December 2018

Replying to @not_nothingmuch

@mHaGqnOACyFm0h5 @backus SSB? Also I have a few hundred dollars earmarked to give to someone who can build a thing that's like Treeverse but also allows you to reply to tweets, and to respond to 2+ tweets at once coherently, etc. If someone wants to take this on, lmk!

Dec 1, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Tiago Forte @fortelabs · Dec 1, 2018

Do you have a list of your goals in any form?

@fortelabs In complice.co of course. (One could argue that these aren't "goals" as such but that's a debate for another time. I think by the PARA model they're sort of more "Areas of Responsibility".)

Dec 1, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Lulie @reasonisfun · Dec 3, 2018

@ernsterlanson Specifically: Upstart has the idea that it's not just blame that's part of this coercive power structure, but praise as well. "Thank you" can be too: it can mean "you are dismissed" or "please dismiss me". Why say it if the other person wants to do the thing? @Malcolm_Ocean

@reasonisfun @ernsterlanson The French word for "thank you" is literally "merci", which I assume is essentially short for "I'm at your mercy." The power dynamics behind gratitude are hidden in plain sight; this probably used to be taken for granted.

Dec 3, 2018 6 likes 2 RTs

Replying to Carlos De la Guardia @dela3499 · Dec 4, 2018

In one sense, it’s true to say: You don’t play guitar, piano, or drums. You play the mind of the listener. You’re playing with their emotions, expectations, and imaginations.

@dela3499 You don't play chess. You play the mind of your opponent.

Dec 5, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Carlos De la Guardia @dela3499 · Dec 5, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean In the sense I mean, that’s only true when playing at least partly for the pleasure of your opponent, rather than only to win. So, it wouldn’t be true when playing chess against a bot.

@dela3499 I'm tempted to bite that bullet and question whether chess-bot-engagement is best called "playing"...

Dec 5, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to James Tiberius Stone @Evolving_Ego · Dec 4, 2018

Imagine two beings, once lovers, now in separate cages, built from abstractions of their own design, drifting apart for decades on separate rafts. And imagine them reaching through the bars, across the whole impossible distance, and touching again, as if for the first time.

@Evolving_Ego Mmm, feeling touched by this.

Dec 5, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to @vegetanumber219

@ckhonson I'm the 🔀 where "Learn" goes to "Clarify" & "Answer"

Dec 5, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Erik Torenberg @eriktorenberg · Dec 4, 2018

17/ Note: conversational frameworks are effective when coming from a genuine place of wanting mutual benefit--seeking win-win. x.com/eriktorenberg/…

quoting @eriktorenberg: 9/ Note: The Q should come from a place of seeking mutual benefit. Or else it’ll ring hollow and manipulative. When asking for a raise, it's less: “true for you to feel I deserve this?" More: “true for you to feel it’s in all of our best interest?” And you genuinely mean it.

@eriktorenberg Being able to clarify "are you trying to tell me something or am I trying to tell you something or are we jamming?" malcolmocean.com/2016/05/honing…

Dec 5, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to John Backus @backus · Dec 2, 2018

The main Twitter account, the alt your friends know about, the alt no one knows about. Production, staging, and development. Continuous deployment for identity and aesthetic.

@backus @wminshew I was thinking about making alts but I'm worried about merge conflicts if I branch my identity...

Dec 5, 2018 12 likes 0 RTs

Replying to @danielharan

@danielharan @reasonisfun @ernsterlanson Can you translate that page? I'd like to reference it in a blog post I'm writing and my french is too rusty for this & Google's translation is a bit unclear. (...and who am I to ask such a favor of you? And what do I owe you for it? Or, perhaps, would you enjoy/value doing so?)

Dec 7, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Mason @webdevMason · Dec 8, 2018

(TBC: “measured abandonment” is painful for the parent, not the child. IMO, there are good reasons to believe that a child who is not tolerating the forced separation of preschool/kindergarten well is not ready to go. One tough morning is one thing; when it’s sustained, listen.)

@webdevMason My mum used to say "you raise your kids to leave you." I always felt deeply respected in this dimension. (This came up in part because my sisters and I each switched to boarding school when we were 14, and people asked mum how she could bear to part with us 4 years early)

Dec 8, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Jeff Richman 🎃🎄 @jcrichman · Dec 9, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @kevinakwok I never see that, it might be a mechanism for low activity feeds. Try following more people. Or there might be a settings option for it.

@jcrichman @kevinakwok But I don't *want* to follow more people. I want to get to the end of my feed and go do something else. Which is part of why I'm confused about @kevinakwok or other people saying they read all of their tweets. Does it ever end any more?

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Andrew Ruiz @then_there_was · Dec 9, 2018

The Amish are a good example of this. Anytime there’s a new technology, they stop to consider whether they it’ll divide or integrate the community. They stop and observe the effects it has, and then make a decision whether to accept the technology.

@then_there_was Seems wise at a high level, and... misses questions like "what if tech X and tech Y are divisive on their own, but integrative used in concert?" Ofc, it's also generally anti-progress, but "Amish are anti-progress" is hardly a new take. Progress = "Solve Y's problems w Z" etc

Dec 9, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Rígille Menezes 🥬🥕🥦 @RigilleMenezes · Dec 9, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @kevinakwok realtwitter.com

@impression28 @kevinakwok Holy shit yeah this is actually fantastic. And it seems that it doesn't have any ads, unlike normal mobile twitter which is also a pretty high % of those.

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Rígille Menezes 🥬🥕🥦 @RigilleMenezes · Dec 9, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @kevinakwok realtwitter.com

@impression28 @kevinakwok Note that on my phone it didn't immediately go to Latest, but rather to Top, where every other tweet was from @SpaceX since they're the most popular account I follow.

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Andrew Ruiz @then_there_was · Dec 9, 2018

There is no equilibrium. Isn’t that strange? Why isn’t this Universe a pendulum that swings back and forth for all time? It’s more like a symphony that begins and ends. It’s strange. Why doesn’t life settle down? Why do new species appear? Because the environment changes.

@then_there_was And why does the environment change? (In part) because new species appear!

Dec 9, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Rob Miles @robertskmiles · Dec 9, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @kevinakwok Run a search for "filter:follows -filter:replies" and click 'latest'. That runs a search for tweets that are from people you follow but aren't replies

@robertskmiles @kevinakwok Hm, I actually quite like replies! My theoretically preferred usage of twitter is for having conversations, although it appears I often have ended up just engage by liking & retweeting. I'm going to experiment with a mix of that & just filter:follows -RandomWordBecuzSthgNeeded

Dec 9, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Jason Snyder @cognazor · Dec 9, 2018

I get the realist view that we should structure society around 'the reality of human nature' (e.g. 'aggression needs an outlet'). But I naively believe that we can reprogram ourselves through contemplative practices to subvert these harmful and outdated instincts. So sue me.

@cognazor I resonate with everything you're saying there except the word "naively". And I'll reveal that doubt your belief is that naïve either. There's lots of evidence for the profound influence of memes on what is human-natural, not just genes. Just hard to diff without an alt.

Dec 9, 2018 3 likes 0 RTs

Replying to @AJA_Cortes

@AJA_Cortes True at present. Working on it.

Dec 9, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Jason Snyder @cognazor · Dec 9, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean Me as well. But I am also sensitive to the conservative critique that radical change can also be dangerous if we don't understand the ways in which some traditional forms have evolved *for a purpose* over many centuries. And the fact that culture now *is* changing very rapidly

@cognazor Yep, that too. A critique that needs to be engaged with not as "a reason to stop" but as "something to account for while steering this change". We don't have the option of stopping or going back!

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Adam Robbert @AE_Robbert · Dec 2, 2018

If we're going to do this precarious labor / contract work thing over the long term, creating shared spaces that afford and facilitate this kind of activity seems like a small thing we could do to make that otherwise rather alienating experience more livable.

@KnowledgEcology If you find such spaces, I'm interested! I work from home for various reasons (multiple monitors! music without headphones!) but I'm tracking the coworking space space because my site complice.co has virtual coworking rooms. (...hmm... @Dynamicland1 as franchise...)

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Jason Snyder @cognazor · Dec 9, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @JoHenrich haha, yeah I was just about to respond to the last tweet. This book really opened my eyes to a lot.

@cognazor Yep. Alright, time to get off twitter and do other things with my evening. It's been a pleasure engaging in dialogue with you, having been following you and appreciating your tweets for awhile! 👋/🌊

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Callum @callumflack · Dec 9, 2018

What book would you recommend for a 7yo who’s already an enthusiastic reader? (What books shaped you at that age?)

@callumflack I enjoyed a book called A Tale Of Time City. Weird SciFi/fantasy, set in a place outside of time that you can only reach with time travel machines. The protagonists are kids, who visit the past & future and get into a bunch of intrigue & shenanigans. amazon.com/dp/0142420158/…

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to José Luis Ricón Fernández de la Puente @ArtirKel · Dec 8, 2018

My crypto/smart contracts/etc pessimism has been increasing over time, and trying to cure it (by reading about them, listening to podcasts, etc) actually makes me more pessimistic. I should write about it.

@ArtirKel Reading this last year was what got me back into cryptocurrency investing last summer, and although prices are now below where they were then, I still think there's something really powerful about this fundamental piece. ribbonfarm.com/2017/05/25/blo…

Dec 9, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Visakan Veerasamy @visakanv · Dec 9, 2018

feeling quite morose that I can't splay out all 58,400 of my tweets onto a giant 360 degree superdome, with all the threads visualized, and then wave my hands around Minority Report style to delete the clutter and rearchitect the best into a megaweb of megathreads

@visakanv @Conaw this is the guy I told you we need roam-for-twitter for. With VR.

Dec 9, 2018 25 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Maynard Handley 🟦 @handleym99 · Dec 9, 2018

@Meaningness @sarahdoingthing though of course the use of a common word (as so often) shows us that there's some sort of commonality behind the two. So where does this SECOND "meaningful" meaningness come from? Here's one brief sketch of a theory I threw off in a comment: bradford-delong.com/2017/10/highli…

@handleym99 @Meaningness @sarahdoingthing Did you read the post of Sarah's that David linked? It's all about the connections between words in exactly this way (the what "thread" refers to)! Which makes your remarks hilariously relevant 🤣

Dec 10, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Sam @Sam_kuyp · Dec 9, 2018

@reasonisfun @KatjaGrace There are many modes that a friendship can operate in, and people frequently switch between modes within a given friendship. The same isn't true of a romantic relationship.

@Crit_Rat @reasonisfun @KatjaGrace Resonating with this description of how friendships can ebb and flow. I would say the same is true for some romantic relationships, in non-monogamous contexts! *And* there's something about how we often want our romances to have that relationship-not-at-stake quality.

Dec 10, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Johnny @Johnny_Uzan · Dec 9, 2018

Pretending to work is more mentally taxing than actually working. Just look at the average office worker if you need any proof. There’s a linear correlation between how unproductive someone has been and how exhausted they are at the end of the day.

@Johnny_Uzan @DellAnnaLuca ⬆️ is the main reason why I *love* working for myself. There's nobody to look busy to, just things to do or not do. I sometimes code for 16h in one day and wish I had the flexibility to do it more. (Am doing other projects with ppl, so not working on @CompliceGoals fulltime atm)

Dec 10, 2018 4 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Maneesh Sethi @maneesh · Nov 5, 2018

Who's built chat into their app / webapp? We want to build Pavlok Chat, and are looking for a low-cost solution to make this happen --- that isn't Firebase. Any ideas?

@maneesh I was doing a preliminary investigation of this for complice.co a few weeks ago, and sendbird.com looked like a pretty good option. Would be interested to hear what you end up using, also!

Dec 10, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Jason Snyder @cognazor · Dec 10, 2018

Best commentary I have seen on this yet

@cognazor Wow, really appreciating you sharing this. I think that the part around the cynical replies being part of the same pattern is a really important thing to grok, because it shows up in so many places. So many cultural revolutions are fundamentally "Le roi est mort, vive le roi!"

Dec 11, 2018 5 likes 0 RTs

Replying to richie @richie62363343 · Dec 11, 2018

@reasonisfun @Malcolm_Ocean my feeling is that it's the shutting down of some/all filters in the brain and getting back to a basic consciousness. this especially when doing walking meditation, it feels like something instinctive and primal being engaged.

@richardblackman @reasonisfun Great section about this in Martha Beck's Finding Your Way in a Wild New World: forms of perception that are only possible when experiencing wordlessness, because the full bandwidth of human cognition is over 1000× the bandwidth of verbal thought. amzn.to/2QoZjmN

Dec 11, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Lulie @reasonisfun · Dec 10, 2018

The pause people make when encountering thoroughly non-coercive philosophies (like #TakingChildrenSeriously or @LivingRmContext).

@reasonisfun @LivingRmContext Yeah, definitely stages of making sense of this kind of thing. Coercion in institutions definitely seems to stop error correction... framed in systems terms, it's: feedback flows become blocked because it's not safe for people to say what they really think.

Dec 11, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Andrew Ruiz @then_there_was · Dec 4, 2018

My number one reading tip: Give yourself permission to read Kindle samples. Makes it easier to judge books and abandon bad ones.

@then_there_was Dovetails nicely with my main reading tip: don't just track which books you finish. Track any reading you do as meaningful. Gets the incentives right on starting/finishing/exploring/abandoning. More on this philosophy plus a spreadsheet template: malcolmocean.com/2014/07/focus-…

Dec 12, 2018 2 likes 1 RT

Replying to Peter Borah @PeterBorah · Dec 12, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean Business people sometimes use "off-site" in this way, though it is slightly more specific in that implies a group of people meeting outside their normal context. Other things I've seen: "work retreat", "focus retreat/focus week(end)", "hack week(end)", "grind week(end)".

@PeterBorah Yep, "off-site" is another good one but it doesn't apply because I often do these in my bedroom 😜 I like your use of the word "context" though... "focus context"? "sprint"? (too loaded with stuff from Agile) There's also @MIRIBerkeley's use of "charge" instead of "retreat"...

Dec 12, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Jason Snyder @cognazor · Dec 12, 2018

@SteafanFox @thomasjbevan1 @AyoO_Sn @ladejobi_ @Tobiafolabi_ @sonianzekwe @JonathanEmekaP @chioma_michelle @lotana_ @BeulahOnoh @EzraelAni @the_olawunmi @baebee_gal @That_Ebonyichic @TrendMasterNGR @iamswitchme @Mrmanhere_ @dilichi__ @BullofJohn @DutchessAonani @Jubalkayne @olubukolasthots @TheBookDealerNG @FreeRed_ @abebiorganics @The_amakaa @zzyzx91 @munyale @BookwormCafeNG @drerhumu @aproko_doctor @Deekachy_md @dandyduchess @DrJoeAbah @cchukudebelu @julietkego @blac_cappuccino @Hasiwajuu @Sheconverse @MartinOkonkwo @Alex_Houseof308 Currently reading (more or less actively) Futurica…

read the whole tweet →

@cognazor @SteafanFox @thomasjbevan1 @AyoO_Sn @ladejobi_ @Tobiafolabi_ @sonianzekwe @JonathanEmekaP @chioma_michelle @lotana_ @BeulahOnoh @EzraelAni @the_olawunmi @baebee_gal @That_Ebonyichic @TrendMasterNGR @iamswitchme @Mrmanhere_ @dilichi__ @BullofJohn @DutchessAonani @Jubalkayne @olubukolasthots @TheBookDealerNG @FreeRed_ @abebiorganics @The_amakaa @zzyzx91 @munyale @BookwormCafeNG @drerhumu @aproko_doctor @Deekachy_md @dandyduchess @DrJoeAbah @cchukudebelu @julietkego @blac_cappuccino @Hasiwajuu @Sheconverse @MartinOkonkwo @Alex_Houseof308 @Bardissimo @evantthompson @Slavojiek @Nsousanis @jaredjanes @anthonyvzmorley @A_J_Boyd @autotrnslucence Oh man I love Unflattening. Has inspired some really powerful understandings that I'm practicing how to convey in conversation.

Dec 13, 2018 4 likes 0 RTs

@artfulfuture Check out the book The Guru Papers by Joel Kramar & Diana Alstad. Has a bunch of really powerful stuff on the structures of this, and how it connects to addiction, love, control, abstraction and other topics. amzn.to/2UGI8eZ

Dec 13, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to @tweetcloudbot

@tweetcloudbot ...what does this say about me? Definitely something.

Dec 13, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Kaj Sotala @xuenay · Dec 3, 2018

Few things annoy me more than "UBI is bad 'cuz work gives people meaning". I know lots of people with wholesome, socially beneficial things they'd love to spend their time on - but can't, because those don't bring a living. Instead forced to do stuff that pays&feels meaningless.

@xuenay I resonate extremely deeply with what you're saying here, and I do also have the impression that some people would experience a kind of meaninglessness & despair without a job, and wouldn't know how to seek out meaningful projects on their own. But ofc, can keep working with UBI

Dec 13, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to jonathan @jonathandubin · Dec 12, 2018

@alifeofmovement @autotrnslucence @cognazor @SteafanFox @thomasjbevan1 @AyoO_Sn @ladejobi_ @Tobiafolabi_ @sonianzekwe @JonathanEmekaP @chioma_michelle @lotana_ @BeulahOnoh @EzraelAni @the_olawunmi @baebee_gal @That_Ebonyichic @TrendMasterNGR @iamswitchme @Mrmanhere_ @dilichi__ @BullofJohn @DutchessAonani @Jubalkayne @olubukolasthots @TheBookDealerNG @FreeRed_ @abebiorganics @The_amakaa @zzyzx91 @munyale @BookwormCafeNG @drerhumu @aproko_doctor @Deekachy_md @dandyduchess @DrJoeAbah @cchukudebelu @julietkego @blac_cappuccino @Hasiwajuu @Sheconverse @MartinOkonkwo @Alex_Houseof308 @Bardissimo…

read the whole tweet →

@jondubin @alifeofmovement @autotrnslucence @cognazor @SteafanFox @thomasjbevan1 @AyoO_Sn @ladejobi_ @Tobiafolabi_ @sonianzekwe @JonathanEmekaP @chioma_michelle @lotana_ @BeulahOnoh @EzraelAni @the_olawunmi @baebee_gal @That_Ebonyichic @TrendMasterNGR @iamswitchme @Mrmanhere_ @dilichi__ @BullofJohn @DutchessAonani @Jubalkayne @olubukolasthots @TheBookDealerNG @FreeRed_ @abebiorganics @The_amakaa @zzyzx91 @munyale @BookwormCafeNG @drerhumu @aproko_doctor @Deekachy_md @dandyduchess @DrJoeAbah @cchukudebelu @julietkego @blac_cappuccino @Hasiwajuu @Sheconverse @MartinOkonkwo @Alex_Houseof308 (You only tagged 3 ppl so I'm jumping in!) Improvise - Mick Napier The Beginning of Infinity - D. Deutsch Conflict is not Abuse - Sarah Schulman The Clock of the Long Now - S. Brand The Systems Bible - John Galt @SarahAMcManus @meaningness @reasonisfun @visakanv @CoatOfPainter

Dec 13, 2018 6 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Tiago Forte @fortelabs · Dec 14, 2018

My twitter feed is getting way too boring and predictable. What are some good weird but interesting accounts to follow?

@fortelabs Option 2: unfollow a ton of people who are too boring and predictable. (I've been experimenting with realtwitter.com and similar things also, to reduce the boringness factor of twitter's algos.)

Dec 15, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Andrew Ruiz @then_there_was · Dec 15, 2018

Specifically, it took a long time to position the hourglasses. It didn’t look good if you put the coin in the center and one hourglass on the left and the other on the right. It’s my favorite photo, largely because of the imagery.

@then_there_was Wow, yeah, this is gorgeous. I've been thinking more about memento mori the last year or so. There's definitely an impact on my consciousness from being aware of mortality.

Dec 15, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Andrew Ruiz @then_there_was · Dec 15, 2018

I find that inspiring. I feel like it’s more honest too. I’ve never met a human being who actually wanted to die.

@then_there_was That's basically where I'm at with it. Important to accept the reality of it—otherwise denial. Also important to acknowledge that ~100 years as cap is not what anybody would choose if the default were longer. (Well... lots of work to do on the "make life worth living" part too.)

Dec 15, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Callum @callumflack · Dec 16, 2018

“Just as HTTP is operating protocol for the web, politeness is operating protocol for our social interactions.” — ⁦@SamoBurja⁩

@callumflack @SamoBurja

Malcolm Ocean 🏴‍☠️ @Malcolm_Ocean · Dec 16, 2018

Resonates w @SarahAMcManus's metaphor where current social interaction scripts are like IP (unreliable in various ways) and the project we're working on is building an equivalent of TCP (reliable, but fundamentally built on top of IP). Not perfect analogy but thought-provoking. twitter.com/callumflack/st…

Dec 16, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Callum @callumflack · Dec 16, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @SarahAMcManus “Project we’re working on” — are you and Sarah building this? I like the analogy. Different layers of manners within different groups & their intentions. E.g. I’ve been thinking again this wk abt mastermind groups.

@callumflack @SarahAMcManus Yeah, with a couple other people. You could say it's kind of a stealth mode social technology startup.

Dec 16, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to @jtaylorhodge

@jtaylorhodge @callumflack @BenMosior @tasshinfogleman +1 Hopping aboard!

Dec 16, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Asifa Majid @asifa_majid · Nov 6, 2018

There is no universal hierarchy of the senses reflected in language. Our study with 20 languages and 5 senses found biology does not predict the importance of the senses. Culture does. @PNASNews pnas.org/content/early/…

@asifa_majid @callumflack @PNASNews @GretchenAMcC I send you all the ling things @byudkowsky this is relevant to phenomenology and naming smells

Dec 16, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to @RivalVoices

@RivalVoices @Meaningness .... *tries to decide if I should add this to list of personal testimonials*

Dec 16, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Dmitriy @metamitya · Dec 16, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @RivalVoices @Meaningness one of the coolest things about it, is that every time you create a new quest it searches your existing knowledge base and immediately provides context and catches duplicates: a sort of automated creativity.

@metamitya @RivalVoices @Meaningness @Conaw you probably want to have a look at this.

Dec 16, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Charlie Awbery @_awbery_ · Dec 16, 2018

@garybasin @autotrnslucence I often ask myself this question. Any version of ‘what’s the obstacle to x?’ can lead to insight.

@_awbery_ @garybasin @autotrnslucence Or the classic "how would I make my problem worse?" (And then you sometimes notice you're already doing some of those things) With difficult people, you could ask "how could I make it even harder to work with this person?" Gets at gears of the system and which levers you have.

Dec 16, 2018 3 likes 1 RT

Replying to Charlie Awbery @_awbery_ · Dec 16, 2018

@garybasin @autotrnslucence I often ask myself this question. Any version of ‘what’s the obstacle to x?’ can lead to insight.

@_awbery_ @garybasin @autotrnslucence And then the next tweet in my feed is @visakanv's

Visakan Veerasamy @visakanv · Dec 16, 2018

@vgr I really enjoy this Alan Watts bit where he describes a friend telling him something like "How do you do, as for me, I have now abandoned Satori altogether and I am now trying to get as attached to as many things as possible"

Dec 16, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to @RivalVoices

@RivalVoices @Meaningness Haha I didn't actually have a public such list, just a node buried in WorkFlowy. But I've gone and made one: malcolmocean.com/about/#testimo…

Dec 16, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to @kyle_heu

@kyle_heu @KevinSimler I mean, you could have this and it just recycles the person's old tweets into your timeline. Or it shares not just their retweets but also their likes. Oh wait. Goddamnit twitter.

Dec 20, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Callum @callumflack · Dec 18, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean …which means, I think, that Complice is taking into my problem. I find it difficult to keep the “North Star” in mind.

@callumflack Huh. Why do you treat plans and goals with disdain? Did Scott Adams get you with his "Systems, not Goals" thing? I have a half-draft of a rebuttal to that. (In which I argue "both", not "goals, not systems")

Dec 20, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Eliezer Yudkowsky ⏹️ @ESYudkowsky · Dec 20, 2018

(The original was about utter alignment failure of a superintelligence leading to a utility function that from our perspective seems randomly-rolled, whose maximum utility per gram happens to be tiny molecular structures resembling a paperclip.)

@ESYudkowsky Meanwhile, I recently learned that the French word for "paperclip" is "trombone" (they look similar!) and I'm just imagining a French article talking about "un maximiseur de trombone". (Trombone is also the instrument in French) Oh man, and google yields a few results for this:

Dec 20, 2018 4 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Eliezer Yudkowsky ⏹️ @ESYudkowsky · Dec 20, 2018

Law of Viral Inaccuracy: There are more ways to misunderstand a thing than to understand it correctly, so the most viral form is probably inside the erroneous set. Your most widely known idea will be distorted. The story about you that the most people have heard will be false.

@ESYudkowsky Which raises the question of to what extent there are ways to design ones memes so that they tend to degrade harmlessly or lose association with you as they do. Or try calling your next law the Law Of You Don't Actually Know What I Meant By This. What could possibly go wrong...?

Dec 20, 2018 9 likes 0 RTs

Replying to •Freyja• @utotranslucence · Dec 21, 2018

‘There are people who prefer to say ‘Yes’, and there are people who prefer to say ‘No’. Those who say ‘Yes’ are rewarded by the adventures they have, and those who say ‘No’ are rewarded by the safety they attain. There are far more ‘No’ sayers around than ‘Yes’ sayers.’ Impro

@autotrnslucence Fyeah Impro. I've recently been reading a book called Improvise by Mick Napier, that has a lot of good stuff in it as well.

Dec 21, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Jason Snyder @cognazor · Dec 21, 2018

Be careful when you think that you've been 'woke' or 'red-pilled' to something. It is at this time that you are the most vulnerable to being manipulated by something else that you don't understand.

@cognazor Also this: (from @algekalipso qualiacomputing.com/2018/12/18/the…)

Dec 22, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Patrick McKenzie @patio11 · Dec 21, 2018

I know this is controversial but this feels like an unalloyed good thing, and is forcing wage increases on the retail businesses to retain the folks who don’t switch, apparently.

@patio11 Huh, kind of like how guaranteed minimum income would force wages to rise on jobs nobody wants to do.

Dec 22, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Jason Snyder @cognazor · Dec 22, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @algekalipso Like, what if you take 4 blue pills in a row and only then take the 'delusional' red pill. How can we ever be certain that we are taking the original red pill. We can't , which is super lolololol

@cognazor @algekalipso Maybe the answer is "don't try to get your paradigm from pills" 🙃 Although then there's

Tiago Forte @fortelabs · Dec 13, 2018

I’m convinced that future productivity will center around mind altering substances for focus, unlearning, healing, and ideation. Working without them will be like running with your feet tied together. I predict the rise of a Psychedelic Elite who knows how to use them effectively

Dec 22, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Kevin Kwok @kevinakwok · Dec 23, 2018

@patio11 It's funny. I have emojis with some people we've adopted to mean this. Specifically 👯‍♀️ and 😐

@kevinakwok @patio11 The first one seems like "twins"... what's the second??

Dec 23, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

@ben_adeola @Denis_Tatone @SteveStuWill

Helen Dale (not on your team, but always fair) @_HelenDale · Dec 16, 2018

Starling murmurations (common in Italy & Spain) give you an idea why the Romans based much of their augury on the flight of birds. Watching one is almost a religious experience.

[video]

Dec 23, 2018 11 likes 3 RTs

Replying to Jon Bratseth @jonbratseth · Dec 24, 2018

@kevinakwok @Malcolm_Ocean @patio11 ... perfectly balanced?

@jonbratseth @kevinakwok @patio11 Teeter-totter! 😐 looks like a teeter-totter!

Dec 24, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Visakan Veerasamy @visakanv · Nov 26, 2018

Hey real talk: The memes have been trash for like 6 months. What’s going on? “Don’t say it” = trash. “Ladies, if he’s...” = trash. For context, all of these (as well as the American Chopper one) were from March this year

[3 more photos]

@visakanv I really liked this "Ladies if he", but yeah, just tried looking for more and they all become obviously-not-about-a-person-at-all too soon, or they're just about some specific person.

Matti Palli 🧙‍♂️ @tritlo · Nov 26, 2018

Ladies, if he: - complains that you're not his type - keeps his values in a box - is really lazy - doesn't do anything unless you force him - avoids success at all costs He's not your man. He's the programming language Haskell.

Dec 24, 2018 3 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Lars @chaoticIars · Dec 24, 2018

@MimeticValue Like with Capitalism, it's possible to point out all the flaws while acknowledging that for the moment, it's the best we've got. As we concluded in our recent convo, there is so much we don't understand about IQ, but we'll keep it until we come up with something better.

@Lars_Kessler @MimeticValue This article makes a good case for reframing many of these tests as mostly measuring The Desire To Pass Tests: hotelconcierge.tumblr.com/post/113360634… Implies that this quotient is less relevant in contexts that aren't about passing tests, which might include business & innovation.

Dec 25, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Lulie @reasonisfun · Dec 27, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean Mental discomfort *is* a kind of coercion (suffering/unpleasantness), though. Always bad. It may sometimes be the least bad option. But it doesn't have the "it's part of the thing" feature that physical discomfort has.

@reasonisfun > it doesn't have the "it's part of the thing" feature that physical discomfort has." Maybe—citation needed. Seems possible (some kinds of) learning require discomfort. We've got too few shared terms to have this twitter discussion I think. Unpleasantness ≠ coercion. 💩stinks.

Dec 28, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to @soundofcrunchy

@HarmonicTension 🎧 = Tiara of Sound 🕰 = Keeper of Time 🖨 = Realizor of Document 🖍 = Destroyer of Walls 💳 = Carrier of Debt 📋 = Sign of Officialness 🎁 = Obligation of Gratitude

Dec 28, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Tiago Forte @fortelabs · Dec 28, 2018

The problem with “adding friction” to a bad habit to make it stop is, unless the habit is completely extinguished immediately, adding steps just builds more anticipation, which is the greatest form of reward

@fortelabs This. I recommend adding awareness instead: I can do what I want, but only consciously. (Described somewhat in this blog post: malcolmocean.com/2017/11/captai…)

Dec 28, 2018 3 likes 1 RT

Replying to Nathan Baschez @nbaschez · Dec 28, 2018

@reasonisfun Perhaps! You can use it now at …og.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com and it just saves the data locally on your phone. The best way to use it is to open in mobile safari and add it to your homescreen (then it functions mostly like an app)

@nbashaw @reasonisfun Wow, nice. Lmk if you've got a version you'd like promoted, as I'd love to link to it in the Captain's Log blog post :)

Dec 28, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Nathan Baschez @nbaschez · Dec 28, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @reasonisfun Thanks! Maybe I should polish this up and make it more broadly usable haha

@nbashaw @reasonisfun Start with just an MVP for yourself and anybody else who contacts you to say they're using it. I'm going to give it a shot myself :)

Dec 28, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

Replying to Adam Robbert @AE_Robbert · Dec 28, 2018

A question for the other Patreon account holders on here: Do you find that posting your content directly to Patreon matters to your supporters? I don't post anything there other than my basic overview stuff, but it looks like Patreon is becoming a blog platform unto itself.

@KnowledgEcology As a backer, I'm happy to manage how I follow people's content. I really appreciate when they use Patreon to share their experience of navigating the world of creating-for-an-audience, like @visakanv's recent musings on 2019 trajectory, which felt very private & personal.

Dec 28, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Visakan Veerasamy @visakanv · Dec 28, 2018

@Malcolm_Ocean @KnowledgEcology I find that the act of investment from my patrons inspires me to identify and articulate my tentative, uncertain thoughts about the creative process and the project management around it. If I tweeted those things my followers would probably find it to be distracting oversharing

@visakanv @KnowledgEcology > If I tweeted those things my followers would probably find it to be distracting oversharing This is an claim that I find myself thinking I wouldn't necessarily assume is true. I think it's often quite hard to know what people find interesting, & we often second-guess ourselves

Dec 28, 2018 1 like 0 RTs

@selfprime We are a way for the cosmos to touch itself.

Dec 28, 2018 1 like 1 RT

Replying to Lulie @reasonisfun · Dec 29, 2018

@PSTaylor13 Procrastination makes it harder to do this processing compared to postponement. Normally, procrastination (by this definition) has a counter-processing dynamic. Sometimes what people call 'procrastination' is secretly postponement (being denigrated).

@reasonisfun @PSTaylor13 Yeah eg structuredprocrastination.com describes a philosophy that's designed to harness the inner rebel for good. It's postponement in your model, but it benefits (for some people) from still being called procrastination. structuredprocrastination.com

Dec 31, 2018 0 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Devon ☀️ @devonzuegel · Dec 31, 2018

Remember when touchscreen phones first came out and tons of people (myself included) insisted "I could never give up tactile buttons!"?

@devonzuegel I wrote a long rant about what I think this is actually about. Phone keyboards seem to have become sufficiently consistent & fast that they work okay. Meanwhile other things (eg voice & gesture control) are in the grey area. malcolmocean.com/2015/12/interf…

Dec 31, 2018 2 likes 0 RTs

Replying to Mason @webdevMason · Dec 21, 2018

Guys! Help me out by throwing in a few titles for a How to Human 101 booklist? 📚 @patio11 @patrickc @tommycollison @ericweinstein @rivatez @TheAnnaGat @ESYudkowsky @sknthla @AustenAllred @david_perell @Altimor @sentientist @danielgross @juliagalef @devonzuegel @visakanv

quoting @webdevMason: @AndreTI I'm highly confident that if a person read just one really good book per week, every week, for four years, they'd be a dramatically more useful and interesting person than the typical college grad.

@webdevMason @patio11 @patrickc @tommycollison @EricRWeinstein @rivatez @TheAnnaGat @ESYudkowsky @sknthla @AustenAllred @david_perell @Altimor @sentientist @danielgross @juliagalef @devonzuegel @visakanv • The Guru Papers (deep stuff about internalized authoritarianism) • Trying Not To Try (solid intro/history of the Dao) • The Beginning of Infinity by David Deutsch • Island by Huxley • something about Perceptual Control Theory. Not sure what yet; might depend on the person

Dec 31, 2018 4 likes 1 RT