I notice that...LW has made zero progress in general.
Who is this supposed to surprise? It’s a forum, for god’s sake. We shouldn’t be going into this with an expectation of changing the world. Producing a genuinely good fanfic already puts it ahead of 99% of the forums out there.
Because I know of no better way to become cynical, burnt-out, and hateful than to go into a project expecting to change the world. The world is very big, and it doesn’t give a damn about you. Unless you have extraordinary resources(I’d put the lower bound at “in control of a nontrivial country”), your probability of success is minuscule. Sure, it’s fun to think about what would happen if you get lucky and achieve great fame and success, but it’s like thinking about what you’re going to do with your lottery winnings. Dream if you like, but you’re a fool if you expect or demand it.
We shouldn’t be going into this with an expectation of changing the world.
That isn’t what Grognor was talking about. He was talking about making some sort of progress in the information content in the comments made on the forum itself. That more or less should be expected from any group of humans with significant interest in learning.
Producing a genuinely good fanfic already puts it ahead of 99% of the forums out there.
Lesswrong didn’t produce a fanfic. Eliezer Yudkowsky produced a fanfic at a time where he very seldom participated on lesswrong. (Luminosity is perhaps a step closer.)
Lesswrong didn’t produce a fanfic. Eliezer Yudkowsky produced a fanfic at a time where he very seldom participated on lesswrong. (Luminosity is perhaps a step closer.)
Because people on LW told me to do it, because I comment more often, or for some other reason?
Because people on LW told me to do it, because I comment more often, or for some other reason?
Did they? Mostly because you at that time commented more often and also wrote a “Luminosity” sequence at a similar time. (It’s a small step but it does seem that fame aside the affiliation is slightly closer.)
That isn’t what Grognor was talking about. He was talking about making some sort of progress in the information content in the comments made on the forum itself. That more or less should be expected from any group of humans with significant interest in learning.
Then I misinterpreted. Apologies. Nonetheless, this is a constant feature of open groups—you can educate people, but new members come uneducated, and that keeps the average fairly static. The alternative is to wall it off, of course, so I guess I can see why that’s what’s being advocated, but that seems like a deeply foolish approach.
Lesswrong didn’t produce a fanfic. Eliezer Yudkowsky produced a fanfic at a time where he very seldom participated on lesswrong. (Luminosity is perhaps a step closer.)
Its express purpose is to change the world. Whether a forum is a suitable vehicle for this is a separate question. (The rationality org is much more clear on that as its purpose, and this gave rise to that …)
Who is this supposed to surprise? It’s a forum, for god’s sake. We shouldn’t be going into this with an expectation of changing the world. Producing a genuinely good fanfic already puts it ahead of 99% of the forums out there.
Why shouldn’t we have that as our standard?
Because I know of no better way to become cynical, burnt-out, and hateful than to go into a project expecting to change the world. The world is very big, and it doesn’t give a damn about you. Unless you have extraordinary resources(I’d put the lower bound at “in control of a nontrivial country”), your probability of success is minuscule. Sure, it’s fun to think about what would happen if you get lucky and achieve great fame and success, but it’s like thinking about what you’re going to do with your lottery winnings. Dream if you like, but you’re a fool if you expect or demand it.
That isn’t what Grognor was talking about. He was talking about making some sort of progress in the information content in the comments made on the forum itself. That more or less should be expected from any group of humans with significant interest in learning.
Lesswrong didn’t produce a fanfic. Eliezer Yudkowsky produced a fanfic at a time where he very seldom participated on lesswrong. (Luminosity is perhaps a step closer.)
Because people on LW told me to do it, because I comment more often, or for some other reason?
Did they? Mostly because you at that time commented more often and also wrote a “Luminosity” sequence at a similar time. (It’s a small step but it does seem that fame aside the affiliation is slightly closer.)
Yeah, they did.
Then I misinterpreted. Apologies. Nonetheless, this is a constant feature of open groups—you can educate people, but new members come uneducated, and that keeps the average fairly static. The alternative is to wall it off, of course, so I guess I can see why that’s what’s being advocated, but that seems like a deeply foolish approach.
That part was a joke ;)
Its express purpose is to change the world. Whether a forum is a suitable vehicle for this is a separate question. (The rationality org is much more clear on that as its purpose, and this gave rise to that …)
And everyone who buys a lottery ticket does so for the express purpose of winning millions of dollars.