LessWrong/ideas

Purpose

This page is for indexing, summarizing, and further discussion of ideas brought up on LessWrong.

Terminology

• /AI
• /action: defined here
• /applause light
• /Bayesian statistics
  • /Bayesianism
• /bias
• /conditional probability function: defined here
• /consequentialism
• /cryonics
• /expected utility: defined here
• /frequentism
• /friendly AI
• /heuristic
• /instrumental value (cf /terminal value): explained here
• /metaethics
• /Omega: a fictional character often used in thought experiments
• /outcome: defined here
• /rationality
• /reductionism
• /terminal value (cf /instrumental value): explained here
• /unfriendly AI
• /utility function: defined here

Sequences

Many of the key ideas under discussion at LW are first put forth in the form of a "sequence", or a series of blog posts. These are often presented in the form of fiction, and consequently it may be rather time-consuming if all you really want is to understand the essential idea(s) being set forth in the writing.

The central ideas behind LW sequences may be summarized here.

Index to sequences

• /Three Worlds Collide: a parable