Issuing supreme power to you...one moment.

My self-summary Propose an edit

When the crowd in Life of Brian roars "We're all different!", I'm the one who responds "I'm not". Friends sometimes wonder what planet I'm from (I'm obviously part Vulcan).

I avoid crowds (especially in noisy rooms - something about the way my attention works deters me from thinking well in these conditions), and prefer small group activities such as a hike with the SF Hiking Club (especially trips where I might see wildflower species that I haven't identified yet), or a card game such as bridge, spades, or tahimi.

I typically do hikes in the 10-18 mile range. My favorite trails when the wildflowers are out have mixtures of meadows and trees, such as in Henry Coe or near Murietta Falls.

My reading group (which focuses on topics such as cognitive science, technology, and economics) is successful enough that I've spent more effort turning away bozos than recruiting sages.

If I retire, I hope to visit the far edge party, but I'll probably leave before it gets crowded enough to risk forming black holes.

Interests: futarchy, mind uploading, molecular nanotechnology, AI, pan-critical rationalism, schelling points, evolutionary psychology, extropian, libertarian, anarchocapitalism, cryonics, aspergers, the singularity, idea futures, open source software, square dancing, seasteading/dynamic geography, EFF, fnord, nude beaches,cuddling.

turnoffs: people who think they know more than they actually do, bars, spectator sports, dependence, phones.

What I'm doing with my life Propose an edit

I've been trading stocks for most of my adult life, and I'm often unsure whether to consider it a hobby or a real job. I've been doing well enough recently that I don't have any plans to find a regular job. I was a programmer in two dot.com startups from 1995 through 1999. I enjoyed it initially when I was one of a small group of pioneers, but it got rather dull when it became a crowded mainstream occupation. I also was involved in a nanotech startup that was too ambitious to get funded.

My hobby/job leaves me with a good deal of time for reading (yet I'm so eager to buy more books that my stacks of unread books are on the verge of falling down).

I'm really good at Propose an edit

Cooking healthy food, thinking rationally and quantitatively, reading maps, finding obscure hiking trails, identifying wildflowers, resisting popular fads.

The first thing(s) people usually notice about me Propose an edit

That I'm shy.

That I often wear t-shirts with odd slogans.

My favorite books, movies, music, and food Propose an edit

Books: Science fiction (Heinlein, Vinge, Bujold, Poul Anderson, Spider Robinson, Greg Egan, Earthweb), David Friedman, Hayek, The Nurture Assumption, The Mating Mind, Mind Children, Consciousness Explained, The Ascent of Mind, The Anthropic Cosmological Principle, Engines of Creation, Causality, Baum's What is Thought?, Flynn's What is Intelligence, Lessig, Dying to Win, The Jepson Manual.

Movies: Harvey, Rocketeer, Ruthless People, Life of Brian, Toys, The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Gods Must Be Crazy.

Music: Vivaldi, Tom Lehrer.

Foods: Healthy. My idea of ordinary food includes asian chicken salad, palak dal, sweet potato pudding, vegetarian goose, and Larabars. Some odder foods I've tried recently: garlic sprouts, yuzu, forrestberry, and spruce glaze.

The six things I could never do without Propose an edit

Oxygen, water, protein, fat, vitamins, and temperatures that stay within a fairly narrow range. It might also help if I could get a cure for aging, and a means of insuring that any AI that may be developed has goals which are compatible with my survival. It's a bit annoying that I'm so dependent on these needs. I hope technology will make me less fragile before too long.

I spend a lot of time thinking about Propose an edit

How to fix democracy by implementing futarchy or some similar mechanism of rewarding accurate opinions about the effects of policy; How to ensure that artificial intelligence is developed safely; Economics; Cognitive Science/Evolutionary Psychology; where I want to go for my next hike.

On a typical Friday night I am Propose an edit

There's a 20% chance that I'm at a reading group, a 10% chance that I'm playing spades, a 5% chance that I'm camping in or near the sierras as part of a hiking trip, a 5% chance that I'm at a party, a 10% chance that I'm out somewhere else, and I guess that leaves a 50% chance that I'm home analyzing the day's stock market results or catching up on email (with the TV on and getting maybe 20% of my attention).

You should message me if Propose an edit

You're interested in a hiking partner (especially if you're available for weekday hikes); or you want to play spades; or you're looking for a fourth for a casual bridge game in the south bay; or you're interested in a serious relationship and you find some of the following questions more interesting than typical smalltalk: What caused the Industrial Revolution? How can aging be cured? Why doesn't evolution select homosexuality out of existence? Or if you see some other reason to think I would find you interesting (it's not like I'm in any danger of being overwhelmed by a large number of replies, and I'm not certain enough about what I want to establish any absolute litmus tests). You should be intelligent and well-read, and able be tolerant of an introverted partner.

You should be able to occasionally surprise me with ideas I wish I'd thought of.

You should care enough about being healthy that you won't tempt me to eat more sugar or transfats.

I'd prefer that you live within driving distance of the bay area, and I'd prefer someone around my age and size, but I'm more flexible about those criteria than about my desire that you have an interesting mind.

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