Links for 2022-04-19
A new electronic version of Sheldon Axler's book "Measure, Integration & Real Analysis" (dated 17 April 2022) is freely available at http://measure.axler.net (from the author of the famous "Linear Algebra Done Right")
A new 70-minute interview with Elon Musk in which he sets out his vision for what it will take to create a future worth getting excited about. https://youtube.com/watch?v=YRvf00NooN8
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Brookings economist discuss policy and economic implications of AGI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfnScBUwwMU
Is there actually a broad basin of attraction around human values? How do we know or how can we find out? https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/TrvkWBwYvvJjSqSCj/a-broad-basin-of-attraction-around-human-values
Why a slide rule works https://www.johndcook.com/blog/2022/04/10/why-a-slide-rule-works/ [also check this playlist for a video demonstration]
“The best estimates of a maximally accurate source would be very frequently updated and follow a random walk.” https://www.overcomingbias.com/2022/04/the-accuracy-of-authorities.html
A woman grew up without her left temporal lobe, which highlights how amazingly plastic the brain is. https://www.wired.com/story/she-was-missing-a-chunk-of-her-brain-it-didnt-matter/ (archived version: https://archive.ph/r9eqv)
When It Comes to AI, Can We Ditch the Datasets? Using Synthetic Data for Training Machine-Learning Models https://scitechdaily.com/when-it-comes-to-ai-can-we-ditch-the-datasets-using-synthetic-data-for-training-machine-learning-models/
A Brief Excursion Into Molecular Neuroscience https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/67exdQCqJARtRbtru/a-brief-excursion-into-molecular-neuroscience
Unsupervised Bayesian Ising Approximation for decoding neural activity and other biological dictionaries https://elifesciences.org/articles/68192
Medical dogma is that people with heart failure need to adhere to a low salt diet. The largest randomized trial reported today failed to show any benefit for reducing clinical events https://thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(22)00369-5/fulltext
WA Aboriginal site near Rio Tinto mine more than 50,000 years old, new study reveals https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/08/wa-aboriginal-site-near-rio-tinto-mine-more-than-50000-years-old-new-study-reveals
The consequences of mass immigration from ultra-conservative countries: “This is not a utopian vision of liberal multiculturalism. London is the most cosmopolitan city in Britain. We all know that. But it’s also the most religious and socially conservative city in the country. 62% of Londoners, for instance, identify as religious, compared with 53% of the rest of the country. 25% of Londoners attend a religious service at least once a month; only 10% of people outside London do. 24% of Londoners think sex before marriage is wrong, compared to 13% of the population. London is the most homophobic city in the country: 29% of people in London think homosexuality is wrong, while 23% outside London think this.” https://unherd.com/2022/04/the-future-of-anglicanism-is-african/