Baltimore, 1972: the Salvation Army has gone broke, every wealthy donor is funding a new foundation, and an aging drunk who lives on handouts goes to find out why.

Scott announces the results of the 2025 ACX Grants round, awarding $1.5 million to 42 projects out of 654 applications, covering areas from genetic engineering and disease prevention to AI safety and educational reform.

Scott reviews updates from two cohorts of ACX Grants recipients (from 2021 and 2024), analyzing their progress and sharing lessons learned about what makes grants successful.

In 'Dominion', conservative Christian Matthew Scully makes a comprehensive case for animal welfare, critiquing practices like factory farming and hunting from religious, ethical, and scientific perspectives.

Scott Alexander critiques Lyman Stone's arguments against Effective Altruism, defending the movement's impact, methodology, and philosophical foundations.

The post explores the Far Out Initiative's goal to eliminate suffering through biotechnology, inspired by a pain-free woman and David Pearce's philosophy.

Scott Alexander examines the problematic nature of emotional support animal letters, highlighting the ethical dilemmas for psychiatrists and the system's shortcomings.

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.

Scott Alexander reviews the second issue of Asterisk magazine, which focuses on food-related topics in rationalist and effective altruist contexts.

Scott Alexander discusses reactions to his 'Justice Creep' article, exploring different perspectives on framing social issues as matters of justice.

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

Scott Alexander examines the ethical considerations of insect farming for food, questioning whether insects have moral value and how this impacts our ethical decisions.

Scott Alexander argues that eating beef is more ethical than chicken due to reduced animal suffering, despite higher environmental impact, and explores the complexities of this ethical calculus.

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.

A vegetarian and meat-eater collaborate to analyze the impacts of eating meat, concluding that reduced consumption is beneficial but not as clear-cut as some might think.

Scott Alexander explains discrepancies in animal moral value surveys, highlighting how methodology affects results, and emphasizes the importance of clear research procedures.

Scott Alexander shares his voting choices for California elections and ballot measures, offering brief explanations and occasional humor for each decision.

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.

Scott Alexander proposes two strategies for meat-eaters to reduce animal suffering: eating beef instead of chicken and donating to animal charities as 'ethics offsets'.

Scott Alexander explores 'bicameral reasoning', comparing how we often weigh issues equally (like the US Senate) instead of proportionally to their importance (like the House), leading to potentially skewed decision-making.

Scott discusses the challenge of incorporating animal welfare into effective altruism, proposing a balanced approach to expand moral circles while preserving sanity.