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Top Charity Funds

Investors are used to the idea of delegating decisions to expert fund managers. Donors can also find great funds targeting important philanthropic causes. As someone seeking to make an impact, finding dedicated research organizations that evaluate charities was frankly a godsend. They make it easy to select from vetted recommended charities, but my favorite organizations… Continue reading Top Charity Funds

Giving Global, Giving Local

Compare two possible charitable donations. My family and I have greatly enjoyed the productions at a local theatre company. If I support it with a donation, this will help sustain its role in enhancing the quality of life in the community. Alternatively: if I donate to an organization that distributes anti-malarial nets to targeted groups… Continue reading Giving Global, Giving Local

Putting Experience Back into View

I finished reading The Blind Spot: Why Science Cannot Ignore Human Experience, by Adam Frank, Marcelo Gleiser and Evan Thompson. It is an ambitious book that I think succeeds in its aims. I recommend it highly and hope it is widely read. The authors argue that the great achievements of science have been unfortunately accompanied… Continue reading Putting Experience Back into View

The Question of Artificial Agency

I’m grateful for recent speculations about whether AI systems might achieve human-like intelligence (AGI) and/or sentience. These have led me to think more carefully about the ingredients that go into these capabilities. I think a necessary ingredient is agency, and understanding agency can sharpen our inquiry into the prospects for AI. What is agency and… Continue reading The Question of Artificial Agency

Meta-Charities as a Resource for Donors

For last year’s Giving Tuesday, I sketched out an approach to effective charitable giving. This focused on identifying important cause areas and finding high-impact charities within each one. Since there is little change in my thinking or in specific recommendations since then, please give that post a read if you are interested! The approach highlighted… Continue reading Meta-Charities as a Resource for Donors

Biological Agency and Free Will

Given my recent interest in the idea of naturalized biological agency (the topic of my last post), I was excited to read Kevin Mitchell’s book—Free Agents: How Evolution Gave Us Free Will—which develops this notion and connects it to the debate over human free will. Mitchell is a neurogeneticist at Trinity College (Dublin); he blogs… Continue reading Biological Agency and Free Will

The Enactive Approach to Agency

Introduction Explaining the properties and behaviors of organisms leads us to introduce a repertoire of concepts foreign to the world of non-living things. Arguably the most important of these is agency. Agency implies that behaviors are structured by intrinsic goals or purposes, and this brings with it further notions, such as those of norms and… Continue reading The Enactive Approach to Agency

Research-Driven Giving Ideas Targeting Global Causes

Ahead of this year’s Giving Tuesday, I wanted to share some recommendations in case anyone finds it helpful.  I will keep it brief – feedback is very welcome! While my wife Dana and I support a diverse group of local charities and non-profits, we have also tried in recent years to “zoom out”—undertaking a wider… Continue reading Research-Driven Giving Ideas Targeting Global Causes