Scott Alexander responds to comments on his capitalism vs charity post, clarifying his argument and addressing various counterpoints and suggested capitalist charities. Longer summary

Scott Alexander responds to comments on his previous post about capitalism and charity. He clarifies that he's discussing a specific near-mode situation of how to best use a limited amount of money for improving human welfare, not running a 'Moral Worth Tournament' between capitalism and charity. He addresses arguments for investing in capitalism over charity, discussing issues like compounding returns, marginal utility, and the eventual need for consumption. Scott also explores specific capitalist charities suggested by commenters, including charter cities and microfinance, noting the lack of strong empirical evidence for many of these interventions. He concludes by stating what kind of evidence would change his mind on this topic. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander defends effective altruism by highlighting its major accomplishments and arguing that its occasional missteps are outweighed by its positive impact on the world. Longer summary

Scott Alexander defends effective altruism (EA) against recent criticisms, highlighting its accomplishments in global health, animal welfare, AI safety, and other areas. He argues that EA has saved around 200,000 lives, equivalent to ending gun violence, curing AIDS, and preventing a 9/11-scale attack in the US. Scott contends that EA's achievements are often overlooked because they focus on less publicized causes, and that the movement's occasional missteps are minor compared to its positive impact. He emphasizes that EA is a coalition of people who care about logically analyzing important causes, whether broadly popular or not, and encourages readers to investigate and support the most beneficial causes. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander recounts his experience donating a kidney, from initial motivation to post-surgery recovery, while discussing the broader context of organ donation. Longer summary

Scott Alexander describes his journey to donate a kidney, including his motivations, the medical process, and the challenges he faced. He discusses the effectiveness of kidney donation compared to other forms of altruism, the stigma around mental health in the donation process, and the need for systemic changes to address the kidney shortage. Scott also reflects on the experience of the surgery and recovery, and encourages others to consider donation. Shorter summary

A review of 'The Anti-Politics Machine' by James Ferguson, discussing its critique of development projects and implications for Effective Altruism. Longer summary

This post reviews 'The Anti-Politics Machine' by James Ferguson, which critiques development projects in Lesotho. The reviewer highlights two key ideas: the concept of 'development discourse' that leads to misinterpretation of local contexts, and the 'anti-politics machine' critique of technocratic decision-making. The review discusses how these ideas apply to modern development economics and Effective Altruism, suggesting the need for more qualitative research, emphasis on local context, and consideration of political implications in charitable work. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander shares his experiences and challenges in running a microgrants program, offering insights and advice for others considering similar initiatives. Longer summary

Scott Alexander recounts his experience running a microgrants program, detailing the challenges and complexities involved. He discusses the difficulty of evaluating grant proposals, relying on expert advisors, dealing with applicants' poor grant-writing skills, and navigating the moral dilemmas of effective altruism. Scott concludes by questioning whether running such a program is worthwhile for most people, suggesting alternatives like donating to established charities, and proposing a new impact certificate-based system for future grant-making. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander announces the results of the ACX Grants program, awarding funding to various projects and individuals across different fields. Longer summary

Scott Alexander announces the results of the ACX Grants program, which awarded funding to various projects and individuals across different fields. He provides details on the awardees, their projects, and the grant amounts. Scott also discusses the challenges of the grant-making process, acknowledges the help he received, and outlines future steps for the program. Shorter summary

A review of 'The Wizard and the Prophet' by Charles Mann, exploring contrasting approaches to human-nature relationships through the lives of William Vogt and Norman Borlaug. Longer summary

This review of Charles Mann's 'The Wizard and the Prophet' explores the contrasting approaches to human-nature relationships through the lives of William Vogt (the 'Prophet') and Norman Borlaug (the 'Wizard'). The reviewer initially favors Borlaug's Wizardly approach of using science and technology to solve problems, but later acknowledges the complexity of modern systems may require a more holistic approach. The review covers the book's structure, discussing the biographies of Vogt and Borlaug, and then exploring four key areas: food, water, energy, and climate change. The reviewer concludes by reflecting on the challenges of COVID-19 and the need to continue striving for improvement despite increasing complexity. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander offers a guide for lazy people to donate to effective charities, ranging from easy options like EA Funds to more specific recommendations in various cause areas. Longer summary

Scott Alexander provides a guide for people who want to donate to effective charities but are very lazy. He suggests donating to EA Funds as the easiest option, which allows experts to allocate funds to the best charities. For those with slightly more energy, he recommends checking charity-evaluating organizations like GiveWell, Animal Charity Evaluators, and others. He also mentions specific charities in areas like AI safety, climate change, and election science. For the truly skeptical, he suggests GiveDirectly, which gives money directly to poor people in Africa. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander shares a diverse collection of links and brief commentaries on topics ranging from ancient calendars to fusion research, social trends, and economic analyses. Longer summary

This post is a collection of links and brief summaries on various topics, including calendar systems, scientific studies, social trends, economics, politics, and technology. Scott Alexander covers a wide range of subjects, from an ancient Persian calendar to fusion power research, social psychology effects, philosophical hiring biases, and economic analyses. The post includes commentary on recent news, scientific findings, and cultural phenomena, often with a touch of humor or skepticism. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander shares a diverse collection of interesting links on topics ranging from geography and drug policy to technology and economics, with brief summaries and comments. Longer summary

This post is a collection of links to various interesting articles, studies, and news stories. It covers a wide range of topics including geography, drug policy, technology, history, economics, science, and politics. Scott Alexander provides brief summaries or comments on each link, often with a touch of humor or irony. The post doesn't have a central theme but rather serves as a curated list of diverse and intriguing information from various fields. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander attends the Effective Altruism Global 2017 conference, describing both the practical charity work and bizarre philosophical speculations of the movement, ultimately admiring their genuine commitment to doing good. Longer summary

Scott Alexander describes his experience at the Effective Altruism Global 2017 conference in San Francisco. He details the impressive scale of charitable work being done by various EA organizations, but also highlights the more unusual and philosophical aspects of the movement. These range from concerns about wild animal suffering to speculations about consciousness and fundamental physics. Scott reflects on how the EA movement combines practical, data-driven charity work with deeply weird philosophical explorations. He concludes by expressing admiration for the genuine goodness and dedication of the EA community, seeing them as a bright spot in a troubled world. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander examines bail reform as a potential solution to high incarceration rates in the US, discussing its impacts, alternatives, and the effectiveness of bail-paying charities. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses the issue of high incarceration rates in the US and focuses on bail reform as a potential solution. He explains how the current bail system disproportionately affects poor defendants, leading to longer sentences and more convictions. The post examines alternatives like Washington DC's system without monetary bail and the effectiveness of charities that pay bail for defendants. Alexander compares the cost-effectiveness of bail reform charities to other efficient charities and suggests both short-term (supporting bail-paying charities) and long-term (systemic criminal justice reform) solutions. He concludes that while bail reform may not be the most important change needed in the US criminal justice system, it could be one of the easiest to implement. Shorter summary

A fictional G.K. Chesterton essay defends AI risk concerns against criticisms, arguing that seemingly fantastical ideas often become reality and that contemplating the infinite leads to practical progress. Longer summary

Scott Alexander presents a fictional essay in the style of G.K. Chesterton, responding to criticisms of AI risk concerns. The essay argues that dismissing AI risk as fantastical is shortsighted, drawing parallels to historical skepticism of now-realized technological advancements. It refutes arguments that AI risk believers neglect real-world problems, citing examples of their charitable work. The piece emphasizes the importance of contemplating the infinite for driving progress and solving practical problems, suggesting that AI, like other seemingly fantastical ideas, may well become reality. Shorter summary

Scott shares and comments on various interesting links spanning history, science, economics, and current events, with topics ranging from ancient Greek snake warfare to modern AI development. Longer summary

A collection of diverse links covering various topics, from historical anecdotes about ancient Greek warfare with snakes to modern developments in CRISPR technology and urban policy. Scott presents interesting findings about bullying interventions, Vitamin D supplementation, and mental health in different societies. The post includes commentary on various current events, including Venezuela's economic situation, drug policy debates, and AI development at OpenAI. The post maintains Scott's characteristic mix of scholarly interest and humor throughout. Shorter summary

Scott shares and comments on various links covering topics like startups, science, academia, social issues and charitable giving, with a focus on rationalist and effective altruist causes. Longer summary

This is a links post collecting various interesting articles and news from around the internet. Topics include a startup betting on marriage success, privacy/encryption history, climate change policy, scientific studies on aging and obesity, academic criticism, college renaming controversies, drug use surveys, and charitable giving. The post has Scott's typical style of briefly summarizing each link while adding his own commentary and connections between topics. The post ends with several charitable giving opportunities related to rationalist and effective altruist organizations. Shorter summary

A collection of interesting links spanning topics from CRISPR technology to economic studies, with Scott's commentary on each item. Longer summary

This is a links post collecting various interesting articles and studies across multiple domains. Scott shares updates on CRISPR technology, corporate governance issues, demographic claims about Bernie Sanders supporters, studies about gender bias, and various economic research. The post includes both lighter observations (like different views of the White House) and serious academic papers about genetics, intelligence, and economic development. The format is typical of SSC links posts, with brief commentary on each link and occasional humorous asides. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander critiques Dylan Matthews' argument against prioritizing existential risk reduction, arguing that Matthews misuses probabilities and that his logic could also undermine other effective altruist causes. Longer summary

Scott Alexander critiques Dylan Matthews' argument against prioritizing existential risk reduction in effective altruism. Matthews claims that the probabilities used in x-risk arguments are made up and could be as low as 10^-66. Scott argues that such extremely low probabilities are unrealistic and that Matthews is misusing numbers. He explains that even with rough estimates, the case for prioritizing x-risk remains strong. Scott also points out that similar arguments could be used against other causes Matthews supports, like animal welfare. He concludes by advocating for a big tent approach in effective altruism that respects different cause prioritizations, including x-risk, while acknowledging that x-risk might not be the best public face for the movement. Shorter summary

A collection of interesting links covering various topics from scientific studies and economic policies to cultural oddities, with particular focus on deworming program controversies and workplace discrimination research. Longer summary

This is a link roundup post where Scott shares various interesting articles and studies. The topics covered range from scientific discoveries to economic policies, from social experiments to cultural oddities. He discusses several major studies and their implications, including birth order effects, workplace discrimination in France, and the controversy around deworming programs. The post also includes various curiosities like botanical bioregions, moon naming conventions, and Chinese stock market intervention, all presented with Scott's characteristic mix of insight and humor. Shorter summary

A collection of interesting links from November 2014 covering science, technology, politics, and culture, with Scott's commentary and analysis on each. Longer summary

This is a links post collecting various interesting stories and articles from around the web. The post covers a wide range of topics, from scientific discoveries like saltwater crops and hover technology, to social issues like online harassment statistics and Ethiopia's economic growth. Scott provides brief commentary and often humorous observations about each link, while maintaining his characteristic analytical approach to evaluating claims and studies. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander argues that military interventions can potentially be a cost-effective way to help foreigners, contrary to a Slate article's claim. Longer summary

Scott Alexander critiques a Slate article arguing that military interventions are an expensive way to help foreigners. He argues that comparing interventions to GiveWell's top charities is flawed reasoning, and presents a cost-effectiveness analysis of the 2011 Libya intervention. Using quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) as a metric, he calculates that the Libya intervention cost about $65 per QALY, which is slightly more cost-effective than donations to the Against Malaria Foundation at $75 per QALY. Scott emphasizes that both figures are extremely low compared to typical healthcare interventions. He concludes that military interventions can potentially be very cost-effective for humanitarian goals, though they come with risks and unpredictable consequences. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander discusses Robin Hanson's idea of investing charitable donations for later use, exploring psychological resistance and attempting to debunk it with various arguments. Longer summary

Scott Alexander attends a talk on efficient charity and discusses Robin Hanson's controversial ideas about investing charitable donations instead of giving immediately. He explores the psychological resistance to this idea and attempts to debunk it with various arguments, including the declining efficacy of charity over time and the possibility of a technological singularity. Despite initially expecting to conclude that investing donations is a bad idea, his rough calculations suggest it might be beneficial unless there's a high chance of catastrophic events preventing future donation. Shorter summary