Disqus - Friends of RobinHanson

Re: Grand Strategy Annex - Token Skeptic

Heath Rezabek — Sun, 19 May 2013 17:16:43 -0000

Very interesting observations. I wonder how such an audience would respond to a restatement that figures such as Jesus and the Buddha have in common with space aliens that they all reflected and refracted the unconscious... And that if there is a deeper substrate to be found, it'd be in that landscape, rather than its echoes or forms or reflections.

Re: The Manual for Civilization Begins

Heath Rezabek — Thu, 06 Feb 2014 20:22:51 -0000

Simon - Speaking only as an Intern, I feel I can say that this has been a topic of discussion among the project team and list from the start. It seems certain that what we'll have initially will very much be a reflection of the Long Now community. And initially, this is appropriate, as the collection will be showcased at the new salon, a home base for that community.

Over time, as this collection is refined and should larger collections grow from this seed, it may make sense to expand our subject areas and aim for localized (hm!) curation lists. With crowd curation, this actually wouldn't be all that hard to do.

In the meantime, there's also a submission form linked on the actual voting system, and we're hopeful that Long Now members mindful of this issue will bring to the table as diverse and widespread a range of influences as they're able.

Re: The Manual for Civilization Begins

Heath Rezabek — Sat, 15 Mar 2014 01:39:46 -0000

Hi Kathy - Maria Popova, editor of the Brain Pickings blog, also just touched on this complex challenge; her comments on the task are food for thought.

http://www.brainpickings.or...

I do think it's important to remember that this particular collection is meant, initially, to serve as a core collection reflective of its hosting organization, housed at their headquarters site. While the question of what would most help rebuild or preserve a cultural core is a crucial one to ask, there might also be as many answers as there are communities of interest willing to ask it. I think that's a good thing, actually: it reminds us that no such collection could ever be absolutely authoritative unless it were nearly exhaustive, but at its best might strive to be a reflection of its constituents' ideals and aspirations. The wider that circle, the more comprehensive the collection -- but universal representation right from the start would be nearly impossible.

The core lists being submitted by founders and community voices is only one current going in to the process, though, and the tool we're using to help crowd sort member submissions is an open source A/B sorting tool which could actually be used by any community of interest who sought to do so. (http://www.allourideas.org) -- Every such collection is bound to differ in its details, and in those differences lie a strength. Who's to say which resources will confer the greatest resilience or rememberance for a given community, other than that dynamic community itself? We can aspire, but more importantly, I think, is that the question "What do we feel is most worth passing on over the long term?" be asked, by as many unique communities as can.

Given that, and given the earnest attempt on the part of the Long Now Foundation not to shrink from this challenge, I'm honored to be assisting... and I find their effort -- any earnest effort at such a question -- quite auspicious after all.

Re: Grand Strategy Annex - Twelve Theses on Existential Risk

Heath Rezabek — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 08:42:20 -0000

Good post. I think it may be that Bostrom's suggestion of the Maxipok rule (Maximum potential of an OK outcome) is meant as one way through these concerns.

Of course, an OK outcome is not an optimized outcome. He argues that since the stakes are so high when considering the risk side of the equation, the opportunity side of the equation must necessarily take second place in order of concern.

Or so I guess. :)

Re: Paul Carr Interviews Me

Heath Rezabek — Sat, 28 Jun 2014 00:41:14 -0000

Robin - I wanted to say that I thoroughly enjoyed your segment. I admit to a prior unfamiliarity with Ems; they raise a fertile possibility for thinking through scenarios that are quite distinct from those suggested by traditional AI or uploaded / transferred consciousness.

Would you have particular recommendations for further reading to delve deeper into the concept?

I have more thoughts, regarding scenarios for offworld Em bastions (asteroids as resource sinks, etc), and how the concept fares in relation to John M. Smart's Transcension Hypothesis, but for the moment I'd love to simply learn more.

Great to 'meet' you,

- Heath

Re: Grand Strategy Annex - The Wilderness Hypothesis

Heath Rezabek — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 09:12:03 -0000

Joshua, old friend - I'm afraid there are far fewer people thinking about this stuff energetically than you have allowed yourself to believe.

Heartened to know that you are one. Here's the paper Nick and I co-wrote. https://www.academia.edu/81...

Nick's much more energetic and able to articulate new thought on these things than me, particularly these days. Glad you stumbled across us! :) Don't be a stranger. @heath_rezabek

Re: I Wasn’t Expecting the Puppet in The Empire Strikes Back

Heath Rezabek — Sat, 03 Oct 2015 23:31:34 -0000

Charley - You may not be reading these anymore, but I had to chime in on a couple of items. The first may come across as belittling your context but I hope you don't view it in that light: It's always worth remembering that The Emperor came before Voldemort... And that Vader came before Bane (from your project intro). These seem like little things, but they remind us that all cultural works borrow from one-another, (Gandalf came before Obi Wan, and Merlin came long before Gandalf!) and it is always homage, but only to the extent that we remember who set the tone, and what new masks add to the archetype.

The second is probably a long shot, as you seem by timing to be just about ready for Jedi, and you are probably under watching orders. But as someone who grew up on the originals but also respects the role of the prequels, (http://www.starwarsringtheo...), I believe in this wholeheartedly. I've tested it earnestly on my 10 yr old godsons. And it is -- Please, please, consider viewing in Full Hatchet order.

Hatchet Order excludes Ep I, which is to me a completely absurd recon thing to do. Full Hatchet simply retains Ep I. The resulting order goes like this:

IV, V, I, II, III, VI. The prequels become a cliffhanger-extending flashback after Empire. And, an amazing thing happens: the order actually ends up improving not only the prequels, but also Return of the Jedi (Arguably the shakiest of the originals.)

The cost of admission is one single plot point, having to do with an item you're wondering about, but in my opinion, if you go right into Jedi after watching Sith, you do not lose much and you gain so much in return.

Anyhow, above all, please enjoy and try not to over-expect or over-analyze. You are in for some mighty crappy acting, (poor old Ep II), but an overall tale that comes from and goes to a genuine place.

Finally, in a few years, go ahead and give Empire a second look.

Thanks for taking this on!

Re: I’m Pretty Sure Phantom Menace Is A New Hope’s Bad Clone

Heath Rezabek — Wed, 14 Oct 2015 09:44:16 -0000

Jake Lloyd, the actor who played the youngest Anakin, has taken on a lot of the heat directed at this movie over the years, and sadly, has taken it hard. Reading Charley's review, I'm surprised to find myself actually agreeing with her positive take on the kid, in comparison with his older representative in Hayden Christensen. This is strictly in the realm of the movies: Matt Lanter's Anakin in The Clone Wars series actually makes for a pretty great character.

Charley - You may be closer than you think in the New Hope structural comparison, though if you look there's also an uncanny resemblance to Jedi, and both are -- it may be -- intentional: http://www.starwarsringtheo...

My main complaint in the prequels comes down to cardboard acting on the part of most, which comes down to cardboard directing. But the acting wasn't the aspect of the story on Lucas' mind. (Jar jar is a given, though we actually get to have a bit of schadenfreude as we watch his shrinking and disastrous role from here.)

Lightsabers: My understanding is that the color is a function of the strength and character of charge, and falls into a few common spectra. Red is most potent, but also most uncontrolled. Once Luke loses his father Anakin's saber in a Empire, his saber in Jedi is green, as is Yoda's in the prequels.

Master and Apprentice Sith: If you recognized Palpatine, then you already know the answer to this...

Midi-chlorians: This is arguably the single most hated aspect of the prequels, and so for many, "What's the deal with them" begins and ends there. But there is actually some interesting story stuff eventually to be found, in an epic arc of the Clone Wars, complete with Yoda, a returning Qui-Gon Jinn, and Dagobah, available on Netflix. I actually recommend watching it, between Ep's 2 and 3 in fact. Even if only to get the tiniest taste of how amazing The Clone Wars series was, and how much prequel damage it (in my opinion) painstakingly reversed.

Netflix > Clone Wars > Lost Missions / Season 6 > Eps 10-13, but especially 11-13.

In fact, anyone geeky enough to be reading these words who hasn't seen these yet, should give them a try.

Re: Anakin Could’ve Learned Some Game From Yoda’s Jedi Preschool

Heath Rezabek — Wed, 21 Oct 2015 17:31:53 -0000

This is a repeated tidbit from a reply to Menace:

Midi-chlorians: This is arguably the single most hated aspect of the prequels, and so for many, "What's the deal with them" begins and ends there. But there is actually some interesting story stuff eventually to be found, in an epic arc of the Clone Wars animated series, complete with Yoda, a returning Qui-Gon Jinn, and Dagobah, available on Netflix. I actually recommend watching it, between Ep's 2 and 3 in fact. Even if only to get the tiniest taste of how amazing The Clone Wars series was, and how much prequel damage it (in my opinion) painstakingly reversed.

Netflix > Clone Wars > Lost Missions / Season 6 > Eps 10-13, but especially 11-13.

Re: How to run Mojave and Catalina on the same Mac

Heath Rezabek — Thu, 09 Jul 2020 22:25:02 -0000

I'm trying to end up with Mojave and Catalina as well, even if I start with Catalina. I'd love seeing more specific instructions for this case, but I found a video that seems to suggest it's possible by Restoring Backup to the Mojave-on-Catalina partition at the appropriate moment - 04:47 on https://www.youtube.com/wat...

But again, would love to see a walkthrough specifically of installing Mojave next to / onto native Catalina!