AI reading of Harry Potter And The Methods Of Rationality Is A Disney Movie About A Serial Killer, By WSCFriedman.

In this essay, WSCFriedman responds to Alexander Wales’s critique of Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality, the celebrated rationalist fanfiction novel by Eliezer Yudkowsky. While acknowledging the work has legitimate flaws worth discussing, Friedman argues that Wales fundamentally misreads the story’s structure—specifically the claim that its main plot doesn’t begin until late in the narrative. Through four complementary lenses, Friedman makes the case that HPMoR has a clear, unified plot established from nearly the beginning, one that draws on classic storytelling archetypes while weaving together character growth, philosophical conflict, and the tension between competing worldviews. This is a piece for readers who already know the story well; newcomers should experience the novel first before diving into this detailed structural analysis.

* 00:00 - Introduction

* 04:40 - 1. Be Careful What You Wish For

* 11:48 - 2. The Moral Of The Story Is...?

* 16:18 - 3. Hannibal, But With Kids!

* 23:28 - 4: The Siege of the Soul

* 33:47 - So, do you think you know what the elephant looks like? Any other good lenses I’ve missed?

https://open.substack.com/pub/asourdays/p/harry-potter-and-the-methods-of-rationality?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

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AI reading of How I Found Myself Running a Microschool, By Kelsey Piper.

https://open.substack.com/pub/educationprogress/p/how-i-found-myself-running-a-microschool?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe

AI reading of How getting richer made teenagers less free, By Kelsey Piper.

Kelsey Piper examines one of the great paradoxes of modern prosperity: as we’ve lifted children out of dangerous labor and early death, we’ve simultaneously stripped them of independence and agency. Starting with a striking account of teenage factory workers in 1913 and their surprising preferences, Piper traces how a century of economic growth has transformed not just material conditions but our entire conception of childhood and adolescence. She explores current attitudes toward children’s autonomy, the role of institutions in shaping parental anxiety, and asks whether we’ve traded one form of harm for another. It’s a nuanced look at what we’ve gained, what we may have lost, and the search for a middle ground that protects young people without suffocating them.

https://open.substack.com/pub/theargument/p/how-getting-richer-made-teenagers?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

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AI reading of Can You Just Do Things? - By Cate Hall - Asterisk.Cate Hall joins Clara Collier and Jake Eaton to discuss her forthcoming book You Can Just Do Things and unpack what agency really means, beyond the Silicon Valley buzzword. Hall offers a definition centred on freedom rather than ambition, exploring why high achievement and high agency aren’t the same thing, and how someone can follow an impressive path without ever truly choosing it. The conversation moves through the catalysts that spark genuine personal transformation, the dark side of “high agency” culture, why Hall finds the term “NPC” morally repugnant, and the surprising role that relationships and even Enneagram types play in how we develop autonomy. A thoughtful examination of what it means to actually live a self-directed life, and whether that’s something that can be taught, or only received as a kind of grace.

https://asteriskmag.substack.com/p/can-you-just-do-things

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Podcast episode for Where Do You Stand? - By Dean W. Ball.

https://open.substack.com/pub/hyperdimensional/p/where-do-we-stand?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

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AI reading of When grades stop meaning anything - By Kelsey Piper.

* 00:00 - Introduction

* 07:44 - 1. This is not just about COVID-19 or phones in classrooms or whatever your pet bogeyman is

* 08:39 - 2. This is about the UC system

* 10:32 - 3. These students are not lazy or dumb

* 11:50 - Where do we go from here?

https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/when-grades-stop-meaning-anything?r=67y1h&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe

AI reading of The Perplexing Appeal of The Telepathy Tapes - By Meghan Boilard.

https://asteriskmag.com/issues/12-books/paradigm-shifted-the-perplexing-appeal-of-the-telepathy-tapes

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AI reading of NASA’s Orion Space Capsule Is Flaming Garbage - By Casey Handmer.

* 00:00:00 - Introduction

* 00:00:19 - NASA’s Orion Space Capsule Is Flaming Garbage

* 00:05:17 - Orion is absurdly expensive to build and operate

* 00:15:21 - The Orion capsule is far too heavy to be useful

* 00:22:19 - Wrong Mission

* 00:28:52 - Heat shield

* 00:42:33 - We’re done here

* 00:46:07 - But wait, there’s more

* 00:46:32 - Separation bolts

* 00:49:40 - Service Module Problems

* 00:55:41 - ECLSS problems

* 00:59:59 - Hatches that won’t open

* 01:05:35 - Docking system missing, please pay $2.5b

* 01:11:59 - Abort system and other crew safety systems

* 01:14:19 - Parachute test failures

* 01:14:46 - Power distribution system

* 01:16:55 - Battery design won’t stop changing for no apparent reason

* 01:20:12 - Flight software

* 01:22:40 - Systems that have not yet caused problems

* 01:23:40 - Contractor underperformance is overdetermined

* 01:26:10 - Lying to you with your own tax dollars

* 01:35:20 - So what now?

https://caseyhandmer.wordpress.com/2025/10/31/nasas-orion-space-capsule-is-flaming-garbage/

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Full cast AI reading of On Fleshling Safety: A Debate by Klurl and Trapaucius - By Eliezer Yudkowsky.

https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/dHLdf8SB8oW5L27gg/on-fleshling-safety-a-debate-by-klurl-and-trapaucius

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AI reading of Highlights From The Comments On Fatima.

https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/highlights-from-the-comments-on-fatima?r=67y1h&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe