Map and Territory - Eliezer Yudkowsky

I discovered Yudkowsky whilst learning about AI alignment challenges and his way of thinking about things and the way he is able to articulate himself led me to Rationality. I first read The Rationalist's Guide to the Galaxy by Tom Chivers but it was so full of quotes from Yudkowsky's work that I figured I would go there next.

I found two of his books that are really two chapters in his opus - Rationality: from AI to Zombies. And decided I would give these a try first. After the first few chapters of the first book I bought the full 2101 pages and switched to that.

I like it. This first book introduces the basics of rationality, decision theory, and the idea that beliefs require evidence. It also introduces the concept that the map (our understanding of the world) is not the territory (the actual state of the world).

"Rationality: From AI to Zombies" by Eliezer Yudkowsky is a compilation of essays that were originally posted on the website LessWrong and other similar sites. The essays are organised into six books that all focus on different aspects of rationality, with the overarching theme being that understanding rationality can lead to better thinking, decision making, and understanding of the world.