B Jacobs

Crossposted from my blog Worker cooperatives are firms that, unlike traditional firms, are run democratically. This means that instead of the owner of the firm deciding who manages the workers, the workers become part owner and get a say in how the firm is run. This has some advantages, such...

Cross-posted from substack 1. What are non-deterministic elections? Voting is at the heart of democracy—it's how we collectively decide who will lead us and shape public policy. Traditionally, most democratic elections rely on deterministic voting systems. These are the systems where the outcome is based on a clear majority, and...

The US is experiencing a great decline in trust. According to the US General Social Survey, people who agreed with the statement "most people can be trusted" went from 49% to 25% between 1984 and 2022.[1] Trust in institutions is also falling. Over that same period trust in the government...

In my last post, I argued that worker co-ops can help restore declining social trust. But a common objection I keep hearing goes something like this: > Worker co-ops seem basically equivalent to a firm that gives its employees stock—but then permanently blocks them from selling it. Isn't that harmful?...

Introduction Effective Altruism (EA) is a social movement that aims to use reason and evidence to help others as much as possible. It encourages people to ask not just “how to do good”, but how to do the most good. This has led members to support things like global health...

Crossposted from my blog In this fictional dialogue between a Bayesian (B) and a Non-Bayesian (N) I will propose solutions to some pre-existing problems with Bayesian epistemology, as well as introduce a new problem for which I offer a solution at the end. (Computer scientists may consider skipping to that...

What are prediction markets? Prediction markets are platforms where participants place bets on the outcomes of future events. These events can include anything from election outcomes and economic trends to sports games and even natural disasters. Here’s a simple example: imagine a prediction market for an upcoming presidential election. Bettors...