A blog about math, philosophy, puzzles, politics, and more.
In January, I defended my PhD thesis. My thesis is called Algorithmic Bayesian Epistemology, and it’s about predicting the future. In many ways, the last five years of my life have been unpredictable. I did not predict that a novel bat virus would ravage the world, causing me to leave New York for a year. … Continue reading Algorithmic Bayesian Epistemology
Yesterday, I had a coronectomy: the top halves of my bottom wisdom teeth were surgically removed. It was my first time being sedated, and I didn't know what to expect. While I was unconscious during the surgery, the hour after surgery turned out to be a fascinating experience, because I was completely lucid but had … Continue reading My hour of memoryless lucidity
In December I ran a pseudorandomness contest. Here's how it worked: In Round 1, participants were invited to submit 150-bit strings of their own devising. They had 10 minutes to write down their string while using nothing but their own minds. I received 62 submissions.I then used a computer to generate 62 random 150-bit strings, … Continue reading Pseudorandomness contest: Prizes, results, and analysis
Results -- as well as a thorough analysis that you might find interesting even if you did not participate -- are now available! Last week, I asked you all to take 10 minutes to write down and submit a 150-bit string, with the goal of making your string "seem random" without the aid of any … Continue reading Pseudorandomness contest, Round 2
(Also part of this series: Round 2; and prizes and results -- which you might find interesting even if you didn't participate!) I've decided to run a pseudorandomness contest -- a reverse Turing test of sorts, if you will. Winners will get to send some of my money to a charity of their choice! Here's … Continue reading Pseudorandomness contest, Round 1
Unexpected Values 