Patrick Robotham

Data Science, Philosophy, Maths

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

The bayesian approach to statistics allows us to do data science without data. Just put in informative priors and update with data when you get it.

[Nassim Nicholas Taleb @nntaleb]

Friends, this holiday season, try to reach out to those who have little of no friends, no family, and no reason to cheer. They may be involuntarily stuck in a state of loneliness. They don't need your money; they don't need your gifts.
Maybe just a little bit of attention.

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

To lead people, give them good arguments for taking your preferred course of action.

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@juliagalef I’m strongly biased against group based condemnation however I think a version of this would be to argue that X implies P. eg you could plausibly argue that being anti science means that you view taking vaccines as morally unimportant.

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@KevinKaichuang yeah sq wq tte i towk iin jook

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@curaffairs Part of the calculation problem is having access to the local information that leads to good economic decisions. Even a quantum computer can’t work with invisible data.

[Pete Davis @Petedavis]

The Right gets entrepreneurship totally wrong. People don't create things because of low taxes and insecurity — they venture out when they (1) are economically secure (2) had education that sparked their creativity; (3) have access to capital, networks, know-how & tech. <1/3>

[Julia Galef @juliagalef]

1) I'm frustrated Steven Pinker won't admit an error in Enlightenment Now. Summary:
- Pinker names Stuart Russell as an expert who's skeptical of AI risk
- Someone points out that's exactly backwards; Russell is one of the main experts warning about AI risk
- Pinker doubles down

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@ddale8 ooooh has a

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

Statistics: What’s the minimum amount of data I need?
Machine Learning: What’s the maximum amount of data I can usefully incorporate?

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@kareem_carr The way data is stored, processed, analysed etc. is a legitimate object of study. For example, how do you handle data too large to be stored on a single hard drive?

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@Hannah_Chutzpah "Out of scope"

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@juliagalef @patrickc @danielgross @narang_rishi @stripe Talent is normally distributed, opportunity is exponentially distributed. The payoff from talent + opportunity is Cauchy distributed.

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@juliagalef Operant Conditioning

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@nntaleb Additionally, someone’s individual characteristics largely screen off their group identity. Identitarian logic: “Asians are short. Yao Ming is asian. Therefore Yao Ming is short.”

[Nassim Nicholas Taleb @nntaleb]

ABSTRACT UNIVERSALISMS AND PSEUDOIDENTITIES
1) People conflate differences between groups and difference between individuals.
2) Identity politics leads to stereotyping, no different from racial profiling.

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

@andizeisler Sideshow Bob: [Bob calls Birch Barlow's show during a prison riot] I am presently incarcerated, imprisoned for a crime I did not even commit. "Attempted murder," now honestly, did they ever give anyone a Nobel prize for "attempted chemistry?"

[François Chollet @fchollet]

The world has no shortage of great people doing amazing things. But the poorly thought-out dynamics of social media force you to focus on terrible people being jerks. I want to see more of the good, less of the bad. When I go online I want to be inspired and learn new things

[François Chollet @fchollet]

It's funny how most tech people in SV tend to perfectly embody classic right-wing values, yet are classified (and self-identify) as leftists. I think that says a lot about US politics.

[Patrick Robotham @PatrickRobotham]

Why was this tweet marked as having “sensitive content”?

[Nassim Nicholas Taleb @nntaleb]

Minority rule