Aerospace JDV

You're now chatting with a random stranger. Say hi!

You both like philosophy.

Stranger: Hi

You: Hey

Stranger: How are you?

You: Well.

You: What do you want to discuss?

Stranger: I was about to ask you that. Do you have anything in mind?

You: Yes, but I'd only want to talk about it if you're willing to look into it and learn about it

Stranger: I am

You: Or else it would just me telling you about the basics

Stranger: Go on

You: So what do you want to talk about instead?

Stranger: Let's go with your idea

You: Usually, people are very reluctant to go further

You: But ok

Stranger: Well, I've got nothing else to do

You: It's the small, hopefully emerging movement, Effective Altruism movement

You: Wikipedia is a good start

You: The EA website doesn't do a good job

Stranger: You're pro it?

You: In regards to two of the three main "sub-movements"

You: Not the third (main one)

You: It's called cause priorities on Wiki.

Stranger: I see

Stranger: What are the sub movements you support?

You: =)

You: Guess

Stranger: Just so we're clear

Stranger: Ok ok

Stranger: I'd say

Stranger: Education and animal welfare

You: I guess I'm interested in how you interpret what the three main ones are

You: Why do you say education? Where do you get that from?

Stranger: You told me to look under 'cause priorities' on wiki

Stranger: I can identify education, climate change and animal welfare

You: I see

You: Some priorities of effective altruists include poverty in the developing world, the suffering of animals in factory farms, and risks to civilization, humans and planet Earth.[4][15][17]

You: Those are the three main ones

Stranger: Poverty in the developing world, I'd say that one is directly linked to education

You: So yes, animal suffering is one

You: I'd say it's my secondary enphasis

Stranger: Risks to civilization include climate change

You: Um, yes, I'd say so too

Stranger: The first one being... Poverty?

You: Although, no

You: Those are all separate

You: And you are correct on your guess

You: My pain cause priority is helping to lessen extreme/absolute poverty

Stranger: Why?

Stranger: Don't you think that extreme poverty is necessary to keep the balance?

You: Do you know what extreme poverty is?

You: It is a very specific term/description

You: There is relative poverty ~ income inequality essentially

You: And then there is absolute poverty

Stranger: The way I see it, to erradicate absolute poverty, you'd also have to erradicate absolute wealth

You: What do you think absolute poverty is?

Stranger: I don't think I know what it is. I'd say having nothing to eat/no future prospect/etc

You: There is no such thing as the noun-phrase 'absolute wealth'

Stranger: Hahaha

Stranger: I am sorry

Stranger: I am trying to establish a bridge between the equivalent term on the other side of the scale

You: Ok, well, extreme poverty has a very specific meaning

You: 40% in 1990

You: 20% in 2010

You: It's declining fast, but there's still many people out there

You: I'm from the US, and like most developed countries

Stranger: It's declining exponentially

You: We have virtually zero absolute poverty

Stranger: You still haven't explained the absolute poverty concept

You: You didn't ask

Stranger: Asking now

You: Wait

You: There are several definitions, the World Bank has a monetary figure.

You: It's living on less calories than what's needed to survive

You: It's not having one's basic survival needs met

You: ~ on an absolute scale--not relative

You: Anyway, that is my cause priority, there are a few others out there that are just as important

Stranger: That's not a very specific term

You: For instance, human trafficking--someone here...

Stranger: I don't think it's specific at all

Stranger: It's the most basic poverty description you can come up with, on developing countries

Stranger: But yes, go on

You: That's two intuitive definitions

You: I gave them to you

You: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extreme_poverty

You: I hate to keep giving these Wikipedia articles

You: But it is a very specific thing

You: Formally, it's living on less than $1.90. That's just not

You: not an intuitive definition.

You: Oh, per day

Stranger: Why would you think we need effective altruism to decrease extreme poverty if the graphic you just provided me shows that it's declining at such a fast rate without it?

You: Again, that's US aid graphic shows the same statistic I said earlier

You: 40% in 1990

You: 20% in 2010

You: It's declining fast, but there's still many people out there in extreme/absolute poverty

You: Yes, it seems your point

Stranger: Well yes, but the tendency is for it to keep going down anyways without any intervention from that effective altruism

You: that economic fluctuations (and I'd say technology in general)

You: have...

You: Yes, absolute poverty is decreasing

You: I just want to help more people

You: For example, as an electrical engineer, I'll make more than enough to live off of

You: I'd rather help a worthy cause, than spend my income on

Stranger: Well in that case I need to ask you something very basic

You: superfluous luxury

Stranger: You are supporting effective altruism for a very self centered cause

Stranger: Which is to feel better about how you spend your income

Stranger: Are you okay with that?

You: Ok, so the Effective Altruism movement is just the vague idea

You: I'm not "supporting effective altruism" as if it's a foundation or something

Stranger: Oh I see, you're supporting the implementation

Stranger: For its consequences

You: And sure, you could say "to feel better" ~ also called warm-glow giving

You: Yes, for it's consequences

Stranger: I can understand that

You: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warm-glow_giving

Stranger: Are you an electrcal engineer?

Stranger: electrical*

You: Senior undergrad

You: It's called the 'earning to give' approach in EA

Stranger: Never thought I'd find an engineer in the philosophy tag

You: Even though they recommend against it because there's a talent gap...

Stranger: I see

Stranger: A talent gap?

You: Yes, but the thing is, the movement is very small anyway

You: So 80,000 Hours has some articles out there saying how

You: there's a talent gap in the poverty/economics research field (one example)

You: But I think the movement is so small anyway

Stranger: I had never heard about it, and I have no idea how small it is, because to form an opinion I'll have to search further into it

Stranger: Why don't you care about the climate change part?

You: It's really not that controversial. Simply asking the question, "How can I do the most good with my resources and abilities?" ~ as an individual

Stranger: I don't mean to offend you, but don't you think that's a very hypocritical line of thought?

Stranger: You're thinking about how you can do the most good

Stranger: Yet you come up with a movement that is so small it has 0 applications at this point

Stranger: It's only an idea

Stranger: You could do better by helping locally

Stranger: People who live in your area/ etc

You: Charity is the application

Stranger: Why would you go for extreme poverty when there are so many other bad things around you?

You: Giving one's income consistently to cost effective and transparent charities

You: Such as the Against Malaria Foundation (AMF)

Stranger: See, I can't understand that

You: It's counterfactual reasoning

You: Many people assume that the best way to help people is through direct methods, such as working for a charity or providing social services,[29][30] but since charities and social-service providers usually can find people willing to work for them, effective altruists compare the amount of good somebody does in a conventional altruistic career to how much good would have been done had the next-best candidate been hired for the position. According to this reasoning, the impact of a career may be smaller than it appears..

Stranger: Change and helping begins in the small things, I'm sure there are homeless people around you who could benefit from it as well. Why would you care about, let's say, african people with malaria, if you have people with aids living in your street in poor conditions?

You: And I do volunteer locally anyway

Stranger: Oh i see

You: I'm just not a

You: "lawyer in a soup kitchen"

Stranger: If everyone thinks that social services will eventually find willing people, then eventually there will be no one

Stranger: Hahah

You: Sure, but that's not reality

Stranger: I said eventually twice, by mistake

Stranger: Yes, it's not

You: So yes, then it would change if Effective Altruism become mainstream

You: And it still depends on the person either way

You: If one is really good at whatever job at some charity

You: Then the most good they can do it probably not Earning to Give primarily at a separate high-income career

You: There's no hard and fast way

Stranger: Why are you so focused on doing good things?

You: I don't know how to answer

You: I just started looking into how I could help to lessen poverty abroad

You: since those living conditions and such are far worse from what we have here in the US

You: I'd like to emphasize that I have volunteered locally, and still do occasionally

You: Even, accidentally, stayed at a homeless shelter myself

Stranger: I see

Stranger: That is very beautiful

Stranger: On the inside

You: Eh, sure

Stranger: I mean it

Stranger: Oh

You: What's your story?

Stranger: Í am an engineer too

You: what kind?

Stranger: Aerospace

You: I'm just a student btw

Stranger: Me too

Stranger: I'm on the same grade as you are

Stranger: About to finish my masters, next year

Stranger: Lol

Stranger: Except I'm not american

Stranger: Or a male

Stranger: Like you

You: =o

You: That's unexpected

Stranger: Which part?

You: There are like two females in my department

You: Just shocked

Stranger: Oh yes, there are 4 females in my class

Stranger: Typical

You: Lol

Stranger: Electricity is hard

You: It's magic ;)

You: Aerospace was my other choice, but I figured I couldn't tinker in my free time

You: but I could with electronics ~ so that's why I chose EE instead

You: Where are you from?

Stranger: Oh yes, forget about free time with aerospace

Stranger: All my free time is spent reading articles or running experiments haha

Stranger: I am from Portugal, you?

You: Wisconsin

You: uwplatt.edu

You: I mean, once we have jobs

You: I'm procrastinating on a bunch of labs I need to do/checkoff

You: Why are you here?

Stranger: I am procrastinating on doing some research for an article

You: lol

You: avoidance is a killer

Stranger: Lol I know right

Stranger: Why are you on the philosophy tag??

You: I used to read philosophy in my free time (when I actually had it)

You: And Peter Singer (a founder of EA) is a philosopher

You: So I've read some of his stuff

You: I guess I'm interested in morality since I think the purpose of life is...

You: ...another Wiki article...

You: "To do good, to do the right thing"

You: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meaning_of_life#Popular_views

Stranger: Such an interesting article

You: What is the first part of your Wikipedia in Spain?

You: Not "en" right?

Stranger: I live in Portugal

Stranger: Not spain

Stranger: It's pt

You: Sorry

You: I thought of Spain when I heard Portugal

You: the dumb American in me =)

Stranger: Yes

Stranger: The usual

Stranger: The smart european in me had to point it out

You: aayyy, you've got one of the articles!

You: https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sentido_da_vida

Stranger: Hahahaha

Stranger: Thank you so much for looking for it

Stranger: You're nice

You: It's all for selfish reasons

You: (I like to look up Wiki articles in different languages and translate them back to English.)

You: I wonder if I would've become an aerospace student

You: if I would've looked into EA earlier than 2013ish...

You: You know, because you'll make more than me as an EE

You: Do you call it AE?

Stranger: Yes

Stranger: We call it EA

Stranger: Maybe I'll make less than you

Stranger: I'm a woman

Stranger: And I'm blonde

Stranger: Actually, it0s very likely that I will

You: Wait, you call it EA?

You: not AE?

You: I mean aerospace engineering

You: not effective altruism

Stranger: Yes, in Portugal it's spelled Engenharia Aeroespacial, as in Engineering Aerospace

Stranger: Inverted order

You: lol

You: And our department name changed to ECE (for computer egh)

Stranger: You know computer science to?

Stranger: too»

You: An emphasis can be in computers

You: Others are controls, communications and power

Stranger: I study a lot of electricity

Stranger: Because of aerospacial systems

Stranger: A lot of matlab, python for the programming part of the systems and batteries

Stranger: Ughh

You: We do a lot of matlab

You: one course has LabVIEW

Stranger: Ughh I hate matlab

Stranger: I'm not familiar with labview

Stranger: :(

You: Really? We have to do whole laboratories based on just matlab

You: I dream about it at night

You: =)

You: jk

Stranger: Hahahahaha

Stranger: I dream about it too

Stranger: They're called nightmares

You: hehehe

You: egh-nightmares

Stranger: Hahahah yes

You: So where's your life going? What're goals? Where do you want to go?

Stranger: Well

Stranger: That's a tough one

Stranger: I am starting my thesis on replacing jet fuel with ammonia so that we can have engines running on 0 pollution emissions

Stranger: I wanted to study literature in college, but decided on engineering because well, literature doesn't txactly give you money and long term goals

Stranger: exactly*

Stranger: What baout you?

You: I have a professor who almost did his undergrad in lit

Stranger: about* jesus christ

Stranger: Oh really??

You: ya, then he switched to physics and double-majored in EE

You: or went to get his masters in EE

You: one of those

You: He has 13 kids too

You: I'd like to finish my undergrad, work in the industry at 2-3 jobs for 3-6 years (maybe more) then go back, get masters...maybe a PhD...eventually--that's a long way away

You: I've been thinking about how one of my profs has two jobs

You: (He's not here Monday's and most Fridays)

You: and makes about $90k/year as a prof alone

Stranger: 90k is a lot

Stranger: Holy shit 13 kids

Stranger: Do you wantkids?

You: =)

Stranger: Wow

You: I don't think I do. But idk. That's not something I want to consider at this point in my life

You: Both my closest friends back home though

You: They have accidental kids

You: One just found out a month ago that he had an 8 month old child

Stranger: Oh god accidental kids

You: (she didn't tell him she was his)

Stranger: It would ruin my life

Stranger: oh poor him

You: He's an idiot for not wearing a condom

You: He used to

You: long story short, his reasoning brain is the size of a peanut...

You: He's a good friend though

Stranger: Yes, that is very stupid

Stranger: So young to be a father already

Stranger: Shit haha

You: How's your love life?

You: Not that I'm here for that or anything

Stranger: Haha I sort of figured you wouldn't

Stranger: I'm 20 and I've been single for 3 years, almost 4

Stranger: I'm turning 21 in one month so that explains it

Stranger: I'm not looking for anything serious... I don't think I ever was

Stranger: So I'm pretty satisfied with the occasional things I get

Stranger: What about you?

You: Nonexistent

You: Probably should hang out with this one girl that's expressed interest in me a few times...just the time

Stranger: Is she cute?

Stranger: I hate hanging out with other people

You: ya, little short but I don't really care about that

Stranger: How short......

You: lol, well not midget short

You: I don't know, haven't thought about it

You: Let me think...

Stranger: I'm 5'7, I think that's pretty tall for a female

Stranger: Short would be something around

Stranger: 5'2?

You: Ya, I'm a terrible judge of height

You: She's 5 something

Stranger: Definitely not a midget then

Stranger: You're good to go

You: She doesn't work in the summer

Stranger: You're planning on waiting until the summer to ask her out???

You: Ah no

You: I wasn't planning on asking her out

You: That was just a random thought

You: She's Chinese, and can't work

Stranger: Why can't she work?

You: She doesn't have a work VISA I guess

You: I don't know how that works

Stranger: Wow

Stranger: Poor thing that's really unfair

You: Ya, I have no idea how she pays for it

You: I pay all my college expenses with no help

Stranger: How?

Stranger: College is insanely expensive in the US

You: not UW-Platteville

You: costs what, 14k/year

Stranger: Dorm included?

You: and I get government grants because I make under $10k/year

You: Yes

Stranger: Or you live at home?

Stranger: Oh

You: I think that also includes a meal plan

You: which is a rip off

Stranger: Our tuition fees are about 1500$ a year

You: ok

Stranger: Lol

You: so I've worked since I was like 15

You: and the last few years I've been working at a factory making $18/hour

Stranger: 18 hour is a lot

Stranger: wtf

You: yes, but it's for factory work

You: recently in an internship interview

You: one of the interviewers asked

You: "so what do you make?"

You: (and I thought he was talking per hour)

You: he meant what does the company I worked for make ~ the product

Stranger: Hahahahaha

Stranger: And what do you make?

You: bemismfg.com

You: toilet seats mostly

You: some healthcare plastic products too

You: John Deere plastic shells

Stranger: Hahaha

Stranger: You work with plastic

Stranger: Interesting

You: Sort of

You: Mostly just assembled, and made a shit ton of boxes by hand

Stranger: Is it hard?

You: no, the opposite

You: just very trivial

You: and you don't learn anything

Stranger: It's a lotof money for such trivial activities

You: as a summer camp counselor before that, I learned things all the time

You: just made under minimum wage

Stranger: Volunteering work is very good for the CV

Stranger: Summer camp counseling included

You: I disagree

You: for one employer he noted my volunteer work

You: about a year ago ~ didn't get the internship anyway

You: But more specifically, somehow volunteering in our respective fields would be very good for our CVs

You: so I just don't agree that volunteering in general will help

You: I guess that's anecdotal tho

Stranger: Here it's viewed as a major plus

Stranger: To get internships

Stranger: It's practically required by companies

You: Same

Stranger: No no

Stranger: I mean

Stranger: In order to trial candidates for internships, companies demand some sort of volunteering work as a part of the CV

Stranger: i thought it'd be like this everywhere

You: ohh, I thought you just meant

You: to get internship is viewed as a major plus

You: .

You: So what volunteer work have you done?

Stranger: Not much

Stranger: I volunteer every week at this company that gets food remains from restaurants and distributes it to those in need

You: Nice!

Stranger: It's not very demaning but keeps me going

Stranger: Yes

You: Sounds interesting

You: On campus, we have this pantry that gets expired/nearly expired food from Walmart

You: And we, as students, get it for free

You: Mostly just novelty like cake and cookies

Stranger: Wow

Stranger: That's crazy

Stranger: I love cake

Stranger: This is my female side showing

You: *novelty items

Stranger: Lol

You: Who doesn't like cake?!

Stranger: Most of my friends here are indifferent towards cake

Stranger: Blows my mind

You: I just ate pound cake yesterday as a main course

You: I know people who don't like chocolate though

Stranger: Ah yes, the best part about being in college is getting to eat cake as a main course

You: lol

Stranger: I'm not a fan of chocolate

Stranger: Ops

You: Dark chocolate?

You: Chocolate milk?

Stranger: Chocolate milk is a yes

Stranger: But chocolate bars

Stranger: Tremendous no

You: Well, milk-chocolate is pretty shitty

Stranger: How can you say that

You: Compared to high quality dark chocolate

You: I don't really eat candy

Stranger: Do you eat while studying?

You: Usually not meals

You: Snacks--all the time

You: Two days ago I had to skip lunch

You: so I ate some crackers

You: Do you have favorite movies?

Stranger: Not at all, I rarely watch movies

Stranger: Only series

Stranger: What about you?

You: Before I Fall

You: ~ 2017

Stranger: I just checked it out

Stranger: So recent

You: I like other older movies too

You: but I just don't have a sequential list

Stranger: And books?

You: Hm, "A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History" is a pretty good one

You: This book about the Sylvania wilderness (up north) was very good

You: I backpacked/camped solo there last summer

You: Not that I'm trying to advocate it, but "The Most Good You Can Do" by Peter Singer

You: is a more philosophical angle of Effective Altruism

You: But if you want a book on it, I think "Doing Good Better" by MacAskill is a more straightforward explanation

You: (I haven't read it yet)

You: Strangers Downing by MacFarquhar caused me to look into matchingdonors.com to give away one of my kidneys

You: It's a pretty interesting bookj

Stranger: Wow I haven0't read any of those

Stranger: You wanna give away a kidney?

You: Tom Brown's Science and Art of Tracking was decent

You: Ye

You: "The Heart and the Fist: The Education of a Humanitarian, the Making of a Navy SEAL" was decent

You: "Under the Overpass" is a really short--but good book

You: ~ I guess related to relative poverty

You: "The Battle for Compassion: Ethics in an Apathetic Universe" is almost complete shit

You: ~ definitely don't recommend that one

Stranger: Still haven't ready any of those

Stranger: Why is it shit?

You: Poorly written, ill defined audience (seemed so sporadic on his audience)

You: For example, he makes statements/arguments explaining materialism as to someone without a background in philosophy--very basic/common knowledge things, and completely switches on other topics

You: also a bit sacrilegious

Stranger: I see

Stranger: Interesting

You: There's only, I think, two good quotes from the entire book

You: What really matters at the most fundamental level, and how much does it all matter?

How often do you stop to think deeply about our relationship to the rest of the world, the causes of our actions?

You: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/19557425-adam-uraynar

You: I try to log some of whatever book I read ~ a sort of repository for draw upon when needed

You: What's been on your mind lately?

You: or of late?

You: On a different note, 5 min ago, I just handed a 20 year old a $700 check.

Stranger: Wow

Stranger: I fell asleep

Stranger: And I'm surprised you didn't turn this off

You: What? It's like 9pm there isn't it?

Stranger: Yes

Stranger: I like to nap :(

You: I left, went to a lecture, came back, left to pay that guy

Stranger: -why did you give him money?

You: =)

You: Fender bender

You: I'm 78% sure he's just going to cash the check and party this weekend

Stranger: Fender bender? As in an accident?

You: Yes, very minor

You: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=fender%20bender

Stranger: Yes

Stranger: That's where I saw it

Stranger: Do you like parties?

Stranger: I mean clearly no

You: I had the thought to ask him what he would do with it

You: Because yes, I like certain parties like anyone else

You: Do you not?

You: Well, today I spent a lot of time procrastinating on some copyright infringement stuff: movie → "audiobook"

You: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btXaaMVvwtg&list=PLWUmK-m4olhHa0qKb5lNVs_3YSzZ6ihko&index=1

You: Anyway, I gotta go

You: Do you have facebook or a texting number?

You: Don't think I've ever talked with someone in the other EA before

Stranger: Yes I do

Stranger: In the other EA? What is that

Stranger: I have facebook

Julia

You: bye

You have disconnected.