Even [o'neill cylinders](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O%27Neill_cylinder) have grass, so as long as we don't end up on a dead planet like Mars we will be fine. ;)
All water is recycled pee in the [Bezos Cyclinder.](https://medium.com/@lynwerkledges/the-oneill-cylinder-jeff-bezos-vision-for-an-incredible-civilisation-in-space-fef75b499710)
I love the reply to someone suggesting you have to actually go on a
proper walk in the park
“Yeah, so, when I try doing the thing, and somebody’s like”oh if it
didn’t work that’s because you didn’t try this narrower more expensive
thing”, and nobody said in advance “don’t bother, that won’t
work unless you try this narrower thing”, I usually walk out there.”
Buddy basically admitting he’s so miserable he can’t even enjoy a
nice little walk in nature
"When people use shorthand when talking to the self-proclaimed smartest man in the world, I bail out. They should know I need every detail spelled out."
I mean to be fair there’s a good chance actual smartest person (to the extent which that makes sense) is probably autistic, and in that case it probably is reasonable to want everything spelled out.
The idea that he actually went to touch grass is hilarious tho.
Sorry but I don't see any other way to interpret your claim that the smartest person is likely autistic that you think autism is a super power.
I'm reminded of this scene from Community. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=K9vRmLUCn50&pp=ygUdY29tbXVuaXR5IGF1dGlzbSBzcGVjaWFsIGRlYW4%3D
Nobody told him in advance the *extremely* commonly believed idea that going outside and spending some time in nature will improve your mood?
Like, you can't pretend you don't know about this, it's not only frequently spread folk knowledge but also has some actual scientific evidence backing it up - I would expect it's been discussed a lot in EA circles for that reason.
I guess he just didn't make the connection and thought that when people said 'touch grass' they meant 'the grass secretes a magical drug that makes you happier which your body can absorb on physical contact'
He complained about the expense of transit to a park. Doesn’t he live in the San Francisco Bay Area? Pretty much guaranteed he’s ten miles from great hikes and 30 miles from some of the best forest hikes in the entire world. Maybe funding problems.
too many techno libertarian eschatologist impresarios driving up rent and not letting anyone build anything maybe
say it with me bros HOUSE PRICE CRASH NOW
Quite a bit less than that, actually. It's a whopping [0.7 miles from the CFAR office to the closest hiking trail](https://www.google.com/maps/dir/2428+Dwight+Way,+Berkeley,+CA+94704/37.8661774,-122.2464536/@37.8657268,-122.255593,16z/data=!4m9!4m8!1m5!1m1!1s0x80857c2eb1814b2b:0xb25ebcbecd19488!2m2!1d-122.2594144!2d37.8647956!1m0!3e2).
He is miserable. He’s so unhappy agi is literally gonna kill is like tomorrow that the only thing that’ll make him happy is if we give him the ability to nuke all data centers and total control over compute manufacturing output.
Is that too much to ask? For the price of happiness?? IS IT?
Oh man, but
the context. Yudkowsky made an unsolicited reply to one of Dave’s
tweets in which Yudkowsky appears to be yearning for the sweet release
of death.
Dave misinterpreted this as a cry for help, but actually it was an
invitation from Yudkowsky for Dave to join him in the depths of clinical
depression.
This is so funny cause its obvious to like every normal person that
‘touch grass’ does not literally mean ‘make physical contact with a
single blade of grass and then go inside again’
This is an incredibly perverse kind of ‘steelmanning’ where instead
of assuming that your interlocutor’s arguments have some merit, you
assume that your interlocutor’s jokes are meant literally.
What the ‘touch grass’ retort means in common usage is ‘stop being
insane, and failing that please shut up’. Perhaps Eliezer should give
this a try sometime! (Purely in the interest of scientific
experimentation, of course)
Overly literal interpretation aside, I think it’s worth noting that
he also clearly misunderstands the fundamental meaning of the phrase;
“touching grass” isn’t about improving your mood, it’s about remembering
that there’s a “real world” outside of your computer/apartment where
ideas have actual practical implications and not everyone is a weird
twitter person.
If you look at the tweets earlier in the thread, you'll see that Dave is saying "touch grass" in response to Yudkowsky appearing to ideate about suicide. He's basically saying "let's hang out together outside so you'll feel better".
I get that rationalists are going to act hyper rational about
everything, but why does he have to be so goddamn literal?
He’s literally employing the schoolyard snark of a 9 year old by
saying “touch grass, you say?! Okay! I will literally touch a blade of
grass to see if my mood improves if that’s what you’re suggesting!”
I legit worry this dude is going to badly fail at killing himself.
It’s clear he’s goikg through something and does not seemed equipped to
deal with it at all.
Edit- I think this guy sucks but I don’t want him to die
“BEEP BOOMPS, MR LOGIC WITH HIS ROBOTIC-LIKE BRAIN WIOTH NO
COMPUTER-ESQUE CPU, NO DATABASE DO THE THING AT THE FIRST DEGREE TO
EXTRACT SOME MEANINGFUL DATA AS AN EXPERIMENT. CONVEYING AN IMPRESSION
OF A CUTE AND SUPERIOR INTELELCT”
It's wild to me that the billionaires funding the TESCREAL astroturf seemingly haven't spent the money to find a more charismatic figurehead for the thing. Do they really think EY is the best mouthpiece for popularizing this nonsense?
I get that rationalists are going to act hyper rational about
everything, but why does he have to be so goddamn literal?
He’s literally employing the schoolyard snark of a 9 year old by
saying “touch grass, you say?! Okay! I will literally touch a blade of
grass to see if my mood improves if that’s what you’re suggesting!”
He doesn’t know how good he’s got it. In my future
hellscape dreamscape, all of the actual grass is of course
gone but there are several very good simulations available which bring
people immediate and total joy when touched, but CERTAIN PEOPLE will
never ever get to go see this wonderful, magical grass.
A true indoorsman
I love the reply to someone suggesting you have to actually go on a proper walk in the park
“Yeah, so, when I try doing the thing, and somebody’s like”oh if it didn’t work that’s because you didn’t try this narrower more expensive thing”, and nobody said in advance “don’t bother, that won’t work unless you try this narrower thing”, I usually walk out there.”
Buddy basically admitting he’s so miserable he can’t even enjoy a nice little walk in nature
Oh man, but the context. Yudkowsky made an unsolicited reply to one of Dave’s tweets in which Yudkowsky appears to be yearning for the sweet release of death.
Dave misinterpreted this as a cry for help, but actually it was an invitation from Yudkowsky for Dave to join him in the depths of clinical depression.
This is so funny cause its obvious to like every normal person that ‘touch grass’ does not literally mean ‘make physical contact with a single blade of grass and then go inside again’
This is an incredibly perverse kind of ‘steelmanning’ where instead of assuming that your interlocutor’s arguments have some merit, you assume that your interlocutor’s jokes are meant literally.
What the ‘touch grass’ retort means in common usage is ‘stop being insane, and failing that please shut up’. Perhaps Eliezer should give this a try sometime! (Purely in the interest of scientific experimentation, of course)
Overly literal interpretation aside, I think it’s worth noting that he also clearly misunderstands the fundamental meaning of the phrase; “touching grass” isn’t about improving your mood, it’s about remembering that there’s a “real world” outside of your computer/apartment where ideas have actual practical implications and not everyone is a weird twitter person.
“You are too immersed in meaningless online discourse.”
“Hmm, I don’t know about that, better make some meaningless online discourse about your claims.”
You have to marvel at nature’s capability to disassociate from nature.
I get that rationalists are going to act hyper rational about everything, but why does he have to be so goddamn literal?
He’s literally employing the schoolyard snark of a 9 year old by saying “touch grass, you say?! Okay! I will literally touch a blade of grass to see if my mood improves if that’s what you’re suggesting!”
The reason why I am so normal and rational is because I have a dried blade of grass taped to my skin, so I am always touching grass.
We tried
I’m surprised he didn’t combust.
I legit worry this dude is going to badly fail at killing himself. It’s clear he’s goikg through something and does not seemed equipped to deal with it at all.
Edit- I think this guy sucks but I don’t want him to die
“BEEP BOOMPS, MR LOGIC WITH HIS ROBOTIC-LIKE BRAIN WIOTH NO COMPUTER-ESQUE CPU, NO DATABASE DO THE THING AT THE FIRST DEGREE TO EXTRACT SOME MEANINGFUL DATA AS AN EXPERIMENT. CONVEYING AN IMPRESSION OF A CUTE AND SUPERIOR INTELELCT”
Look I think everyone is missing the point: these public displays of insanity are actually good.
It means his ideas will never spread and will naturally decay as they should.
I get that rationalists are going to act hyper rational about everything, but why does he have to be so goddamn literal?
He’s literally employing the schoolyard snark of a 9 year old by saying “touch grass, you say?! Okay! I will literally touch a blade of grass to see if my mood improves if that’s what you’re suggesting!”
has anyone tried telling him go fuck yourself
This is actually funny. Jesus Christ this dude.
He doesn’t know how good he’s got it. In my future
hellscapedreamscape, all of the actual grass is of course gone but there are several very good simulations available which bring people immediate and total joy when touched, but CERTAIN PEOPLE will never ever get to go see this wonderful, magical grass.