Rob MacCoun
@robmaccoun.bsky.social
I'm a psychologist and a Stanford law professor. You might be interested in my recent book Third Millennium Thinking: Creating Sense in a World of Nonsense (with physicist Saul Perlmutter and philosopher John Campbell).
New Spanish edition of Third Millennium Thinking! There are Italian, German, Chinese, and several other editions out now, and editions in Portugese, Russian, Japanese, Vietnamese, Ukranian and a few other languages soon. Still no interest from the French; pardon moi for badmouthing post-modernism.
May 3, 2025 at 1:50 AM
New Spanish edition of Third Millennium Thinking! There are Italian, German, Chinese, and several other editions out now, and editions in Portugese, Russian, Japanese, Vietnamese, Ukranian and a few other languages soon. Still no interest from the French; pardon moi for badmouthing post-modernism.
ChatGPT 4o feels my pain. (And yes, I somehow felt compelled to share my inner musings with it, and I always thank AI programs.)
February 22, 2025 at 8:26 PM
ChatGPT 4o feels my pain. (And yes, I somehow felt compelled to share my inner musings with it, and I always thank AI programs.)
After trying to give them the benefit of the doubt for a few months, I'm finally cancelling my @washingtonpost.com subscription. So sad.
February 20, 2025 at 9:10 PM
After trying to give them the benefit of the doubt for a few months, I'm finally cancelling my @washingtonpost.com subscription. So sad.
Whoa. This is huge.
February 14, 2025 at 10:42 PM
Whoa. This is huge.
The older I get, the less cleverness resembles either knowledge or wisdom, which seem much harder to come by.
February 4, 2025 at 7:13 PM
The older I get, the less cleverness resembles either knowledge or wisdom, which seem much harder to come by.
ChatGPT now seems to mention things it learned about me in previous queries (e.g., that I'm using Quarto for a new book project). This immediately makes it both more useful for me, but also slightly...um, terrifying. 🫣
January 31, 2025 at 6:07 PM
ChatGPT now seems to mention things it learned about me in previous queries (e.g., that I'm using Quarto for a new book project). This immediately makes it both more useful for me, but also slightly...um, terrifying. 🫣
{Bra-zil, ian} -- {ver-sion, of our} -- {book is, published}! (Punctuation placed to facilitate reading to a clave beat)
January 28, 2025 at 9:37 PM
{Bra-zil, ian} -- {ver-sion, of our} -- {book is, published}! (Punctuation placed to facilitate reading to a clave beat)
Seems like a good time to find out what cottagecore is all about, with ~4 yrs worth of videos on YouTube.
January 22, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Seems like a good time to find out what cottagecore is all about, with ~4 yrs worth of videos on YouTube.
Reposted by Rob MacCoun
Excellent idea in "Third Millennium Thinking" @robmaccoun.bsky.social to encourage government to copy science and oblige policymakers to express confidence intervals around their factual statements, captured here h/t @ppfideas.bsky.social
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GW_...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GW_...
Zero Dark Thirty | Meeting Scene | 100% he's there | Jessica Chastain | Jason Clarke
YouTube video by MovieLegend
www.youtube.com
January 13, 2025 at 9:04 AM
Excellent idea in "Third Millennium Thinking" @robmaccoun.bsky.social to encourage government to copy science and oblige policymakers to express confidence intervals around their factual statements, captured here h/t @ppfideas.bsky.social
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GW_...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GW_...
The Onion's Supreme Court brief is a must read.
www.supremecourt.gov
December 27, 2024 at 8:44 PM
The Onion's Supreme Court brief is a must read.
Bob and Julia are always fun to talk with, and Julia and I got to compare notes (before the show) about King Gizzard and the Wizard Lizard.
#101-The Virtues of Evidence-Based Policy Making-with guest Robert MacCoun
<p>Even though they affect all of our lives, most of us know almost nothing about how policies are made, especially policy made by our state and federal governments. So, Julia and Bob learned a lot fr...
player.fm
December 26, 2024 at 4:07 AM
Bob and Julia are always fun to talk with, and Julia and I got to compare notes (before the show) about King Gizzard and the Wizard Lizard.
The good news: If trained to be evil, this AI may have just faked being evil, temporarily, to make the best of a bad situation. The bad news: Of course it *would* say that, if it really had become evil. Gulp.
assets.anthropic.com
December 19, 2024 at 11:34 PM
The good news: If trained to be evil, this AI may have just faked being evil, temporarily, to make the best of a bad situation. The bad news: Of course it *would* say that, if it really had become evil. Gulp.
This is a serious problem; the system runs on perceived legitimacy.
December 17, 2024 at 9:12 PM
This is a serious problem; the system runs on perceived legitimacy.
I'm delighted that Third Millennium Thinking is included in Behavioral Scientist's Notable Books of 2024.
behavioralscientist.org/behavioral-s...
behavioralscientist.org/behavioral-s...
Behavioral Scientist’s Notable Books of 2024 - by Antonia Violante and Evan Nesterak - Behavioral Scientist
Our list of noteworthy behavioral science books published in 2024.
behavioralscientist.org
December 16, 2024 at 5:02 PM
I'm delighted that Third Millennium Thinking is included in Behavioral Scientist's Notable Books of 2024.
behavioralscientist.org/behavioral-s...
behavioralscientist.org/behavioral-s...
New paper in The Critical Review of Social Science Studies cites me for an imaginary paper: "MacCoun, R. J. (2006). Moral decision making and the psychology of conflict. Social
Psychology Quarterly, 69(4), 334-350." No such paper. Curious to see if it gets cited in the future now that it "exists."
Psychology Quarterly, 69(4), 334-350." No such paper. Curious to see if it gets cited in the future now that it "exists."
December 15, 2024 at 4:38 PM
New paper in The Critical Review of Social Science Studies cites me for an imaginary paper: "MacCoun, R. J. (2006). Moral decision making and the psychology of conflict. Social
Psychology Quarterly, 69(4), 334-350." No such paper. Curious to see if it gets cited in the future now that it "exists."
Psychology Quarterly, 69(4), 334-350." No such paper. Curious to see if it gets cited in the future now that it "exists."
In the old neighborhood, I would have been alarmed that I follow more people than follow me. A new neighborhood calls for new norms: Following interesting others is something to celebrate. 👋
December 13, 2024 at 5:04 PM
In the old neighborhood, I would have been alarmed that I follow more people than follow me. A new neighborhood calls for new norms: Following interesting others is something to celebrate. 👋
I regularly invite my students to ponder the puzzle of how humans often violate Bayes theorem and yet tiny bumblebee brains are capable of optimal Bayesian foraging. This paper might offer the solution: psycnet.apa.org/record/2023-... @bayesandbounds.bsky.social
APA PsycNet
psycnet.apa.org
December 12, 2024 at 5:50 PM
I regularly invite my students to ponder the puzzle of how humans often violate Bayes theorem and yet tiny bumblebee brains are capable of optimal Bayesian foraging. This paper might offer the solution: psycnet.apa.org/record/2023-... @bayesandbounds.bsky.social
On Thanksgiving afternoon, I happened to relisten to Joni Mitchell's "Down to You". For some reason, it has been playing in my head non-stop ever since. Perhaps I should be concerned, but it has remained glorious the whole time.
December 11, 2024 at 11:36 PM
On Thanksgiving afternoon, I happened to relisten to Joni Mitchell's "Down to You". For some reason, it has been playing in my head non-stop ever since. Perhaps I should be concerned, but it has remained glorious the whole time.
Hey, we're in German too, with a bilingual title.
December 11, 2024 at 4:22 AM
Hey, we're in German too, with a bilingual title.
This place is an American treasure. www.gofundme.com/f/help-secur...
Donate to Help Secure El Cerrito's Cultural Landmark, organized by Les Blank Films Inc
Help Save the longtime home of Les Blank Films , Arhoolie Foundation , … Les Blank Films Inc needs your support for Help Secure El Cerrito's Cultural Landmark
www.gofundme.com
December 10, 2024 at 12:05 AM
This place is an American treasure. www.gofundme.com/f/help-secur...
I'm very excited that our book will come out soon in China!
December 9, 2024 at 11:33 PM
I'm very excited that our book will come out soon in China!
Just last night, I was telling an audience how important it is to protect the integrity and continuity of federal data collection efforts (economic, public health, criminal justice, etc.), so I was heartened by this morning's lovely NYT essay: www.nytimes.com/2024/12/06/b...
Everybody Loves FRED: How America Fell for a Data Tool
From Facebook political debates to college classrooms, the St. Louis Fed’s data tool has gained a major following.
www.nytimes.com
December 6, 2024 at 5:52 PM
Just last night, I was telling an audience how important it is to protect the integrity and continuity of federal data collection efforts (economic, public health, criminal justice, etc.), so I was heartened by this morning's lovely NYT essay: www.nytimes.com/2024/12/06/b...
I'm looking forward to our book event at the Exploratorium After Dark this Thursday. It's a wonderful place and if you go, you get the whole museum to yourself before and after our event (i.e., no school field trips to compete with). www.exploratorium.edu/visit/calend...
After Dark: Figure It Out | Exploratorium Museum Event
Find out how to make better decisions with the help of philosophy, psychology, and physics.
www.exploratorium.edu
November 30, 2024 at 7:24 PM
I'm looking forward to our book event at the Exploratorium After Dark this Thursday. It's a wonderful place and if you go, you get the whole museum to yourself before and after our event (i.e., no school field trips to compete with). www.exploratorium.edu/visit/calend...