Scott Alexander refines his thoughts on tradition formation, proposing a three-part model that emphasizes the success of practical actions and those tied to tradition. Longer summary

Scott Alexander clarifies his previous post on tradition, proposing a three-part model for understanding the creation of traditions and rituals. He suggests that both purely practical actions and those tied to sacredness or tradition can evolve into valuable aesthetics, rituals, or communities. However, attempts to create these elements without reference to practicality or tradition tend to be less successful. Scott uses examples from architecture, Jewish wedding customs, and Halloween traditions to illustrate his points. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander introduces his new blog, Astral Codex Ten, centered around the concept of ṛta and exploring topics related to rationality, science, and human cognition. Longer summary

Scott Alexander introduces his new blog, Astral Codex Ten, explaining that it focuses on the concept of ṛta, an ancient Sanskrit word related to order, truth, and rationality. He describes the blog's main topics, including reasoning, science, psychiatry, medicine, ethics, genetics, AI, economics, and politics. Scott emphasizes the importance of understanding cognitive biases and how they influence our perceptions and judgments. He mentions his connections to the rationalist and effective altruist communities, as well as his background in psychiatry, and expresses his commitment to fostering an engaged readership. Shorter summary

Less Wrong is hosting a party in Berkeley for Bay Area SSC readers, with Scott Alexander and the Less Wrong team attending. Longer summary

Less Wrong is hosting a party in Berkeley this Saturday and is inviting Bay Area SSC readers as an experiment to see if inviting people to parties via blog is effective. The party will be held at a private house at 2412 MLK Jr Way, starting at 7 PM. Scott Alexander will be attending, along with the Less Wrong website team and other interesting people. A Facebook event page is provided for more details. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander announces a classified thread for advertisements, personals, and success stories, with uncertain frequency. Longer summary

This post announces a recurring classified thread on the blog, inviting readers to post advertisements, personals, and success stories from previous threads. The frequency of the thread is uncertain, described as possibly monthly, bimonthly, or occasional. Shorter summary

Scott introduces a classified thread for advertisements, personals, and success stories, with uncertain frequency. Longer summary

This post introduces a recurring classified thread on the blog, inviting readers to post advertisements, personals, and share success stories from previous threads. The exact frequency of the thread (monthly, bimonthly, or occasional) is uncertain. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander reviews the EA Hotel, a project offering free accommodation to effective altruists in Blackpool, England, discussing its potential benefits and challenges. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reviews the EA Hotel, a project in Blackpool, England, offering free accommodation to effective altruists working on research projects. The hotel, purchased by Greg Colbourn, aims to provide a low-cost living environment for EA researchers, away from expensive cities like San Francisco. The post discusses the potential benefits of this model, including cost-effectiveness, community building, and freedom from financial pressures. It also addresses potential challenges such as vetting residents and maintaining productivity. Scott finds the project endearing and sees it as a possible model for a future with basic income, allowing people to live modestly while pursuing meaningful work in aligned communities. Shorter summary

Scott announces a classified thread for advertisements, personals, and success stories, with uncertain frequency. Longer summary

This post introduces a recurring classified thread for the blog community. It invites readers to post advertisements, personals, and share success stories from previous threads. The frequency of the thread is uncertain, described as possibly monthly, bimonthly, or occasional. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander posts a classified thread and advertises rationalist community housing in Berkeley, describing four available houses and inviting applications. Longer summary

Scott Alexander announces another classified thread for ads, personals, and success stories. He then provides a detailed advertisement for rationalist community housing in Berkeley. The post describes four available houses near an existing cluster of rationalist group homes on Ward Street. Scott explains the community's desire to create a center for their movement in this area. He invites interested parties, both existing community members and newcomers, to apply for entire houses or single rooms. The post concludes with a disclaimer about the Bay Area's high costs, politics, and mixed experiences within the rationalist community. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander discusses the challenges of community growth, relating his experiences with micronations and rationalist groups to theories about natural group size limits. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reflects on his experiences with micronations and the Bay Area rationalist community, noting that both faced difficulties in growing beyond a certain size. He connects these observations to Samo's research on Dunbar's number and its potential extensions. The post explores the idea of natural group size limits at different scales (e.g., 12, 150, 1000, 90,000 people) and how these might relate to social structures like families, clans, tribes, and city-states. While Scott expresses skepticism about the universality of these exact numbers across different contexts, he acknowledges the apparent difficulty many communities face in growing beyond certain thresholds. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander reviews an article on heroin addiction treatment, advocating for suboxone use while criticizing ineffective rehab programs and regulatory obstacles. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reviews a Huffington Post article on heroin addiction treatment, focusing on the effectiveness of suboxone (buprenorphine) compared to conventional rehab programs. He highlights the poor performance and sometimes abusive practices of many rehab centers, contrasting them with the proven success of suboxone treatment. The post then discusses two major obstacles to wider suboxone use: strict government regulations and resistance from the rehab industry. Alexander uses this discussion to reflect on broader themes such as the value of tight communities, the failures of both free market and government approaches in this area, and the superiority of biological solutions over social ones in addressing addiction. Shorter summary

Scott explores why conservative religious movements thrive while liberal ones decline, suggesting that strict rules and commitments strengthen communities, and considers this in the context of atheist religion-substitutes. Longer summary

This post discusses the counterintuitive success of conservative religious movements compared to liberal ones, exploring the idea that demanding commitments and strict rules can actually strengthen religious communities. Scott examines this concept in the context of atheist religion-substitutes, noting their tendency to avoid placing rules on members. He contrasts this with the approach of Giving What We Can, which requires a specific commitment from members. The post concludes by considering the potential of 'nomic' subcultures based on rule-following as a possible direction for secular community-building. Shorter summary

Scott examines the benefits of cuddle culture, particularly for asexual people in polyamorous relationships, and speculates on the factors that allow such a culture to thrive in certain communities. Longer summary

Scott explores the intersection of polyamory, asexuality, and cuddle culture. He begins by discussing Heartiste's criticism of polyamory, agreeing that it can work well for asexual people. He then examines the Cuddlr app, arguing that cuddling is the opposite of objectifying and can foster a sense of universal love. Finally, he reflects on the prevalence of cuddle culture in nerdy, polyamorous communities, speculating on the factors that allow such a culture to thrive. Throughout, Scott emphasizes the personal and social benefits of cuddling, particularly for asexual individuals in polyamorous relationships. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander discusses the Rationalist Solstice Ritual, exploring how 'cringeworthiness' can strengthen communities and the challenges atheists face in community-building. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reflects on the Rationalist Solstice Ritual, discussing its perceived 'cringeworthiness' and how this relates to community building. He argues that stronger religious communities often have more unusual or 'cringeworthy' beliefs, which create a stronger separation from out-groups. The post then explores how atheist communities struggle to build strong bonds due to lack of this separation, and speculates on various strategies atheists use to overcome this. Finally, Scott addresses the perceived lack of atheist art and music, arguing that many great secular songs about progress and humanism fill this role. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander bids farewell to California's Bay Area, praising its culture and the rationalist community while offering heartfelt tributes to friends who influenced him. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reflects on his time in California's Bay Area as he prepares to leave for a four-year residency in the Midwest. He expresses deep appreciation for the Bay Area's unique culture, particularly the rationalist community he was part of. Scott describes the community's ability to discuss complex topics openly, their approach to happiness and virtue, and their unique social dynamics. He then offers personal tributes to numerous friends and acquaintances who have impacted him, highlighting their individual qualities and contributions to his life and the community. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander urgently seeks a new 'Apologist' player for a Dungeons and Discourse game session happening within five hours. Longer summary

Scott Alexander is urgently seeking a new player for the role of 'Apologist' in their Dungeons and Discourse game session. The original player has dropped out, and they need a replacement within the next five hours. Scott is looking for someone who is religious or can convincingly roleplay as such, and who is interested in philosophy and gaming. He emphasizes the urgency of the situation, as the game has already been postponed several times, and provides his email for interested volunteers to contact him. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander organizes online groups for the game 'Fermat's Last Stand', providing player lists and DM contact information, and invites potential replacements to comment. Longer summary

Scott Alexander organizes players for the game 'Fermat's Last Stand' into three online groups led by different DMs (Scott, Charlie, and Karl), based on time zones, friendships, and belief diversity. He provides contact information for the DMs and lists the players in each group, requesting some to send their email addresses. Scott also mentions meatspace groups and a DM Google Group for coordination. He invites interested individuals who missed the initial coordination to comment with their details for potential replacement spots. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander is organizing a new 'Dungeons & Discourse' philosophical role-playing game campaign, seeking players and DMs with specific preferences and philosophical knowledge. Longer summary

Scott Alexander is organizing a new 'Dungeons & Discourse' campaign, a philosophical role-playing game. He's seeking players and DMs, asking for preferences on playing or DMing, location, scheduling, and philosophical beliefs. The game requires significant knowledge of philosophy. Scott plans to provide campaign material to DMs, including songs and a basic plot outline. He aims to form parties by early March and start the campaign soon after. Shorter summary