EchoingHorror

Karma: 323

EchoingHorror May 2, 2011, 8:13 AM
18 points
on: Ethics and rationality of suicide
I regret not killing myself a few years ago, after losing the things that made me happy and getting further away from other things that could make me happy. This actual future self wouldn’t mind being murdered. At the time I was rendered psychologically incapable of even trying to help myself, and was also incapable of applying my knowledge that it probably wasn’t going to get better with my then-strong motivation to die.

I’d felt suicidal before I was happy, but wasn’t certain it was a good idea. So I picked someone who would listen and understand, and tried to get a second opinion. She couldn’t take the pressure and I preferred not to torture her, so that stopped. Apparently people don’t want to deal with suicide as an issue, and that may also lead to ineffective attempts at prevention.

And I have this other friend who, like me, isn’t in any particular pain most of the time, but would choose to opt-out of life if it were convenient to do so. Thanks but no thanks, reality, we’ll have no more of this. For us, inflicting pain on others from our suicides is relevant. That may be the only reason she’s still alive. At least I have someone to text “opting out kthxbye” to, just in case.

I managed to stay out of mental hospitals after the first time by telling anyone who asked that I would kill myself if I were detained, because it would adversely affect the improvements I would have been making to my life. I wasn’t sure that would work, but it did and that amuses me. There are ways to work around the constraints Chris complained about.

This is depressing. Maybe that’s why people don’t want to think about suicide, and moral issues aren’t their true rejection.

EchoingHorror May 1, 2011, 10:19 PM
3 points
on: Mitigating Social Awkwardness
I once had a job that required a lot of walking in hot weather, and everyone, coworkers and customers smelled bad. For some reason, an anonymous coworker complained to the boss about my smell in particular (I was already showering daily, wearing fresh clothes, and shaving body hair to reduce smell). So I bought some pocket-sized Axe deodorant spray and used it frequently. After that, everyone noticed the way I smelled. It was a little like the commercials, but much less extreme.

And that’s the story of how I started wearing deodorant. You should too if you don’t, and don’t worry about people making fun of the smell or certain brands. Market research reflects people’s preferences better than social memes.

EchoingHorror May 1, 2011, 6:24 AM
1 point
on: Phoenix Less Wrong Meetup- Saturday, 5-7-11, 5pm
I get into the area a week late; please have extra fun for me. I’ll try to recruit from the ASU students I know, but they may be planning to be celebrating the end of the semester in normal ways. Because they’re lame.

EchoingHorror Apr 7, 2011, 5:17 AM
2 points
on: Random advice: Teenage U.S. LW-ers should probably be taking more AP exams
YES! If you’re already going to graduate and look good enough to get into the college you want, this is probably more important than whatever else you’re doing right now. Take a few tests, then get an extra year of your life out of school. Worth it.

Some college science classes have lectures, labs, and recitations, so they take up twice as much time as normal classes for only slightly more credit. I’d prioritize science AP tests.

EchoingHorror Apr 2, 2011, 6:37 PM
3 points
on: Link: “Health Care Myth Busters: Is There a High Degree of Scientific Certainty in Modern Medicine?”
Hurray! A portion of what physicians do has solid research to support it! There are ways that work; we just have to do those more often and other things not at all.

What if the 15% of doctors who can at least follow the numbers started a medical sub-community dedicated to making decisions based on solid research and standardizing the practice of medicine, then commissioned an independent study of their success rate? That could take objective models for treatment, spread them to those who understand how they work, then spread them to everyone else who can see them working better than an average physicians choices.

Individual doctors could be certified by their sub-community as users of the research-supported ways, and their value would increase, and more would join them.

EchoingHorror Mar 31, 2011, 4:28 AM
5 points
in reply to: lincolnquirk’s comment on: Rationality Boot Camp
Don’t panic. There is no automatic confirmation. The email came a few days later, and said that if we know others who applied and did not get an email, that doesn’t mean they won’t get one later. Be exactly as nervous as you were immediately after submitting, minus the worry that your application didn’t go through.

EchoingHorror Mar 29, 2011, 8:42 PM
1 point
in reply to: zero_call’s comment on: Rationality Boot Camp
If you mouse over those sections on the application, messages should be appearing on the right saying “Don’t be discouraged if you haven’t read much of Less Wrong, we have other ways of gauging your knowledge during the interview” and “Again, don’t be discouraged if these are unfamiliar”. If I had put it on the application, it would be to gather information about the applicant’s devotion to research on the subject of rationality, not their actual knowledge (reading does not imply understanding).

Still, the current best of those ideas that have been actively discussed for thousands of years is what went into the creation of the sequences and (hopefully, I haven’t read much of them) the foundation of the SIAI literature. They did that on purpose; it would have been rather silly for them not to.

EchoingHorror Mar 29, 2011, 8:12 PM
0 points
in reply to: wedrifid’s comment on: Rationality Boot Camp
I’d consider resubmitting if not for the email. I only submitted once.

On the bright side, it will give us the opportunity to test the correlation between number of applications submitted (among those who applied) and selection.

EchoingHorror Mar 25, 2011, 9:58 PM
3 points
in reply to: WrongBot’s comment on: Rationality Boot Camp
Quoth Wufoo support: “Yep, it looks like they set up the redirect like that, for after the form is submitted. Not sure why they would do that, but it sounds like you did submit the form successfully. (If you know the people who created the form, you might consider letting them know about it.)”

So they probably have our applications.

EchoingHorror Mar 25, 2011, 4:46 AM
1 point
on: Rationality Boot Camp
Yes, advance the craft. This appeals to my sense that more is possible, and I am pleased.

EchoingHorror Mar 15, 2011, 8:16 PM
3 points
on: On Pi day, we eat pie; On Tau day, we eat Taoists?
Tau looks like r, which is used for radius length, which is relevant to some equations that use the circle constant. Of all possible letters, why use tau? Are they trying to mess with students and teachers whose handwriting makes it ambiguous whether a symbol is tau or r? Maybe it was just because it’s half the pi symbol.

I’m pretty sure people only care about Pi Day because it sounds like pie. Tau Day will never be as celebrated, unless you call it 2Pi Day, which defeats the point, but is still a good excuse to eat pie.

EchoingHorror Mar 15, 2011, 7:56 PM
0 points
in reply to: Perplexed’s comment on: On Pi day, we eat pie; On Tau day, we eat Taoists?
I favor 1/e, because I am demented.

EchoingHorror Mar 13, 2011, 8:16 PM
2 points
in reply to: CronoDAS’s comment on: What other causes are relevant to LessWrong?
And Alec Baldwin, who might know, said the lawsuit might have real grounds.

Also, he’s branding himself with easily repeatable memes, making a distinction between winning warlocks with tigerblood and loser trolls who can’t process his brain, making a lot appearances on various programs, gathering an online following, and selling merchandise with his slogans. That really looks like political campaigning, but he would have to explain the craziness as a tactic in order to get past it. I think it’s more likely he’s recruiting a fan base for a future project where he can have more control. When you don’t know what you want, take power.

EchoingHorror Mar 13, 2011, 7:08 PM
0 points
on: Organ donation versus cryonics
There are also synthetic organs which may be used anyway, in the scenario where you’re revived from cryopreservation, cured of all damage, and go on living normally. If the process of preserving someone isn’t harmed by organ harvesting, I don’t see a reason not to donate.

As long as you can get around how harvesting takes extra time, allowing further decay and more opportunities for neurostructural damage, that seems right. Maybe partial preservation for the brain that doesn’t damage the organs, then harvesting, then full preservation? Unless organs can be harvested after full preservation, in which case one shouldn’t mind others using them to live for a while and getting new organs made with future technology.

Too bad we can’t have our organs sold and the proceeds invested to pay the medical expenses of our future selves. Or can we...

EchoingHorror Mar 13, 2011, 6:40 PM
2 points
in reply to: Normal_Anomaly’s comment on: Organ donation versus cryonics
You’d have to ask an attorney who knows the relevant laws in your area. Since there are opt-in and opt-out organ donation norms, you may have to opt-out but give someone trustworthy the power to opt you in, in a will, in time for your organs to be viable, if allowed by law. Cryogenics companies won’t mind not storing you if you work that out contractually and in advance; otherwise it would look bad that they didn’t fulfill their obligation.

EchoingHorror Feb 15, 2011, 12:36 AM
7 points
on: Social Necessity of Drinking
I’m about the same age and like and dislike the same things about alcohol. I never had a top hat, but did have tails and a cane. Yay.

Don’t forget this, whatever you do.

1) Try saying you haven’t found a drink you like yet and you aren’t in the mood to experiment. That implies you’re one of them, don’t judge them for drinking, is an adequate and lasting refusal, and gives you a chance to redirect conversation if they pry about your “mood”. “I’m just thinking about...” works fine. You may have to tell them what you don’t like is the taste, but they already know that and are asking anyway, because they’re silly, so they won’t be as shocked.

Have fun, but never say you don’t need alcohol to have fun. Instant Stick in the Mud status from that one.

2) Social conventions vary widely; follow people’s lead. Use coasters when appropriate, don’t chug anything unless someone tells you to or there’s loud music playing, and don’t blame the alcohol for anything you do or say that isn’t a result of poor coordination.

Following what others have said about drinking less: You’re drinking less because you’re a lightweight, not because you want to be the least drunk. That way they’re the empowered ones, having higher alcohol resistance traits than you. Match their demeanors, but don’t fake slurring or stuttering. Not attempting to move is more believable than stumbling. If you’re as affected as they are, or act like you’re not experienced with alcohol and having any is already significant, you’ll be easily dismissed and no one will question your light drinking.

Random tips for specific drinks: If you’re doing shots, take them together or alternate, just follow their lead. Bow out if you want to, acting like it would be a bad idea not to. For bottled beers/wine coolers/whatever, you might be able to just have one by drinking it slowly. If it’s a situation where someone gets up and asks who needs another, you can have half of what the average person there has without being weird. Wine poured in glasses and refilled from a bottle tends to be topped off periodically, but emptying less before being refilled means you drink less. I find mixed drinks that contain ice/water/soda taste nastier than just whatever liquor goes in them, so I just get a shot of that when I can. No one has minded yet, it’s cheaper if you’re out somewhere, and you’re drinking less.

3) It could just be force of habit, since other people also like physical disorientation and tend to do that when they get together. People aren’t usually good at thinking of things to do, and even when they are they throw alcohol in there too because it’s fun. You have to learn to drink or blend as a non-drinker because people are boring but you still don’t want to miss out on interacting with them.

If they know each other professionally, alcohol designates it as a social situation and not just a professional one, as opposed to a team building party sort of thing. If they aren’t happy in their jobs (or upon getting home after losing time and energy to their jobs), drinking signals a mini-vacation so they can prove to themselves they have a life outside of work.

EchoingHorror Jan 15, 2011, 1:05 PM
−2 points
on: Note on Terminology: “Rationality”, not “Rationalism”
Ernst Mayr’s What Evolution Is uses “evolutionism” for “belief in evolution” and isn’t even slightly worse because of it. I’m not sure we should let people who are wrong whenever they use a certain word prevent us from using that word. I feel the connotation, but I know where it’s coming from.

As for “rationalism”, I don’t see a good reason someone would prefer it over “rationality” and it isn’t understood with the same separate meaning for everyone. So until a need to universalize it comes along, I’ll stick with “rationality”, and would recommend the same, for those less-ambiguity points. Clear communication matters, and such.

EchoingHorror Jan 15, 2011, 11:54 AM
1 point
on: I want to learn economics
I’m learning and learning to learn economics too. If they’re not a primary source for learning, I still find textbooks useful as references. A detailed table of contents and explanations of each concept can be useful when concepts or explanations are omitted from another source. And, if you don’t mind reading textbooks cover-to-cover, they tend to be complete.

Here are some free online economics texts. Other commenters are suggesting micro before macro, so go with that. They should all be useful for optimizing the world in specific ways. Reading the introductions of more advanced texts should tell you about how the field is divided and may guide you to realize what you want to study in particular.

EchoingHorror Dec 5, 2010, 12:25 AM
8 points
in reply to: Snowyowl’s comment on: Rationality Quotes: December 2010

your perceptions are fine, it’s your opinions that are worthless and misleading.

I’m quoting this frequently for the next five years.

EchoingHorror Nov 29, 2010, 7:15 AM
−1 points
on: “Nahh, that wouldn’t work”
I recommend threats, but not of violence. And not in anger. Those seem ineffective if you don’t participate in organized crime or disorganized crime, respectively. Am I wrong? Because the part of me that cares doesn’t want them to work, but I usually keep that part tied up in the basement.

I threaten with a smile whenever possible. It’s not my fault they’ve backed me into a corner and selected my actions for me. I’m even nice enough to explain the situation and offer my help getting out of it, or some easy suggestions if they want to do it on their own.

Then there’s the “You’re...not very nice” I use when it’s true. Somehow the people I don’t think are nice always take it as a threat and act all scared.