Monthly Archives: August 2019

Meetups Everywhere 2019

Last autumn we organized meetups in 85 different cities (and one ship!) around the world. Some of the meetup groups stuck around or reported permanent spikes in membership, which sounds like a success, so let’s do it again. For most … Continue reading

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Open Thread 135.25

This is the twice-weekly hidden open thread. You can also talk at the SSC subreddit or the SSC Discord server.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 1,020 Comments

Book Review: Reframing Superintelligence

Ten years ago, everyone was talking about superintelligence, the singularity, the robot apocalypse. What happened? I think the main answer is: the field matured. Why isn’t everyone talking about nuclear security, biodefense, or counterterrorism? Because there are already competent institutions … Continue reading

Open Thread 135

This is the bi-weekly visible open thread (there are also hidden open threads twice a week you can reach through the Open Thread tab on the top of the page). Post about anything you want, but please try to avoid … Continue reading

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Don’t Fear The Simulators

From the New York Times: Are We Living In A Computer Simulation? Let’s Not Find Out. It lists the standard reasons for thinking we might be in a simulation, then brings up some proposals for testing the hypothesis (for example, … Continue reading

Open Thread 134.75

This is the twice-weekly hidden open thread. You can also talk at the SSC subreddit or the SSC Discord server.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 1,120 Comments

Maybe Your Zoloft Stopped Working Because A Liver Fluke Tried To Turn Your Nth-Great-Grandmother Into A Zombie

Or at least this is the theory proposed in Brain Evolution Through The Lens Of Parasite Manipulation by Marco del Giudice. The paper starts with an overview of parasite manipulation of host behavior. These are the stories you hear about … Continue reading

Open Thread 134.5

This is the twice-weekly hidden open thread. You can also talk at the SSC subreddit or the SSC Discord server.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 1,252 Comments

Attempted Replication: Does Beef Jerky Cause Manic Episodes?

Last year, a study came out showing that beef jerky and other cured meats, could trigger mania in bipolar disorder (paper, popular article). It was a pretty big deal, getting coverage in the national press and affecting the advice psychiatrists … Continue reading

Open Thread 134.25

This is the twice-weekly hidden open thread. You can also talk at the SSC subreddit or the SSC Discord server.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 1,042 Comments