Thinking Much Better

Music Review Madness 3

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Hope ya like EMOOOOOOOOO!

Why is There No Blog Post Here?

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Aggregation is still hard.

Music Review Madness 2

Sat, 06 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Hope ya like variety!

The Sound of the 2020s

Sun, 20 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This is an RYMcore household.

Environmentalists and Non-Consequentialists Should be Nervous about Ecosystem Restoration

Sat, 26 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The ethics are probably more complex than you thought.

The Case for Evaluators to "Finish the Job"

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Effective Altruist charity evaluators can do more.

Music Review Madness 1

Sat, 01 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Hope ya like prog!

Rationalist Movie Reviews

Sat, 01 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

I’m not over-interpreting, you’re just under-interpreting.

The Subject in Subjective Time: A New Approach to Aggregating Wellbeing

Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Devin’s thesis about subjective time in ethics.

We Have Not Been Invited to the Future: e/acc and the Narrowness of the Way Ahead

Wed, 17 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Obvious and subtle disagreements with that one Twitter movement.

Appendices: "Some Observations on Alcoholism"

Sun, 14 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Longest post… so far!

[April Fools] Towards A Better Moral Circle

Tue, 02 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The overminds have come to make an announcement.

Contra Ozy Brennan on Sex Addiction

Sun, 24 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Clarifying and calibrating our ideas about addiction.

How the Fun Homes Work

Sun, 03 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Analyzing Bechdel’s graphic memoir and its musical adaptation.

What Doesn't Matter To (or About) Free Will

Mon, 12 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Much of the ‘free will debate’ is irrelevant.

Some Problems with Comparing Factory Farming to the Holocaust

Sun, 21 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Pretty much what the title says.

A Taxonomy of Right Wing Thought

Wed, 16 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Different political philosophies within the right wing.

Some Observations on Alcoholism

Fri, 07 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Some Changes to ThinkingMuchBetter

Sun, 30 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0000

A quick announcement.

Suicide is not "Selfish" or "Cowardly": In Defense of Focusing on the Person Whose Life is at Stake

Tue, 18 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Clarity in the face of oblivion.

What is the Meaning of Life?

Sat, 11 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Devin takes on a classic philosophy problem.

Reaction to "Apology for an Old Email"

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Devin talks about Bostrom’s racist-email scandal.

On Fetuses and Farms

Mon, 26 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Vegan, but also pro-choice?

Devin on the EA Forum: Volume 1

Sat, 16 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Four short EA Forum posts.

A simple way YouTube could help Shorts creators

Mon, 27 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

An idea I had for Shorts ads.

Marginal Cases, On Trial

Wed, 22 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Explanation and deep-dive of a key argument behind ethical veganism.

A Quick List of Some Problems in AI Alignment As A Field

Tue, 21 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Problems and suggestions for AI alignment as a scientific field.

Quick Thoughts on A.I. Governance

Fri, 22 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Sketches of AI governance.

Consequentialism: A Defense/Manifesto

Thu, 10 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Consequentialism is good.

Appendix: "Immortality and its Critics: Why Rationalism Should not Treat its Darling as Unpopular or Simple"

Mon, 24 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Devin changes his mind about pop culture’s take about immortality upon.

Don't Look Up (Film Review)

Tue, 11 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Vice (2018) is better.

The Bioethicists are (Mostly) Alright

Tue, 11 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Devin’s biggest post (so far…)

Reaction and Reply to Sasha Chapin on Bad In-group Norms

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Quick thoughts and meditations.

There Meat Come A Scandal...

Sun, 07 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0000

The meat and the maker.

Effective Altruism, Before the Memes Started

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Our third article with Glen Weyl in it, I think.

How Much of a Ratfic is Dr. Stone?

Sat, 11 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0000

The anime with the science guy rebuilding tech.

Expected Value and Normative Gettier Problems

Sun, 29 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +0000

When your beliefs aren’t convincing enough to shape your beliefs.

Pascal's Wager is S-Tier

Tue, 11 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

I showed Devin a GMSkeptic video like a year ago. This is what happened next.

The Shallowness of Hypocrisy

Sat, 17 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Hypocrisy is not as useful as you think.

Kalish Versus RadicalXChange

Fri, 26 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Let’s talk about the RadicalXChange community.

Weyl Versus the Rationalists

Sun, 07 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Let’s talk about the Rationality community.

Ditch the President, Vote on the Cabinet

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Who should we vote on? Why?

The Dystopian Objection to Cryonics

Sun, 27 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0000

What happens if you wake up?

The Tragedy of Alternative Voting Methods

Sun, 27 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Who votes on the voting? What?

Was Mary Shelley Utilitarian? Excerpts from my Senior Capstone

Sun, 27 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0000

A founder of sci-fi might have been kinda Utilitarian.

Response to: "Why Meat is Moral, and Veggies are Immoral"

Sat, 05 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Common arguments for eating meat, countered

Appendices:"Complexities of Free Speech: Some Approaches, Problems, and Reasons to Care"

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Appendices to the free speech article

Appendices: "If We Talk About the Democratic Problems with Philanthropy, We Should Talk About the Limitations of Democracy"

Sun, 04 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Appendices to that one article that got some upvotes on reddit

[RETRACTED] Debuggers Make You A Bad Detective

Sat, 13 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Print statements are fine, Mom! GUH

How Aggregation Can Fail Utilitarianism in the Most Important Ways [Presentation Video]

Sat, 30 May 2020 00:00:00 +0000

A video of Devin’s talk at the 2019 RIT Undergraduate Philosophy Conference

If We Talk About the Democratic Problems with Philanthropy, We Should Talk About the Limitations of Democracy

Fri, 24 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Against against against against… (Posted at the same time as the immortality article.)

Immortality and its Critics: Why Rationalism Should not Treat its Darling as Unpopular or Simple

Fri, 24 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Devin criticizes a popular theory among rationalists. This actually deepened my thinking on the issue somewhat. (I’m still an immortalist though.)

Pascal's Email Mugging Scam

Fri, 24 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Please don’t try this at home.

The Ones Who Walk Away From Utilitarianism: A Review of Five Objections

Mon, 30 Mar 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Devin analyzes the best objections to our favorite broad ethical theory. Also, the first article with footnotes!

Complexities of Free Speech: Some Approaches, Problems, and Reasons to Care

Wed, 01 Jan 2020 00:00:00 +0000

You’re probably talking about free speech wrong.

YouTube P-Score Analysis

Mon, 09 Dec 2019 00:00:00 +0000

I analyze YouTube’s secret scoring system, and what it means for creators.

At Least in the West

Sun, 13 Oct 2019 00:00:00 +0000

A quick pet peeve in the geography of philosophy. Also, Devin’s first article on TMB!

Some Meta Advice That Might Work For Some People

Sat, 30 Jun 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Old thought on which advice to take.

Multipolar Cynicism

Sun, 10 Jun 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Back in 2018, I thought edgelords would destroy humanity. Was I right?

6 Websites You Should Block When You Need to Work

Fri, 01 Jun 2018 00:00:00 +0000

I should probably block these. Lightly revised.

About Thinking Much Better

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Thinking Much Better is a blog run by Nicholas Kross, frequently collaborating with Devin Kalish. Some security testing was done by CraftSpider. It also contains the /nickai/ sub-site. Contact us at “webmaster” at this domain. Nick can also be reached on Twitter @NicholasKross. Nicholas Kross I’m Nick! I’ve built a few small things so far. Right now I do software test engineering by day, and AI alignment by night. Devin Kalish I’m Devin, I met Nick through Rochester Institute of Technology’s Effective Altruism club.

Legal Notices

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

DISCLAIMER Last updated July 16, 2021 The views expressed in this blog, and all posts within it, are the views of their authors alone. These are not the views of anyone else, nor any employers past, present, or future. WEBSITE DISCLAIMER The information provided by Thinking Much Better (“we,” “us” or “our”) on https://www.thinkingmuchbetter.com/ (the “Site”) is for general informational purposes only. All information on the Site is provided in good faith, however we make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability or completeness of any information on the Site.

Thinking Much Better

Music Review Madness 3

Why is There No Blog Post Here?

Music Review Madness 2

The Sound of the 2020s

Environmentalists and Non-Consequentialists Should be Nervous about Ecosystem Restoration

The Case for Evaluators to "Finish the Job"

Music Review Madness 1

Rationalist Movie Reviews

The Subject in Subjective Time: A New Approach to Aggregating Wellbeing

We Have Not Been Invited to the Future: e/acc and the Narrowness of the Way Ahead

Appendices: "Some Observations on Alcoholism"

[April Fools] Towards A Better Moral Circle

Contra Ozy Brennan on Sex Addiction

How the Fun Homes Work

What Doesn't Matter To (or About) Free Will

Some Problems with Comparing Factory Farming to the Holocaust

A Taxonomy of Right Wing Thought

Some Observations on Alcoholism

Some Changes to ThinkingMuchBetter

Suicide is not "Selfish" or "Cowardly": In Defense of Focusing on the Person Whose Life is at Stake

What is the Meaning of Life?

Reaction to "Apology for an Old Email"

On Fetuses and Farms

Devin on the EA Forum: Volume 1

A simple way YouTube could help Shorts creators

Marginal Cases, On Trial

A Quick List of Some Problems in AI Alignment As A Field

Quick Thoughts on A.I. Governance

Consequentialism: A Defense/Manifesto

Appendix: "Immortality and its Critics: Why Rationalism Should not Treat its Darling as Unpopular or Simple"

Don't Look Up (Film Review)

The Bioethicists are (Mostly) Alright

Reaction and Reply to Sasha Chapin on Bad In-group Norms

There Meat Come A Scandal...

Effective Altruism, Before the Memes Started

How Much of a Ratfic is Dr. Stone?

Expected Value and Normative Gettier Problems

Pascal's Wager is S-Tier

The Shallowness of Hypocrisy

Kalish Versus RadicalXChange

Weyl Versus the Rationalists

Ditch the President, Vote on the Cabinet

The Dystopian Objection to Cryonics

The Tragedy of Alternative Voting Methods

Was Mary Shelley Utilitarian? Excerpts from my Senior Capstone

Response to: "Why Meat is Moral, and Veggies are Immoral"

Appendices:"Complexities of Free Speech: Some Approaches, Problems, and Reasons to Care"

Appendices: "If We Talk About the Democratic Problems with Philanthropy, We Should Talk About the Limitations of Democracy"

[RETRACTED] Debuggers Make You A Bad Detective

How Aggregation Can Fail Utilitarianism in the Most Important Ways [Presentation Video]

If We Talk About the Democratic Problems with Philanthropy, We Should Talk About the Limitations of Democracy

Immortality and its Critics: Why Rationalism Should not Treat its Darling as Unpopular or Simple

Pascal's Email Mugging Scam

The Ones Who Walk Away From Utilitarianism: A Review of Five Objections

Complexities of Free Speech: Some Approaches, Problems, and Reasons to Care

YouTube P-Score Analysis

At Least in the West

Some Meta Advice That Might Work For Some People

Multipolar Cynicism

6 Websites You Should Block When You Need to Work

About Thinking Much Better

Blogroll

Legal Notices