Summary: We can get better estimates of epistemic virtue by considering changes in people’s beliefs, rather than only comparing their predictions to reality. But if we use this information, people who want to appear virtuous are motivated to lie about their beliefs, resulting in “sluggish” updating in a predictable direction (or a failure to update … More Epistemic incentives and sluggish updating

(Warning: frivolous.) It’s not obvious what properties of games determine whether they are easy or hard. Poker has imperfect information while Sokoban can have very long solutions; which is harder? Could the lack of communication between teammates in Bridge make the game more difficult? This post explores the computational complexity of natural classes of games, … More On the complexity of games

The Elephant in the Brain is the most cheerfully cynical book I have read. It argues for a simple core claim: Our brains are built to act in our self-interest while at the same time trying hard not to appear selfish in front of other people. And in order to throw them off the trail, our brains … More The Elephant in the Brain