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I’m starting a technology + philosophy newsletter called “Think Out Loud”
TLDR;
You’ll get a bi-weekly list of the best books/articles related to topics including, but not limited to, technology, philosophy, literature, software engineering, and economics. In addition, I’ll give some of my own opinions, and how those opinions are changing in light of new evidence or arguments.
Subscribe here: https://thinkoutloudnews.substack.com/about
Note: This post is a republish from substack, here
A bit of background: I’m a software engineer interested how technology influences society more broadly, as well as what computation/logic can reveal to us about the nature of knowledge and how we should live.
I have a blog where I write about these topics already. However, while I do enjoy writing blog posts, most my free time is spent researching the questions I’m attempting to answer. The process of research is what I really enjoy, so most things I learn about don’t make it into my blog.
Often, I don’t publish a blog post because I don’t feel confident enough in the conclusions I’m drawing or the work I’ve done to write about it publicly. I’m interested in having a space to write about ideas I have as they’re being formed. In other words, for me, the point of this substack is to invert my typical blogging habits by focusing more on the process than the final product. Kind of like process art. What is the question I’m trying to answer? How is that question evolving and why? What outside resources did I find useful? Along the way, I think there will be a pretty interesting paper trail for onlookers curious about the kinds of topics I write about.
In other words:
Medium = Long form, fully thought out ideas + lower frequencySubstack = Resources/commentary + higher frequency
I don’t really limit myself to particular topics, so I can’t promise a newsletter filled with the latest, in, say, Bitcoin, or a publication strictly on metaphysics. Instead, I like to ask a question and drill in as deep as possible, irrespective of what I need to learn along the way. Usually, at the bottom of anything, you can find either ethics or epistemology, so I’d imagine those topics will show up more often than you’d expect.
Examples of the kinds of questions I like to pursue:
- Is a world with decentralized currency (Bitcoin) morally desirable?
- Could the capitalism/communism debate ever become obviated by technological progress, or a lack thereof?
- Is technology really “exponentiating”, as so many claim?
- With huge computing resources and access to all the laws of physics, could determinism ever be verifiable?
- Why did the software community converge on Leetcode-style interviews?
- Why does the internet love Evangelion so much?
- Is there a conceivable scenario where Bitcoin becomes a world reserve currency?
- Why do people value privacy?
- Could software ever be “Antifragile”?
- Is the “Hard Problem” of consciousness a sham?
As you can see, the topics are varied, but they’re all at least tangentially related to technology and our sense of how we should live.
Anything compelling I read or write on the technical end will make it into the newsletter as well; this would mostly be software engineering related, but I occasionally try to read on other technical topics far outside my domain of expertise, like neurology.
While I don’t have a traditional education in philosophy, I have a great deal of faith in its methods. I’ve been surprised to find just how many bugs in my thinking it has been able to patch, and I want to share that process with you.
I strongly believe that a world where we share what we think, and are open to changing our opinions in real time, is one where we will live better lives. If you want to follow me in this process, you can subscribe below:
