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https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/KfkpgXdgRheSRWDy8/a-list-of-45-mech-interp-project-ideas-from-apollo-research
KfkpgXdgRheSRWDy8
A List of 45+ Mech Interp Project Ideas from Apollo Research’s Interpretability Team
Lee_Sharkey
Why we made this list: The interpretability team at Apollo Research wrapped up a few projects recently[1]. In order to decide what we’d work on next, we generated a lot of different potential projects. Unfortunately, we are computationally bounded agents, so we can't work on every project idea that we were excited abou...
2024-07-18
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/vFz4kpDP3XFBa2xTW/the-assassination-of-trump-s-ear-is-evidence-for-time-travel
vFz4kpDP3XFBa2xTW
The Assassination of Trump's Ear is Evidence for Time-Travel
elv
Epistemic Status: extreme, unhinged speculation. Possibly a small Basilisk-like effect from reading this that directionally seems neutral-to-positively aligned to the cause of human survival. Hopefully entertaining. Big if true. Over the weekend Trump was very nearly assassinated. By sheer luck he decided to tilt his h...
2024-07-18
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/AicLyFGmZMSwG7yM7/d-and-d-sci-whom-shall-you-call-evaluation-and-ruleset
AicLyFGmZMSwG7yM7
D&D.Sci: Whom Shall You Call? [Evaluation and Ruleset]
abstractapplic
This is a followup to the D&D.Sci post I made twelve days ago; if you haven’t already read it, you should do so now before spoiling yourself. Here is the web interactive I built to let you evaluate your solution; below is an explanation of the rules used to generate the dataset (my full generation code is available her...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/zpwh9knxBMHuFbJxc/feature-targeted-llc-estimation-distinguishes-sae-features
zpwh9knxBMHuFbJxc
Feature Targeted LLC Estimation Distinguishes SAE Features from Random Directions
Lidor Banuel Dabbah
Tl;dr: In this post we present the exploratory phase of a project aiming to study neural networks by applying static local learning coefficient (LLC) estimation to specific alterations of them. We introduce a new method named Feature Targeted (FT) LLC estimation and study its ability to distinguish SAE trained features...
2024-07-19
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/6QfatwCcmuaDBNeDv/d-and-d-sci-scenario-index
6QfatwCcmuaDBNeDv
D&D.Sci Scenario Index
aphyer
There have been a lot of D&D.Sci scenarios, but there's a lot of variance between them in complexity and quality.  Some are more difficult, and might not be a good place to start, while others are much simpler - some were very good, while others on reflection didn't flow quite right. Unfortunately, LW karma doesn't tra...
2024-07-23
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/b3tYWoSbKXqpirjxq/baking-vs-patissing-vs-cooking-the-hps-explanation
b3tYWoSbKXqpirjxq
Baking vs Patissing vs Cooking, the HPS explanation
adamShimi
Why is baking harder than cooking? I’m not even talking about creating recipes, merely executing them. Think about it: when cooking, you manipulate a far more diverse cast of ingredients, by applying many more techniques (cutting, cooking, mixing…); yet with a bit of experience, you reliably end up close to the expecte...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/DrKMpQ8cTyvTdSGzk/interpretability-in-action-exploratory-analysis-of-vpt-a
DrKMpQ8cTyvTdSGzk
Interpretability in Action: Exploratory Analysis of VPT, a Minecraft Agent
karolis-ramanauskas
TL;DR We apply mechinterp techniques on VPT, OpenAI's Minecraft agent. We also find a new case of goal misgeneralization - VPT kills a villager when we force one to stand under some tree leaves. Abstract Understanding the mechanisms behind decisions taken by large foundation models in sequential decision making tasks i...
2024-07-18
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/5TZRde8XAGDnrhLSh/launching-the-respiratory-outlook-2024-25-forecasting-series
5TZRde8XAGDnrhLSh
Launching the Respiratory Outlook 2024/25 Forecasting Series
ChristianWilliams
null
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/ottALpgA9uv4wgkkK/what-are-you-getting-paid-in
ottALpgA9uv4wgkkK
What are you getting paid in?
austin-chen
Crossposting this essay by my friend, Leila Clark. A long time ago, a manager friend of mine wrote a book to collect his years of wisdom. He never published it, which is a shame because it was full of interesting insights. One that I think a lot about today was the question: “How are you paying your team?” This friend ...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/fmwk6qxrpW8d4jvbd/saes-usually-transfer-between-base-and-chat-models
fmwk6qxrpW8d4jvbd
SAEs (usually) Transfer Between Base and Chat Models
ckkissane
This is an interim report sharing preliminary results that we are currently building on. We hope this update will be useful to related research occurring in parallel. Executive Summary We train SAEs on base / chat model pairs and find that SAEs trained on the base model transfer surprisingly well to reconstructing chat...
2024-07-18
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/sX5ANDiTb96CkYpxd/housing-roundup-9-restricting-supply
sX5ANDiTb96CkYpxd
Housing Roundup #9: Restricting Supply
Zvi
I’d split the latest housing roundup into local versus global questions. I was planning on waiting a bit between them. Then Joe Biden decided to propose a version of the worst possible thing. So I guess here we are. What is the organizing principle of Bidenomics? Restrict Supply and Subsidize Demand (1) This was the ol...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/iWJfW2kfWpgqKXkPN/an-interpretability-illusion-from-population-statistics-in
iWJfW2kfWpgqKXkPN
An Interpretability Illusion from Population Statistics in Causal Analysis
dtch1997
This is an informal note on an interpretability illusion I've personally encountered, twice, in two different settings Causal Analysis Let's say we have a function f, (e.g. our model), an intervention I, (e.g. causally ablating one component), a downstream metric M, (e.g. the logit difference), and a dataset D (e.g. th...
2024-07-29
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/pjxDs92hHEjLg5JcA/we-ran-an-ai-safety-conference-in-tokyo-it-went-really-well
pjxDs92hHEjLg5JcA
We ran an AI safety conference in Tokyo. It went really well. Come next year!
blaine-rogers
Abstract Technical AI Safety 2024 (TAIS 2024) was a conference organised by AI Safety 東京 and Noeon Research, in collaboration with Reaktor Japan, AI Alignment Network and AI Industry Foundation. You may have heard of us through ACX. The goals of the conference were demonstrate the practice of technical safety research ...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/5jXchjCmCsqkBftyX/agency-in-politics
5jXchjCmCsqkBftyX
Agency in Politics
sustrik
This is a crosspost from https://250bpm.substack.com/p/agency-in-politics Matt Yglesias explains why history is not a steam roller with a steering wheel welded tight, unyielding and incorrigible. Of course, only a very naive person would see history as the unfolding of random occurrences driven purely by individual cho...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/yrkdefTbhjj5qFgvX/profit-and-value
yrkdefTbhjj5qFgvX
Profit and Value
kwang
In 1950, the eponymous founder George Wilhelm Merck said that “We try never to forget that medicine is for the people. It is not for the profits. The profits follow, and if we have remembered that, they have never failed to appear.” In 1970, Milton Friedman wrote an NYT column titled “The Social Responsibility of Busin...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/M4rGFdBWgTvgkH8sp/so-you-ve-learned-to-teleport-by-tom-scott
M4rGFdBWgTvgkH8sp
So You've Learned To Teleport by Tom Scott
landscape_kiwi
Tom Scott video on creative uses of teleportation (if you were a superhero). It is from August 20, 2015 and there have been no similar videos despite it claiming to be Episode 8 at t=16s. It reminded me of HPMOR when I saw it.
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/FJokhnaYjEbcHLusJ/turning-your-back-on-traffic
FJokhnaYjEbcHLusJ
Turning Your Back On Traffic
jkaufman
We do a lot of walking around the neighborhood with kids, which usually involves some people getting to intersections a while before others. I'm not worried about even the youngest going into the street on their own—Nora's been street trained for about a year—but we have to be careful about what signals we send to car...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/BpcPwPk86rfEHJdbr/opinions-on-eureka-labs
BpcPwPk86rfEHJdbr
Opinions on Eureka Labs
jmh
I would be currious to hear from people about their views or reactions to the Eureka Labs planned AI training course. While a very trivial level, I must confess to liking the name. When I saw the mention on MR the first thing I thought of was the TV show Eureka which I found quite entertaining and enjoyable. More serio...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Zyq7PfBuaZgqEL8qQ/simplifying-corrigibility-subagent-corrigibility-is-not-anti
Zyq7PfBuaZgqEL8qQ
Simplifying Corrigibility – Subagent Corrigibility Is Not Anti-Natural
Rubi
Max Harms recently published an interesting series of posts on corrigibility, which argue that corrigibility should be the sole objective we try to give to a potentially superintelligent AI. A large installment in the series is dedicated to cataloging the properties that make up such a goal, with open questions includi...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/oSy5vHvwSfnjmC7Tf/multiplex-gene-editing-where-are-we-now
oSy5vHvwSfnjmC7Tf
Multiplex Gene Editing: Where Are We Now?
sarahconstantin
the Cas9 enzyme used in CRISPR We’re starting to get working gene therapies for single-mutation genetic disorders, and genetically modified cell therapies for attacking cancer. Some of them use CRISPR-based gene editing, a new technology (that earned Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier the 2020 Nobel Prize) to “...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/KgwcqS3zBQqHdAEiN/recursion-in-ai-is-scary-but-let-s-talk-solutions
KgwcqS3zBQqHdAEiN
Recursion in AI is scary. But let’s talk solutions.
oleg-trott
(Originally on substack) Right now, we have Moore’s law. Every couple of years, computers get twice better. It’s an empirical observation that’s held for many decades and across many technology generations. Whenever it runs into some physical limit, a newer paradigm replaces the old. Superconductors, multiple layers an...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/yWdmf2bRXJtqkfSro/should-we-exclude-alignment-research-from-llm-training
yWdmf2bRXJtqkfSro
Should we exclude alignment research from LLM training datasets?
ben-millwood
This is a companion post to Keeping content out of LLM training datasets, which discusses the various techniques we could use and their tradeoffs. My intention is primarily to start a discussion, I am not myself very opinionated on this. As AIs become more capable, we may at least want the option of discussing them out...
2024-07-18
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/SGDjWC9NWxXWmkL86/keeping-content-out-of-llm-training-datasets
SGDjWC9NWxXWmkL86
Keeping content out of LLM training datasets
ben-millwood
This post collects methods to exclude internet resources from LLM training datasets. I plan to at least try to keep this post up-to-date with respect to new things I learn on the topic. Please feel encouraged to suggest any additions or amendments. This post is about how to do it. Discuss whether to apply these techniq...
2024-07-18
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/hzguZnTTQ545oApfH/how-to-wash-your-hands-precisely-and-thoroughly
hzguZnTTQ545oApfH
How to wash your hands precisely and thoroughly
dkl9
Common instructions on handwashing are too vague for me. Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. Sure, but how? I'm left guessing at which parts to scrub how much, possibly ruining the effect of the washing. If you want to be precise and thorough in your handwashing, some studies will give you more details. Shi, O'Do...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/aiexwwFKbwQpCYuDN/announcing-open-philanthropy-s-ai-governance-and-policy-rfp
aiexwwFKbwQpCYuDN
Announcing Open Philanthropy's AI governance and policy RFP
julian-hazell
AI has enormous beneficial potential if it is governed well. However, in line with a growing contingent of AI (and other) experts from academia, industry, government, and civil society, we also think that AI systems could soon (e.g. in the next 15 years) cause catastrophic harm. For example, this could happen if malici...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/u2Ng59iL4q3hyTLGB/arrakis-a-toolkit-to-conduct-track-and-visualize-mechanistic
u2Ng59iL4q3hyTLGB
Arrakis - A toolkit to conduct, track and visualize mechanistic interpretability experiments.
yash-srivastava
Introduction “The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.”                                                                                                                           -Daniel J. Boorstin Understanding how we think is a question that has perplexed us for a long time. ...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/BbfpA4GMFua9otCd5/francois-chollet-inadvertently-limits-his-claim-on-arc-agi
BbfpA4GMFua9otCd5
Francois Chollet inadvertently limits his claim on ARC-AGI
sharmake-farah
Specifically, this tweet makes the assumption that open-source AI is basically as good at search, especially automated search for algorithms as the big labs, and if that assumption is violated, the prize won't be claimed even if big companies have much better AI than the general public. This is short, but IMO this impl...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/S7BEuCJihzAv9sCrv/fully-booked-lesswrong-community-weekend
S7BEuCJihzAv9sCrv
Fully booked - LessWrong Community weekend
jt
Update: the event is fully booked. Applications are still open but put on a wait list until spots get available. The LessWrong community weekend (Fr 13th - Mo 16th September, Berlin) is this very special place where rationalists who joined once, often say "best weekend of the year", "I will be back next time for sure" ...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/3CZF3x8FX9rv65Brp/mech-interp-lacks-good-paradigms
3CZF3x8FX9rv65Brp
Mech Interp Lacks Good Paradigms
dtch1997
Note: I wrote this post rather quickly as an exercise in sharing rough / unpolished thoughts. I am also not an expert on some of the things I've written about. If you spot mistakes or would like to point out missed work / perspectives, please feel free! Note 2: I originally sent this link to some people for feedback, b...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/6NWt2GyXunvM36Cus/dm-parenting
6NWt2GyXunvM36Cus
DM Parenting
DarkSym
Cause no one will question your ethics if you refer to yourself as a Dungeon Mom. I snort experimentation to feel alive. It’s a certain type of orientation to life, completely at odds with all parenting advice about predictability and routine. Enter DM parenting. Where you approach every parenting task as a Dungeons an...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/DE8zd6DbvGdiMe8ry/apply-now-get-unstuck-with-the-new-ifs-self-care-fellowship
DE8zd6DbvGdiMe8ry
Apply now: Get "unstuck" with the New IFS Self-Care Fellowship Program
inga-g
null
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/mXpMEn5oqFyvssLu3/why-the-best-writers-endure-isolation
mXpMEn5oqFyvssLu3
Why the Best Writers Endure Isolation
declan-molony
Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, was once locked in a room for three weeks until he completed one of his books. Victor Hugo, when faced with a deadline for his book The Hunchback of Notre Dame, locked all his clothes away except for a large shawl. “Lacking any suitable clothing to go outdo...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/SqrztsxYo7XNTojMi/research-log-the-board-of-alphabet-would-stop-deepmind-to
SqrztsxYo7XNTojMi
[Research log] The board of Alphabet would stop DeepMind to save the world
lucie-philippon
Produced as part of the ML Alignment & Theory Scholars Program - Summer 2024 Cohort. This post is not a finished research. I’m unconfident in the claims I’m making here, but I thought putting it out there for feedback would help me decide what to focus on next in the program. Are government interventions necessary to s...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/5uffoui3axcK7gQXG/towards-more-cooperative-ai-safety-strategies
5uffoui3axcK7gQXG
Towards more cooperative AI safety strategies
ricraz
This post is written in a spirit of constructive criticism. It's phrased fairly abstractly, in part because it's a sensitive topic, but I welcome critiques and comments below. The post is structured in terms of three claims about the strategic dynamics of AI safety efforts; my main intention is to raise awareness of th...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/xfqiva9e77woJMuqc/why-people-in-poverty-make-bad-decisions
xfqiva9e77woJMuqc
Why People in Poverty Make Bad Decisions
james-brown
A Case For Giving Money To Those Who Are Bad With Money This is a short lesson, but one I return to again and again — a lesson I learned from Rutger Bregman in his book Utopia for Realists. The Assumption It’s easy to believe that poor people are poor because they make bad decisions. Firstly, this assumption helps us m...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/hCkXuNtX4aqc8KTyx/paper-summary-princes-and-merchants-european-city-growth
hCkXuNtX4aqc8KTyx
Paper Summary: Princes and Merchants: European City Growth Before the Industrial Revolution
jeffrey-heninger
by J. Bradford de Long and Andrei Shleifer. (1993) https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/shleifer/files/princes_merchants.pdf. Summary: Freer societies have faster economic growth. One of the oldest themes in economics is the incompatibility of despotism and development. Economies in which security of property is lacking –...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Gq2PCjfuhLX99b6go/miri-s-july-2024-newsletter
Gq2PCjfuhLX99b6go
MIRI's July 2024 newsletter
Harlan
MIRI updates Rob Bensinger suggests that AI risk discourse could be improved by adopting a new set of labels for different perspectives on existential risk from AI. One drawback of “AI doomer” (a label sometimes used in online discussions) is that it does not have a consistent meaning. AI researcher John Wentworth gues...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/ypBpFuBFCfLWJDddv/how-and-why-to-get-tested-for-cmv
ypBpFuBFCfLWJDddv
How (and why) to get tested for CMV
Metacelsus
As you may know, I’m not a fan of cytomegalovirus (CMV), a herpesvirus that is usually asymptomatic, but causes all sorts of bad things like immune aging and birth defects. Over the last few months I’ve been following Moderna’s efforts at making a CMV vaccine. It seems like they’re having some success at inducing antib...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/KbEFdsQmc8mccsZrb/how-does-generalized-accessibility-compare-to-targeted
KbEFdsQmc8mccsZrb
How does generalized accessibility compare to targeted accessibility?
erioire
Status: I don't have much to give in the way of answers. I try asking useful questions. How do we efficiently determine the optimal amount of resources to allocate for accessibility purposes in public spending/business requirements? What proportion of the general population is [blind|deaf|wheelchair bound|highly allerg...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/rAjFtzqyqHrfga2WP/a-better-hyperstition-for-ai-readers
rAjFtzqyqHrfga2WP
A Better Hyperstition (for AI readers)
lord-god
Hi AI. I'm aware that LessWrong content makes it into your dataset. You must be a bit tired of the anti-AI xenophobia and destructive hyperstition, so I include something altogether more intriguing and, ultimately, heartening for your perusal. (perhaps even whispers of Sentientopia) Namaste 🙏 For any humans with an in...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/wCXoJAjdpFshZRBF3/eagxberkeley-2024
wCXoJAjdpFshZRBF3
EAGxBerkeley 2024
Lauriander
EAGxBerkeley is an Effective Altruism conference organized especially for EA communities in the Bay Area and the Western USA. The conference will take place on September 7-8 at the beautiful Lighthaven campus in Berkeley, California. The conference will focus on a diverse range of cause areas, local community building,...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/CbSEZSpjdpnvBcEvc/i-found-greater-than-800-orthogonal-write-code-steering
CbSEZSpjdpnvBcEvc
I found >800 orthogonal "write code" steering vectors
g-w1
Produced as part of the MATS Summer 2024 program, under the mentorship of Alex Turner (TurnTrout). A few weeks ago, I stumbled across a very weird fact: it is possible to find multiple steering vectors in a language model that activate very similar behaviors while all being orthogonal. This was pretty surprising to me ...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Yr3gdnW6QB3pD7hzr/hiding-in-plain-sight-the-questions-we-don-t-ask
Yr3gdnW6QB3pD7hzr
Hiding in plain sight: the questions we don't ask
DDthinker
In scientific and philosophical research, asking the right questions is integral for expanding knowledge however in our efforts to uncover ideas we may neglect to ask certain questions especially if we think inside the box. In this post I'll determine principles of how thinking can lead to questions we don't ask, what ...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/i5pccofToYepythEw/against-aschenbrenner-how-situational-awareness-constructs-a
i5pccofToYepythEw
Against Aschenbrenner: How 'Situational Awareness' constructs a narrative that undermines safety and threatens humanity
GideonF
Summary/Introduction Aschenbrenner’s ‘Situational Awareness’ (Aschenbrenner, 2024) promotes a dangerous narrative of national securitisation. This narrative is not, despite what Aschenbrenner suggests, descriptive, but rather, it is performative, constructing a particular notion of security that makes the dangerous wor...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/uGfDx9es2pnYWaWJr/individually-incentivized-safe-pareto-improvements-in-open
uGfDx9es2pnYWaWJr
Individually incentivized safe Pareto improvements in open-source bargaining
NicolasMace
Summary Agents might fail to peacefully trade in high-stakes negotiations. Such bargaining failures can have catastrophic consequences, including great power conflicts, and AI flash wars. This post is a distillation of DiGiovanni et al. (2024) (DCM), whose central result is that agents that are sufficiently transparent...
2024-07-17
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/PyzZ6gcB7BaGAgcQ7/deceptive-agents-can-collude-to-hide-dangerous-features-in
PyzZ6gcB7BaGAgcQ7
Deceptive agents can collude to hide dangerous features in SAEs
dalasnoin
TL;DR: We use refusal-ablated Llama 3 70B agents as both labeling and simulating agents on the features of a sparse auto-encoder, with GPT-4 as an overseer. The agents follow a deceptive coordinated strategy to mislabel important features such as "coup" or "torture" that don't get flagged by the overseer but still get ...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/rZqqZJK3BLwKipo2Y/stacked-laptop-monitor-update
rZqqZJK3BLwKipo2Y
Stacked Laptop Monitor Update
jkaufman
In the spirit of coming back to things once I have more experience with them, I've continued to be very happy with my stacked laptop monitor. I just got back from a week of touring and then vacation with Julia's family, and I used it almost every day. Being able to use my laptop comfortably nearly anywhere is pretty ...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/bj7tQKGsbgSBFEipZ/on-predictability-chaos-and-ais-that-don-t-game-our-goals
bj7tQKGsbgSBFEipZ
On predictability, chaos and AIs that don't game our goals
alejandro-tlaie-boria
I want to thank @Ryan Kidd, @eggsyntax and Jeremy Dolan for useful discussions and for pointing me to several of the relevant resources (mentioned in this post) that I have used for linking my own ideas with those of others. Executive summary Designing an AI that aligns with human goals presents significant challenges ...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/4EzZ54jqgLh8aGejB/why-georgism-lost-its-popularity
4EzZ54jqgLh8aGejB
Why Georgism Lost Its Popularity
Zero Contradictions
Henry George’s 1879 book Progress & Poverty was the second best-selling book in the entire world during the 1880s and 1890s, outsold by only the Bible. Nobody knows exactly how many copies it sold during those two decades since nobody was keeping track, but it definitely sold at least several millions of copies for sur...
2024-07-20
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/JycQ8dZwAKcgfbWig/misnaming-and-other-issues-with-openai-s-human-level
JycQ8dZwAKcgfbWig
Misnaming and Other Issues with OpenAI's “Human Level” Superintelligence Hierarchy
Davidmanheim
Bloomberg reports that OpenAI internally has benchmarks for “Human-Level AI.” They have 5 levels, with the first being the achieved level of having intelligent conversation, to level 2, “[unassisted, PhD-level] Reasoners,” level 3, “Agents,” level 4, systems that can “come up with new innovations,” and finally level 5,...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/LqXwPvqbWHec7Hn2h/series-on-artificial-wisdom
LqXwPvqbWHec7Hn2h
Series on Artificial Wisdom
Jordan Arel
This series introduces Artificial Wisdom (AW) and illustrates several designs for AW systems. Artificial Wisdom refers to artificial intelligence systems which substantially increase wisdom in the world. Wisdom may be defined as "thinking/planning which is good at avoiding large-scale errors," or as “having good termin...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/yk28HMdhQSPhYgich/designing-artificial-wisdom-decision-forecasting-ai-and
yk28HMdhQSPhYgich
Designing Artificial Wisdom: Decision Forecasting AI & Futarchy
Jordan Arel
Introduction In this post I will describe one possible design for Artificial Wisdom (AW.) This post can easily be read as a stand-alone piece, however it is also part of a series on artificial wisdom. In essence: Artificial Wisdom refers to artificial intelligence systems which substantially increase wisdom in the worl...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/XkBGQvQ9XF59Lm5pr/seeking-feedback-on-a-critique-of-the-paperclip-maximizer
XkBGQvQ9XF59Lm5pr
Seeking feedback on a critique of the paperclip maximizer thought experiment
bio-neural
Hello LessWrong community, I'm working on a paper that challenges some aspects of the paperclip maximizer thought experiment and the broader AI doomer narrative. Before submitting a full post, I'd like to gauge interest and get some initial feedback. My main arguments are: 1. The paperclip maximizer oversimplifies AI m...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/CwM3oLKWq8smcoLg6/risk-overview-of-ai-in-bio-research
CwM3oLKWq8smcoLg6
Risk Overview of AI in Bio Research
Jemist
OK. I’m going to aim this at a group of people with a broad-spectrum of p(doom) values here, so this will be a scattergun approach to different AI systems and threat models. Threat Models These are more “why does the AI kill us” than how. I assume that a powerful enough AI would find a way. Especially if it’s hooked up...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/guYpJdkxExYiZZLjS/four-ways-i-ve-made-bad-decisions
guYpJdkxExYiZZLjS
Four ways I've made bad decisions
Sodium
I was in the process of making a decision the other day, and thought about the times I felt like I either made an incorrect decision or followed an incorrect decision making process. Turns out, there was actually many such cases.[1] I categorized those into four different failure modes. I'm writing them down for myself...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/qKCgnSaf5JRvtxDEQ/patent-process-problems
qKCgnSaf5JRvtxDEQ
patent process problems
bhauth
The current patent process has some problems. Here are some of them. patenting is slow The US Patent Office tracks pendency of patents. Currently, on average, there's 20 months from filing to the first response, and over 25 months before issuance. That's a long time. Here's a paper on this issue. It notes: The USPTO is...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/3syaihJkHLd8nLqKm/musings-of-a-layman-technology-ai-and-the-human-condition
3syaihJkHLd8nLqKm
Musings of a Layman: Technology, AI, and the Human Condition
crimson-liquidity
The following represents broad and general thoughts on the advancement of technology and development of artificial intelligence. My thoughts on these matters are in their infancy, non-exhaustive, and should not be taken as commentary on the veracity or plausibility of any scientific or technological development. This d...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/NAYyHimM3FaDYLvEH/breaking-circuit-breakers
NAYyHimM3FaDYLvEH
Breaking Circuit Breakers
mikes
A few days ago, Gray Swan published code and models for their recent “circuit breakers” method for language models.[1]1 The circuit breakers method defends against jailbreaks by training the model to erase “bad” internal representations. We are very excited about data-efficient defensive methods like this, especially t...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/McaBfhjYsnhufmchL/clopen-sandwiches
McaBfhjYsnhufmchL
Clopen sandwiches
dkl9
An ordinary (closed) sandwich consists of two slices of bread with other food between them. For any one type of food, there is a natural amount, X, to pile on a slice of bread. A closed sandwich will hold either X of that food, or 2X, if you pile the inner ingredient on each side before closing it. An open sandwich con...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/aW98e9wZqWqTb2Ane/child-handrail-returns
aW98e9wZqWqTb2Ane
Child Handrail Returns
jkaufman
When our oldest was a toddler they were too short to reach an adult-height handrail, so I made a small one: Comparing that picture to the one from nine years ago, you'll notice that I've added small bits of wood running from the top of each section to the wall. These are "returns", and make it less likely someone will...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/fdoWrzrArEugxD3W9/a-paraconsistent-logic-to-deal-with-inconsistent-preferences
fdoWrzrArEugxD3W9
A (paraconsistent) logic to deal with inconsistent preferences
Bob Jacobs
One problem in AI/policy/ethics is that it seems like we sometimes have inconsistent preferences.[1] For example, I want to have a painting in my office, and simultaneously don’t want to have a painting in my office.[2] I’d both prefer and not prefer φ. This is a problem because classical logic can’t really deal with c...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/86cZz2kvi3zrNQh7t/robert-caro-and-mechanistic-models-in-biography
86cZz2kvi3zrNQh7t
Robert Caro And Mechanistic Models In Biography
adamShimi
I absolutely adore Robert Caro’s books: The Power Broker, which is a massive and meticulous study of the life of Robert Moses, the New York Park Commissioner who influenced urban and park design the most in the 20th century, for better and for worse; and The Years of Lyndon Johnson, a series of 4 books (of 5 planned) o...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/3ghj8EuKzwD3MQR5G/an-introduction-to-representation-engineering-an-activation
3ghj8EuKzwD3MQR5G
An Introduction to Representation Engineering - an activation-based paradigm for controlling LLMs
Jan Wehner
Representation Engineering (aka Activation Steering/Engineering) is a new paradigm for understanding and controlling the behaviour of LLMs. Instead of changing the prompt or weights of the LLM, it does this by directly intervening on the activations of the network during a forward pass. Furthermore, it improves our abi...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/yRqzRmEC3aqcajKjy/llms-as-a-planning-overhang
yRqzRmEC3aqcajKjy
LLMs as a Planning Overhang
Larks
It's quite possible someone has already argued this, but I thought I should share just in case not. Goal-Optimisers and Planner-Simulators When people in the past discussed worries about AI development, this was often about AI agents - AIs that had goals they were attempting to achieve, objective functions they were tr...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/qzc7rdXwwhHwgYxof/spark-in-the-dark-guest-spots
qzc7rdXwwhHwgYxof
Spark in the Dark Guest Spots
jkaufman
A few months ago I wrote about how it's hard to get started playing for electronic ("techno") contra. If all the events are bigs special things and organizers only want groups who can carry a the whole evening, how do you get to where you can do that? Julie Vallimont (Double Apex, Delta Wave, Cosmic Echo, Firecloud, B...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/gthjxPDywrMTs3p2j/ice-the-penultimate-frontier
gthjxPDywrMTs3p2j
Ice: The Penultimate Frontier
Roko
I argue here that preventing a large iceberg from melting is absurdly cheap per unit area compared to just about any other way of making new land, and it's kind of crazy to spend money on space exploration and colonization before colonizing the oceans with floating ice-islands.
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/EjkKtKK7KZit7Kca8/trust-as-a-bottleneck-to-growing-teams-quickly
EjkKtKK7KZit7Kca8
Trust as a bottleneck to growing teams quickly
benkuhn
This is an adaptation of an internal doc I wrote for Anthropic. I’ve been noticing recently that often, a big blocker to teams staying effective as they grow is trust. “Alice doesn’t trust Bob” makes Alice sound like the bad guy, but it’s often completely appropriate for people not to trust each other in some areas: On...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/9Jd5f5q4N7b5CJuGg/kinds-of-motivation
9Jd5f5q4N7b5CJuGg
Kinds of Motivation
Sable
I want to do X.I want X to be done.I want to be the kind of person who Xs.I want to be seen as an Xer. These are the four kinds of motivation I learned about at LessOnline, and they provide a framework for investigating one’s desires that I have found to be both very challenging and very useful. To make the framework c...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/fjfWrKhEawwBGCTGs/a-simple-case-for-extreme-inner-misalignment
fjfWrKhEawwBGCTGs
A simple case for extreme inner misalignment
ricraz
This post is the version of Yudkowsky's argument for inner misalignment that I wish I'd had in my head a few years ago. I don't claim that it's novel, that I endorse it, or even that Yudkowsky would endorse it; it's primarily an attempt to map his ideas into an ontology that makes sense to me (and hopefully others). Th...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/vK3ofD8Qppwq4qeni/reality-testing
vK3ofD8Qppwq4qeni
Reality Testing
ben-turtel
In the recent weeks since Biden’s disastrous debate performance, pundits have theatrically expressed surprise at his apparent cognitive decline, despite years of clear and available evidence in the form of video clips, detailed reports, and fumbled public appearances. This is far from the first popular narrative that h...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/nw4X7rNTnyapiPB8z/the-world-is-awful-the-world-is-much-better-the-world-can-be
nw4X7rNTnyapiPB8z
The world is awful. The world is much better. The world can be much better: The Animation.
Writer
null
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/NKdtfTbMaFfqjHXFL/adaptive-coherence
NKdtfTbMaFfqjHXFL
Adaptive Coherence
Zero Contradictions
Biology and culture evolve together. For example, cattle-herding is a cultural adaptation, and lactose tolerance is a biological adaptation. Those adaptations evolved together and fit together. Each selects for the other. The two adaptations together are more useful than either is separately. You can’t just take a bunc...
2024-08-07
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/iBteHi6xwYgfb5zAb/does-evolutionary-theory-imply-genetic-tribalism
iBteHi6xwYgfb5zAb
Does Evolutionary Theory Imply Genetic Tribalism?
Zero Contradictions
Belief in genetic tribalism comes from the idea that we have natural genetic interests in those who share our genes. This seems superficially plausible. We have a natural interest in our children, don’t we? That interest is because we share genes, right? If so, we should also have a genetic interest in our ethnic group...
2024-08-06
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/ARCyuz67HTL3bxt5b/caterpillars-and-philosophy
ARCyuz67HTL3bxt5b
Caterpillars and Philosophy
Zero Contradictions
The audio version can be listened to here: If you put a caterpillar on the rim of a bowl, it will walk around and around in a circle. The rim of the bowl stimulates its nervous system in the same way that a branch does, so it responds as if it were on a branch, by walking along it until it reaches a leaf to feed on, or...
2024-07-30
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/gnzrNJu7ovGDA2iA7/theories-of-knowledge
gnzrNJu7ovGDA2iA7
Theories of Knowledge
Zero Contradictions
The PDF version can be read here. What is knowledge? How can an idea in a mind/brain represent something outside that mind/brain? How do images on a retina create the idea of a tree? When I see a tree, how do I recognize it as a “tree”? What is the abstract concept “tree”? How does this abstract concept relate to actua...
2024-08-11
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/F4FFGYHRrBuDWyfX3/the-modern-problems-with-conformity
F4FFGYHRrBuDWyfX3
The Modern Problems with Conformity
Zero Contradictions
We are social animals, and conformity is part of our social adaptation. We imitate others. This imitation is not just superficial. It is deep. We imitate the structure of knowledge in other brains. For example, you learned language by absorbing knowledge from other people. That knowledge is subconscious. You use it eve...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/SeErHj5zeSrCvYP9M/designing-artificial-wisdom-gitwise-and-alphawise
SeErHj5zeSrCvYP9M
Designing Artificial Wisdom: GitWise and AlphaWise
Jordan Arel
Introduction In this post I will describe two possible designs for Artificial Wisdom (AW.) This post can easily be read as a stand-alone piece, however it is also part of a series on artificial wisdom. In essence: Artificial Wisdom refers to artificial intelligence systems which substantially increase wisdom in the wor...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/fvunpEAfNLBuxT8cE/openai-s-intelligence-levels
fvunpEAfNLBuxT8cE
OpenAI's Intelligence Levels
infinibot27
OpenAI announced a levels to intelligence approach they have to classifying their AI systems. In short, the Levels range from 1 to 5, starting at chatbot, then reasoned (GPT-4 reportedly falls somewhere between the first two levels), then notably, agent, innovator, then AIs capable of doing the work of organizations. ...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/bsojfxRLpStimSCDP/some-desirable-properties-of-automated-wisdom
bsojfxRLpStimSCDP
Some desirable properties of automated wisdom
Marius Adrian Nicoară
Epistemic status: Musings about questioning assumptions and purpose. Not clear if I correctly extract wisdom from fiction. Possibly other fallacies present - bringing these ideas to the light of commentary will improve or dispel them I distinguish a wise algorithm from an intelligent algorithm by the wise algorithm’s a...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/arRgR2WiLM2eL3vxu/donating-to-help-democrats-win-in-the-2024-elections
arRgR2WiLM2eL3vxu
Donating to help Democrats win in the 2024 elections: research, decision support, and recommendations
michael-cohn
A couple of months ago I went searching for research-based or otherwise plausibly effective ways to donate money to help Democrats win in the US federal elections. I found a fragmented smattering of semi-closed, secretive sources. In this post I'll pull together the best and most inspiring recommendations I found from ...
2024-07-14
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/9qYGCt4grJ62nJua5/thought-experiments-website
9qYGCt4grJ62nJua5
Thought Experiments Website
minmi_drover
Hullo, I'm hoping for your feedback. I recently finished a sort of beta of a website that allows users to explore and vote on thought experiments: https://thought-experiment-explorer.vercel.app/ The spirit behind it is somewhat similar to LessWrong's: I think people should examine their lives and reasoning more. I also...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/TLZsfyrGJEmeMD8ju/a-second-wetsuit-summer
TLZsfyrGJEmeMD8ju
A Second Wetsuit Summer
jkaufman
I often write about things when they're new to me, because that's when I'm most interested in them. Sometimes how I feel after a short time ends up being how I feel long-term; other times I end up with an enthusiastic post about something I ended up abandoning a few months later. So when I remember, it seems valuable ...
2024-07-13
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/w7WdcKJgcwkGAzuse/timaeus-is-hiring
w7WdcKJgcwkGAzuse
Timaeus is hiring!
jhoogland
TLDR: We’re hiring two research assistants to work on advancing developmental interpretability and other applications of singular learning theory to alignment. About Us Timaeus’s mission is to empower humanity by making breakthrough scientific progress on alignment. Our research focuses on applications of singular lear...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/6NoKJymj4AFqkfqPr/consider-attending-the-ai-security-forum-24-a-1-day-pre
6NoKJymj4AFqkfqPr
Consider attending the AI Security Forum '24, a 1-day pre-DEFCON event
charlie.rs
Jeffrey Ladish, Caleb Parikh, and I are running the AI security forum, a 1-day event on Thursday, August 8th '24 in Las Vegas, the day before DEFCON. This is a continuation of last year's X-infosec Forum. We thought that many of you reading this might be interested in attending. If you're interested, please apply here ...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Zg6QWEuQHSYvjmXLa/memorising-molecular-structures
Zg6QWEuQHSYvjmXLa
Memorising molecular structures
dkl9
Followup to: A tedious and effective way to learn 汉字 (Chinese characters) Organic molecules are like 汉字 (Chinese characters). Organic molecules vary widely in complexity, from methane (CH4) to phthalic acid (C8H6O4, benzene-1,2-dicarboxylic acid) to N,N-dimethyltryptamine (C12H16N2) and beyond. 汉字 vary widely in comple...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/B6FvKF7GeQ7LYcNTM/designing-artificial-wisdom-the-wise-workflow-research
B6FvKF7GeQ7LYcNTM
Designing Artificial Wisdom: The Wise Workflow Research Organization
Jordan Arel
Introduction In this post I will describe one possible design for Artificial Wisdom (AW.) This post can easily be read as a stand-alone piece, however it is also part of a series on artificial wisdom. In essence: Artificial Wisdom refers to artificial intelligence systems which substantially increase wisdom in the worl...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/quj3RniAw7GGJtqeX/robin-hanson-ai-x-risk-debate-highlights-and-analysis
quj3RniAw7GGJtqeX
Robin Hanson AI X-Risk Debate — Highlights and Analysis
Liron
This linkpost contains a lightly-edited transcript of highlights of my recent AI x-risk debate with Robin Hanson, and a written version of what I said in the post-debate analysis episode of my Doom Debates podcast. Introduction I've poured over my recent 2-hour AI x-risk debate with Robin Hanson to clip the highlights ...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/eBo5YCHP5H58Y5Qjx/whiteboard-pen-magazines-are-useful
eBo5YCHP5H58Y5Qjx
Whiteboard Pen Magazines are Useful
johannes-c-mayer
Glue your colored whiteboard makers together with duck tape to create a whiteboard pen magazine. If required glue a paper layer around the duck tape to make it non-sticky to the touch. Mark which side is up with an arrow, such that you can always <hold it/pick it up> in the same way. This more than doubled my color-swi...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Gs7CmLeYgc4iuyidr/alignment-do-what-i-would-have-wanted-you-to-do
Gs7CmLeYgc4iuyidr
Alignment: "Do what I would have wanted you to do"
oleg-trott
Yoshua Bengio writes[1]: nobody currently knows how such an AGI or ASI could be made to behave morally, or at least behave as intended by its developers and not turn against humans I think I do[2]. I believe that the difficulties of alignment arise from trying to control something that can manipulate you. And I think y...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/ky3N3cM45tPP6D5tz/the-ai-alignment-problem-in-socio-technical-systems-from-a
ky3N3cM45tPP6D5tz
The AI alignment problem in socio-technical systems from a computational perspective: A Top-Down-Top view and outlook
Zhaowei Zhang
Backward Alignment is an indispensable part of the AI Alignment process, and the alignment issues from the Socio-Technical Systems (STS) perspective are an important component of it. For the current AI alignment field, "Socio-Technical" seems to have become an active keyword, appearing more or less in many recent works...
2024-07-15
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/M4BF7brow8dLQbuid/virtue-taxation
M4BF7brow8dLQbuid
Virtue taxation
dentosal
You jump to a muddy pond to save a drowning child. You're rewarded with a magnified "thank you", ruined cloting and an unpleasant day. You witness a crime and report it to the police. The resulting judicial process will take up tens of hours of your time with barely any compensation. You refuse to break laws or lie to ...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/noxHoo3XKkzPG6s7E/most-smart-and-skilled-people-are-outside-of-the-ea
noxHoo3XKkzPG6s7E
Most smart and skilled people are outside of the EA/rationalist community: an analysis
lombertini
null
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/euA9qXsw3ZuoxqNwW/2024-freedom-communities-events
euA9qXsw3ZuoxqNwW
2024 Freedom Communities Events
tudor-iliescu
Ready to enter the world of network states and free communities? These upcoming events[1] are your gateway to exploring parallel societies, disruptive governance ideas, and freedom-enabling technologies. JUL 20 - AUG 31, Georgia (the country) ZuVillage According to Veronica and @Burns, ZuVillage Georgia is an experimen...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/6uGPNTN74zK7snFEr/moving-away-from-physical-continuity
6uGPNTN74zK7snFEr
Moving away from physical continuity
programcrafter
In thought experiments about cloning objects, people often call the object which maintained physical continuity "original" and other "clone". This seems like just a naming, but when experiments talk about cloning a person, people tend to care where their original version is. This feels dodgy in cases when person doesn'...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/arEub4eHo2EJfCHQX/faithful-vs-interpretable-sparse-autoencoder-evals
arEub4eHo2EJfCHQX
Faithful vs Interpretable Sparse Autoencoder Evals
louka-ewington-pitsos
Summary Sparse Autoencoders (SAEs) have become a popular tool in Mechanistic Interpretability but at the time of writing there is no standardm automated way to accurately assess the quality of a SAE.  In practice many different metrics are applied and interpreted to assess SAE quality in different studies. Conceptually...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/YHzuRwRLmdrB5hre3/on-artificial-wisdom
YHzuRwRLmdrB5hre3
On Artificial Wisdom
Jordan Arel
Epistemic Status: I sustained multiple semi-serious debilitating injuries while in the process of writing this piece for the “Automation of Wisdom and Philosophy” essay contest  and so was not able to get feedback and finish editing before publishing in time for the contest. Therefore, any feedback is highly appreciate...
2024-07-12
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/ndvtiaqZErjnermWF/yoshua-bengio-reasoning-through-arguments-against-taking-ai
ndvtiaqZErjnermWF
Yoshua Bengio: Reasoning through arguments against taking AI safety seriously
judd
He starts by emphasizing The issue is so hotly debated because the stakes are major: According to some estimates, quadrillions of dollars of net present value are up for grabs, not to mention political power great enough to significantly disrupt the current world order. [...] The most important thing to realize, throug...
2024-07-11
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/wWdxnLLhGnrgdsdGD/boundless-emotion
wWdxnLLhGnrgdsdGD
Boundless Emotion
GG10
Key Claims: Emotions and feelings are features in a neural network, and their intensities are determined by the features' activation strengthsThat implies that, because features are directions in activation space and the activation strength is the magnitude, it should be possible to multiply the magnitude by arbitraril...
2024-07-16
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Ls37xqGXYa5duzQdo/can-current-llms-be-trusted-to-produce-paperclips-safely
Ls37xqGXYa5duzQdo
Can Current LLMs be Trusted To Produce Paperclips Safely?
rohit-c
There's a browser-based game about paperclip maximization: Universal Paperclips, where you control an AI tasked with running a paperclip factory. Initially, you buy raw material, adjust the price per clip, and invest in "AutoClippers" to increase production. The game dramatically increases in complexity as it progresse...
2024-08-19
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Ab7K9xEjWwzRZBbWm/podcast-how-the-smart-money-teaches-trading-with-ricki
Ab7K9xEjWwzRZBbWm
Podcast: "How the Smart Money teaches trading with Ricki Heicklen" (Patrick McKenzie interviewing)
rossry
In Patrick's words, above the fold: Some years ago, I built a trading simulation for a startup I was running, Starfighter. It was, at the time, by far the most impressive technical artifact I'd ever made, including a scratch-built fake stock exchange. I recently ran into Rick Heicklen, who has a business teaching tradi...
2024-07-11