Concepts
The irreducible epistemic atoms underlying the curriculum. 4,828 atoms across 8 types
Classify decisions as reversible or irreversible before…
Classify decisions as reversible or irreversible before allocating deliberation resources, not during deliberation.
Engineer reversibility into decisions wherever possible…
Engineer reversibility into decisions wherever possible by restructuring constraints to enable low-cost rollback.
Define minimum acceptability thresholds before searching…
Define minimum acceptability thresholds before searching for options, then commit to the first option that exceeds all thresholds.
Use simple decision rules that ignore most available…
Use simple decision rules that ignore most available information in high-uncertainty domains where signal-to-noise ratio is low.
Design commitment mechanisms during cold cognitive states…
Design commitment mechanisms during cold cognitive states to constrain behavior during hot cognitive states.
Record original reasoning and confidence levels before…
Record original reasoning and confidence levels before outcomes are known to enable accurate learning from decisions.
Evaluate decision quality independently from outcome quality
Evaluate decision quality independently from outcome quality by comparing process against recorded pre-decision reasoning.
Track calibration by recording confidence levels…
Track calibration by recording confidence levels on predictions and measuring correspondence between stated confidence and actual frequency of correctness.
Assign fixed time budgets to decisions proportional…
Assign fixed time budgets to decisions proportional to their irreversibility and consequence magnitude, not to their subjective complexity or anxiety level.
Structure decision environments so the path of least…
Structure decision environments so the path of least resistance leads to acceptable outcomes rather than forcing deliberate choice at every decision point.
Schedule periodic reviews of installed defaults because…
Schedule periodic reviews of installed defaults because contexts change and unexamined defaults silently steer toward outdated goals.
Make opportunity costs explicit by naming the best…
Make opportunity costs explicit by naming the best alternative before committing, because minds retrieve within-category competitors while missing cross-category tradeoffs.
Allocate attention based on comparative advantage — keep…
Allocate attention based on comparative advantage — keep tasks where your relative advantage over alternatives is highest compared to other tasks competing for the same hours, not simply tasks where you have absolute advantage.
Delegate decisions that are reversible at low cost while…
Delegate decisions that are reversible at low cost while retaining those that are irreversible, high-stakes, or require unique positional knowledge.
Install frameworks that make dissent costless…
Install frameworks that make dissent costless and information aggregation systematic to prevent social pressure from suppressing distributed knowledge in group decisions.
Use consent-based decision making (absence of principled…
Use consent-based decision making (absence of principled objections) rather than consensus (universal agreement) when speed and commitment both matter, shifting burden from proving optimality to showing lack of harm.
Use regret minimization as a second-pass filter after…
Use regret minimization as a second-pass filter after rigorous analysis stalls rather than as a replacement for analytical thinking, letting anticipated regret reveal values that expected-value calculations miss.
Recognize that regret minimization biases toward action over
Recognize that regret minimization biases toward action over inaction because long-term regret asymmetrically favors paths not taken, and compensate by explicitly considering whether conservative choices are correct.
Test whether regret projections are genuine by checking…
Test whether regret projections are genuine by checking if they ever contradict your current impulses; if projections always agree with present desires, you're performing motivated reasoning rather than consulting your future self.
Pre-commit to abandonment conditions before emotional…
Pre-commit to abandonment conditions before emotional investment makes rational exit decisions impossible.
Translate imagined failure scenarios into measurable…
Translate imagined failure scenarios into measurable tripwires rather than vague intentions.
Require disinterested party validation before overriding…
Require disinterested party validation before overriding pre-set decision criteria.
Set decision speed as an explicit variable based…
Set decision speed as an explicit variable based on reversibility, stakes, and delay cost before analysis begins.
Build real-time information infrastructure rather…
Build real-time information infrastructure rather than gathering data at decision time to compress orientation phase duration.