Sigal Samuel
@sigalsamuel.bsky.social
I write about the future of consciousness for Vox Submit a question to my philosophical advice column! https://www.vox.com/your-mileage-may-vary-advice-column Author of the children's book OSNAT AND HER DOVE and the novel THE MYSTICS OF MILE END
Here’s a group I think it’s crucial for everyone to get to know: the AI successionists. They believe AI will be a "worthy successor." And they actually want it to replace humanity. They’re more influential than you might think! So I reported this for @vox.com 🧵 1/n
Many in Silicon Valley talk about AI almost as a savior, or as @sigalsamuel.bsky.social says, like they're trying to build a god. But do they know what makes a god good? Sigal isn't so sure, and when we fed our discussion into Claude (who joined us in voice mode), neither was it. 1/2
Anti-humanism is on the rise. Species guilt is on the rise. Readers write to me: "I'm disgusted to be a human." To which I say: That fatalistic retreat into “ugh, we’re the worst” is way too easy. It expects nothing of you. Instead, stay with the goddamn pain. www.vox.com/future-perfe...
“I’m disgusted to be a human”: What to do when you hate your own species
Yes, it hurts to be human right now. That’s actually the assignment.
vox.com
People are looking to AI for moral guidance. Silicon Valley is talking about AI in religious terms. And Claude seems to enter a spiritual-seeking bliss state at times. What's going on? Join me to explore with @sigalsamuel.bsky.social & @paulbloomatyale.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/h...
my team at @ainowinstitute.bsky.social is hiring three new roles: a program associate, comms associate, and senior operations director. come join us in the fight to shape the future of AI in the public interest! more details here: bit.ly/49jMZe7
Careers - AI Now Institute
Join us in this pivotal moment in the fight to shape the future of AI and its role in society.
bit.ly
The idea that you need to save up a certain amount of money before you have kids is really common. But I think it's wrong. Here's my argument in @vox.com (gift link): www.vox.com/future-perfe...
Am I too poor to have a baby?
How society convinced us that childbearing is morally wrong without a fat budget.
vox.com
Even as millions have benefited from GLP-1s in wealthy countries, these medications have remained out of reach for most of the world. Now, for India, this medication just got a lot more accessible. www.vox.com/future-perfe...
I finally wrote out an answer to the question I get so often: "What should I be teaching my kids right now to prepare them for an AI-scrambled job market?" Hint: The best educational choice you can make for your kid might not focus on your kid at all www.vox.com/future-perfe... @vox.com
What should you be teaching your kids right now to prepare them for an AI-scrambled job market?
The best educational choice you can make for your child might not focus on your child at all.
vox.com
What do you owe in a situation of structural injustice? (eg you want the best for your kid, and you think that means private school, yet you don't want to undermine public schools) The philosopher Iris Marion Young offered a super helpful frame for this kind of dilemma: www.vox.com/the-highligh...
Is it wrong to send your kid to private school?
How to think about what’s best for your child — and for all the other children, too.
vox.com
Is there an ethical dilemma keeping you up at night? @sigalsamuel.bsky.social's unconventional advice column, Your Mileage May Vary, can help. Submit your question anonymously here: voxdotcom.visitlink.me/BI4RWH
Let us know what moral dilemmas you’re grappling with. You could be featured in the next Your Mileage May Vary column!
I'm Sigal Samuel, a senior reporter for Future Perfect, Vox’s section about how to do good in today’s confusing world. My advice column — Your Mileage May Vary — offers people a unique framework for thinking through their ethical questions. My answers are based on value pluralism — the idea that each of us has multiple, equally important yet often conflicting moral values. When values clash, dilemmas arise. I show how wise people — from ancient philosophers to spiritual thinkers to modern scientists — have thought about these values and conflicts between them. Check out previous columns here. So: Whether it’s about how you use tech or how you travel, what you eat or what you teach your kids, let me know the philosophical or spiritual questions that are plaguing you and Your Mileage May Vary can help! Want to participate? Submit your question(s) below. Feel free to email sigal.samuel@vox.com if you’d prefer to communicate with me directly rather than filling out this form. (We take your privacy seriously. All submissions will be published anonymously. By submitting a question, you acknowledge that it may be published in a story on Vox.com. By participating, you also agree to Vox Media Inc. Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and Cookie Policy.)
voxdotcom.visitlink.me
What do you owe in a situation of structural injustice? (eg you want the best for your kid, and you think that means private school, yet you don't want to undermine public schools) The philosopher Iris Marion Young offered a super helpful frame for this kind of dilemma: www.vox.com/the-highligh...
Is it wrong to send your kid to private school?
How to think about what’s best for your child — and for all the other children, too.
vox.com
Got a big life question you’ve been stuck on? 🤔 Vox’s Your Mileage May Vary column is here to help—no judgment, just thoughtful advice. Submit your dilemma anonymously here: voxdotcom.visitlink.me/dcT--8
Let us know what moral dilemmas you’re grappling with. You could be featured in the next Your Mileage May Vary column!
I'm Sigal Samuel, a senior reporter for Future Perfect, Vox’s section about how to do good in today’s confusing world. My advice column — Your Mileage May Vary — offers people a unique framework for thinking through their ethical questions. My answers are based on value pluralism — the idea that each of us has multiple, equally important yet often conflicting moral values. When values clash, dilemmas arise. I show how wise people — from ancient philosophers to spiritual thinkers to modern scientists — have thought about these values and conflicts between them. Check out previous columns here. So: Whether it’s about how you use tech or how you travel, what you eat or what you teach your kids, let me know the philosophical or spiritual questions that are plaguing you and Your Mileage May Vary can help! Want to participate? Submit your question(s) below. Feel free to email sigal.samuel@vox.com if you’d prefer to communicate with me directly rather than filling out this form. (We take your privacy seriously. All submissions will be published anonymously. By submitting a question, you acknowledge that it may be published in a story on Vox.com. By participating, you also agree to Vox Media Inc. Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and Cookie Policy.)
voxdotcom.visitlink.me
Harriet Taylor Mill officially recognised as co-author of 'On Liberty'! dailynous.com/2026/03/19/o...
“On Liberty” Now Officially Has Two Authors - Daily Nous
An edition of On Liberty published this month is the first to officially name Harriet Taylor Mill as a co-author alongside John Stuart Mill. The new volume is edited by Piers Norris Turner (Ohio State...
dailynous.com
In @nbcnews.com, @heidykhlaaf.bsky.social underscored that the use of AI speeds up the pace of warfare in ways that undermine accountability for mistakes. Speed "is really a cover for indiscriminate targeting when you consider how inaccurate these models are,” says Khlaaf. shorturl.at/tKGjM
U.S. military is using AI to help plan Iran air attacks, sources say, as lawmakers call for oversight
Anthropic’s Claude AI systems have become a crucial tool for the military despite the company’s clashes with the Defense Department.
shorturl.at
Should you be panic-switching to a career that's less AI-replaceable? I say hold up. Our answer can't just be that everyone becomes a plumber. Drawing on Rebecca Newberger Goldstein's "mattering map," which shows how people make meaning, I offer an alternative: www.vox.com/future-perfe... @vox.com
Should you be panic-switching to a career that's less AI-replaceable? I say hold up. Our answer can't just be that everyone becomes a plumber. Drawing on Rebecca Newberger Goldstein's "mattering map," which shows how people make meaning, I offer an alternative: www.vox.com/future-perfe... @vox.com
The honest conversation about antidepressants I wish my psychiatrist had with me Thanks to @awaisaftab.bsky.social for answering my questions about long-term use, dependence, and withdrawal Gift link: www.vox.com/future-perfe...
The honest conversation about antidepressants I wish my psychiatrist had with me
How to think about long-term use, dependence, and withdrawal — according to a professional.
vox.com
Do you owe it to yourself to try life without your antidepressants? This is the question a @voxdotcom.bsky.social reader asked me. My response: You don't have 1 true self, so you can't “owe” it to that self to do X or Y. Instead, here's how I approach this dilemma www.vox.com/future-perfe...
Do you need to know who you’d be without antidepressants?
After years on psychiatric drugs, some ask if they owe it to themselves to try coming off the medication.
vox.com
History’s overlooked women in philosophy did not stand at the periphery of the debates of their time. They were at the very centre of them. To mark the beginning of #WomensHistoryMonth, we are sharing this incisive Essay from the archive which tells these trailblazing women’s stories
A rescue mission on behalf of women philosophers | Aeon Essays
In the long 19th century, many women philosophers were marginalised or ignored. We need to rediscover them
buff.ly
Do you owe it to yourself to try life without your antidepressants? This is the question a @voxdotcom.bsky.social reader asked me. My response: You don't have 1 true self, so you can't “owe” it to that self to do X or Y. Instead, here's how I approach this dilemma www.vox.com/future-perfe...
Do you need to know who you’d be without antidepressants?
After years on psychiatric drugs, some ask if they owe it to themselves to try coming off the medication.
vox.com
What’s the point of the US winning an AI arms race if the government is going to create a China-like surveillance state anyway? The Pentagon’s behavior has been eerily reminiscent of China’s “military-civil fusion” Gift link to my piece: www.vox.com/future-perfe...
The one question everyone should be asking after OpenAI’s deal with the Pentagon
The US said we can’t afford to let a surveillance state like China win the AI race. Well...
vox.com
Good line of analysis from @sigalsamuel.bsky.social. "But what if authoritarian rule that uses tech to surveil people in alarming ways is already becoming the norm in the US? If America is shape-shifting into the bogeyman it critiques, what happens to the case for racing ahead on AI?"
The one question everyone should be asking after OpenAI’s deal with the Pentagon
The US said we can’t afford to let a surveillance state like China win the AI race. Well...
vox.com
What’s the point of the US winning an AI arms race if the government is going to create a China-like surveillance state anyway? The Pentagon’s behavior has been eerily reminiscent of China’s “military-civil fusion” Gift link to my piece: www.vox.com/future-perfe...
The one question everyone should be asking after OpenAI’s deal with the Pentagon
The US said we can’t afford to let a surveillance state like China win the AI race. Well...
vox.com
Lots of my smart friends are into IFS. They swear by this style of therapy. I'm skeptical of it, and I wrote about why for @vox.com Gift link: www.vox.com/future-perfe...
One of the hottest therapy styles is scientifically shaky — so why does it seem to work?
Why everyone is obsessed with Internal Family Systems, even though its claims are dubious.
vox.com
Chatbots don’t have mothers, but if they did, Claude’s would be Amanda Askell. She’s an in-house philosopher at the AI company Anthropic, and she wrote most of the document that tells Claude what sort of personality to have — the “constitution” or, as it became known internally, the “soul doc.”
Claude has an 80-page “soul document.” Is that enough to make it good?
Anthropic philosopher Amanda Askell reveals what went into the chatbot’s moral education.
vox.com
A thoughtful piece from @sigalsamuel.bsky.social: "For you, the tricky question is: How do you get someone to realize that they’re in a dual state, when its darker half has not yet touched their life personally?" www.vox.com/future-perfe...
Your friends are still acting like everything is normal in America. What do you do?
All Americans live in a “dual state.” Here’s what that means — and how to help others see it.
vox.com
‘ “the prerogative state,” only becomes visible to you when you do something that the powers that be don’t like. Then suddenly you’re in a realm where the rule of law does not exist”’ Really helpful piece from @sigalsamuel.bsky.social
Sigal Samuel@sigalsamuel.bsky.social · 6mo agoYou are living in a "dual state." Acting morally begins with understanding that. My latest for @vox.com: www.vox.com/future-perfe...
You are living in a "dual state." Acting morally begins with understanding that. My latest for @vox.com: www.vox.com/future-perfe...
Your friends are still acting like everything is normal in America. What do you do?
All Americans live in a “dual state.” Here’s what that means — and how to help others see it.
vox.com
