Autodidacticism is an undervalued resource.
February 9, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Autodidacticism is an undervalued resource.
I get why those with a particular strain of autodidacticism see AI summaries as useful. But the disciplined form of autodidacticism learned in grad school is not that strain.
December 21, 2025 at 4:14 AM
I get why those with a particular strain of autodidacticism see AI summaries as useful. But the disciplined form of autodidacticism learned in grad school is not that strain.
one thing that affected me in school, and I suspect a lot of other people, is that a highly individualistic approach where autodidacticism is supported/praised leads to de facto "tracking" into whatever you're already gifted at
May 10, 2025 at 7:02 PM
one thing that affected me in school, and I suspect a lot of other people, is that a highly individualistic approach where autodidacticism is supported/praised leads to de facto "tracking" into whatever you're already gifted at
My experience with autodidacticism is that the syllabus was written by confirmation bias
one of the reasons i tend to think a lot of the new atheist and slate star books and forums helped to build a community of gen x nihilistic atheist utilitarian fascists is *because* so many were autodidacts without any good guidance on how to read, and, more critically, *evaluate* this shit
March 2, 2025 at 9:15 PM
My experience with autodidacticism is that the syllabus was written by confirmation bias
Yeah, the problem is the tech culture selects for two traits -- autodidacticism and being the smartest person in the room.
Unfortunately, if you're the smartest person in a room, it's often because nobody *really* clever wants to be in the same room as you.
Unfortunately, if you're the smartest person in a room, it's often because nobody *really* clever wants to be in the same room as you.
January 25, 2025 at 1:39 AM
Yeah, the problem is the tech culture selects for two traits -- autodidacticism and being the smartest person in the room.
Unfortunately, if you're the smartest person in a room, it's often because nobody *really* clever wants to be in the same room as you.
Unfortunately, if you're the smartest person in a room, it's often because nobody *really* clever wants to be in the same room as you.
This requires you putting in effort to understand what the LLM is doing, but it reduces friction overall.
The key is to foster that spirit of autodidacticism.
The key is to foster that spirit of autodidacticism.
December 30, 2025 at 3:28 PM
This requires you putting in effort to understand what the LLM is doing, but it reduces friction overall.
The key is to foster that spirit of autodidacticism.
The key is to foster that spirit of autodidacticism.
Yeah this is a broader problem around autodidacticism and epistemological weaknesses I think. Some legitimately don't have the tools to use the tools.
April 11, 2026 at 9:32 PM
Yeah this is a broader problem around autodidacticism and epistemological weaknesses I think. Some legitimately don't have the tools to use the tools.
a little done with autodidacticism, i think
February 18, 2025 at 7:55 PM
a little done with autodidacticism, i think
I think a lot of people conflate autodidacticism with being some kind of savant, and I don’t know where that comes from
January 25, 2025 at 4:57 AM
I think a lot of people conflate autodidacticism with being some kind of savant, and I don’t know where that comes from
The errant apostrophe in Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart is actually a badge of autodidacticism
January 26, 2026 at 6:07 PM
The errant apostrophe in Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart is actually a badge of autodidacticism
Solving unknown problems is autodidacticism in the subject matter that includes those problems and no others
June 11, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Solving unknown problems is autodidacticism in the subject matter that includes those problems and no others
Autodidactic learning is too devalued doesn’t not equal “all educational systems should be harmed and dismantled”
But when educational systems teach falsehoods autodidacticism is sanity preserving
But when educational systems teach falsehoods autodidacticism is sanity preserving
February 9, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Autodidactic learning is too devalued doesn’t not equal “all educational systems should be harmed and dismantled”
But when educational systems teach falsehoods autodidacticism is sanity preserving
But when educational systems teach falsehoods autodidacticism is sanity preserving
One of these days I’ll have to teach myself what autodidacticism is.
January 19, 2025 at 6:04 PM
One of these days I’ll have to teach myself what autodidacticism is.
Probably not ideal to flag this just as everyone shuts down for Christmas but if anyone would be interested in a conversation or a piece of writing about educational institutions in crisis, teaching on the margins, selling education, authority and autodidacticism etc, you know where to find me.
So, one day soon an article by me is coming out in the English Historical Review about the fragmentation of England's educational systems from the 1650s on and the new forms of teaching & learning that emerged, and it's only just struck me that this is, you know, Relevant To Our Current Situation.
December 17, 2025 at 8:24 AM
Probably not ideal to flag this just as everyone shuts down for Christmas but if anyone would be interested in a conversation or a piece of writing about educational institutions in crisis, teaching on the margins, selling education, authority and autodidacticism etc, you know where to find me.
the funniest part of HPMOR is that the ending is Harry, an amateur who thinks his autodidacticism makes him an expert at everything, very nearly causing the end of the world by fucking up the plan of someone who he dismisses as an irrational fool
December 16, 2025 at 12:25 AM
the funniest part of HPMOR is that the ending is Harry, an amateur who thinks his autodidacticism makes him an expert at everything, very nearly causing the end of the world by fucking up the plan of someone who he dismisses as an irrational fool
the primary issue with autodidacticism is that it's so often done as an individual effort - finding a community of inquiry that would earnestly explore some field is extremely rewarding, and for a communist downright necessary
September 16, 2026 at 7:37 PM
the primary issue with autodidacticism is that it's so often done as an individual effort - finding a community of inquiry that would earnestly explore some field is extremely rewarding, and for a communist downright necessary
But you need a teacher. This is the sort of place where autodidacticism can go horribly wrong and you end up with bathroom goat demons.
May 9, 2025 at 5:30 PM
But you need a teacher. This is the sort of place where autodidacticism can go horribly wrong and you end up with bathroom goat demons.
so there’s a lot of different things happening in all this, but of course the fact thing I come back to is
isn’t this just sparkling autodidacticism?
can’t university admins realize that such a path leads to the disintegration of every institution that chooses it???
isn’t this just sparkling autodidacticism?
can’t university admins realize that such a path leads to the disintegration of every institution that chooses it???
Meet “ASU Atomic,” a subscription platform that claims to offer customized learning modules for fee-paying users. None of the ASU faculty whose course materials were harvested for the module I generated were aware that their image, lectures, lessons, or other teaching materials are being used.
April 30, 2026 at 2:20 AM
so there’s a lot of different things happening in all this, but of course the fact thing I come back to is
isn’t this just sparkling autodidacticism?
can’t university admins realize that such a path leads to the disintegration of every institution that chooses it???
isn’t this just sparkling autodidacticism?
can’t university admins realize that such a path leads to the disintegration of every institution that chooses it???
A cursory glance at the kind of person who 'does their own research' might indicate that autodidacticism ain't all that.
This misses the point. Self-education has become more accessible in the last 20 years than at any point in history, though not through ‘amateur reading’.
The problem isn’t access to information but learning how to evaluate it critically - and that brings us back to universities (and Humanities)
The problem isn’t access to information but learning how to evaluate it critically - and that brings us back to universities (and Humanities)
July 1, 2026 at 7:40 AM
A cursory glance at the kind of person who 'does their own research' might indicate that autodidacticism ain't all that.
Oh, the impact of nerdish toxic autodidacticism is real.
January 24, 2024 at 8:52 PM
Oh, the impact of nerdish toxic autodidacticism is real.
This--MORTAL LEAP by Macdonald Harris--is out this month, and it's a corker. A wonderful lost book about the impermanence of identity, the compromises made for a shot at happiness, and autodidacticism taken much too far. Another gem recovered by @neglectedbooks.bsky.social
March 7, 2024 at 10:08 PM
This--MORTAL LEAP by Macdonald Harris--is out this month, and it's a corker. A wonderful lost book about the impermanence of identity, the compromises made for a shot at happiness, and autodidacticism taken much too far. Another gem recovered by @neglectedbooks.bsky.social
love that a community named itself lesswrong then proceeded to get progressively more wrong, culminating in reinventing fascism and going "gosh golly gee look where facts and logic led us to"
a cautionary tale in internet age autodidacticism
a cautionary tale in internet age autodidacticism
It's funny that the Rationalists made Always Updating Your Priors their rallying cry and then just collectively decided that racism is true and girls have cooties.
October 21, 2024 at 1:07 AM
love that a community named itself lesswrong then proceeded to get progressively more wrong, culminating in reinventing fascism and going "gosh golly gee look where facts and logic led us to"
a cautionary tale in internet age autodidacticism
a cautionary tale in internet age autodidacticism