tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493316160106079605.post4450673338530382269..comments2014-10-25T05:13:22.295-07:00Comments on Rationality Boot Camp: The first four daysJohn Fabenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11639310598311571875noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493316160106079605.post-47750627294089683352011-06-24T13:24:41.011-07:002011-06-24T13:24:41.011-07:00The reason I gave for the staring exercise is that...The reason I gave for the staring exercise is that it's helpful for people to develop comfort in holding strong eye contact so that they have the ability to do so when it will serve them well - for example when listening, or when talking with high-status people.Lukehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12968634190280933116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493316160106079605.post-79396122289967530122011-06-21T18:09:36.752-07:002011-06-21T18:09:36.752-07:00I see you answered my reason/justification questio...I see you answered my reason/justification question <a href="http://rationalitybootcamp.blogspot.com/2011/06/you-are-not-as-agenty-as-you-think.html" rel="nofollow">here</a>.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493316160106079605.post-22513993594942141572011-06-16T23:42:24.926-07:002011-06-16T23:42:24.926-07:00Thanks for doing this blog!
What's the differ...Thanks for doing this blog!<br /><br />What's the difference between a reason and a justification? Is it that a justification is post hoc? (E.g., saying "I believe it's Arial because the font droplist says so", when I had not looked at the font droplist until after asked why I believed it was Arial.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493316160106079605.post-15483588493101503482011-06-14T15:40:22.596-07:002011-06-14T15:40:22.596-07:00Taking things seriously doesn't require believ...Taking things seriously doesn't require believing that they are true/useful. One can master all the details of obscure rituals while knowing that they likely don't do anything. <br /><br />There is probably a teachable lesson in that: feeling enthusiastic/productive about developing a skill that you expect won't be helpful, but have decided to attain for more abstract reasons (such as, there is a small chance it will be helpful in an unknown way, and this particular course of action is the best available, even if we already know that it's likely no good).<br /><br />(This is the mode in which I study math, which I don't particularly enjoy and usually have no specific idea about how it could help in development of decision theory/metaethics. Sometimes it helps, and I don't have a better actionable plan.)Vladimir Nesovhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15368298711560413255noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493316160106079605.post-52417174577694149912011-06-14T06:52:29.350-07:002011-06-14T06:52:29.350-07:00I agree with Anna, and especially her third paragr...I agree with Anna, and especially her third paragraph seems important with respect to your approach. It sounds like you're gunning for the nocebo effect pretty hard.<br /><br />If you go for a walk every day, you will improve your expected lifespan and your daily brain function. But if you start day-one's walk analyzing how unhelpful it seems (and it may seem unhelpful in the short-term - it does for many people who try it), you are less likely to get anything out of it, and less likely to continue a beneficial regimen.<br /><br />I'm not suggesting the boot camp exercises are as helpful as taking a walk daily - the exercises are pretty new, whereas walking has a mass of evidence behind it. But just that your approach is counterproductive.Jeff M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/02620966772744162134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493316160106079605.post-44190142955112238432011-06-12T18:04:23.164-07:002011-06-12T18:04:23.164-07:00Good summaries; thanks for doing this. Summarizat...Good summaries; thanks for doing this. Summarization boosts retention and follow-through. <br /><br />The "rationalization game" was actually called the "Changing course mid-stream game"; the aim was partly to memorize what rationalization feels like, and partly to practice changing your mind after advocating for a given position (and to note what trying to figure out the right answer, and curiosity, feel like).<br /><br />Depending on your aims in writing these posts, I wonder if you might consider spending a larger portion of your writing looking for ways to master the skills, and then separately, and in a different section/post, discuss whether the skills or sessions are worthwhile. Uncritical acceptance would be bad, of course: but having one "mode" where you try things out, and a separate mode where you afterwards evaluate, can be helpful. I find that if I {read a book / attend a seminar / etc.} while wondering if the course is silly or if I'll look silly for being in it, it's much harder for me to actually update my thinking skills -- since actually changing the way I think requires a measure of focus, of trusting the exercises long enough to really try them, and of being willing to plunge fully into things that feel a bit silly (for a time; like "willing suspension of disbelief" in a movie).<br /><br />Also, rationality is in some ways easier to learn than to teach: if you yourself are actively searching for ways to improve your thinking skill, you may well be able to use our exercises, or other aspects of RBC or of your life, to help you do that -- even though it's hard to find a set of exercises that will automatically in and of themselves cause you and the others to improve your thinking skill. If RBC works, it will work via you, and other participants, actively shaping it to boost your learning.<br /><br />Critiques are appreciated, of course; we're doing RBC mostly to learn how to run such programs, and any info as to what is and isn't working for you or others is most welcome. It's just that you may want to buy your learning separately from your input into what's useful.Anna Salamonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01836335578063927586noreply@blogger.com