Scott Alexander examines the strange dynamics of the academic job market, questioning why colleges prefer new PhDs for tenure-track positions and proposing potential explanations for this system. Longer summary

Scott Alexander explores the peculiarities of the academic job market, building on Bret Devereaux's analysis. He notes the split between well-paid tenure-track positions and poorly-paid adjunct positions, and questions why colleges prefer hiring new PhDs over experienced adjuncts for tenure-track roles. Scott proposes that colleges want both teaching and prestigious research, leading to a two-tier system. He speculates on reasons for preferring inexperienced hires and hiring from outside institutions. The post concludes by questioning why colleges don't hire everyone at a low level and then promote the most successful, and why there isn't more competition between colleges for established star professors. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander defends his analysis of the 2020 US homicide spike against various counterarguments, maintaining that it was primarily caused by changes in policing following protests. Longer summary

Scott Alexander responds to comments on his previous post about the 2020 homicide spike in the US. He addresses several counterarguments and alternative explanations, including the role of increased gun sales, racial differences in homicide rates, the exact timing of the spike, changes in policing behavior, media coverage, academic literature on the topic, and potential effects of warm weather. Scott largely maintains his original position that the spike was primarily caused by changes in policing following protests, rather than other factors like the pandemic or increased gun ownership. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander examines the poor quality of research on homework effectiveness, finding only one well-designed study showing positive effects for high school algebra. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses the lack of reliable research on the effectiveness of homework. He critiques existing studies for their flawed methodologies, particularly their reliance on self-reported time spent on homework as a proxy for homework amount. The post highlights issues with confounding factors and poor study designs. Alexander finds only one well-designed, randomized study on homework effectiveness, which shows a positive effect for 9th-grade algebra homework. However, he notes that this single study doesn't provide enough evidence to draw broad conclusions about homework effectiveness across different subjects and grade levels. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander explores the universal human drive for discovery and knowledge-seeking, comparing it to 'intellectual minor leagues' and questioning how non-experts can contribute meaningful insights. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reflects on Adrian Hon's article about QAnon and alternate reality games, exploring the human drive for discovery and knowledge-seeking. He argues that this drive isn't limited to conspiracy theorists but is present in all of us, including academics and bloggers. Scott discusses how people satisfy their intellectual curiosity in a world where most significant discoveries have already been made, comparing it to 'intellectual minor leagues'. He considers various explanations for how non-experts can still contribute meaningful insights, such as the vastness of knowledge, unique combinations of experiences, or repackaging existing ideas. The essay concludes by questioning the author's own role in knowledge production and suggesting that the discovery drive is a fundamental human trait. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander critiques a misreported study on trigger warnings, highlighting its flaws and limited relevance to the broader debate on their use in colleges. Longer summary

Scott Alexander critiques a study on trigger warnings that has been misreported in media. He points out several flaws in the study, including weak statistical significance, inappropriate sample demographics, and questionable measurement of harm. Scott emphasizes that the study doesn't actually measure long-term effects or real-world impacts of trigger warnings on college students. He argues that the study's findings are being overinterpreted and misused in public discourse. The post ends with Scott reiterating his own proposal for implementing trigger warnings in a low-key, matter-of-fact manner. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander responds to criticism of his growth mindset study analysis, acknowledging some errors while maintaining other criticisms. Longer summary

Scott Alexander responds to a critique of his previous post about a growth mindset study by Dr. Paunesku, the lead author. He acknowledges several errors in his original analysis, including misinterpreting a graph and incorrectly stating that a control group was classified as a mindset intervention. However, Scott maintains some of his criticisms, particularly regarding the combination of different interventions in the analysis and the interpretation of statistical significance. He expresses concern about loosening significance criteria and the potential for misleading conclusions when combining different interventions. Shorter summary

Scott reflects on his hasty utopian science post, viewing it as a success for prompting Robin Hanson to expand on academic prediction markets. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reflects on his previous post about utopian science, acknowledging it was somewhat rushed and not fully developed. However, he considers it successful because it prompted Robin Hanson to elaborate on his concepts regarding academic prediction markets. The post is very brief, mainly serving to link to and comment on these two articles. Shorter summary

Scott celebrates the blog's first birthday, announces travel plans, and makes various requests and announcements related to the blog and community. Longer summary

This is a housekeeping post marking the blog's first anniversary. Scott announces his upcoming visit to the Bay Area, seeking information about rationalist community events during his stay. He thanks volunteers for helping with Ozy's thesis on romance novels. Scott also requests access to journal articles and announces the completion of the Less Wrong Survey, inviting readers to participate in a new survey about nootropics. Shorter summary