site banner
PaperclipPerfector  4mo ago (text post)   2577 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for June 30, 2024

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

1
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

I think if there’s no profit or fame incentive you can trust them. Or if you trust someone like Rhonda Patrick / Hubermann I bet he’s talked about this.

Huberman used to seem a lot more grounded. He's had a lot of hacks on in the last year or so. His shilling for Athletic Greens also doesn't instill confidence.

What’s the deal with the Athletic Greens. Why am I marketed that stuff everywhere

I don't know. For a while I was getting penis enlargement ads in Instagram. Which is perhaps more worrying in terms of what algorithms we are triggering.

I do know AG1 is untested and unregulated and seems pretty pricey. The sheer amount of what's supposed to be in it raises enough warning bells for me. Reddit thread on the topic-- though of course you are free to ignore that as it is on reddit.

People are motivated by ideology in addition to fame and profit.

The reddit fanatics have no shot at profit or fame and you can find them for all sides of any question. Similarly, the influencers you mention have a shot at profit and fame and accordingly you can find them for all sides of any question.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats