Getting REAL: Rationalism Effective Altruism Longtermism

Philosophy, Programs, and Prompts · Oct 22, 2026 · 1h 6m

In this episode of Philosophy Programs and Prompts, Casey Hart ( @OntologyExplained ) and Carl Brown( @InternetOfBugs ) take a deep dive into the "R-E-A-L" half of the TESCREAL acronym (coined by Émile P. Torres and Timnit Gebru): Rationalism, Effective Altruism, and Longtermism.Starting with the intellectual roots of online rationalism—from LessWrong and Eliezer Yudkowsky to the Center for Applied Rationality (CFAR)—the conversation traces how reasonable ideas about cognitive bias, decision theory, and clear thinking evolved into a distinct subculture closely tied to Silicon Valley and…