You turned into a cat! A SMALL cat! You violated Conservation of Energ — Eliezer Yudkowsky

"But ignorance exists in the map, not in the territory. If I am ignorant about a phenomenon, that is a fact about my own state of mind, not a fact about the phenomenon itself. A phenomenon can seem mysterious to some particular person. There are no phenomena which are mysterious of themselves. To worship a phenomenon because it seems so wonderfully mysterious, is to worship your own ignorance."

"Crockers Rules didnt give you the right to say anything offensive, but other people could say potentially offensive things to you, and it was your responsibility not to be offended. This was surprisingly hard to explain to people; many people would read the careful explanation and hear, "Crockers Rules mean you can say offensive things to other people.""

"In the universe where everything works the way it common-sensically ought to, everything about the study of Artificial General Intelligence is driven by the one overwhelming fact of the indescribably huge effects: initial conditions and unfolding patterns whose consequences will resound for as long as causal chains continue out of Earth, until all the stars and galaxies in the night sky have burned down to cold iron, and maybe long afterward, or forever into infinity if the true laws of physics should happen to permit that. To deliberately thrust your mortal brain onto that stage, as it plays out on ancient Earth the first root of life, is an act so far beyond "audacity" as to set the word on fire, an act which can only be excused by the terrifying knowledge that the empty skies offer no higher authority."

"Do not flinch from experiences that might destroy your beliefs. The thought you cannot think controls you more than thoughts you speak aloud. Submit yourself to ordeals and test yourself in fire. Relinquish the emotion which rests upon a mistaken belief, and seek to feel fully that emotion which fits the facts. If the iron approaches your face, and you believe it is hot, and it is cool, the Way opposes your fear. If the iron approaches your face, and you believe it is cool, and it is hot, the Way opposes your calm. Evaluate your beliefs first and then arrive at your emotions. Let yourself say: “If the iron is hot, I desire to believe it is hot, and if it is cool, I desire to believe it is cool.”"

"Declaring yourself to be operating by "Crockers Rules" means that other people are allowed to optimize their messages for information, not for being nice to you. Crockers Rules means that you have accepted full responsibility for the operation of your own mind — if youre offended, its your fault. Anyone is allowed to call you a moron and claim to be doing you a favor. (Which, in point of fact, they would be. One of the big problems with this culture is that everyones afraid to tell you youre wrong, or they think they have to dance around it.) Two people using Crockers Rules should be able to communicate all relevant information in the minimum amount of time, without paraphrasing or social formatting. Obviously, dont declare yourself to be operating by Crockers Rules unless you have that kind of mental discipline. Note that Crockers Rules does not mean you can insult people; it means that other people dont have to worry about whether they are insulting you. Crockers Rules are a discipline, not a privilege. Furthermore, taking advantage of Crockers Rules does not imply reciprocity. How could it? Crockers Rules are something you do for yourself, to maximize information received — not something you grit your teeth over and do as a favor."

"Your strength as a rationalist is your ability to be more confused by fiction than by reality. If you are equally good at explaining any outcome, you have zero knowledge."