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"A bit too eager to criticize others" is a understatement. Taleb has a lot of interesting things to say, and some of them are even reasonably novel. Unfortunate
by mjb 9y ago
"A bit too eager to criticize others" is a understatement. Taleb has a lot of interesting things to say, and some of them are even reasonably novel. Unfortunately his general "everybody but me is stupid" approach makes his message much less useful and accessible than it otherwise would be. This is a good example of that problem.
I find this really unfortunate, because Taleb's message about systems behavior being dominated by tail behavior, and about the risks systems not being designed to tolerate that behavior, are very interesting and broadly applicable. Unfortunately, the medium makes the message less effective.
I often think of Taleb as a sort of counter-example when thinking about how to teach and communicate difficult concepts.
- te_chris 9y agoHe's such a thin-skinned snowflake. I enjoyed The Black Swan but didn't know much about him as a person. He should give up twitter, or stop reading reviews. His fans are hilarious too: he's created a whole cult of redundant pedants.
- vvdcect 9y ago>whole cult of redundant pedants. aspiring despots
- pfortuny 9y agoThe long tails and the lack of mean of important distributions is essential. However, we are losing those concepts because of his belligerance. A pity.
- User23 9y agoContrariwise, many people find his communication style refreshing and entertaining with his book sales being a solid exhibit in favor of that. Also, most people are stupid compared to Mr. Taleb, that's just a simple function of his observably high intelligence. That said, I've never seen him treat someone as stupid who doesn't first act stupid, and he's demonstrably willing to engage with people publicly on fair terms. It's a good test though: do personalities like Taleb and Dijkstra entertain you or do they offend you? Introspecting on why they do or don't is a great opportunity for personal growth.
- exolymph 9y agoI suspect that you may not be aware of this, so I'm commenting (partially with the hope that someone will figure out a nicer, more effective way to say this): You come across as condescending in a similarly offputting way to Taleb himself.
- User23 9y agoI do take my own advice about introspection and thank you for your concern. Much like Mr. Taleb, I just don't see it as a problem. If my personality allows me to appreciate a communication style others have trouble with, without restricting me from appreciating other communications styles that they do not, then I have access to a broader and more diverse set of knowledge and interactions. I find the trade-off acceptable.