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← Complex human traits have not been pushed steadily in one direction…
17 connected korrents · 13 moments from 24 Feb 2018 to 18 Sept 2026.
Everything filed under LLMs
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AI alignment
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evolutionary biology
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measuring intelligence
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taste
Everything filed under AGI
AGI Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Read this korrent: Complex human traits have not been pushed steadily in one direction because both ends of the spectrum carry advantages in different times and places. Complex human traits have not been pushed steadily in one direction because both ends of the spectrum carry advantages in different times and places. Last stated 6 months ago
8 May 2026
DR
David Reich — holds since 2026-05-08 — tap for who they are
Same subject: There is more room at the top for every human trait: push selection harder in any direction and the mean would move, at some cost elsewhere. — tap to centre the map on it There is more room at the top for every human trait: push selection harder in any direction and the mean would move, at some cost elsewhere. Last stated 6 months ago
8 May 2026
DR
David Reich — holds since 2026-05-08 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Different people's areas of strongest judgment or taste rarely overlap much with each other. — tap to centre the map on it Different people's areas of strongest judgment or taste rarely overlap much with each other. Last stated 2 years ago
19 Apr 2025
BK
Ben Kuhn — holds since 2025-04-19 — tap for who they are
Same subject: The weak selection signal on behavioural traits is a shortage of statistical power, not evidence that behaviour was unselected. — tap to centre the map on it The weak selection signal on behavioural traits is a shortage of statistical power, not evidence that behaviour was unselected. Last stated 6 months ago
8 May 2026
DR
David Reich — holds since 2026-05-08 — tap for who they are
Same subject: What has actually been under selection is probably not intelligence but a general trait more like executive function or the propensity to defer gratification. — tap to centre the map on it What has actually been under selection is probably not intelligence but a general trait more like executive function or the propensity to defer gratification. Last stated 6 months ago
8 May 2026
DR
David Reich — holds since 2026-05-08 — tap for who they are
Same subject: The accepted model of how archaic and modern humans relate has been accreted and patched rather than built, and is due for a simpler replacement. — tap to centre the map on it The accepted model of how archaic and modern humans relate has been accreted and patched rather than built, and is due for a simpler replacement. Last stated 6 months ago
8 May 2026
DR
David Reich — holds since 2026-05-08 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Natural selection in humans has not been quiescent: it is tugging almost every position in the genome in one direction or another, everywhere. — tap to centre the map on it Natural selection in humans has not been quiescent: it is tugging almost every position in the genome in one direction or another, everywhere. Last stated 6 months ago
8 May 2026
DR
David Reich — holds since 2026-05-08 — tap for who they are
Same subject: The gap between chimps and humans is no evidence that a small increase in compute yields an explosion of capability, because evolution was not optimising chimps for technology. — tap to centre the map on it The gap between chimps and humans is no evidence that a small increase in compute yields an explosion of capability, because evolution was not optimising chimps for technology. Last stated 9 years ago
24 Feb 2018
PC
Paul Christiano — holds since 2018-02-24 — tap for who they are
Same subject: AI capabilities are jagged rather than smooth, so the different definitions of human-level AI will be met years apart rather than together. — tap to centre the map on it AI capabilities are jagged rather than smooth, so the different definitions of human-level AI will be met years apart rather than together. Last stated 7 months ago
6 Apr 2026
HT
Helen Toner — holds since 2026-04-06 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A company that uses an algorithm to nudge customers into behavior that isn't good for them is doing something bad. — tap to centre the map on it A company that uses an algorithm to nudge customers into behavior that isn't good for them is doing something bad. Last stated a year ago
7 Oct 2025
MM
Mr. Money Mustache — holds since 2025-10-07 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A control evaluation that reports under one per cent risk should be read as several per cent, because the evaluation can itself fail. — tap to centre the map on it A control evaluation that reports under one per cent risk should be read as several per cent, because the evaluation can itself fail. Last stated 2 years ago
7 May 2024
BS
Buck Shlegeris — holds since 2024-05-07 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A feedback loop that reinforces a behavior pulls it toward whatever improves the loop's own score. — tap to centre the map on it A feedback loop that reinforces a behavior pulls it toward whatever improves the loop's own score. Last stated 2 months ago
26 Aug 2026
HK
Henrik Karlsson — holds since 2026-08-26 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A unit of measure needs defining, perhaps via a chain of increasingly hard problems, each pair of which a single model can solve. — tap to centre the map on it A unit of measure needs defining, perhaps via a chain of increasingly hard problems, each pair of which a single model can solve. Last stated a month ago
15 Sept 2026
PG
Paul Graham — holds since 2026-09-15 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Being able to statistically predict what someone will say does not mean you understand them. — tap to centre the map on it Being able to statistically predict what someone will say does not mean you understand them. Last stated a month ago
18 Sept 2026
CD
Cory Doctorow — holds since 2026-09-18 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Both the special-purpose-programs view and the blank-slate view of human intelligence are likely incorrect. — tap to centre the map on it Both the special-purpose-programs view and the blank-slate view of human intelligence are likely incorrect. Last stated 7 years ago
5 Nov 2019
FC
François Chollet — holds since 2019-11-05 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A badly written AI outbound email is evidence of a bad vendor, not of a limit of AI. — tap to centre the map on it A badly written AI outbound email is evidence of a bad vendor, not of a limit of AI. Last stated 10 months ago
1 Jan 2026
JL
Jason Lemkin — holds since 2026-01-01 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A bigger context window does not give you a smarter model; the intelligence of the model is what decides how much of that window it can actually attend to. — tap to centre the map on it A bigger context window does not give you a smarter model; the intelligence of the model is what decides how much of that window it can actually attend to. Last stated 3 months ago
15 Jul 2026
DH
Dex Horthy — holds since 2026-07-15 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A body of publications is easy for AI models to consume via pretraining corpora but cumbersome for most humans due to CAPTCHAs, accounts, and paywalls. — tap to centre the map on it A body of publications is easy for AI models to consume via pretraining corpora but cumbersome for most humans due to CAPTCHAs, accounts, and paywalls. Last stated a month ago
17 Sept 2026
PC
Patrick Collison — holds since 2026-09-17 — tap for who they are
At the centre
Complex human traits have not been pushed steadily in one direction because both ends of the spectrum carry advantages in different times and places.
Holds Read this korrent →
There is more room at the top for every human trait: push selection harder in any direction and the mean would move, at some cost elsewhere.
Holds
Different people's areas of strongest judgment or taste rarely overlap much with each other.
Holds
The weak selection signal on behavioural traits is a shortage of statistical power, not evidence that behaviour was unselected.
Holds
What has actually been under selection is probably not intelligence but a general trait more like executive function or the propensity to defer gratification.
Holds
The accepted model of how archaic and modern humans relate has been accreted and patched rather than built, and is due for a simpler replacement.
Holds
Natural selection in humans has not been quiescent: it is tugging almost every position in the genome in one direction or another, everywhere.
Holds
The gap between chimps and humans is no evidence that a small increase in compute yields an explosion of capability, because evolution was not optimising chimps for technology.
Holds
AI capabilities are jagged rather than smooth, so the different definitions of human-level AI will be met years apart rather than together.
Holds
A company that uses an algorithm to nudge customers into behavior that isn't good for them is doing something bad.
Holds
A control evaluation that reports under one per cent risk should be read as several per cent, because the evaluation can itself fail.
Holds
A feedback loop that reinforces a behavior pulls it toward whatever improves the loop's own score.
Holds
A unit of measure needs defining, perhaps via a chain of increasingly hard problems, each pair of which a single model can solve.
Holds
Being able to statistically predict what someone will say does not mean you understand them.
Holds
Both the special-purpose-programs view and the blank-slate view of human intelligence are likely incorrect.
Holds
A badly written AI outbound email is evidence of a bad vendor, not of a limit of AI.
Holds
A bigger context window does not give you a smarter model; the intelligence of the model is what decides how much of that window it can actually attend to.
Holds
A body of publications is easy for AI models to consume via pretraining corpora but cumbersome for most humans due to CAPTCHAs, accounts, and paywalls.
Holds