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KevinSimler's profile
Kevin Simler
Kevin Simler
Kevin Simler
@KevinSimler

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Kevin Simler

@KevinSimler

Writer, software person, armchair anthropologist, dilettante. All genders, all political opinions welcome. Book: https://amzn.com/0190495995/ 

San Francisco, CA
meltingasphalt.com
Joined March 2011

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    1. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
      • Report Tweet

      GOING CRITICAL — a 🆕 interactive essay! How to prevent disease, control nuclear reactions, and encourage the spread of ideas. All with playable simulations. https://meltingasphalt.com/interactive/going-critical …pic.twitter.com/UBIhO2Aadr

      117 replies 676 retweets 1,864 likes
      Show this thread
    2. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
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      A little context on the medium, to set the stage:

      1 reply 0 retweets 12 likes
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    3. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
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      This is my first attempt at what @ncasenmare has been doing (brilliantly) for years: using simulations to explain complex ideas. It's possible to convey the same ideas using text and static images. But simulations are a lot more compelling, IMO. And also more *real.*

      2 replies 4 retweets 62 likes
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    4. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
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      What do I mean by "real"? @DavidDeutschOxf has this great line in FoR — that reality "kicks back." Meaning it exists outside the mind and is capable of independent behavior.

      2 replies 5 retweets 51 likes
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    5. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
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      Ideas made from *words* don't always kick back (unless you go to great lengths to make them clear and sharp enough, and bring them alive in your mind). The mind is typically too slippery, too pliable, too wishful.

      1 reply 3 retweets 44 likes
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    6. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
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      But ideas made from *code* kick back hard. Code is unforgiving, largely because it runs on an unforgiving architecture. But for that very reason, it can surprise and delight you.

      2 replies 0 retweets 50 likes
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    7. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
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      For the simulations in this post, I wrote just a few simple rules. But the resulting behavior was complex enough that I couldn't always model it in my head. It surprised me. I hope readers have a similar experience. If so, the medium is delivering on its promise.

      2 replies 1 retweet 50 likes
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      Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
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      TL;DR: I'm excited about "show, don't tell" for nonfiction. Also, I plan to do more of these interactive essays in the future and want to get better at them, so please let me know what you think! 🙏

      4:27 PM - 13 May 2019
      • 1 Retweet
      • 128 Likes
      • Kinrany {°^°} Nathan Charley Inni Wintrop Trupthi Shetty Victor J M Valentin Perez Nopenotagain
      22 replies 1 retweet 128 likes
        1. New conversation
        2. Kevin Simler‏ @KevinSimler May 13
          • Report Tweet
          Replying to @spikespike

          pic.twitter.com/HPPjofDZeB

          1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
        3. 1 more reply
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        2. Taylor Pearson‏Verified account @TaylorPearsonMe May 15
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          Replying to @KevinSimler

          Loved it! If you haven't seen it, @sfiscience has an intro to complexity course that comes with some software which runs similar simulations -https://www.santafe.edu/engage/learn/courses/introduction-complexity …

          1 reply 2 retweets 5 likes
        3. Taylor Pearson‏Verified account @TaylorPearsonMe May 15
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          Replying to @TaylorPearsonMe @KevinSimler @sfiscience

          I generally prefer text over mediums but I find with complex systems, in particular, there is something that gets lost with text and you need to see it to train your intuition.

          1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
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        2. ChuChuTrain‏ @TheChuChu_ May 14
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          Replying to @KevinSimler

          This is where books fall short - some topics are better shown visually rather then just explaining with words. If these interactive features can somehow be a standard in books (perhaps only ebooks), books can finally be revolutionized after hundreds of years of stagnation!

          1 reply 0 retweets 3 likes
        3. Abhishek‏ @AbhishekKarale May 14
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          Replying to @TheChuChu_ @KevinSimler

          Especially textbooks. It would be cool To have interactive parts to understand concepts more easily.

          0 replies 0 retweets 3 likes
        4. End of conversation
        1. Jonathan Howard  🦃‏ @staringispolite May 13
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          Replying to @KevinSimler

          I always found this was the best way to compare sorting algorithms in college!pic.twitter.com/bnpw4jQye1

          0 replies 0 retweets 6 likes
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        2. full-stack monastic  🧘‍♂️ 🗺‏ @tasshinfogleman May 13
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          Replying to @KevinSimler

          Can you share more about the stack behind creating interactive essays?

          1 reply 0 retweets 3 likes
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        2. KC Oh‏ @okaysee May 13
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          Replying to @KevinSimler

          Wow this was neat. Few thoughts: - the progression was handy (like a video game introducing new elements to thoughtfully ramp up complexity) 💯 v effective - the feedback loop on the interactive pieces was v effective to feel out the cause/effect vs reading an explanation

          1 reply 1 retweet 1 like
        3. KC Oh‏ @okaysee May 13
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          Replying to @okaysee @KevinSimler

          Some things to try? - breaking this up into sections (bkgd, core concepts, discussion) - a better handle on time and it’s impact (thinking specifically of the city model) - would have been fun to be able to play w distance in the knowledge relay

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
        4. End of conversation

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