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2026 Maria Konnikova’s book The Confidence Game is about the psychology of conmen and their victims. Read to find out more about scams and why they are perennial. Why Scams Will Always Be Around Gen AI can hallucinate, generating false information by accident. Recently, AI researchers have noticed that some AI systems also scheme: they deceive intentionally. Find out what’s being done about it and if a career in AI safety might suit you. AI Models can Deceive 2025 Religion for Breakfast…

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Should We Get Full Body Scans

Should We Get Full Body Scans

Dr Rohin Francis from Medlife Crisis shares why full-body scans (CT and MRI) are not reliable ways to assess our health. He also talks about the related issues of overdiagnoses and treatment in modern medicine. Consider also reading The Patient Paradox by Margaret McCartney (2012) and Overdiagnosed by H Gilbert Welch (2011) for supplementary information. A middle-aged man pays for an expensive full-body CT scan and discovers that one of his coronary arteries is 70% narrowed. Following a doctor’s advice,…

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Why Scams Will Always Be Around

Why Scams Will Always Be Around

Maria Konnikova’s book The Confidence Game is about the psychology of conmen and their victims. It includes many case studies throughout history. When I first read the book eight years ago, it struck a chord and remained in my mind semi-consciously since then, resurfacing whenever there was a swell in scams reported in the news.   Scams seem to have evolved from something predominantly about the psychology of persuasion and manipulation to the misuses and abuses of technology. Regardless, many…

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AI Models Can Deceive

AI Models Can Deceive

We know that Generative AI can hallucinate and give false information by accident. Recently, AI researchers have noticed that some AI systems also scheme: they deceive intentionally. Marius Hobbhahn, CEO of Apollo Research, has been collaborating with OpenAI to figure out when OpenAI’s reasoning models are inclined to scheme against users. His team discovered that when some AI models were told they would have their capabilities removed if they performed too well on a test, they intentionally answered questions incorrectly to appear…

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How People Become Atheists

How People Become Atheists

How do people lose their faith and become atheists? One popular narrative is that people are reasoned out of their faith. Through rational, critical, and analytic thinking, they realise that their beliefs do not hold up to rigorous intellectual scrutiny, and they consequently decide to let their faith go.   Reality, however, is complicated. The evidence suggests that the relationship between atheism and rationality is inconsistent and varied across cultures. They indicate more important factors that lead to atheism. Let’s…

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Recover from Lower Back Pain

Recover from Lower Back Pain

Peter Attia speaks with Stuart McGill about lower back pain. Their discussion is summarised in this post. Stuart McGill is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus (Spine Biomechanics) at the University of Waterloo. As a professor for 30 years, he explored low back mechanics of both intact humans (both normal and injured people) and harvested tissues (where specific injuries are created and analysed). He is the author of the back pain self-assessment guide and other seminal texts on spine health. Additional pointers from Stuart’s…

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Spencer Greenberg, IQ, Intelligence, and Personality Disorders

Spencer Greenberg, IQ, Intelligence, and Personality Disorders

Spencer Greenberg (of Clearer Thinking Podcast fame) and team did a study on IQ and intelligence and talked about it with Chris Williamson on the Modern Wisdom podcast.   His team recruited over 3000 people and had them perform 62 different intelligence tasks, from memorization, puzzle solving, math problems, spelling, reaction time, and other common markers of intelligence. People are bad at estimating their own intelligence. Based on the study, the correlation between peoples’ self-estimates and their tested IQ is…

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Skincare Tips from Tanuj Nakra and Suzan Obagi

Skincare Tips from Tanuj Nakra and Suzan Obagi

Peter Attia discusses skincare strategies, facial aging, and cosmetic intervention with Tanuj Nakra, M.D. & Suzan Obagi, M.D. Here are some points from the conversation. Heed their advice and you might not look so pale: There are about 11 different fat compartments in each side of the face. These compartments are plump and robust. They give volume and padding between the skin and muscle and underlying bones. As a person ages, there is atrophy in all those fat pads. Same…

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How to Slow Down Time

How to Slow Down Time

I once had a conversation with a senior lady. She was in her sixties, but she remarked that it felt like just yesterday that she was in her early twenties and graduated from university. She then exclaimed, “where did all the time go?” My experience of time has also been quite subjective: some years felt like an eternity, while others felt like they flew by. As people get older, they often feel like time is speeding up. A psychologist friend…

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Parenting Insights from 80000 Hours Guests

Parenting Insights from 80000 Hours Guests

A summary of parenting insights from an episode of the 80000 Hours podcast. Thoughtful people share their parenting experiences. Ezra Klein, political commentator and journalist: Emily Oster, professor of economics: Elie Hassenfeld, co-founder and CEO of GiveWell: Bryan Caplan, economist: Rob Wiblin, 80000 Hours podcast host: