Summary of Moral Philosopher Will MacAskill on What We Owe The Future

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00:00:00 - 01:00:00

In the YouTube video "Moral Philosopher Will MacAskill on What We Owe The Future," MacAskill discusses the idea of effective altruism and how it can help us to make a difference in the world. He argues that we should focus on making practical decisions that will have the biggest impact, rather than making decisions based on theoretical considerations or desires for personal pleasure. He also recommends that we donate to charities that address global issues, rather than focus on issues that impact people in rich countries.

  • 00:00:00 Will MacAskill discusses his motivation for becoming an associate professor of philosophy and his work in the field of effective altruism. He discusses how his background in moral philosophy helped him when he decided to become a professional ethics teacher, and how his experience as a young professor has helped him to see the world more clearly. He also shares his thoughts on the potential extinction of humanity, and how we can all do our part to help prevent this from happening.
  • 00:05:00 Will MacAskill, a moral philosopher, recommends that people give 10 percent of their income each year to charities to help others. He also recommends that people become involved in activism to help make the world a better place.
  • 00:10:00 In this YouTube video, Moral Philosopher Will MacAskill discusses what he does as a philosopher. He says that the main focus of his work is taking a question and analyzing it from many angles, in order to come up with a reasonable answer. He also says that most of his income comes from teaching at universities.
  • 00:15:00 Will MacAskill discusses how effective altruism can have a big impact on the future, discussing how much money a typical person is worth and how much good they can do with just a small amount of money. He also talks about the impact of money on happiness and how it's not just about providing a high quality of life, but also about the importance of transferring money to those in need.
  • 00:20:00 Will MacAskill, an Oxford philosopher, discusses the importance of giving back to others and the different ways that we can do so. He also touches on the idea of "moral responsibility" and how we should weigh different factors in order to make the best decision for ourselves and others. In the context of his discussion of giving, MacAskill makes the point that "effective altruism" – the practice of donating a substantial portion of one's income to effective charities – has had a significant impact on his own well-being. He argues that the warm glow one experiences from doing good is far more rewarding than the "warm glow" one experiences from purchasing luxuries for oneself. He recommends that we focus on making practical decisions that will have the biggest impact – such as donating to charities that address global issues – rather than making decisions based on theoretical considerations or desires for personal pleasure. MacAskill concludes the podcast by noting that, although the decision of how much to give back to others is often difficult, it is important to start the conversation and to strive for more humane and compassionate societies.
  • 00:25:00 The video discusses the idea that we are currently over-prioritizing issues that impact people in rich countries, and under-prioritizing issues that impact people in poor countries. Moral philosopher Will MacAskill shares his thoughts on the matter.
  • 00:30:00 Will MacAskill discusses what we owe the future, and how our individual actions can have a large impact. He argues that voting can often be a high impact activity, and that recycling is a very easy way to make a difference. He also argues that the impact of our elections is often very small, but that donating to high impact organizations can have a much larger impact.
  • 00:35:00 Will MacAskill discusses the financial and well-being costs and benefits of donating money to charity. He also discusses his feelings on the morality of doing good for the sake of doing good, even if it does not feel as intense as doing good for the sake of oneself. He concludes by saying that he oscillates between acting out of rational conviction and feeling driven by emotions, but that he generally follows the former.
  • 00:40:00 Will MacAskill discusses the idea of what we owe the future, and how our views on money and career choice may change over time. He suggests that often, we don't make the best decisions because we're worried about the short-term, instead of looking at the long-term. He also suggests that, in order to make the best decisions, we should take a Cost Benefit Analysis and figure out what level of income/security we want.
  • 00:45:00 Will MacAskill, a moral philosopher, gives advice on how to make the biggest decision of a lifetime, whether to have children, and how to spend money on them. He also suggests that people should think about their career before making a decision.
  • 00:50:00 Will MacAskill discusses how to find a career that is both fulfilling and in demand, and how to balance self-interest and the needs of the world. He provides an example of how his philosophy degree led to a career in non-profit management.
  • 00:55:00 Will MacAskill discusses how 80,000 Hours has spent its money over the years, and how it has helped to improve the world. He also discusses how people can give what they can to help make a difference.

01:00:00 - 02:00:00

The video discusses moral philosopher Will MacAskill's idea that anyone can make a difference by donating 10% of their income to the most effective causes. The video also discusses how much money it would take to save a life with various types of donations.

  • 01:00:00 The video discusses the Moral Philosopher Will MacAskill's idea that anyone can make a difference by donating 10% of their income to the most effective causes. The video also discusses how much money it would take to save a life with various types of donations.
  • 01:05:00 Will MacAskill, a moral philosopher, discusses what we owe the future, highlighting the importance of early-life financial planning and the impact of global inequality. He recommends reading books by Peter Singer and Melvin Bragg, as well as listening to PhilosophyBytes on Radio 4.
  • 01:10:00 The author of the video discusses different aspects of the future, including how long humans could potentially live and the potential scale of civilization. He also points out that the future matters because it affects people alive today and in the future.
  • 01:15:00 Will MacAskill discusses what we owe to the future, how we can make a difference, and the stakes involved. He argues that the future is especially important because it's where we're headed, and we should care about it because it's our children who will live in it. He also talks about the risks of extinction and engineered pandemics.
  • 01:20:00 Will MacAskill discusses the two ways that extinction could have long-term impacts on future generations: by preventing future births or by locking societies into a particular ideology or value system. He argues that the latter is a much more significant risk.
  • 01:25:00 Will MacAskill, a moral philosopher, discusses the concept of a future where people have a level of moral caringness similar to what we have today, but also points out that the future could be either a good or bad thing. He explains that extinction is one of the easiest things to prevent, and that we can do more to protect ourselves against pandemics by having a policy in place to say "never again" to them.
  • 01:30:00 The video discusses moral and ethical concerns with the possibility of engineered viruses and bio weapons becoming more widespread and dangerous. The author suggests that by 2020, we will be able to design and create smallpox virus with relative ease, and that policy decisions need to be made to ensure that this doesn't happen.
  • 01:35:00 Will MacAskill discusses the dangers of humans creating and using biological weapons, and how we've made progress in reducing the number of nuclear weapons. He also mentions the Cuban Missile Crisis as an example of how close the world has been to a nuclear war.
  • 01:40:00 Will MacAskill, a moral philosopher, discusses the moral implications of nuclear weapons, and how the absence of war between great powers is a relatively recent phenomenon. He notes that even if the chance of a nuclear war occurring in our lifetimes is only one in three, it is still a significant risk.
  • 01:45:00 Will MacAskill discusses the potential for catastrophe should we not continue to make moral progress. He argues that the world could settle into a single, ideology-driven culture, in which slavery is accepted as a norm.
  • 01:50:00 Will MacAskill discusses how arguments for and against change over time can be persuasive and how technology could lead to the rise of artificial general intelligence, which could lead to the perpetuation of a certain ideology.
  • 01:55:00 Will MacAskill, a moral philosopher, discusses what we owe the future, pointing to issues like climate change, pandemics, and ai governance. He argues that, while we don't need to be long-termists, the things we're focused on are important and have large impacts.

02:00:00 - 02:50:00

Will MacAskill is a moral philosopher who talks about the importance of making a difference in the world. He urges listeners to be aware of the impact they have, and to use their careers and lives to make a difference. He recommends reading books, listening to podcasts, and engaging in cause-related activities to maximize results.

  • 02:00:00 The YouTube video "Moral Philosopher Will MacAskill on What We Owe The Future" by Will MacAskill discusses how to make the world a better place, and provides advice on how to reduce uncertainty and increase impact. He suggests reading books, listening to podcasts, and engaging in cause-related activities to maximize results.
  • 02:05:00 Will MacAskill discusses the importance of having an attitude of optimism and how it can be difficult to maintain when discussing topics such as nuclear war. He also discusses how he balances his responsibilities as a professor, board member, and founder of several non-profits with his outreach work during the pandemic.
  • 02:10:00 Will MacAskill discusses the importance of writing, having deadlines, and accountability in his book-writing process. He says that while input (the number of words written) is important, output (the quality of the writing) is most important. He discusses the challenges of writing a book that is both innovative and broadly accessible. He also discusses the importance of having a search assistant to verify the accuracy of research.
  • 02:15:00 Will MacAskill discusses the various reasons why he wrote a book about doing good better, and how it can be a baseline for long-termism. He also discusses the health costs of air pollution from fossil fuel combustion, and how economists tend to find that the short-term health costs of decarbonization are worth it.
  • 02:20:00 Will MacAskill discusses the many benefits of clean energy technology, its potential to extend the lifespan of civilization, and the potential for fossil fuels to be replaced by clean energy in the future. He is optimistic about the progress being made, but warns of potential obstacles. MacAskill argues that clean energy technology is a baseline we can just dump tens of billions of dollars into, and that it has the potential to improve the world in many ways.
  • 02:25:00 Will MacAskill discusses the three main blocks to productivity - anxiety, inertia, and obscurity - and how to overcome them. He recommends the book "Ea" as a good read for anyone looking to improve their productivity.
  • 02:30:00 Will MacAskill discusses the concept of moral motivation, outlining how having a vision for the future and structuring one's life so as not to procrastinate can help to achieve that goal. He also discusses how having multiple phones allows for easy access to distracting websites and apps, and how being addicted to technology can be a negative thing.
  • 02:35:00 Will MacAskill, a moral philosopher, discusses the idea of what we owe the future and how we can achieve this. He discusses the importance of taking breaks and how to be more productive. He also discusses the importance of autonomy and mastery and how putting more energy into a task can lead to more satisfaction.
  • 02:40:00 Will MacAskill discusses how people can improve their wellbeing by monitoring their mood, productivity, and other indicators. He also recommends using quantitative and qualitative data to identify patterns over time.
  • 02:45:00 Will MacAskill discusses the motivation behind philanthropy, and how it differs from earning an income in order to maximize one's impact. He points out that, even though effective altruism is largely focused on increasing the impact of one's work, it is important to also think about one's well-being. MacAskill recommends donating money to effective altruist NGOs rather than keeping it all in the bank, as this will maximize one's impact while also being relatively easy to do.
  • 02:50:00 The moral philosopher Will MacAskill talks about the opportunities we have to make a difference in the world, and how we can do our part to address some of the biggest issues. He urges listeners to be aware of the impact they have, and to use their careers and lives to make a difference.

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