“I’m a rationalist because they let me put “quantum computer scientist (not physicist) who’s always right (despite the suffering of fools)” on my nametag”
The name of his blog was a reference that he thinks he was born in the wrong time, because in Shtetls people of his clear high intelligence would be assigned a wife (and get high social status).
Here is Sneerclub talking about it a while back. Dec 2022 is apparently 2 years ago for reddit.
E: Do note I can’t recall where he wrote about this, so I might be misremembering, or taking what we said in hyperbole about it for the real thing.
E2: unrelated to the blog name, I did think of incels/untitled/this kind of stuff like the troubles of lonely nerds/NDs not getting dating and going to the wrong places when I read the last part of this question Dr NerdLove answered, the ‘to be perfectly blunt’ part. And just how common the ‘you can’t be mad at me now’ thing is.
Also I love that the conversation almost certainly started with a comment about how everyone assumes they’d be the in the king’s court the cast majority of people would have been some variant of peasant farmer for the vast majority of history. But somehow he still would have totally been the Chief Rabbi, given the most beautiful woman, and generally be a king. I wasn’t there obviously but either he missed the point or they all missed the point. Even when talking specifically about how you can’t choose the circumstances of your birth or their consequences he still can’t imagine himself not being the king.
this is low hanging fruit but: yeah absolutely rancid takes on the middle east from scootson. who would have thought he would produce such nuance-free, fascist opinions about geopolitics?
““I would’ve been the chief rabbi of my shtetl,” I said. “All day long, I’d debate questions like how much restitution you’d have to pay if your ox gored your neighbor’s sheep. And for this, I’d get an arranged marriage with the most beautiful girl in town.””
“I’m a rationalist because they let me put “quantum computer scientist (not physicist) who’s always right (despite the suffering of fools)” on my nametag”
So what does the name of his blog stand for?
The name of his blog was a reference that he thinks he was born in the wrong time, because in Shtetls people of his clear high intelligence would be assigned a wife (and get high social status).
Here is Sneerclub talking about it a while back. Dec 2022 is apparently 2 years ago for reddit.
E: Do note I can’t recall where he wrote about this, so I might be misremembering, or taking what we said in hyperbole about it for the real thing.
E2: unrelated to the blog name, I did think of incels/untitled/this kind of stuff like the troubles of lonely nerds/NDs not getting dating and going to the wrong places when I read the last part of this question Dr NerdLove answered, the ‘to be perfectly blunt’ part. And just how common the ‘you can’t be mad at me now’ thing is.
This appears to be the explainer: https://scottaaronson.blog/?p=476 , also referenced here: https://scottaaronson.blog/?p=5769
Edit: bonus cursed findings: https://web.archive.org/web/20071006184928/http://scottaaronson.com/blog/?p=260
Well found.
Also I love that the conversation almost certainly started with a comment about how everyone assumes they’d be the in the king’s court the cast majority of people would have been some variant of peasant farmer for the vast majority of history. But somehow he still would have totally been the Chief Rabbi, given the most beautiful woman, and generally be a king. I wasn’t there obviously but either he missed the point or they all missed the point. Even when talking specifically about how you can’t choose the circumstances of your birth or their consequences he still can’t imagine himself not being the king.
this is low hanging fruit but: yeah absolutely rancid takes on the middle east from scootson. who would have thought he would produce such nuance-free, fascist opinions about geopolitics?
Ah right yes, thanks.