This article implicitly positively reinforces positive reinforcement and negatively reinforces negative reinforcement. But there are situations in which negative reinforcement should be positively reinforced, e.g. if this article is in fact correct to negatively reinforce negative reinforcement. The article thus implicitly contradicts itself.
Yes, in the should-world we could’ve all learned to avoid putting our hands on hot stovetops simply by getting an M&M for every hour we managed to avoid putting our hands on hot stovetops. In the real world, learning via pain is simply a better mechanism. Sometimes it’s a good idea to cultivate a paralyzing fear of being wrong, including a paralyzing fear of being wrong about cultivating a paralyzing fear of being wrong. Sometimes that’s the only option you have if you want to reliably bind yourself to reality, instead of being insane like every other Panglossian happy-go-lucky fool.
So I really hope someday someone writes out a list of ways to efficiently torture yourself into having at least some hope of ultimately not being seen as obviously stupid in retrospect, to complement this article and perhaps adjust for any optimistic biases that might have crept in.
(Downvoters: So you agree with me that negative reinforcement has its place. Clever of you.)
This article implicitly positively reinforces positive reinforcement and negatively reinforces negative reinforcement. But there are situations in which negative reinforcement should be positively reinforced, e.g. if this article is in fact correct to negatively reinforce negative reinforcement. The article thus implicitly contradicts itself.
Yes, in the should-world we could’ve all learned to avoid putting our hands on hot stovetops simply by getting an M&M for every hour we managed to avoid putting our hands on hot stovetops. In the real world, learning via pain is simply a better mechanism. Sometimes it’s a good idea to cultivate a paralyzing fear of being wrong, including a paralyzing fear of being wrong about cultivating a paralyzing fear of being wrong. Sometimes that’s the only option you have if you want to reliably bind yourself to reality, instead of being insane like every other Panglossian happy-go-lucky fool.
So I really hope someday someone writes out a list of ways to efficiently torture yourself into having at least some hope of ultimately not being seen as obviously stupid in retrospect, to complement this article and perhaps adjust for any optimistic biases that might have crept in.
(Downvoters: So you agree with me that negative reinforcement has its place. Clever of you.)