welcome to the nonlinear library, where we use text-to-speech software to convert the best writing from the rationalist and ea communities into audio.
this is: Finding equilibrium in a difficult time, published by Julia_Wise on the effective altruism forum.
To start: I don’t want to say that self-isolation is that bad in the scheme of things. People have lost their lives, they’ve lost loved ones. Healthcare workers are working hard, at their own risk, to protect us all. Some other workers don’t have a choice about continuing to work in person. And for some immunocompromised people and their families, self-isolation is the reality much or all of the time.
But I’m writing for those of us who aren’t physically ill, are doing some amount of self-isolation or social distancing because of the pandemic, and are not finding it easy. Most of this isn’t specific to EAs, but I hope it’s useful.
We are all having a hard time with this
I assume I’m not the only person who finished last week and realized I’d gotten very little work done.
We're all anxious about the situation in different ways. This is a hard, weird time. I don’t expect to have normal work weeks for a while, and you probably shouldn’t expect that either (especially if you’re newly working from home or if you have children who are suddenly out of school). And if you're affected by job loss, of course things are even more upside-down.
Focus on the basics: Sleep. Eat nourishing food. Get some exercise and sunshine. Connect with other people. These things are literally a public health measure — you’re protecting your immune system.
On information:
If you’re like me, you’ve found yourself reading more about this topic than is useful for any practical purpose. Think about diminishing marginal returns: what's the amount and kind of information about this that will benefit you? And when does it start to produce very little value?
Here’s the advice Gregory Lewis (a medical doctor and public health specialist who works on biorisk at the Future of Humanity Institute) gave to his colleagues:
I’d recommend some information hygiene. The typical person doesn’t need ‘up to the minute’ information on what is going on worldwide, and generally it takes time for instant reports to resolve into a clear picture.
Further, typical media reporting will tend to be biased in the very alarming direction (e.g., the typical ‘live feed’: “New case in A!” “New Case in B!” “Event C cancelled due to coronavirus fear!”). Social media tends not to be much better regarding bias, and worse with regard to reliability.
In other words, especially for those worried about this, staying glued to the screen can get a very high yield of anxiety for a very poor yield of useful action-relevant information.
Here are some good sources of information (which is the bulk of my information diet):
Generally:
WHO
Public health matters
Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security newsletter
For the data:
JH mapping dashboard
Worldometer (slightly easier to divvy out some time courses)
Typically good commentary/analysis/explanation
Tom Inglesby’s Twitter (both for itself, and for links to CHS’s other work)
John Campbell’s Youtube
Trevor Bedford’s Twitter for virology.
On working remotely:
When the Great Plague of London sent Isaac Newton and other Cambridge students home for a year in 1665, he did some of his best work including the famous falling-apple realization. Maybe once you settle in, you'll have a productive time in a different environment than usual.
If you’re used to working from a desk and switch to working from a couch or bed, you’re risking hurting your body. (After a two-week stretch of writing from bed a lot, my husband had serious wrist pain for weeks.) Please set up a good workspace where you can use your computer without putting your neck, back, and wrists in awkward positions.
More:
Wirecutter on equipment for working from home (though you can make an ergonomic setup for much less - here’s mine.)
Making profession...
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