“History doesn’t repeat itself but it rhymes.” — The speed of light is 299 792 458 m/s. The speed of sound is a mere 343 m/s. One consequence of this difference is that during extreme weather conditions, we tend to see lightning before we hear the thunder. There is an analogy here that we can use to understand…

Maybe it’s about more than just what we think? — Artificial intelligence theorist Eliezer Yudkowsky defines rationality in one of two ways: epistemic rationality and instrumental rationality. The first concerns itself with what we think of as the truth — making sure that our beliefs about reality map well to some collective or objective definition of the truth. This is…

The problem of getting caught in an asymmetry — There are three competing theories behind why the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche went insane: the first, the most popular, is that he contracted Neurosyphilis; the second, based on a study of his medical records, suggests that he began to show signs of dementia; the third is simply that he mentally…

Looking beyond linear time management — It is often said that economics is the study of how we relate to scarce resources with alternative uses. There are only so many raw materials in the world, and they become what we collectively demand them to become. A piece of land, for example, can do many things. It…

Do we need more community or more individualism? — “All of humanity’s problems,” the philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote in his Pensees, “stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” “What should young people do with their lives today?” Kurt Vonnegut wondered at a commencement speech some 300 years later. “Many things, obviously. …

Fooling yourself is the easiest thing to do — In 1994, John Meriwether started a hedge fund named Long-Term Capital Management (LTCM). In 1998, it had to be bailed out for $3.6 billion. By 2000, the fund was liquidated and then dissolved. But it’s the story that took place in between these years that is interesting. Being a hedge…

There is more to reality than meets the eye — Scientists have known for a while now that galaxies within a few million light-years of distance can affect each other in predictable ways. Gravity is a powerful force, and in local clusters, it makes itself apparent. What they didn’t know, however, was that there are possible interactions that can supposedly…

Make connections, fill gaps, and think dynamically — Imagine that the year is 1985. Imagine that you are a 25-year-old. Let’s say that you have a choice between investing $20,000 into a balanced portfolio, or investing only $5,000 and then using the rest to buy yourself a new car. …

A losing game, a dramatic conflict, and a better way. — One of the most famous philosophers of the 20th century, ironically, thought that the discipline of philosophy was mostly useless. Over the years, Ludwig Wittgenstein studied logic at Cambridge University, taught in Eastern Europe, built his own secluded house, and served in both of the World Wars. …