- Humans are cosmically significant, but not necessarily unique
- Consciousness is not intelligence; we don't understand either very well
- Even if we build systems smarter than us, preserving conscious life remains a universal goal. Humanity must survive!
- Human prosperity runs on knowledge creation
- Knowledge grows by correcting errors, not by discovering final truths
- This requires open criticism, not deference to authority
- Systems that evolve through variation and selection beat top-down design
- Evolution, capitalism, science
- The world is positive sum
- Wealth is created, not redistributed
- You generate net new wealth by doing things others value
- Be a maker, not a taker
- Aim to produce more than you consume