The COVID-19 Forecasting Project at the University of Oxford is making advanced pandemic simulations of 150+ countries available to the public, and also offer pro-bono forecasting services to decision-makers.
Support Slate Star Codex on Patreon. I have a day job and SSC gets free hosting, so don't feel pressured to contribute. But extra cash helps pay for contest prizes, meetup expenses, and me spending extra time blogging instead of working.
The Effective Altruism newsletter provides monthly updates on the highest-impact ways to do good and help others.
Jane Street is a quantitative trading firm with a focus on technology and collaborative problem solving. We're always hiring talented programmers, traders, and researchers and have internships and fulltime positions in New York, London, and Hong Kong. No background in finance required.
Metaculus is a platform for generating crowd-sourced predictions about the future, especially science and technology. If you're interested in testing yourself and contributing to their project, check out their questions page
Dr. Laura Baur is a psychiatrist with interests in literature review, reproductive psychiatry, and relational psychotherapy; see her website for more. Note that due to conflict of interest she doesn't treat people in the NYC rationalist social scene.
Seattle Anxiety Specialists are a therapy practice helping people overcome anxiety and related mental health issues (eg GAD, OCD, PTSD) through evidence based interventions and self-exploration. Check out their free anti-anxiety guide here
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MealSquares is a "nutritionally complete" food that contains a balanced diet worth of nutrients in a few tasty easily measurable units. Think Soylent, except zero preparation, made with natural ingredients, and looks/tastes a lot like an ordinary scone.
AISafety.com hosts a Skype reading group Wednesdays at 19:45 UTC, reading new and old articles on different aspects of AI Safety. We start with a presentation of a summary of the article, and then discuss in a friendly atmosphere.
B4X is a free and open source developer tool that allows users to write apps for Android, iOS, and more.
Norwegian founders with an international team on a mission to offer the equivalent of a Norwegian social safety net globally available as a membership. Currently offering travel medical insurance for nomads, and global health insurance for remote teams.
Altruisto is a browser extension so that when you shop online, a portion of the money you pay goes to effective charities (no extra cost to you). Just install an extension and when you buy something, people in poverty will get medicines, bed nets, or financial aid.
Substack is a blogging site that helps writers earn money and readers discover articles they'll like.
Giving What We Can is a charitable movement promoting giving some of your money to the developing world or other worthy causes. If you're interested in this, consider taking their Pledge as a formal and public declaration of intent.
Beeminder's an evidence-based willpower augmention tool that collects quantifiable data about your life, then helps you organize it into commitment mechanisms so you can keep resolutions. They've also got a blog about what they're doing here
80,000 Hours researches different problems and professions to help you figure out how to do as much good as possible. Their free career guide show you how to choose a career that's fulfilling and maximises your contribution to solving the world's most pressing problems.
Yearly Archives: 2013
Arguments From My Opponent Believes Something
1. Argument From My Opponent Believes Something, Which Is Kinda Like Believing It On Faith, Which Is Kinda Like Them Being A Religion: “The high priests of the economic orthodoxy take it on faith that anyone who doubts the market … Continue reading
Biodjinnetics
“In exchange for freeing me from this lamp, you may ask me one question,” said the genie. “Not three?” I protested. “Just one,” said the genie. “What is the cure for cancer?” I asked. “A compound called oxymercuriphine, found in … Continue reading
Medical and Psychological Studies for June
Original spider picture edited out after complaints. The benefits of exposure to ultraviolet light may outweigh the risks, say scientists who apparently hate putting on sunscreen as much as I do. This reminds me of my father’s occasional complaints that … Continue reading
Lies, Damned Lies, And Facebook (Part 3 of ∞)
EDIT: This one got complicated. See below. I tried to scrub my Facebook feed of all of these kinds of articles, but occasionally something gets through. This week what’s gotten through, en masse, is the Gilbert/Frago case, in which a … Continue reading
All Debates Are Bravery Debates
“I don’t practice what I preach because I’m not the kind of person I’m preaching to.” — J. R. “Bob” Dobbs I. I read Atlas Shrugged probably about a decade ago, and felt turned off by its promotion of selfishness … Continue reading
Moments Of Awakening
Sometimes I try to meditate when I am very tired. This is a bad idea. The brain is never very good at being held fixed on a single object of attention, and when it’s tired the task becomes nearly impossible. … Continue reading
Links for June
Bad Catholic has responded to my post on contraception and abortion rates, defending his position that contraception increases or at least doesn’t decrease abortions. See his Part One and Part Two, with my replies buried in the comments. The early … Continue reading
Hasta La Victorians Siempre
It seems to be Gush About The Victorians Month in the academic community or something. How The Mid-Victorians Worked, Ate, and Died (h/t Michael Vassar) claims that the mid-Victorian period was a golden age of health during which life expectancy … Continue reading
Literally Inconceivable: Contraceptives And Abortion Rates
I have amazing parents who would never do something sneaky like install a keylogger on my computer to keep tabs on me as I move thousands of miles away from home. But if I’m wrong and they did do that, … Continue reading
Wisdom of the Ancients, Redux
The authors of the paper on Victorian intelligence have seen my critique and kindly replied. HBD Chick has already addressed their response from pretty much the same perspective I will, but just to make it official… I originally complained that … Continue reading