Avoiding Perverse Incentives

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Part 1: When Incentives Fail. A Story about Rats, Cobras, Nails, and Atrocities.  Part 2: Avoiding Perverse Incentives  When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. Goodhart’s Law (adversarial Goodhart)  Perverse incentives are compensations with unintended or undesirable consequences that encourage people to act in unethical or harmful ways.   Telltale signs of perverse incentives might include: How to Fight against the Negative Consequences of Perverse Incentives? Let’s consider a practical example: a company that wants to offer bonuses to employees who …

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End of the Year Favourites (2022)

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It’s that time of the year to look back and review all the things that made my life easier and more pleasant. None of the links below is a referral; I will update this note if I change the links to referrals. As this year was devastating with the war in Ukraine and protests in Iran, I don’t feel in the mental position to share more than the books I enjoyed this year.  Some of the books I liked had a dedicated article on …

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Mummy, Where Do Babies Come from? A Few Books to Spark a Gentle Introduction to a Sensitive Topic 

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I have been waiting for this question for a few years now. When my six-year-old daughter finally asked me one day about babies, I reached out to the books I had bought long ago. First, I asked my daughter what she knew about this topic. Remember the extra virgin oil commercial? Since she didn’t know anything, I proceeded with the books. I want to say there was an order to my method, but who are we kidding? I just grabbed one of the books listed …

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A Deception Study: Operation Mincemeat 

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All warfare is based on deception. Sun Tzu  Deceit and violence – these are the two forms of deliberate assault on human beings. But deceit controls more subtly, for it works on belief as well as action.  When we undertake to deceive others intentionally, we communicate messages meant to mislead them, meant to make them believe what we ourselves do not believe. We can do so through gesture, through disguise, by means of action or inaction, even through silence.  Sissela Bok – Secrets: On the …

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Reading Insights (2022)

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Before the printing press, only a small, literate elite, largely confined to the Church, had access to books, ideas and learning. The power of the Church was rooted in its exclusive access to scriptures and through them to the word of God. This gave the clergy unrivalled control over the people’s minds. The printing and distribution of books unleashed a voracious appetite for literacy and disseminated ideas across national and cultural boundaries on a scale that was previously unimaginable.  Sir Ken Robinson – Out of …

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Writing Insights (2022)

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Sappho is counted as one of the greatest poets of Antiquity, often named “The Tenth Muse” or “The Poetess”. Historically, the “lesbian” term originates from the name of the island of Lesbos, Sappho’s birthplace. A more in-depth description of what sapphic means nowadays can be found on the lgbtqia.fandom.com website.  Sappho wrote thousands of verses, but only about 650 lines have survived. Perhaps the Catholic Church disapproved of her poetry (there are claims that Sappho’s works were burned on the orders of Pope Gregory VII). Or maybe the dialect …

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Tending the Garden of Our Soul

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Frog was in his garden. Toad came walking by.  “What a very fine garden  you have, Frog,” he said.  “Yes”, said Frog. “It is very nice, but it was hard work.”  “I wish I had a garden,” said Toad.  “Here are some flower seeds. Plant them in the ground”, said Frog, “and soon you too will have a garden”.  “How soon?” asked Toad.  “Quite soon,” said Frog.  Toad ran home. He planted the flower seeds.  “Now seeds,” said Toad, “start growing.”  Toad walked up and down a few times. The seeds did not …

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When Threats Don’t Solve Conflictual Situations with Our Children

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Some time ago, I heard a frustrated parent telling their child: “Do this one more time, and I will take away all your toys”. Unsurprisingly, the child reacted with screams and cries. Far from me to judge this interaction, as all parents reach that exhausting point of running low on time, sleep, and energy, and for once, they just need some peace and quiet, and kids listen to them.   However, imagine the child reacts after a few fights like this: “Fine, take my toys. …

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