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Shut Up and Multiply

Edited by Eliezer Yudkowsky, Vladimir_Nesov, TheAncientGeek, Grognor, Zack_M_Davis, et al. last updated 19th Sep 2021

Due to scope neglect, framing effects, and other cognitive biases, the result of an expected utility calculation executed correctly may produce an answer different from first intuition, making it "intuitively unappealing".  If you can tell that it's probably the intuitions that went wrong and not the calculation, the skill shut up and multiply is the ability to accept that, yes, sometimes the expected utility math is correct and we need to deal with that. Contrast do the math, then go with your gut.  If you're not sure which of these applies, use "do the math, then go with your gut" until you've built up more experience.

The specific application of Shut Up and Multiply to the Torture versus Dust Specks case has proven quite contentious. One reason this case was cited as an exemplar of where "shut up and multiply" should apply was a claim that the usual reasoning behind answering "SPECKS" can be reduced to circular preferences.

Blog posts

  • One Life Against the World
  • Circular Altruism, The "Intuitions" Behind "Utilitarianism"
  • Money: The Unit of Caring
  • Purchase Fuzzies and Utilons Separately
  • Torture vs. Dust Specks

External links

  • Is Valuing Life Undervaluing it? by Katja Grace
  • You Can Put a Dollar Value on Human Life by Yvain
  • The Value of a Life by Nate Soares
  • Critical discussion by "A scientists Thesis" on Tumblr
  • Eliezer Yudkowsky doesn't undestand ethics by Sean Goedeke

See also

  • Scope insensitivity
  • Fuzzies, utils
  • Pascal's mugging
  • Bite the bullet
  • Rationality
  • Utilitarianism, expected utility
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Posts tagged Shut Up and Multiply
139Optimizing Fuzzies And Utilons: The Altruism Chip Jar
orthonormal
15y
49
125One Life Against the World
Eliezer Yudkowsky
18y
84
228Purchase Fuzzies and Utilons Separately
Eliezer Yudkowsky
16y
88
123Shut Up and Divide?
Wei Dai
16y
276
223Money: The Unit of Caring
Eliezer Yudkowsky
16y
132
88Circular Altruism
Eliezer Yudkowsky
18y
310
85Torture vs. Dust Specks
Eliezer Yudkowsky
18y
630
50Optimal Philanthropy for Human Beings
lukeprog
14y
86
20Morality is not about willpower
PhilGoetz
14y
146
15Circular Altruism vs. Personal Preference
Vladimir_Nesov
16y
14
48Knightian Uncertainty and Ambiguity Aversion: Motivation
So8res
11y
44
41Allais Malaise
Eliezer Yudkowsky
18y
38
30How much should we value life?
Adam Zerner
4y
25
89The "Intuitions" Behind "Utilitarianism"
Eliezer Yudkowsky
18y
208
32Exercise Trade Offs
Elizabeth
4y
4
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