventovDec 19, 2023, 9:00 AM

13 points

1 comment1 min readLW link

Quick look: applications of chaos theory

Elizabeth and Alex_Altair

Aug 18, 2024, 3:00 PM

79 points

51 comments8 min readLW link

(acesounderglass.com)

“Successful language model evals” by Jason Wei

Arjun PanicksseryMay 25, 2024, 9:34 AM

7 points

0 comments1 min readLW link

(www.jasonwei.net)

[Question] Come and daydream with me about science reform

TeaTieAndHatJan 15, 2024, 11:09 AM

9 points

1 comment1 min readLW link

Institutional economics through the lens of scale-free regulative development, morphogenesis, and cognitive science

Roman LeventovJan 23, 2024, 7:42 PM

8 points

0 comments14 min readLW link

Leading The Parade

johnswentworthJan 31, 2024, 10:39 PM

147 points

31 comments9 min readLW link

Tips for Empirical Alignment Research

Ethan PerezFeb 29, 2024, 6:04 AM

162 points

4 comments23 min readLW link

How I select alignment research projects

Ethan Perez, Henry Sleight and Mikita Balesni

Apr 10, 2024, 4:33 AM

36 points

4 comments24 min readLW link

On what research policymakers actually need

MondSemmelApr 23, 2024, 7:50 PM

38 points

0 comments3 min readLW link

(www.slowboring.com)

“What the hell is a representation, anyway?” | Clarifying AI interpretability with tools from philosophy of cognitive science | Part 1: Vehicles vs. contents

IwanWilliamsJun 9, 2024, 2:19 PM

9 points

1 comment4 min readLW link

Simon DeDeo on Explore vs Exploit in Science

ElizabethSep 10, 2024, 3:40 AM

20 points

0 comments1 min readLW link

(acesounderglass.com)

My Number 1 Epistemology Book Recommendation: Inventing Temperature

adamShimiSep 8, 2024, 2:30 PM

121 points

18 comments3 min readLW link

(epistemologicalfascinations.substack.com)

When the Scientific Method Doesn’t Really Help...

casualphysicsenjoyerNov 27, 2024, 7:52 PM

3 points

1 comment5 min readLW link

(chillphysicsenjoyer.substack.com)

Dissolving the Problem of Induction

LironDec 27, 2020, 5:58 PM

40 points

32 comments7 min readLW link

“The Need for Long-term Research”—Seeds of Science call for reviewers

rogersbaconApr 11, 2023, 3:37 PM

15 points

0 comments1 min readLW link

Linkpost: A Post Mortem on the Gino Case

LinchOct 24, 2023, 6:50 AM

89 points

7 comments2 min readLW link

(www.theorgplumber.com)

Building Intuitions On Non-Empirical Arguments In Science

Scott AlexanderNov 7, 2019, 6:50 AM

56 points

27 comments11 min readLW link

(slatestarcodex.com)

Book Review: The Structure Of Scientific Revolutions

Scott AlexanderJan 9, 2019, 7:10 AM

104 points

30 comments19 min readLW link 1 review

(slatestarcodex.com)

The Failures of Eld Science

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 12, 2008, 10:32 AM

108 points

56 comments9 min readLW link

The Dilemma: Science or Bayes?

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 13, 2008, 8:16 AM

58 points

189 comments5 min readLW link

Science Doesn’t Trust Your Rationality

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 14, 2008, 2:13 AM

69 points

136 comments3 min readLW link

When Science Can’t Help

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 15, 2008, 7:24 AM

78 points

90 comments4 min readLW link

Does blind review slow down science?

Kaj_SotalaMar 6, 2009, 12:35 PM

25 points

22 comments4 min readLW link

Do Scientists Already Know This Stuff?

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 17, 2008, 2:25 AM

66 points

57 comments5 min readLW link

No Safe Defense, Not Even Science

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 18, 2008, 5:19 AM

121 points

75 comments6 min readLW link

Changing the Definition of Science

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 18, 2008, 6:07 PM

32 points

30 comments2 min readLW link

Faster Than Science

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 20, 2008, 12:19 AM

78 points

14 comments4 min readLW link

How to Fix Science

lukeprogMar 7, 2012, 2:51 AM

71 points

144 comments5 min readLW link

Follow-up on ESP study: “We don’t publish replications”

CarlShulmanJul 12, 2011, 8:48 PM

112 points

50 comments2 min readLW link

This is why we can’t have social science

CostanzaJul 13, 2014, 9:04 PM

51 points

83 comments1 min readLW link

13 Causes of Bad Science (Novum Organum Book 1: 69-92)

Francis BaconOct 4, 2019, 7:52 PM

33 points

1 comment30 min readLW link

Shuttling between science and invention

jasoncrawfordMay 27, 2020, 9:25 PM

61 points

1 comment6 min readLW link 1 review

(rootsofprogress.org)

Studying Early Stage Science: Research Program Introduction

habrykaJan 17, 2020, 10:12 PM

32 points

1 comment15 min readLW link

(medium.com)

Fixing science via a basic income

Kaj_SotalaAug 2, 2018, 8:30 AM

30 points

29 comments3 min readLW link

(kajsotala.fi)

The promise of connected science

lukeprogNov 12, 2011, 6:22 PM

33 points

8 comments2 min readLW link

Karnofsky on forecasting and what science does

Rob BensingerMar 28, 2018, 1:55 AM

14 points

0 comments8 min readLW link

(80000hours.org)

Is Molecular Nanotechnology “Scientific”?

Eliezer YudkowskyAug 20, 2007, 4:11 AM

40 points

49 comments2 min readLW link

Scientific Evidence, Legal Evidence, Rational Evidence

Eliezer YudkowskyAug 19, 2007, 5:36 AM

135 points

18 comments3 min readLW link

A brief history of ethically concerned scientists

Kaj_SotalaFeb 9, 2013, 5:50 AM

104 points

143 comments14 min readLW link

Studying The Alien Mind

Quentin FEUILLADE--MONTIXI and NicholasKees

Dec 5, 2023, 5:27 PM

80 points

10 comments15 min readLW link

Problems in evolutionary psychology

Kaj_SotalaAug 13, 2010, 6:57 PM

85 points

102 comments8 min readLW link

Alignment Research Field Guide

abramdemskiMar 8, 2019, 7:57 PM

278 points

9 comments17 min readLW link 2 reviews

Outside the Laboratory

Eliezer YudkowskyJan 21, 2007, 3:46 AM

157 points

351 comments7 min readLW link

The Dogma of Evidence-based Medicine

ChristianKlJan 25, 2018, 9:15 PM

16 points

37 comments4 min readLW link

Science like a chef

Adam ZernerFeb 8, 2018, 9:23 PM

32 points

17 comments3 min readLW link

Non-communicable Evidence

Adam ZernerNov 17, 2015, 3:46 AM

16 points

49 comments2 min readLW link

Diseased disciplines: the strange case of the inverted chart

MorendilFeb 7, 2012, 9:45 AM

62 points

150 comments4 min readLW link

Hedge drift and advanced motte-and-bailey

Stefan_SchubertMay 1, 2016, 2:45 PM

54 points

13 comments2 min readLW link

Knowledge value = knowledge quality × domain importance

John_MaxwellApr 16, 2012, 8:40 AM

14 points

41 comments1 min readLW link

Where Philosophy Meets Science

Eliezer YudkowskyApr 12, 2008, 9:21 PM

62 points

21 comments4 min readLW link

To Spread Science, Keep It Secret

Eliezer YudkowskyMar 28, 2008, 5:47 AM

84 points

51 comments4 min readLW link

Why no archive of refuted research?

Kaj_SotalaAug 26, 2011, 8:14 AM

37 points

11 comments2 min readLW link

Problems with Academia and the Rising Sea

JonahSMay 23, 2013, 7:17 PM

46 points

39 comments4 min readLW link

Idols of the Mind Pt. 2 (Novum Organum Book 1: 53-68)

Francis BaconSep 26, 2019, 10:24 PM

28 points

3 comments17 min readLW link

[Question] What is science?

Adam ZernerAug 11, 2023, 12:00 AM

6 points

4 comments1 min readLW link

A Social History of Truth

VaniverJul 31, 2023, 10:49 PM

64 points

2 comments14 min readLW link

[Question] How good are our mouse models (psychology, biology, medicine, etc.), ignoring translation into humans, just in terms of understanding mice? (Same question for drosophila.)

RubyJan 22, 2021, 8:45 PM

60 points

10 comments1 min readLW link

Epistemology of HCH

adamShimiFeb 9, 2021, 11:46 AM

17 points

2 comments10 min readLW link

[Question] If my previous research is wrong, what are my options ?

BB6Apr 7, 2021, 4:44 PM

50 points

9 comments1 min readLW link

Intermittent Distillations #4: Semiconductors, Economics, Intelligence, and Technological Progress.

Mark XuJul 8, 2021, 10:14 PM

81 points

9 comments10 min readLW link

Addendum to “Amyloid Plaques: Medical Goodhart, Chemical Streetlight”

J BostockSep 2, 2021, 5:42 PM

10 points

1 comment2 min readLW link

A Taxonomy of Research

J BostockSep 8, 2021, 7:30 PM

5 points

0 comments2 min readLW link

Measurement, Optimization, and Take-off Speed

jsteinhardtSep 10, 2021, 7:30 PM

48 points

4 comments13 min readLW link

Born Again: Disconnected Psychology, Martian Science, and the Order of the Phoenix

rogersbaconSep 17, 2021, 2:23 PM

4 points

0 comments17 min readLW link

[Question] Search for replication experiments

Andrew VlahosSep 20, 2021, 10:28 PM

3 points

1 comment1 min readLW link

Explanations as Hard to Vary Assertions

AlexanderSep 24, 2021, 11:33 AM

17 points

24 comments8 min readLW link

Frankfurt Declaration on the Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness

JanOct 24, 2021, 9:54 AM

9 points

3 comments5 min readLW link

(universalprior.substack.com)

Where did the 5 micron number come from? Nowhere good. [Wired.com]

ElizabethNov 9, 2021, 7:14 AM

108 points

8 comments1 min readLW link 1 review

(www.wired.com)

Sci-Hub sued in India

Connor_FlexmanNov 13, 2021, 11:12 PM

131 points

19 comments7 min readLW link

Streaming Science on Twitch

A RayNov 15, 2021, 10:24 PM

21 points

1 comment3 min readLW link

Understanding as hierarchical model building

invertedpassionJan 13, 2022, 9:28 AM

5 points

0 comments5 min readLW link

[Question] How would you go about testing a political theory like Neofeudalism?

FinalFormal2Feb 2, 2022, 5:09 PM

3 points

6 comments1 min readLW link

Strevens on scientific explanation

Richard_NgoFeb 14, 2022, 8:10 AM

17 points

5 comments7 min readLW link

(thinkingcomplete.blogspot.com)

An analogy as the midwife of thermodynamics

adamShimiFeb 16, 2022, 9:34 PM

30 points

10 comments7 min readLW link

Becoming Stronger as Epistemologist: Introduction

adamShimiFeb 15, 2022, 6:15 AM

30 points

2 comments4 min readLW link

Monks of Magnitude

Duncan Sabien (Deactivated)Feb 18, 2022, 7:48 AM

113 points

50 comments5 min readLW link 1 review

What The Foucault

adamShimiFeb 19, 2022, 10:48 PM

39 points

6 comments3 min readLW link

The Art and Science of Intuition Pumping

adamShimiFeb 22, 2022, 12:18 AM

26 points

3 comments9 min readLW link

The Limits Of Medicine—Part 2 - Homogeneity Assumptions

George3d6Mar 2, 2022, 4:45 PM

15 points

3 comments8 min readLW link

(www.epistem.ink)

Replacing Natural Interpretations

adamShimiMar 16, 2022, 1:05 PM

19 points

0 comments7 min readLW link

Christopher Alexander’s architecture for learning

Henrik KarlssonMar 24, 2022, 9:11 AM

44 points

8 comments9 min readLW link

(escapingflatland.substack.com)

Productive Mistakes, Not Perfect Answers

adamShimiApr 7, 2022, 4:41 PM

100 points

11 comments6 min readLW link

I only believe in the paranormal

MalmesburyMay 24, 2022, 12:15 PM

94 points

8 comments2 min readLW link

Levels of Pluralism

adamShimiJul 27, 2022, 9:35 AM

37 points

0 comments14 min readLW link

Shapes of Mind and Pluralism in Alignment

adamShimiAug 13, 2022, 10:01 AM

33 points

2 comments2 min readLW link

No One-Size-Fit-All Epistemic Strategy

adamShimiAug 20, 2022, 12:56 PM

24 points

2 comments2 min readLW link

AI alignment as “navigating the space of intelligent behaviour”

Nora_AmmannAug 23, 2022, 1:28 PM

18 points

0 comments6 min readLW link

[Exploratory] What does it mean that an experiment is high bit?

Johannes C. MayerSep 5, 2022, 3:13 AM

5 points

0 comments2 min readLW link

Twitter Polls: Evidence is Evidence

ZviSep 20, 2022, 12:30 PM

34 points

8 comments7 min readLW link

(thezvi.wordpress.com)

Unit Test Everything

DirectedEvolutionSep 29, 2022, 6:12 PM

30 points

0 comments8 min readLW link

The Balto/Togo theory of scientific development

ElizabethOct 9, 2022, 6:30 PM

69 points

5 comments2 min readLW link

(acesounderglass.com)

Telic intuitions across the sciences

mrcbarbierOct 22, 2022, 9:31 PM

4 points

0 comments17 min readLW link

[Question] Dumb and ill-posed question: Is conceptual research like this MIRI paper on the shutdown problem/Corrigibility “real”

joraineNov 24, 2022, 5:08 AM

26 points

11 comments1 min readLW link

Science and Math

lsusrNov 27, 2022, 4:05 AM

19 points

6 comments1 min readLW link

Proof as mere strong evidence

adamShimiDec 14, 2022, 8:56 AM

28 points

16 comments2 min readLW link

(epistemologicalvigilance.substack.com)

Prediction Markets for Science

VaniverJan 2, 2023, 5:55 PM

27 points

7 comments5 min readLW link

What should a telic science look like?

mrcbarbierJan 7, 2023, 4:13 PM

10 points

0 comments11 min readLW link

The special nature of special relativity

adamShimiJan 9, 2023, 5:30 PM

37 points

1 comment3 min readLW link

(epistemologicalvigilance.substack.com)

Remarks 1–18 on GPT (compressed)

Cleo NardoMar 20, 2023, 10:27 PM

145 points

35 comments31 min readLW link

What science needs

PhilGoetzDec 2, 2012, 10:31 PM

58 points

84 comments7 min readLW link

Alignment is hard. Communicating that, might be harder

Eleni AngelouSep 1, 2022, 4:57 PM

7 points

8 comments3 min readLW link

Sex, Lies, and Dexamethasone

Jacob FalkovichFeb 20, 2018, 7:56 PM

15 points

1 comment9 min readLW link

Counterfactual outcome state transition parameters

Anders_HJul 27, 2018, 9:13 PM

37 points

1 comment6 min readLW link

[Link] The Greek Heliocentric Theory

[deleted]Jun 12, 2012, 5:18 PM

52 points

11 comments3 min readLW link

find_purpose.exe

heatdeathandtaxesApr 12, 2025, 7:31 PM

−1 points

0 comments5 min readLW link

(heatdeathandtaxes.substack.com)

What’s wrong with psychology, anyway?

Anatoly_VorobeyApr 28, 2012, 11:36 PM

43 points

15 comments1 min readLW link

[Question] Hard to find factors messing up experiments: Examples?

HazardNov 15, 2019, 5:46 PM

32 points

13 comments1 min readLW link

Lone Genius Bias and Returns on Additional Researchers

ChrisHallquistNov 1, 2013, 12:38 AM

37 points

64 comments6 min readLW link

A hundred Shakespeares

Stuart_ArmstrongDec 11, 2018, 11:11 PM

29 points

5 comments2 min readLW link

Moving to a World Beyond “p < 0.05”

lifelonglearnerApr 19, 2019, 11:09 PM

23 points

6 comments1 min readLW link

(www.tandfonline.com)

Why Academic Papers Are A Terrible Discussion Forum

alyssavanceJun 20, 2012, 6:15 PM

44 points

53 comments6 min readLW link

Breaking the Optimizer’s Curse, and Consequences for Existential Risks and Value Learning

Roger DearnaleyFeb 21, 2023, 9:05 AM

10 points

1 comment23 min readLW link

Natural Laws Are Descriptions, not Rules

pragmatistAug 8, 2012, 4:27 AM

33 points

237 comments9 min readLW link

Simple proofs of the age of the universe (or other things)

AstynaxSep 13, 2022, 6:20 PM

16 points

12 comments1 min readLW link

Frugality and working from finite data

SnowyowlSep 3, 2010, 9:37 AM

35 points

47 comments4 min readLW link

Experiments and Consent

jefftkNov 10, 2019, 2:50 PM

30 points

45 comments1 min readLW link

(www.jefftk.com)

“Concepts of Agency in Biology” (Okasha, 2023) - Brief Paper Summary

Nora_AmmannJul 8, 2023, 6:22 PM

40 points

3 comments7 min readLW link

Time Binders

SlimepriestessFeb 24, 2020, 9:55 AM

24 points

10 comments1 min readLW link

(hivewired.wordpress.com)

There is no royal road to alignment

Eleni AngelouSep 18, 2022, 3:33 AM

4 points

2 comments3 min readLW link

Separating the roles of theory and direct empirical evidence in belief formation: the examples of minimum wage and anthropogenic global warming

VipulNaikJun 25, 2014, 9:47 PM

38 points

66 comments4 min readLW link

“Dirty concepts” in AI alignment discourses, and some guesses for how to deal with them

Nora_Ammann and peckzy

Aug 20, 2023, 9:13 AM

66 points

4 comments3 min readLW link

Contaminated by Optimism

Eliezer YudkowskyAug 6, 2008, 12:26 AM

22 points

78 comments7 min readLW link

Paradigms and Theory Choice in AI: Adaptivity, Economy and Control

particlemaniaAug 28, 2023, 10:19 PM

4 points

0 comments16 min readLW link

Friedman’s “Prediction vs. Explanation”

Eliezer YudkowskySep 29, 2008, 6:15 AM

9 points

79 comments1 min readLW link

If Van der Waals was a neural network

George3d6Jan 28, 2020, 6:38 PM

18 points

3 comments11 min readLW link

(blog.cerebralab.com)

A Correspondence Theorem

johnswentworthOct 26, 2020, 11:28 PM

30 points

6 comments7 min readLW link

Science vs. art

PhilGoetzMar 16, 2009, 3:48 PM

7 points

36 comments2 min readLW link

Are the social sciences challenging because of fundamental difficulties or because of imposed ones?

ozziegooenNov 10, 2020, 4:56 AM

56 points

12 comments11 min readLW link

Many life-saving drugs fail for lack of funding. But there’s a solution: desperate rich people

MvolzMar 12, 2025, 3:24 PM

17 points

0 comments1 min readLW link

(www.theguardian.com)

What if Being Less Wrong is at the Base of the Universe?

Aldo CernutoMar 13, 2025, 8:11 AM

1 point

0 comments3 min readLW link

The Fundamental Circularity Theorem: Why Some Mathematical Behaviours Are Inherently Unprovable

Alister MundayJan 22, 2025, 6:20 PM

−11 points

2 comments4 min readLW link

Science to Be Done Internationally Using Blockchain

Victor PortonSep 7, 2023, 11:29 PM

−18 points

0 comments2 min readLW link

(science-dao.org)

Missing forecasting tools: from catalogs to a new kind of prediction market

MichaelLatowickiMar 29, 2023, 9:55 AM

14 points

3 comments5 min readLW link

~100 Interesting Questions

RohanSMar 30, 2023, 1:57 PM

53 points

18 comments9 min readLW link

Don’t Think About the Thing Behind the Curtain.

keltanSep 19, 2023, 2:07 AM

4 points

0 comments5 min readLW link

Scientism vs. people

Roman LeventovApr 18, 2023, 5:28 PM

4 points

4 comments11 min readLW link

The Quantum Wave Function is Related to a Philosophy Concept

Richard AragonApr 20, 2023, 3:16 AM

−11 points

3 comments6 min readLW link

An open letter to SERI MATS program organisers

Roman LeventovApr 20, 2023, 4:34 PM

26 points

26 comments4 min readLW link

For alignment, we should simultaneously use multiple theories of cognition and value

Roman LeventovApr 24, 2023, 10:37 AM

23 points

5 comments5 min readLW link

Automating Intelligence: A Cursory Glance at How AutoML Brings Precision to AI Development

RoscoHunterSep 25, 2023, 9:39 AM

3 points

0 comments3 min readLW link

The Many Stories of Science

amayhewApr 29, 2023, 4:49 PM

3 points

0 comments2 min readLW link

(naiveskepticblog.wordpress.com)

Metascience of the Vesuvius Challenge

Maxwell TabarrokMar 30, 2024, 12:02 PM

46 points

2 comments6 min readLW link

(www.maximum-progress.com)

Over-encapsulation

PhilGoetzMar 25, 2010, 5:58 PM

29 points

56 comments3 min readLW link

Why Are The Human Sciences Hard? Two New Hypotheses

Aydin Mohseni, Daniel Herrmann and ben_levinstein

Mar 18, 2025, 3:45 PM

34 points

14 comments9 min readLW link

Write Good Enough Code, Quickly

Oliver DanielsDec 15, 2024, 4:45 AM

19 points

10 comments8 min readLW link

Scientific Method

Andrij “Androniq” GhorbunovFeb 18, 2024, 9:06 PM

24 points

4 comments30 min readLW link

Einstein’s Speed

Eliezer YudkowskyMay 21, 2008, 2:48 AM

70 points

35 comments8 min readLW link

Paradigm Shifts—change everything… except almost everything

James Stephen BrownNov 23, 2024, 6:34 PM

2 points

0 comments3 min readLW link

(nonzerosum.games)

Quantum Darwinism, social constructs, and the scientific method

pchvykovFeb 7, 2024, 7:04 AM

6 points

12 comments9 min readLW link

Objective truth?

pchvykovFeb 15, 2021, 9:47 PM

1 point

0 comments2 min readLW link

We Should Try to Directly Measure the Value of Scientific Papers

ohmurphySep 5, 2024, 9:08 AM

1 point

0 comments5 min readLW link

(ohmurphy.substack.com)

A reply to Byrnes on the Free Energy Principle

Roman LeventovMar 3, 2023, 1:03 PM

28 points

16 comments14 min readLW link

Hard vs Soft in fields as attitudes towards model collision

J BostockApr 20, 2021, 6:57 PM

13 points

2 comments2 min readLW link

A Defense of Peer Review

Niko_McCarty and delton137

Oct 22, 2024, 4:16 PM

23 points

1 comment22 min readLW link

(www.asimov.press)

Standard SAEs Might Be Incoherent: A Choosing Problem & A “Concise” Solution

Kola AyonrindeOct 30, 2024, 10:50 PM

27 points

0 comments12 min readLW link

Research Motivations and “The Division of Cognitive Labor”

Aidan_KieransMay 16, 2021, 12:00 AM

4 points

3 comments5 min readLW link

On “Epistemic Trespassing” and Intellectual Modesty

Aidan_KieransMay 16, 2021, 12:40 AM

9 points

7 comments9 min readLW link

Social Science in its epistemological context

Arturo MaciasDec 5, 2024, 4:12 PM

3 points

0 comments1 min readLW link

(www.theseedsofscience.pub)

One Study, Many Results (Matt Clancy)

aarongertlerJul 18, 2021, 11:10 PM

84 points

19 comments9 min readLW link

(mattsclancy.substack.com)

Book Review: A PhD is Not Enough

ljh2Apr 7, 2022, 5:15 AM

22 points

4 comments23 min readLW link

Summary: “Internet Search tips” by Gwern Branwen

Pablo RepettoApr 8, 2022, 2:02 AM

12 points

2 comments4 min readLW link

(pabloernesto.github.io)

[Question] Time Fuse in Head

Martin RychlitzkiDec 25, 2023, 9:46 AM

1 point

0 comments1 min readLW link

The case for more ambitious language model evals

JozdienJan 30, 2024, 12:01 AM

117 points

30 comments5 min readLW link

But What’s Your New Alignment Insight, out of a Future-Textbook Paragraph?

David UdellMay 7, 2022, 3:10 AM

26 points

18 comments5 min readLW link

[Book Review] Altered Traits

lsusrSep 23, 2021, 12:33 AM

68 points

12 comments1 min readLW link

Progress and research disruptiveness

Eleni AngelouJan 12, 2023, 3:51 AM

3 points

2 comments1 min readLW link

(www.nature.com)

The Dark Side of Cognition Hypothesis

Cameron BergOct 3, 2021, 8:10 PM

19 points

1 comment16 min readLW link

AI x Human Flourishing: Introducing the Cosmos Institute

Brendan McCordSep 5, 2024, 6:23 PM

14 points

5 comments6 min readLW link

(cosmosinstitute.substack.com)

Sparsify: A mechanistic interpretability research agenda

Lee SharkeyApr 3, 2024, 12:34 PM

96 points

23 comments22 min readLW link

Mosaic and Palimpsests: Two Shapes of Research

adamShimiJul 12, 2022, 9:05 AM

39 points

3 comments9 min readLW link

Experiments are in the territory, results are in the map

TahpDec 6, 2024, 3:44 PM

5 points

1 comment6 min readLW link

Critique of some recent philosophy of LLMs’ minds

Roman LeventovJan 20, 2023, 12:53 PM

52 points

8 comments20 min readLW link

On exact mathematical formulae

daozaichApr 22, 2018, 7:41 PM

63 points

14 comments2 min readLW link

[Question] How did academia ensure papers were correct in the early 20th Century?

Ben PaceDec 29, 2018, 11:37 PM

99 points

17 comments2 min readLW link 1 review

Even if you have a nail, not all hammers are the same

PhilGoetzMar 29, 2010, 6:09 PM

150 points

126 comments6 min readLW link

Tal Yarkoni: No, it’s not The Incentives—it’s you

Zack_M_DavisJun 11, 2019, 7:09 AM

89 points

119 comments1 min readLW link 4 reviews

(www.talyarkoni.org)

Rule Thinkers In, Not Out

Scott AlexanderFeb 27, 2019, 2:40 AM

233 points

67 comments4 min readLW link 4 reviews

(slatestarcodex.com)

Science as Attire

Eliezer YudkowskyAug 23, 2007, 5:10 AM

168 points

88 comments2 min readLW link

The Skeptic’s Trilemma

Scott AlexanderMar 15, 2009, 12:12 AM

84 points

15 comments5 min readLW link

Some Heuristics for Evaluating the Soundness of the Academic Mainstream in Unfamiliar Fields

Vladimir_MFeb 15, 2011, 9:17 AM

100 points

274 comments9 min readLW link

Parapsychology: the control group for science

AllanCrossmanDec 5, 2009, 10:50 PM

97 points

189 comments2 min readLW link

Privileging the Hypothesis

Eliezer YudkowskySep 29, 2009, 12:40 AM

126 points

130 comments5 min readLW link

Were atoms real?

AnnaSalamonDec 8, 2010, 5:30 PM

93 points

157 comments4 min readLW link

Science: Do It Yourself

alyssavanceFeb 13, 2011, 4:47 AM

91 points

206 comments6 min readLW link

Gears vs Behavior

johnswentworthSep 19, 2019, 6:50 AM

117 points

14 comments7 min readLW link 1 review

Einstein’s Arrogance

Eliezer YudkowskySep 25, 2007, 1:29 AM

182 points

90 comments3 min readLW link

I Defy the Data!

Eliezer YudkowskyAug 11, 2007, 9:33 PM

104 points

12 comments3 min readLW link

Why epidemiology will not correct itself

gwernAug 11, 2011, 12:54 AM

70 points

13 comments1 min readLW link

[Linkpost] Danger of motivatiogenesis in interdisciplinary work

particlemaniaNov 25, 2021, 12:13 AM

9 points

0 comments1 min readLW link

Exegesis

rogersbaconDec 31, 2021, 5:48 PM

9 points

2 comments20 min readLW link

(rogersbacon.substack.com)

The Scent of Bad Psychology

Jacob FalkovichSep 10, 2018, 6:42 PM

42 points

6 comments1 min readLW link

(putanumonit.com)

No One Knows What Science Doesn’t Know

Eliezer YudkowskyOct 25, 2007, 11:47 PM

94 points

107 comments3 min readLW link

Scientific misconduct misdiagnosed because of scientific misconduct

GLaDOSJun 10, 2011, 2:49 PM

64 points

55 comments2 min readLW link

Alignment’s phlogiston

Eleni AngelouAug 18, 2022, 10:27 PM

10 points

2 comments2 min readLW link

The Galileo affair: who was on the side of rationality?

ValFeb 15, 2015, 8:52 PM

48 points

71 comments7 min readLW link

Novum Organum: Preface

Francis BaconSep 19, 2019, 10:51 PM

54 points

5 comments7 min readLW link

[Question] Which scientific discovery was most ahead of its time?

Richard_NgoMay 16, 2019, 12:58 PM

38 points

14 comments1 min readLW link

Is the rate of scientific progress slowing down? (by Tyler Cowen and Ben Southwood)

Ben PaceDec 2, 2019, 3:45 AM

49 points

6 comments1 min readLW link

(docs.google.com)

Epistemic Artefacts of (conceptual) AI alignment research

Nora_Ammann and particlemania

Aug 19, 2022, 5:18 PM

31 points

1 comment5 min readLW link

Kevin Simler’s “Going Critical”

habrykaMay 16, 2019, 4:36 AM

56 points

1 comment1 min readLW link

(www.meltingasphalt.com)

The Inadequacy of Current Science (Novum Organum Book 1: 1-37)

Francis BaconSep 23, 2019, 2:53 AM

38 points

3 comments9 min readLW link

Fixing science via a basic income

Kaj_SotalaDec 8, 2017, 2:20 PM

14 points

2 comments3 min readLW link

(kajsotala.fi)

Conjunction Controversy (Or, How They Nail It Down)

Eliezer YudkowskySep 20, 2007, 2:41 AM

60 points

25 comments8 min readLW link

Feed the spinoff heuristic!

CarlShulmanFeb 9, 2012, 7:41 AM

82 points

91 comments2 min readLW link

On alien science

Richard_NgoJun 2, 2019, 2:50 PM

44 points

8 comments5 min readLW link

(thinkingcomplete.blogspot.com)

My IRB Nightmare

Scott AlexanderSep 28, 2017, 4:47 PM

58 points

1 comment19 min readLW link

A multi-disciplinary view on AI safety research

Roman LeventovFeb 8, 2023, 4:50 PM

46 points

4 comments26 min readLW link

Error detection bias in research

neq1Sep 22, 2010, 3:00 AM

73 points

37 comments2 min readLW link

 How Should We Critique Research? A Decision Perspective

gwernJul 14, 2019, 10:51 PM

46 points

4 comments1 min readLW link

(www.gwern.net)

Current Trends in Economics and their Shortcoming

joshleventNov 28, 2022, 7:36 PM

5 points

0 comments2 min readLW link

Who ordered alignment’s apple?

Eleni AngelouAug 28, 2022, 4:05 AM

6 points

3 comments3 min readLW link

[Question] Books on the zeitgeist of science during Lord Kelvin’s time.

HazardDec 9, 2019, 12:17 AM

30 points

8 comments1 min readLW link

No comments.

Prac­tice & Philos­o­phy of Science

Practice & Philosophy of Science