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Feb 28, 2019
ssc

Meaningful

6 min • 795 words • 224 comments • podcast (7 min)
Scott Alexander presents a series of nested dialogues exploring the nature of understanding and meaning, from AI to humans to angels to God, questioning what true understanding entails. Longer summary
This post is a philosophical exploration of the nature of understanding and meaning, presented through a series of nested dialogues. It starts with two children discussing an AI's understanding of water, moves to chemists debating the children's understanding, then to angels contemplating human understanding, and finally to God observing it all. Each level reveals a deeper layer of understanding, while simultaneously highlighting the limitations of the previous level. The post uses these dialogues to question what it truly means to understand something, and whether any level of understanding can be considered complete or meaningful. Shorter summary
Aug 11, 2016
ssc

Book Review: PiHKaL

51 min • 7,054 words • 287 comments
Scott Alexander reviews PiHKAL by Alexander and Ann Shulgin, exploring the book's blend of autobiography, chemistry, and psychedelic experiences. Longer summary
Scott Alexander reviews the book PiHKAL by Alexander and Ann Shulgin, which combines autobiography, chemistry, and psychedelic experiences. The review covers the book's structure, the Shulgins' work on psychedelics, their social circle, and the psychology portrayed in the book, while also reflecting on the potential impact and limitations of psychedelic research. Shorter summary