Scott examines hyperbolic growth models in population and economics, their apparent cancellation around 1960, and speculates on AI's potential to restart such growth. Longer summary

This post explores the concept of hyperbolic growth and its implications for technological and economic progress. Scott begins by discussing Heinz von Foerster's model of population growth, which predicted infinite population by 2026. He then applies this concept to economic growth, showing how it seemed to be on a hyperbolic trajectory until around 1960. The post examines why this growth pattern stopped, linking it to population growth trends. Scott also discusses the Industrial Revolution's role in this model and how it didn't significantly alter the overall growth trajectory. Finally, he speculates on the potential for AI to restart hyperbolic growth by providing a new way to convert economic resources into research capacity. Shorter summary

Scott explores a dystopian future scenario of hyper-optimized economic productivity, speculating on the emergence of new patterns and forms of life from this 'economic soup'. Longer summary

This post explores a dystopian future scenario based on Nick Bostrom's 'Superintelligence', where a brutal Malthusian competition leads to a world of economic productivity without consciousness or moral significance. Scott describes this future as a 'Disneyland with no children', where everything is optimized for economic productivity, potentially eliminating consciousness itself. He then speculates on the possibility of emergent patterns arising from this hyper-optimized 'economic soup', comparing it to biological systems and Conway's Game of Life. The post ends with musings on the potential for new forms of life to emerge from these patterns, and the possibility of multiple levels of such emergence. Shorter summary