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.
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.
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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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
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.
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.
The Effective Altruism newsletter provides monthly updates on the highest-impact ways to do good and help others.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
B4X is a free and open source developer tool that allows users to write apps for Android, iOS, and more.
Substack is a blogging site that helps writers earn money and readers discover articles they'll like.
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.
Tag Archives: religion
Answer to Job
(with apologies to Jung) Job asked: “God, why do bad things happen to good people? Why would You, who are perfect, create a universe filled with so much that is evil?” Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the … Continue reading
There Are Rules Here
[source: sowhatfaith.com] Patheos’ Science On Religion points out that liberal Protestantism is dying even as more conservative Protestant movements thrive. This seems counterintuitive in the context of society as a whole becoming less religious and conservative. So what’s going on? … Continue reading
A Paradox of Ecclesiology
[Epistemic status: Sloppy. You’re going to have to read between the lines and fill in some of the holes here.] I. Some rationalists study ecclesiology. I used to think this was dumb. Now I appreciate it a little more. Let … Continue reading
Semite Times: The Bible In Palindromes
GENESIS Dumb mud “Madam, I’m Adam” Eve damned Eden, mad Eve Cain: a maniac EXODUS Egad, no bondage! “Live not on evil!” LEVITICUS Repel a leper NUMBERS & DEUTERONOMY Are we not drawn onwards, we Jews, drawn onward to new … Continue reading
Papal PR
Congratulations are due to the Pope for being Time’s Person of the Year. I would have voted for Snowden, but the Pope is a perfectly respectable choice. At least he’s an individual human being and not a vague demographic or … Continue reading
Giving and Accepting Apologies
“Saying ‘I’m sorry’ is the same as saying ‘I apologize.’ Except at a funeral.” – Demetri Martin Today was the Day of Atonement. As an atheist, I find it hard to appreciate atonement in its cosmic, maybe-not-even-possible sense. But I … Continue reading
The What-You’d-Implicitly-Heard-Before Telling Thing
G. K. Chesterton, whom I praised yesterday, is also famous for the argument of the “truth-telling thing”: “This, therefore, is, in conclusion, my reason for accepting the religion and not merely the scattered and secular truths out of the religion. … Continue reading
Can Atheists Appreciate Chesterton?
Empirically, yes. Friday was the anniversary of Chesterton’s death, the religious blogosphere is eulogizing him, and I thought I’d join in. I enjoyed and recommend Chesterton’s novels, especially The Man Who Was Thursday and Napoleon of Notting Hill, his works … Continue reading
Hitting Below The (Bible) Belt
Every so often I flirt with joining the prestigious, lucrative world of atheism blogging, but the fact is I’m just not cut out for it. I can’t consistently come up with marginally-clever-but-slightly-unfair zingers demeaning religious people on a daily basis. … Continue reading
Pope and Change: An Atheist’s Guide To Vatican Decision 2013
Pope Benedict XVI is resigning today, an event which will be closely followed by a conclave to determine his successor. I have inexplicably been following this with some interest. Several news sources both secular and religious have tried to provide … Continue reading