Matt Bell - Matt Bell

Reflections from seeing the Starship launch firsthand

We spent a week working remotely in Brownsville to catch the historic launch of Starship.

Results of COVID reinfection survey

Data from my extended friend network suggests that a prior COVID infection reduces the risk of catching the latest variant (BA5) by around 4x.

Culture

The nuclear family isn't working, what can we do instead?

The nuclear family was only broadly achievable for a brief period of time in American history, and the continued pursuit of it is causing a range of societal problems.

COVID

Let's Play Vaccine Battleship

COVID will likely become endemic, but we can stay one step ahead of it.

COVID

Results of Omicron Experience Survey

What I learned from surveying my social circle about their experience with Omicron

Culture

Four key principles for a delightful start to parenthood

With the right preparation and approach, parenting a newborn can be a delightful experience instead of a relentless slog.

AI

My deepfake DALL-E 2 vacation photos passed the Turing Test

I went on a real vacation, and created photos of a fake vacation using DALL-E 2. Most people couldn't tell the difference.

Society

Guide to gestational surrogacy

Gestational surrogacy is when someone other than the genetic mother of an embryo gestates that embryo to term. This has become an amazing opportunity for many couples who previously thought it was not possible to have a family.

Culture

The Great Bifurcation of Humanity

Humanity was separated into two isolated groups for about 24,000 of the last 25,000 years, allowing us to see two parallel developments of civilization.

Culture

High-structure vs High-experimentation cultures

I’ve been thinking recently about high-structure vs high-experimentation cultures and what it means for intergenerational cultural transmission. Examples of high-structure cultures include groups like the Mormons who provide a

COVID

Updates to Long COVID and Delta!

New information has been added to the long COVID post. Here's what we learned last week:

Science

Embracing the Cosmic Endowment

Why it's vital that we prioritize space exploration to ensure the continued flourishing of humanity.

COVID

If you’re vaccinated, your main risk from the Delta variant is probably long-haul COVID (Updated 8/11/21)

Vaccination drastically reduces your risk of severe acute COVID, but long-term persistent symptoms are still a concerning issue. I summarize the available research on long COVID and how to avoid it.

AI

For animals, the Singularity already happened

We can get a sense for different possible fates of humanity after the development of AGI by looking at the fates of different animals after the rise of human civilization.

Science

Book review: The Biology of Desire

On a friend’s recommendation I checked out The Biology of Desire [https://www.amazon.com/The-Biology-of-Desire-audiobook/dp/B0128B4HX4/]. The author has the somewhat unique qualification of being both a

Science

Watching early embryo development changed how we think about human life

We're making a little human!

COVID

The US needs to have a 9/11 Commission style reckoning with its COVID policy failures

540,000 people didn't have to die.

AI

The amazing generality of DALL-E

OpenAI's DALL-E network represents a stunning leap in the power and flexibility of generative image networks.

Crypto

Buy bitcoin when no one is talking about it

The safest time to invest in bitcoin is when no one is talking about it. If you invest now, you might 2x your money in a month, or you might be underwater for 4 years.

Travel

The Guaranteed Way to see the Aurora Borealis

The traditional advice for seeing the Aurora Borealis involves picking a time well in advance and then staying there for a week or more and hoping for the best. However, if your schedule permits, there's an alternate approach that few people know.

COVID

The B117 Variant

The new, more infectious B117 variant of COVID is a big deal, and it will significantly impact what the US will look like over the next few months.

Science

Thought experiment: What's the biggest a tree could grow?

Giant sequoias and redwoods manage to grow so large in part because they're extremely hard to kill, allowing them thousands of years to grow relatively unmolested. How big could one get under ideal conditions?

Science

Visibility and Inversion Layers

While an inversion layer has been trapping air pollution at low altitude across the state of California for days, it's had an amazing side effect -- the air *above* the inversion layer is absurdly clean.

COVID

Reopening indoor dining was a policy mistake

I'm surprised and saddened that almost a year into the pandemic, the US still doesn't seem to have a good sense for how to fight it from a public policy perspective. Much of the US’s policy apparatus is in a state of partial or full denial, and has made terrible decisions as a result.

Paragliding

Paragliding Maui

Weaving through clouds, seeing circular rainbows!

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