Empiricism

TagLast edit: Aug 2, 2020, 8:13 AM by Yoav Ravid

“The sixth virtue is empiricism. The roots of knowledge are in observation and its fruit is prediction. What tree grows without roots? What tree nourishes us without fruit? If a tree falls in a forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound? One says, “Yes it does, for it makes vibrations in the air.” Another says, “No it does not, for there is no auditory processing in any brain.” Though they argue, one saying “Yes”, and one saying “No”, the two do not anticipate any different experience of the forest. Do not ask which beliefs to profess, but which experiences to anticipate. Always know which difference of experience you argue about. Do not let the argument wander and become about something else, such as someone’s virtue as a rationalist. Jerry Cleaver said: “What does you in is not failure to apply some high-level, intricate, complicated technique. It’s overlooking the basics. Not keeping your eye on the ball.” Do not be blinded by words. When words are subtracted, anticipation remains.” - (Twelve Virtues of Rationality)

Making Beliefs Pay Rent (in Anticipated Experiences)

Eliezer YudkowskyJul 28, 2007, 10:59 PM

531 points

482 votes

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269 comments4 min readLW link

Break your habits: be more empirical

AcademianOct 2, 2010, 9:04 PM

152 points

138 votes

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33 comments2 min readLW link

[Question] What experiments would demonstrate “upper limits of augmented working memory?”

RaemonAug 15, 2019, 10:09 PM

33 points

11 votes

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6 comments2 min readLW link

Bogus Pipeline, Bona Fide Pipeline

Scott AlexanderMar 24, 2009, 12:10 AM

30 points

31 votes

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16 comments3 min readLW link

Doubt, Science, and Magical Creatures—a Child’s Perspective

BenquoDec 28, 2013, 3:26 PM

60 points

38 votes

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54 comments2 min readLW link

Measuring the Impact of Early-2025 AI on Experienced Open-Source Developer Productivity

habrykaJul 11, 2025, 12:23 AM

97 points

45 votes

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43 comments6 min readLW link

(metr.org)

The Good Try Rule

DirectedEvolutionDec 27, 2020, 2:38 AM

56 points

30 votes

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4 comments4 min readLW link

Vegan Nutrition Testing Project: Interim Report

ElizabethJan 20, 2023, 5:50 AM

104 points

37 votes

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37 comments8 min readLW link

(acesounderglass.com)

Notes on Attention

David GrossJan 3, 2021, 9:52 PM

32 points

16 votes

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2 comments18 min readLW link

[Question] How can we measure creativity?

ElizabethJun 29, 2019, 10:30 PM

32 points

7 votes

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3 comments1 min readLW link

What Makes A Good Measurement Device?

johnswentworthAug 24, 2022, 10:45 PM

37 points

18 votes

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7 comments2 min readLW link

How about testing our ideas?

[deleted]Sep 14, 2012, 10:28 AM

42 points

42 votes

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113 comments3 min readLW link

Agent foundations: not really math, not really science

Alex_AltairAug 17, 2025, 5:48 AM

114 points

53 votes

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25 comments5 min readLW link

[Retracted] Newton’s law of cooling from first principles

NisanJan 16, 2024, 4:21 AM

9 points

8 votes

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[Question] What is required to run a psychology study?

RaemonMay 29, 2019, 6:38 AM

30 points

10 votes

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A Cheaper Way to Test Ventilation Rates?

casualphysicsenjoyerSep 17, 2025, 9:10 PM

18 points

7 votes

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(chillphysicsenjoyer.substack.com)

Detachment vs attachment [AI risk and mental health]

Neil Jan 15, 2024, 12:41 AM

15 points

6 votes

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[Question] How would we check if “Mathematicians are generally more Law Abiding?”

RaemonJan 12, 2020, 8:23 PM

26 points

5 votes

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4 comments1 min readLW link

3 Levels of Rationality Verification

Eliezer YudkowskyMar 15, 2009, 5:19 PM

88 points

75 votes

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247 comments3 min readLW link

The Short Case for Verificationism

ikeSep 11, 2020, 6:48 PM

6 points

4 votes

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57 comments1 min readLW link

The Explanatory Gap of AI

David ValdmanApr 7, 2022, 6:28 PM

1 point

4 votes

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0 comments4 min readLW link

Test Your Rationality

RobinHansonMar 1, 2009, 1:21 PM

44 points

46 votes

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87 comments1 min readLW link

Murphy’s Quest Ch 2: Empiricism

alkjashMar 4, 2018, 4:50 AM

29 points

22 votes

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4 comments5 min readLW link

(radimentary.wordpress.com)

[Question] Has anyone here investigated the occult community? It is curious to me that many magicians consider themselves empiricists.

SpectrumDTDec 13, 2023, 11:09 AM

5 points

8 votes

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10 comments1 min readLW link

This Territory Does Not Exist

ikeAug 13, 2020, 12:30 AM

7 points

8 votes

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197 comments7 min readLW link

Authoritarian Empiricism

BenquoMay 3, 2019, 7:34 PM

38 points

13 votes

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(benjaminrosshoffman.com)

Blind Empiricism

Eliezer YudkowskyNov 12, 2017, 10:07 PM

62 points

49 votes

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Reflecting on the transhumanist rebuttal to AI existential risk and critique of our debate methodologies and misuse of statistics

catgirlsruletheworldAug 20, 2024, 1:59 AM

−5 points

4 votes

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0 comments4 min readLW link

Second-Level Empiricism: Reframing the Two-Child Puzzle

Richard HenageApr 27, 2023, 3:04 PM

16 points

9 votes

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5 comments3 min readLW link

Science: Do It Yourself

alyssavanceFeb 13, 2011, 4:47 AM

91 points

77 votes

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206 comments6 min readLW link

Inference & Empiricism

SatvikBeriMar 20, 2018, 3:47 PM

38 points

26 votes

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9 comments2 min readLW link

Scientific Evidence, Legal Evidence, Rational Evidence

Eliezer YudkowskyAug 19, 2007, 5:36 AM

147 points

129 votes

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18 comments3 min readLW link

Why empiricists should believe in AI risk

Knight LeeDec 11, 2024, 3:51 AM

5 points

3 votes

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0 comments1 min readLW link

Conjunction Controversy (Or, How They Nail It Down)

Eliezer YudkowskySep 20, 2007, 2:41 AM

62 points

39 votes

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25 comments8 min readLW link

what an efficient market feels from inside

DMMFFeb 25, 2025, 2:38 AM

41 points

33 votes

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9 comments6 min readLW link

(danfrank.ca)

 Theories of Knowledge

Zero ContradictionsAug 11, 2024, 8:55 AM

−1 points

6 votes

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5 comments1 min readLW link

(thewaywardaxolotl.blogspot.com)

The Science of Cutting Peppers

ApprenticeSep 12, 2010, 1:14 PM

54 points

45 votes

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68 comments4 min readLW link

Problem of Induction: What if Instants Were Independent

EpiritoApr 3, 2022, 12:54 AM

1 point

5 votes

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7 comments3 min readLW link

CoZE 3: Empiricism

alkjashMar 17, 2018, 4:10 AM

20 points

16 votes

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4 comments2 min readLW link

(radimentary.wordpress.com)

Science like a chef

Adam ZernerFeb 8, 2018, 9:23 PM

32 points

25 votes

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