4 ms·

I'm seriously unsurprised to find the token why-does-anyone-like-Yudkowsky-he-doesn't-have-a-PhD-and-hasn't-even-saved-the-world-yet criticism in a thread about

by endtime 12y ago

I'm seriously unsurprised to find the token why-does-anyone-like-Yudkowsky-he-doesn't-have-a-PhD-and-hasn't-even-saved-the-world-yet criticism in a thread about his Harry Potter fan fiction. He's a great writer, and that should be more than enough for the purposes of recommending a thing he wrote.

zyxley 12y ago
I left this out from the parent post because it's a subjective judgment, but I absolutely disagree that he's a "great" writer, or even anything really more than "serviceable" at best.
- jomohke 12y ago
  Can you recommend some alternative writers that fill the role better? I think his writing has two particular things going for it: - He explains concepts clearly with understandable examples. - He presents concepts that aren't (or weren't) well known outside of academia to a wider audience.
  - zyxley 12y ago
    "Scientific parable fiction" is a pretty narrow genre (though I'd personally argue that Yudkowsky does a pretty poor job of it - for example, Harry constantly assuming things without testing them and just happening to be right because the author says so). One that does come to mind is: https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4976703/alexanderwales https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4976703/alexanderwales alexanderwales writes relatively short, punchy stories that explore specific academic and narrative themes, and, importantly, generally work extremely very well as stories even if you discount the thought experiment aspects.
    - endtime 12y ago
      I really liked The Last Christmas and The Metropolitan Man (A Bluer Shade of White felt a little cliched/predictable) and second the recommendation.
boomlinde 12y ago
> I'm seriously unsurprised to find the token why-does-anyone-like-Yudkowsky-he-doesn't-have-a-PhD-and-hasn't-even-saved-the-world-yet criticism in a thread about his Harry Potter fan fiction. I don't think that this was the kind of criticism that was expressed, but on the other hand it's always easier to fight a straw man.

by endtime 12y ago

zyxley 12y ago

I left this out from the parent post because it's a subjective judgment, but I absolutely disagree that he's a "great" writer, or even anything really more than "serviceable" at best.

jomohke 12y ago
Can you recommend some alternative writers that fill the role better? I think his writing has two particular things going for it: - He explains concepts clearly with understandable examples. - He presents concepts that aren't (or weren't) well known outside of academia to a wider audience.
- zyxley 12y ago
  "Scientific parable fiction" is a pretty narrow genre (though I'd personally argue that Yudkowsky does a pretty poor job of it - for example, Harry constantly assuming things without testing them and just happening to be right because the author says so). One that does come to mind is: https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4976703/alexanderwales https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4976703/alexanderwales alexanderwales writes relatively short, punchy stories that explore specific academic and narrative themes, and, importantly, generally work extremely very well as stories even if you discount the thought experiment aspects.
  - endtime 12y ago
    I really liked The Last Christmas and The Metropolitan Man (A Bluer Shade of White felt a little cliched/predictable) and second the recommendation.

boomlinde 12y ago

> I'm seriously unsurprised to find the token why-does-anyone-like-Yudkowsky-he-doesn't-have-a-PhD-and-hasn't-even-saved-the-world-yet criticism in a thread about his Harry Potter fan fiction. I don't think that this was the kind of criticism that was expressed, but on the other hand it's always easier to fight a straw man.