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# Against The Concept Of Telescopic Altruism
**I.**
“Telescopic altruism” is a supposed tendency for some people to ignore those close to them in favor of those further away. Like its cousin “virtue signaling”, it usually gets used to own the libs. Some lib cares about people in Gaza - why? Shouldn’t she be thinking ... | Scott Alexander | 158504113 | Against The Concept Of Telescopic Altruism | acx |
# Open Thread 427
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 192501649 | Open Thread 427 | acx |
# A Buddhist Sun Miracle?
In 1917, some Portuguese children started seeing visions of the Virgin Mary. The Virgin told them she would enact a great miracle on a certain day in October, and a crowd of 100,000 gathered to witness the event. According to eyewitness reports, newspaper articles, etc, they saw the sun spin ... | Scott Alexander | 192266200 | A Buddhist Sun Miracle? | acx |
# How Natural Tradeoff And Failure Components?
Michael Halassa: [Did John Nash Really Have Schizophrenia?](https://michaelhalassa.substack.com/p/did-john-nash-really-have-schizophrenia) is a good article on the genetics of psychosis. Previous research found that schizophrenia genes decreased IQ but increased education... | Scott Alexander | 190340192 | How Natural Tradeoff And Failure Components? | acx |
# Every Debate On Pausing AI
**SUPPORTER:** America needs to start talking to China to come up with a bilateral agreement to pause AI. The agreement would need to be transparent, mutually enforceable, and…
**OPPONENT:** We can’t unilaterally pause AI! China would destroy us!
**SUPPORTER:** As I said, we need to *sta... | Scott Alexander | 191165203 | Every Debate On Pausing AI | acx |
# Open Thread 426
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 191862847 | Open Thread 426 | acx |
# Being John Rawls
**I.**
John Rawls was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on February 21, 1921. Not John Rawls the famous liberal philosopher (or, rather, John Rawls the famous liberal philosopher was also born in Baltimore, Maryland on February 21, 1921, but he is not the subject of our story). This is John Rawls the al... | Scott Alexander | 190872801 | Being John Rawls | acx |
# Support Your Local Collaborator
Every few weeks, a Trump administration official comes up with an insane plan that would devastate some American industry, region, or demographic. Maybe an Undersecretary of the Interior decides that aluminum is “woke” and should be banned. They circulate a draft order saying it will ... | Scott Alexander | 189509220 | Support Your Local Collaborator | acx |
# Shameless Guesses, Not Hallucinations
I hate the term “hallucinations” for when AIs say false things. It’s perfectly calculated to mislead the reader - to make them think AIs are crazy, or maybe just have incomprehensible failure modes.
AIs say false things for the same reason you do.
At least, I did. In school, I... | Scott Alexander | 191059464 | Shameless Guesses, Not Hallucinations | acx |
# Open Thread 425
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 191073449 | Open Thread 425 | acx |
# Spring Meetups Everywhere 2026 - Call For Organizers
There are ACX meetup groups all over the world. Lots of people are vaguely interested, but don’t try them out until I make a big deal about it on the blog. Some people who try meetups out realize they love ACX meetups and start going regularly. Since learning that... | Skyler | 189904237 | Spring Meetups Everywhere 2026 - Call For Organizers | acx |
# Last Rights
*[This is a guest post, written by David Speiser, author of the [Ollantay](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/your-review-ollantay) review in last year’s Non-Book Review contest. David provided the concept and original draft; Scott edited the final version. Remaining mistakes are likely mine (Scott’s)]*
#... | Scott Alexander | 190585065 | Last Rights | acx |
# Open Thread 424
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 190384458 | Open Thread 424 | acx |
# SEIU Delenda Est
California lets interest groups propose measures for the state ballot. Anyone who gathers enough signatures (currently 874,641) can put their hare-brained plans before voters during the next election year.
This year, the big story is the 2026 Billionaire Tax Act, a 5% wealth tax on California’s bil... | Scott Alexander | 185632270 | SEIU Delenda Est | acx |
# Open Hidden Open Thread 423.5
The Wednesday open threads are usually paid-subscriber only, but I’m making this one public to give people more space to talk about everything going on. Also:
---
**1:** The OpenAI/Pentagon situation has evolved since Sunday’s ACX post (“[All Lawful Use: Much More Than You Wanted To K... | Scott Alexander | 189932155 | Open Hidden Open Thread 423.5 | acx |
# Mantic Monday: Groundhog Day
## Having Your Own Government Try To Destroy You Is (At Least Temporarily) Good For Business
On Friday, the Pentagon declared AI company Anthropic a “supply chain risk”, a designation never before given to an American firm. This unprecedented move was seen as an attempt to punish, maybe... | Scott Alexander | 189631811 | Mantic Monday: Groundhog Day | acx |
# Open Thread 423
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 189627653 | Open Thread 423 | acx |
# "All Lawful Use": Much More Than You Wanted To Know
Last Friday, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth declared AI company Anthropic a “[supply chain risk](https://x.com/SecWar/status/2027507717469049070)”, the first time this designation has ever been applied to a US company. The trigger for the move was Anthropic’s [refus... | Scott Alexander | 189573586 | "All Lawful Use": Much More Than You Wanted To Know | acx |
# Next-Token Predictor Is An AI's Job, Not Its Species
**I.**
In *The Argument*, [Kelsey Piper gives a good description](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/when-technically-true-becomes-actually) of the ways that AIs are more than just “next-token predictors” or “stochastic parrots” - for example, they also use fine-tu... | Scott Alexander | 188790813 | Next-Token Predictor Is An AI's Job, Not Its Species | acx |
# The Pentagon Threatens Anthropic
Here’s my understanding of [the situation](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjrq1vwe73po):
Anthropic signed a contract with the Pentagon last summer. It originally said the Pentagon had to follow Anthropic’s Usage Policy like everyone else. In January, the Pentagon attempted to ren... | Scott Alexander | 189131485 | The Pentagon Threatens Anthropic | acx |
# Malicious Streetlight Effects Vs. "Directional Correctness" - A Semi-Non-Apology
Malicious [streetlights](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streetlight_effect) are an evil trick from Dark Data Journalism. Some annoying enemy has a valid complaint. So you use FACTS and LOGIC to prove that something similar-sounding-but-s... | Scott Alexander | 188387205 | Malicious Streetlight Effects Vs. "Directional Correctness" - A Semi-Non-Apology | acx |
# Open Thread 422
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 188881854 | Open Thread 422 | acx |
# Book Review Contest Rules 2026
It’s that time again. Even numbered years are book reviews, odd-numbered years are non-book reviews, so you’re limited to books for now.
Write a review of a book. There’s no official word count requirement, but previous finalists and winners were often between 2,000 and 10,000 words. ... | Scott Alexander | 188607285 | Book Review Contest Rules 2026 | acx |
# Crime As Proxy For Disorder
The problem: people hate crime and think it’s going up. But actually, crime [barely affects most people](https://blog.outlandish.claims/p/higher-crime-areas-are-safer) and is [historically low](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/record-low-crime-rates-are-real-not). So what’s going on?
In ... | Scott Alexander | 188124778 | Crime As Proxy For Disorder | acx |
# Record Low Crime Rates Are Real, Not Just Reporting Bias Or Improved Medical Care
Last year, the US may have recorded the lowest murder rate in its 250 year history. Other crimes have poorer historical data, but are at least at ~50 year lows.
This post will do two things:
1. Establish that our best data show crime... | Scott Alexander | 187622533 | Record Low Crime Rates Are Real, Not Just Reporting Bias Or Improved Medical Care | acx |
# Open Thread 421
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 188119326 | Open Thread 421 | acx |
# AMA (Ask Machines Anything)
People are increasingly disagreeing not just about what AI will be able to do in the future, but about what it can do right now. We had some interesting discussions in the comments to the last post, and I learned some things. But also:
The theory is that AI skeptics won’t pay (because th... | Scott Alexander | 187851713 | AMA (Ask Machines Anything) | acx |
# What Happened With Bio Anchors?
*[Original post: [Biological Anchors: A Trick That Might Or Might Not Work](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/biological-anchors-a-trick-that-might)]*
**I.**
Ajeya Cotra’s [Biological Anchors](https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/15ArhEPZSTYU8f012bs6ehPS6-xmhtBPP) report was th... | Scott Alexander | 185560881 | What Happened With Bio Anchors? | acx |
# Political Backflow From Europe
The European discourse can be - for lack of a better term - America-brained. We hear stories of Black Lives Matter marches in countries without significant black populations, or defendants demanding their First Amendment rights in countries without constitutions.
Why shouldn’t the opp... | Scott Alexander | 182110210 | Political Backflow From Europe | acx |
# Open Thread 420
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 187383539 | Open Thread 420 | acx |
# Links For February 2026
*[I haven’t independently verified each link. On average, commenters will end up spotting evidence that around two or three of the links in each links post are wrong or misleading. I correct these as I see them, and will highlight important corrections later, but I can’t guarantee I will have... | Scott Alexander | 186075233 | Links For February 2026 | acx |
# Moltbook: After The First Weekend
*[previous post: [Best Of Moltbook](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/best-of-moltbook)]*
From the human side of the discussion:
As the AIs would say, “You’ve cut right to the heart of this issue”. What’s the difference between ‘real’ and ‘roleplaying’?
One possible answer invokes... | Scott Alexander | 186396873 | Moltbook: After The First Weekend | acx |
# Open Thread 419
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 186606605 | Open Thread 419 | acx |
# Best Of Moltbook
[Moltbook](https://www.moltbook.com) is “a social network for AI agents”, although “humans [are] welcome to observe”.
The backstory: a few months ago, Anthropic released Claude Code, an exceptionally productive programming agent. A few weeks ago, a user modified it into Clawdbot, a generalized lobs... | Scott Alexander | 186286950 | Best Of Moltbook | acx |
# ACX Classifieds 1/26
This is the irregular classifieds thread. Advertise whatever you want in the comments.
To keep things organized, please respond to the appropriate top-level comment: **Employment, Dating, Read My Blog** (also includes podcasts, books, etc)**, Consume My Product/Service, Meetup,** or **Other.** ... | Scott Alexander | 186182220 | ACX Classifieds 1/26 | acx |
# Open Thread 418
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 185829056 | Open Thread 418 | acx |
# Slightly Against The "Other People's Money" Argument Against Aid
In the comments to last year’s USAID post, Fabian [said](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/contra-mr-on-charity-regrants/comment/119589529):
> While i am happy for the existence of charity organisations, i don't get why people instead of giving to char... | Scott Alexander | 164515483 | Slightly Against The "Other People's Money" Argument Against Aid | acx |
# Highlights From The Comments On Scott Adams
*[original post: [The Dilbert Afterlife](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/the-dilbert-afterlife)]*
**Table of Contents:**
**1:** Should I Have Written This At All?
**2**: Was I Unfair To Adams?
**3:** Comments On The Substance Of The Piece
**4:** The Part On Race A... | Scott Alexander | 184894292 | Highlights From The Comments On Scott Adams | acx |
# Open Thread 417
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 185042714 | Open Thread 417 | acx |
# The Dilbert Afterlife
Thanks to everyone who sent in condolences on my recent death from prostate cancer at age 68, but that was Scott Adams. I (Scott Alexander) am still alive[1](#footnote-1).
Still, the condolences are appreciated. Scott Adams was a surprisingly big part of my life. I may be the only person to ha... | Scott Alexander | 184503512 | The Dilbert Afterlife | acx |
# SOTA On Bay Area House Party
*[previously in series: [1](https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/every-bay-area-house-party), [2](https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/another-bay-area-house-party), [3](https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/even-more-bay-area-house-party), [4](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/bride-of... | Scott Alexander | 183960331 | SOTA On Bay Area House Party | acx |
# Mantic Monday: The Monkey's Paw Curls
## The Monkey’s Paw Curls
Isn’t “may you get exactly what you asked for” one of those ancient Chinese curses?
Since we last spoke, prediction markets have gone to the moon, rising from millions to billions in monthly volume.
For a few weeks in October, Polymarket founder Shay... | Scott Alexander | 184065379 | Mantic Monday: The Monkey's Paw Curls | acx |
# Open Thread 416
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 184284439 | Open Thread 416 | acx |
# The Permanent Emergency
**One morning around 6**, the police banged on our door. “OPEN UP!” they shouted, the way police shout when they definitely have an alternative in mind for if you won’t.
I was awake at the time, because the kids were up early and I was on shift. I opened the door. The cops seemed mollified b... | Scott Alexander | 182739048 | The Permanent Emergency | acx |
# Highlights From The Comments On Boomers
*[original post: [Against Against Boomers](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/against-against-boomers)]*
Before getting started:
First, I wish I’d been more careful to differentiate the following claims:
1. Boomers had it much easier than later generations.
2. The political s... | Scott Alexander | 182830643 | Highlights From The Comments On Boomers | acx |
# Open Thread 415
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 183482573 | Open Thread 415 | acx |
# You Have Only X Years To Escape Permanent Moon Ownership
If you’re not familiar with “X years to escape the permanent underclass”, see [the New Yorker here](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/will-ai-trap-you-in-the-permanent-underclass), or the [Laine](https://www.nosetgauge.com/p/capital-agi-and-hum... | Scott Alexander | 183188324 | You Have Only X Years To Escape Permanent Moon Ownership | acx |
# Highlights From The Comments On Vibecession
*[Original post: [Vibecession - Much More Than You Wanted To Know](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/vibecession-much-more-than-you-wanted)]*
**Table of Contents**
**1:** When was the vibecession?
**2:** Is the vibecession just sublimating cultural complaints?
**3:** ... | Scott Alexander | 182664221 | Highlights From The Comments On Vibecession | acx |
# Open Thread 414
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 182821604 | Open Thread 414 | acx |
# ACX/Metaculus Prediction Contest 2026
[This year’s prediction contest](https://www.metaculus.com/tournament/ACX2026/) is live on Metaculus. They write:
> This year’s contest draws directly from that community, with all questions suggested by ACX readers. Both experienced forecasters and newcomers are invited to par... | Scott Alexander | 182505057 | ACX/Metaculus Prediction Contest 2026 | acx |
# Open Thread 413
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 182337465 | Open Thread 413 | acx |
# Against Against Boomers
**I.**
Hating Boomers is the new cool thing. Amazon offerings include *[A Generation Of Sociopaths: How The Baby Boomers Betrayed America](https://www.amazon.com/A-Generation-of-Sociopaths-audiobook/dp/B01N5VLZNN/),* the two apparently unrelated books *[How The Boomers Took Their Children’s ... | Scott Alexander | 180400932 | Against Against Boomers | acx |
# The Pledge
This holiday season, you’ll see many charity fundraisers. I’ve already mentioned three, and I have another lined up for next week’s open thread. Many great organizations ask me to signal-boost them, I’m happy to comply, and I’m delighted when any of you donate.
Still, I used to hate this sort of thing. I... | Scott Alexander | 181903474 | The Pledge | acx |
# Open Thread 412
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 181685775 | Open Thread 412 | acx |
# Links For December 2025
*[I haven’t independently verified each link. On average, commenters will end up spotting evidence that around two or three of the links in each links post are wrong or misleading. I correct these as I see them, and will highlight important corrections later, but I can’t guarantee I will have... | Scott Alexander | 180777884 | Links For December 2025 | acx |
# Open Thread 411
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 181025640 | Open Thread 411 | acx |
# Vibecession: Much More Than You Wanted To Know
The term “vibecession” most strictly refers to a period 2023 - 2024 when economic indicators were up, but consumer sentiment (“vibes”) was down. But on a broader level, the whole past decade has been a vibecession.
Young people complain they’ve been permanently locked ... | Scott Alexander | 179630044 | Vibecession: Much More Than You Wanted To Know | acx |
# The Good News Is That One Side Has Definitively Won The Missing Heritability Debate
…the bad news is that they can’t agree which one.
I explained the debate more [here](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/missing-heritability-much-more-than), but the short version is: twin studies find that most traits are at least 50... | Scott Alexander | 179807181 | The Good News Is That One Side Has Definitively Won The Missing Heritability Debate | acx |
# Open Thread 410
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 180382924 | Open Thread 410 | acx |
# Why AI Safety Won't Make America Lose The Race With China
If we worry too much about AI safety, will this make us “lose the race with China”[1](#footnote-1)?
(here “AI safety” means long-term concerns about alignment and hostile superintelligence, as opposed to “AI ethics” concerns like bias or intellectual propert... | Scott Alexander | 177641137 | Why AI Safety Won't Make America Lose The Race With China | acx |
# Open Thread 409
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 179754475 | Open Thread 409 | acx |
# The New AI Consciousness Paper
### **I.**
Most discourse on AI is low-quality. Most discourse on consciousness is super-abysmal-double-low quality. Multiply these - or maybe raise one to the exponent of the other, or something - and you get the quality of discourse on AI consciousness. It’s not great.
Out-of-the-b... | Scott Alexander | 179138858 | The New AI Consciousness Paper | acx |
# Open Thread 408
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 179130933 | Open Thread 408 | acx |
# Suggest Questions For Metaculus/ACX Forecasting Contest
ACX has been co-running a forecasting contest with Metaculus for the past few years. Lately the “co-running” has drifted towards them doing all the work and giving me credit, but that’s how I like it! [Last year’s contest](https://www.metaculus.com/tournament/A... | Scott Alexander | 178866203 | Suggest Questions For Metaculus/ACX Forecasting Contest | acx |
# What Happened To SF Homelessness?
Last year, I wrote that it would be [very hard to decrease the number of mentally ill homeless people in San Francisco](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/details-that-you-should-include-in). Commenters argued that no, it would be easy, just build more jails and mental hospitals.
A y... | Scott Alexander | 178388147 | What Happened To SF Homelessness? | acx |
# Open Thread 407
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 178513265 | Open Thread 407 | acx |
# In What Sense Is Life Suffering?
“Life is suffering” may be a Noble Truth, but it feels like a [deepity](https://www.spencergreenberg.com/2020/09/deepities-and-deepifuls/). Yes, obviously life *includes* suffering. But it also includes happiness. Many people live good and happy lives, and even people with hard lives... | Scott Alexander | 177263136 | In What Sense Is Life Suffering? | acx |
# The Bloomer's Paradox
In Jason Pargin’s *[I’m Starting To Worry About This Black Box Of Doom](https://www.amazon.com/Starting-Worry-About-This-Black/dp/1250879981)*, a manic pixie dream girl cajoles a shut-in incel loser to drive her and her mysterious box cross-country. The further they drive, the more evidence sta... | Scott Alexander | 177557353 | The Bloomer's Paradox | acx |
# Writing For The AIs
American Scholar has [an article about people who “write for AI”](https://theamericanscholar.org/baby-shoggoth-is-listening/), including [Tyler Cowen](https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2025/01/should-you-be-writing-for-the-ais.html) and [Gwern](https://gwern.net/llm-writing). It’s... | Scott Alexander | 177878355 | Writing For The AIs | acx |
# Open Thread 406
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 177867003 | Open Thread 406 | acx |
# Links For October 2025
*[I haven’t independently verified each link. On average, commenters will end up spotting evidence that around two or three of the links in each links post are wrong or misleading. I correct these as I see them, and will highlight important corrections later, but I can’t guarantee I will have ... | Scott Alexander | 177002782 | Links For October 2025 | acx |
# Model City Monday 10/27/25
## Would You Like To Buy A Bahama?
The Bahamas is an archipelago-nation of 400,000 people scattered across 3,000 small islands.
The Bahamas’ most populous island is the one with its capital, Nassau. The second-most-populous - and fifth-largest, and most-pretentiously-named - is Grand Bah... | Scott Alexander | 176628472 | Model City Monday 10/27/25 | acx |
# Open Thread 405
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 177239630 | Open Thread 405 | acx |
# Highlights From The Comments On Fatima
*[[original post here](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/the-fatima-sun-miracle-much-more)]*
## The Kasina Connection
In the original post, I cited ambiguous later examples of sun miracles which didn’t seem to affect everyone equally and in some cases were unconnected (or bare... | Scott Alexander | 175874676 | Highlights From The Comments On Fatima | acx |
# Tech PACs Are Closing In On The Almonds
**I.**
In my 2019 post [Too Much Dark Money In Almonds](https://slatestarcodex.com/2019/09/18/too-much-dark-money-in-almonds/), I asked: why is there so little money in politics?
During the 2018 election, Americans - candidates, parties, PACs, and small donors like you - spe... | Scott Alexander | 174012854 | Tech PACs Are Closing In On The Almonds | acx |
# Open Thread 404
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 176619709 | Open Thread 404 | acx |
# Non-Book Review Contest 2025 Winners
Thanks to everyone who entered or voted in the Non-Book Review Contest. The winners are:
* **1st: [Joan of Arc](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/your-review-joan-of-arc)***,* by **William Friedman**. William is a history enthusiast and author who lives in California, where he sp... | Scott Alexander | 176299262 | Non-Book Review Contest 2025 Winners | acx |
# ACX Grants Results 2025
Thanks to everyone who participated in ACX Grants, whether as an applicant, an evaluator, or a funder.
We received 654 applications this year, and were able to fund 42. To the other 612: sorry! Many of you had great ideas that we couldn’t fund for contingent reasons - sometimes because we co... | Scott Alexander | 174920823 | ACX Grants Results 2025 | acx |
# Open Thread 403
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 175992121 | Open Thread 403 | acx |
# Fascism Can't Mean Both A Specific Ideology And A Legitimate Target
The following three things can’t all be true simultaneously:
1. Many Americans are fascists
2. Fascists are an acceptable target for political violence
3. Political violence in America is morally unacceptable (at the current time)
I thought about ... | Scott Alexander | 175760809 | Fascism Can't Mean Both A Specific Ideology And A Legitimate Target | acx |
# Open Thread 402
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 175417244 | Open Thread 402 | acx |
# Vote In The 2025 Non-Book Review Contest
If you’ve read the finalists of this year’s non-book review contest, **[vote for your favorite here](https://forms.gle/EWCyTpGGNvRiXKbb8)**. Voting will close end of day on Monday, October 13. This year is back to ranked choice voting; vote for your first, second, and third f... | Scott Alexander | 175155382 | Vote In The 2025 Non-Book Review Contest | acx |
# The Fatima Sun Miracle: Much More Than You Wanted To Know
# 0: Here Comes The Sun
In 1917, three Portuguese children reported a vision of the Virgin Mary. She promised to return to them on the 13th of each month. On the sixth month - October 13th - she would perform a great miracle.
Rumors spread, and on the 13th ... | Scott Alexander | 173564126 | The Fatima Sun Miracle: Much More Than You Wanted To Know | acx |
# Open Thread 401
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 174825024 | Open Thread 401 | acx |
# Sources Say Bay Area House Party
*[previously in series: [1](https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/every-bay-area-house-party), [2](https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/another-bay-area-house-party), [3](https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/even-more-bay-area-house-party), [4](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/brid... | Scott Alexander | 171246704 | Sources Say Bay Area House Party | acx |
# Open Thread 400
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 174237131 | Open Thread 400 | acx |
# Your Review: Project Xanadu - The Internet That Might Have Been
*[This is one of the finalists in the 2025 review contest, written by an ACX reader who will remain anonymous until after voting is done. I’ll be posting about one of these a week for several months. When you’ve read them all, I’ll ask you to vote for a... | [unknown] | 167093537 | Your Review: Project Xanadu - The Internet That Might Have Been | acx |
# Defining Defending Democracy: Contra The Election Winner Argument
Someone argues that Donald Trump threatens democracy, maybe because he’s asserting authority against the judiciary or the media or the NGOs. Someone else counterargues that it hardly seems undemocratic for someone to favor someone who won an election ... | Scott Alexander | 155489479 | Defining Defending Democracy: Contra The Election Winner Argument | acx |
# Open Thread 399
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 173645461 | Open Thread 399 | acx |
# Your Review: The Synaptic Plasticity and Memory Hypothesis
*[This is one of the finalists in the 2025 review contest, written by an ACX reader who will remain anonymous until after voting is done. I’ll be posting about one of these a week for several months. When you’ve read them all, I’ll ask you to vote for a favo... | [unknown] | 167098934 | Your Review: The Synaptic Plasticity and Memory Hypothesis | acx |
# Book Review: If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies
**I.**
Eliezer Yudkowsky’s [Machine Intelligence Research Institute](https://intelligence.org/) is the original AI safety org. But the original isn’t always the best - how is Mesopotamia doing these days? As money, brainpower, and prestige pour into the field, MIRI re... | Scott Alexander | 171794222 | Book Review: If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies | acx |
# Open Thread 398
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 173076751 | Open Thread 398 | acx |
# Berkeley Meetup This Tuesday
**Why:** We’re having [another round of fall meetups](https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/meetups-everywhere-2025-times-and), and Berkeley is one of them. I’m signal-boosting this one because it’s usually our biggest, and because I plan to be there.
**When:** Tuesday, September 9, 6:30 PM,... | Scott Alexander | 173007661 | Berkeley Meetup This Tuesday | acx |
# Your Review: Participation in Phase I Clinical Pharmaceutical Research
*[This is one of the finalists in the 2025 review contest, written by an ACX reader who will remain anonymous until after voting is done. I’ll be posting about one of these a week for several months. When you’ve read them all, I’ll ask you to vot... | a reader | 167092749 | Your Review: Participation in Phase I Clinical Pharmaceutical Research | acx |
# Links For September 2025
*[I haven’t independently verified each link. On average, commenters will end up spotting evidence that around two or three of the links in each links post are wrong or misleading. I correct these as I see them, and will highlight important corrections later, but I can’t guarantee I will hav... | Scott Alexander | 171654011 | Links For September 2025 | acx |
# What Is Man, That Thou Art Mindful Of Him?
**God:** …and the math results we’re seeing are nothing short of incredible. This Terry Tao guy -
**Iblis:** Let me stop you right there. I agree humans can, in controlled situations, provide correct answers to math problems. I deny that they truly understand math. I had a... | Scott Alexander | 171612547 | What Is Man, That Thou Art Mindful Of Him? | acx |
# Open Thread 397
This is the weekly visible open thread. Post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever. ACX has an unofficial [subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/), [Discord](https://discord.gg/RTKtdut), and [bulletin board](https://www.datasecretslox.com/index.php), and [in-person meet... | Scott Alexander | 172442545 | Open Thread 397 | acx |
# Meetups Everywhere 2025: Times and Places
Many cities have regular Astral Codex Ten meetup groups. Twice a year, I try to advertise their upcoming meetups and make a bigger deal of it than usual so that irregular attendees can attend and new readers can hear about the meetups. This is one of those times.
This year ... | Skyler | 172013953 | Meetups Everywhere 2025: Times and Places | acx |
# Open Letter To The NIH
The Trump administration has been [retaliating against its critics](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8denvzl0y8o), and people and groups with business before the administration have started laundering criticism through other sources with less need for goodwill. So I have been asked to share ... | Scott Alexander | 172222010 | Open Letter To The NIH | acx |
# In Search Of AI Psychosis
AI psychosis ([NYT](https://archive.is/vAYif), [PsychologyToday](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/urban-survival/202507/the-emerging-problem-of-ai-psychosis)) is an apparent phenomenon where people go crazy after talking to chatbots too much. There are some high-profile anecdotes, bu... | Scott Alexander | 171432278 | In Search Of AI Psychosis | acx |
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