Epistemic status: Speculation from two decently informed advocates armed with anecdata.
Note on process: After having some version of this conversation several times and saying, “we should probably write about this publicly,” we took the less heroic route: we recorded one of our conversations, fed the transcript into an LLM, and then substantially revised the structure, substance, and framing ourselves. We will not be sharing the transcript, as it is in...
TLDR: Take the population ethics quiz here: https://mdickens.me/pop-ethics/
Population ethics is an oft-overlooked subfield within ethics. Many people hold views that they don't realize contradict each other, or that have strange implications that they wouldn't endorse if they thought about it more.
Not just that—population ethics is a BIG DEAL. A lot of ethical decisions hinge on how you think about changes in future populations....
Headline finding: I audited 17 AI Safety Talent programmes. Zero of 17 have published any comparison group, rejected-applicant follow-up, matched control or randomisation. Not one. Every programme that mentions a counterfactual does it by asking participants to self-report.
Background
At least $70 million...
Clearer Thinking have a new regranting program for projects that could have a big positive impact on the future of the world, applications close 22nd July
The Future Forum is a conference in San Francisco from the 4th-7th of August for people interested in improving the future of humanity, applications close 10th July
The Future of Life Institute is supporting the Blue Sky Scriptwriting Contest, 'offering fellowship grants for television scripts whose storylines focus on a world set between 2045 to 2100 when we achieve lives that reflect our better selves'
Schmidt Futures have created the Act 2 Network to 'amplify the impact of exceptional executives, technologists, and entrepreneurs working to solve humanity's greatest challenges'
ILINA Fellowship for intellectually curious students in Nairobi to spend 2-4 months learning new ways of thinking and find pressing problems to work on. Applications close July 8th
The Future Academy is a program aimed to equip students and early-career professionals with the thinking and resources to pursue impactful careers. The first program starts in September, applications close July 10th
The Open Philanthropy Undergraduate Scholarship aims to provide support for students who are hoping to start an undergraduate degree at one of the top universities in the USA or UK. Applications close August 15th