Weekly Roundup: December 30th, 2022

Daniel Barrett -

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This Week on Better Questions

2022 Year In Review

A long write up of how my year went, a tradition now many years old.

Something On My Radar:

Dan reflects on Critical Path, the end of the year, and why teaching matters.

Do Not Fall in Love with a Smart, Introverted Man

You can read it as simple memoir, as an essay on narcissism, or as a window into how your actions might affect others.

How to spot AI-generated text

Unfortunately, a question we're going to have to spend a lot more time asking ourselves in the near future.

  • The bigger and more powerful the model, the harder it is to build AI models to detect what text is written by a human and what isn’t, says Solaiman.
  • “What’s so concerning now is that [ChatGPT has] really impressive outputs. Detection models just can’t keep up. You’re playing catch-up this whole time,” she says.

Why I'm Less Than Infinitely Hostile To Cryptocurrency

With the crypto market more or less in shambles, it's helpful to revisit the stronger arguments for why it was ever important in the first place.

Fascinating points here, particularly this chart of countries ranked by crypto adoption:

Breaking Points

What are our ethical responsibilities to the people we've loved?

I found this essay challenging and heart-breaking.

Living In Expectation of the Unexpected Gift

An unexpected, thoughtful, and moving essay to end the year.

  • Do not mistake planning for purpose, or activity for action.
  • Attend to the ordinary and the mundane with care and with gratitude.
  • Consider that rest is not a time set aside, but a spirit brought to every time.

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