Skill Building

TagLast edit: Feb 8, 2025, 12:32 AM by lesswrong-internal

Skill Building is the meta-skill of getting good at things i.e. developing procedural knowledge.

Subtopics may include: Fast feedback loops, Choosing the correct level of challenge, studying people better than you to pick up their techniques or assimilate their style or philosophy, synthesizing advice from many tutorials, instructions, or how-tos

Notes on Know-how

David GrossDec 9, 2020, 5:21 PM

10 points

1 comment4 min readLW link

[Question] Training Better Rationalists?

Davis_KingsleyAug 5, 2021, 11:13 AM

42 points

15 comments1 min readLW link

Announcing AI safety Mentors and Mentees

Marius HobbhahnNov 23, 2022, 3:21 PM

62 points

7 comments10 min readLW link

ARENA 2.0 - Impact Report

CallumMcDougallSep 26, 2023, 5:13 PM

35 points

5 comments13 min readLW link

The 3 Books Technique for Learning a New Skilll

Matt GoldenbergJan 9, 2019, 12:45 PM

207 points

48 comments2 min readLW link

Introducing the Nuts and Bolts Of Naturalism

LoganStrohlApr 22, 2023, 6:31 PM

77 points

2 comments3 min readLW link

How to learn soft skills

AnnaSalamonFeb 7, 2015, 5:22 AM

139 points

29 comments7 min readLW link

Micro feedback loops and learning

Swimmer963 (Miranda Dixon-Luinenburg) May 26, 2019, 12:50 AM

52 points

12 comments6 min readLW link

Strategies for Personal Growth

RaemonJul 28, 2018, 6:27 PM

148 points

27 comments4 min readLW link

Ability to react

Swimmer963 (Miranda Dixon-Luinenburg) Feb 18, 2011, 7:19 PM

100 points

99 comments4 min readLW link

Understanding your understanding

SilasBartaMar 22, 2010, 10:33 PM

102 points

80 comments3 min readLW link

How and Why to Granularize

lukeprogMay 17, 2011, 3:16 PM

87 points

60 comments4 min readLW link

Does Goal Setting Work?

Swimmer963 (Miranda Dixon-Luinenburg) Oct 16, 2013, 8:54 PM

56 points

22 comments11 min readLW link

Learning critical thinking: a personal example

Swimmer963 (Miranda Dixon-Luinenburg) Feb 14, 2013, 8:43 PM

59 points

28 comments8 min readLW link

Notes on notes on virtues

David GrossDec 30, 2020, 5:47 PM

71 points

11 comments11 min readLW link

How ARENA course material gets made

CallumMcDougallJul 2, 2024, 6:04 PM

41 points

2 comments7 min readLW link

Advice to junior AI governance researchers

AkashJul 8, 2024, 7:19 PM

66 points

1 comment5 min readLW link

Poker is a bad game for teaching epistemics. Figgie is a better one.

rossryJul 8, 2024, 6:05 AM

106 points

47 comments11 min readLW link

(blog.rossry.net)

Advice on Communicating Concisely

EvolutionByDesignOct 20, 2024, 4:45 PM

3 points

9 comments1 min readLW link

Don’t judge a skill by its specialists

AcademianSep 26, 2010, 8:56 PM

78 points

36 comments2 min readLW link

Explicit and tacit rationality

lukeprogApr 9, 2013, 11:33 PM

62 points

77 comments4 min readLW link

Unconscious Competence and Counter-Incentives

lifelonglearnerMar 10, 2018, 6:38 AM

13 points

1 comment3 min readLW link

The Truth About Mathematical Ability

JonahSFeb 12, 2015, 1:29 AM

102 points

142 comments12 min readLW link

Innate Mathematical Ability

JonahSFeb 18, 2015, 11:11 AM

76 points

140 comments9 min readLW link

Your Most Valuable Skill

AlicornSep 27, 2009, 5:01 PM

32 points

97 comments2 min readLW link

In What Ways Have You Become Stronger?

Vladimir_NesovMar 15, 2009, 8:44 PM

32 points

40 comments1 min readLW link

Build Small Skills in the Right Order

lukeprogApr 17, 2011, 11:01 PM

168 points

219 comments5 min readLW link

Rationality Toughness Tests

RobinHansonApr 6, 2009, 1:12 AM

28 points

17 comments1 min readLW link

3 Levels of Rationality Verification

Eliezer YudkowskyMar 15, 2009, 5:19 PM

86 points

246 comments3 min readLW link

Don’t teach people how to reach the top of a hill

PhilGoetzMar 4, 2014, 9:38 PM

51 points

37 comments6 min readLW link

Procedural Knowledge Gaps

AlicornFeb 8, 2011, 3:17 AM

197 points

1,495 comments1 min readLW link

[link] If something seems unusually hard for you, see if you’re missing a minor insight

Kaj_SotalaMay 5, 2021, 10:23 AM

48 points

19 comments1 min readLW link

(drmaciver.substack.com)

Great Negotiation MOOC on Coursera

egAug 9, 2021, 12:23 PM

16 points

5 comments1 min readLW link

Deliberate Play

jsteinhardtOct 24, 2021, 2:50 AM

91 points

4 comments5 min readLW link 1 review

(bounded-regret.ghost.io)

Come for the productivity, stay for the philosophy

lionhearted (Sebastian Marshall)Nov 9, 2021, 1:10 PM

23 points

6 comments1 min readLW link

Is there a better choice than “Stop After Win” (or does double-checking lead to failure loops)?

Nicole DiekerFeb 1, 2022, 8:33 PM

11 points

12 comments4 min readLW link

Noobs Need Rules

Jacob FalkovichApr 2, 2022, 5:56 PM

50 points

3 comments6 min readLW link

What do you do to deliberately practice?

hathJun 4, 2022, 10:20 PM

26 points

9 comments2 min readLW link

Turbocharging

CFAR!DuncanAug 2, 2022, 12:01 AM

52 points

4 comments9 min readLW link

[Question] How do I find tutors for obscure skills/subjects (i.e. fermi estimation tutors)

joraineSep 15, 2022, 1:15 AM

11 points

2 comments1 min readLW link

[Question] How to learn: Struggle VS Lookup-Table?

Nicholas / Heather KrossSep 25, 2022, 9:58 PM

15 points

2 comments2 min readLW link

Podcast: Shoshannah Tekofsky on skilling up in AI safety, visiting Berkeley, and developing novel research ideas

AkashNov 25, 2022, 8:47 PM

37 points

2 comments9 min readLW link

Podcast: Tamera Lanham on AI risk, threat models, alignment proposals, externalized reasoning oversight, and working at Anthropic

AkashDec 20, 2022, 9:39 PM

18 points

2 comments11 min readLW link

Qualities that alignment mentors value in junior researchers

AkashFeb 14, 2023, 11:27 PM

88 points

14 comments3 min readLW link

A model of research skill

L Rudolf LJan 8, 2024, 12:13 AM

60 points

6 comments12 min readLW link

(www.strataoftheworld.com)

Notes on Moderation, Balance, & Harmony

David GrossDec 25, 2020, 2:44 AM

9 points

1 comment8 min readLW link

Building a transformer from scratch—AI safety up-skilling challenge

Marius HobbhahnOct 12, 2022, 3:40 PM

42 points

1 comment5 min readLW link

Be more effective by learning important practical knowledge using flashcards

StenemoOct 12, 2022, 6:05 PM

5 points

2 comments1 min readLW link

Changing my life in 2021, halfway through

BoraskoJun 10, 2021, 1:36 AM

42 points

6 comments7 min readLW link

Just Try It: Quantity Trumps Quality

atuckerApr 4, 2011, 1:13 AM

88 points

83 comments2 min readLW link

Where do your eyes go?

alkjashSep 19, 2021, 10:43 PM

266 points

22 comments14 min readLW link 1 review

(radimentary.wordpress.com)

Recommending Understand, a Game about Discerning the Rules

MondSemmelOct 28, 2021, 2:53 PM

98 points

55 comments4 min readLW link

“Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast”

moridinamaelJan 24, 2018, 4:52 PM

54 points

7 comments1 min readLW link

Too Smart for My Own Good

isovectorJan 22, 2019, 5:51 PM

38 points

4 comments3 min readLW link

Saturation, Distillation, Improvisation: A Story About Procedural Knowledge And Cookies

AlicornMay 24, 2009, 2:38 AM

48 points

29 comments4 min readLW link

Apply for the ML Upskilling Winter Camp in Cambridge, UK [2-10 Jan]

hannah wing-yeeDec 2, 2022, 8:45 PM

3 points

0 comments2 min readLW link

AI community building: EliezerKart

Christopher KingApr 1, 2023, 3:25 PM

45 points

0 comments2 min readLW link

Learning as closing feedback loops

ambigramApr 17, 2022, 9:50 AM

9 points

0 comments17 min readLW link

Skilling-up in ML Engineering for Alignment: request for comments

CallumMcDougallApr 23, 2022, 3:11 PM

19 points

0 comments1 min readLW link

Find yourself a Worthy Opponent: a Chavruta

Raw_PowerJul 6, 2011, 10:59 AM

48 points

74 comments3 min readLW link

Advice for Entering AI Safety Research

scasperJun 2, 2023, 8:46 PM

26 points

2 comments5 min readLW link

Applied Linear Algebra Lecture Series

johnswentworthDec 22, 2022, 6:57 AM

103 points

8 comments1 min readLW link

Effectively self-studying over the Internet

libaiJan 3, 2023, 4:23 PM

4 points

0 comments4 min readLW link

High Challenge

Eliezer YudkowskyDec 19, 2008, 12:51 AM

74 points

75 comments4 min readLW link

Learning to Learn and Navigating Moods

caleboJul 21, 2019, 3:53 PM

22 points

13 comments11 min readLW link

[Question] Building awareness habits (cognitive)

TeachNov 27, 2019, 1:36 AM

5 points

2 comments1 min readLW link

[Question] Book Recommendations for social skill development?

TeachDec 14, 2019, 12:36 AM

11 points

23 comments1 min readLW link

Kolb’s: an approach to consciously get better at anything

jacquesthibsJan 3, 2023, 6:16 PM

12 points

1 comment6 min readLW link

What fills a vacuum?

Logan KiellerJan 22, 2023, 7:25 PM

11 points

6 comments2 min readLW link

7 traps that (we think) new alignment researchers often fall into

Akash and Thomas Larsen

Sep 27, 2022, 11:13 PM

176 points

10 comments4 min readLW link

Time to Exit the Sandbox

SquirrelInHellOct 24, 2017, 5:13 PM

0 points

3 comments1 min readLW link

(squirrelinhell.blogspot.com)

Visualizing Learned Representations of Rice Disease

muhia_beeOct 3, 2022, 9:09 AM

7 points

0 comments4 min readLW link

(indecisive-sand-24a.notion.site)

Skills and Antiskills

katydeeApr 26, 2014, 6:54 AM

43 points

54 comments1 min readLW link

How I learned to stop worrying and love skill trees

junk heap homotopyMay 23, 2023, 4:08 AM

81 points

3 comments1 min readLW link

[Question] If there were an interactive software teaching Yudkowskian rationality, what concepts would you want to see it teach?

MikkWSep 2, 2020, 5:37 AM

25 points

20 comments1 min readLW link

mental number lines

bhauthJul 19, 2023, 9:01 PM

10 points

5 comments1 min readLW link

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