--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But then human beings only understood…" description: "\"“But then human beings only understood each other in the first place by pretending. You didn't make predictions about people by modeling the hundred tr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d9/eliezer-yudkowsky-1207_anger_but-then-human-beings-only-understood-ea_3231776.jpg" --- # But then human beings only understood each other in the… ![“But then human beings only understood each other in the first place by pretending. You didn't make predictions about people by modeling the hundred trillion synapses in their brain as separate objects. Ask the best social manipulator on Earth to build you an Artificial Intelligence from scratch…” quote by Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d9/eliezer-yudkowsky-1207_anger_but-then-human-beings-only-understood-ea_3231776.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d9/eliezer-yudkowsky-1207_anger_but-then-human-beings-only-understood-ea_3231776.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d9/eliezer-yudkowsky-1207_anger_but-then-human-beings-only-understood-ea_3231776.jpg) > ““But then human beings only understood each other in the first place by pretending. You didn't make predictions about people by modeling the hundred trillion synapses in their brain as separate objects. Ask the best social manipulator on Earth to build you an Artificial Intelligence from scratch, and they'd just give you a dumb look. You predicted people by telling your brain to act like theirs. You put yourself in their place. If you wanted to know what an angry person would do, you activated your own brain's anger circuitry, and whatever that circuitry output, that was your prediction. What did the neural circuitry for anger actually look like inside? Who knew? The best social manipulator on Earth might not know what neurons were, and neither might the best Legilimens.”” [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding others requires empathy, not detailed brain modeling; we simulate their mental states by imagining ourselves in their shoes. **In simple terms:** Empathy beats technical modeling. Key Takeaway Adopt others' perspectives to predict behavior. Themes empathy prediction social cognition Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - conflict resolution - leadership - negotiation - customer service Key Concepts theory of mind simulation theory Questions to Reflect On - How can you verify your simulated predictions? - When does empathy become projection? A Different Perspective Assuming you can feel exactly what another feels may mislead predictions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) [Angry person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/angry-person/) [Artificial intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artificial-intelligence/) [First place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-place/) ## Related quotes > [“Neurons IT is one of best software development services in Noida, Delhi NCR you can work with. 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And naturally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-chase/don-t-you-remember-telling-me-that-you-re-the-brain-and-i-m-the-brawn/) [Loretta Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-chase/) > [You gleefully say, "I just thought of something!", when in fact your brain performed an enormous amount of work before your moment of genius…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-eagleman/you-gleefully-say-i-just-thought-of-something-when-in-fact-your-brain/) [David Eagleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-eagleman/) > [The continuous networks of neural circuitry accomplish their functions using multiple, independently discovered strategies. The brain lends itself well to the complexity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-eagleman/the-continuous-networks-of-neural-circuitry-accomplish-their/) [David Eagleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-eagleman/) > [Our brains have been designed to blur the line between self and other. It is an ancient neural circuitry that marks every mammal, from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/our-brains-have-been-designed-to-blur-the-line-between-self-and-other/) [Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/) > [I had so much anger. So much anger. Particularly towards my mother. I was a really, really angry person, and it was ruining me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/goldie/i-had-so-much-anger-so-much-anger-particularly-towards-my-mother-i/) [Goldie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/goldie/) > [“The angry person is acutely sensitive to all they are owed by the world, and blind to all they have received”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-evans/the-angry-person-is-acutely-sensitive-to-all-they-are-owed-by-the/) Jules Evans > [An angry person is always full of poison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/an-angry-person-is-always-full-of-poison/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [An Eskimo custom offers an angry person release by walking the emotion out of his or her system in a straight line across the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-eskimo-custom-offers-an-angry-person-release-by-walking-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The frequency of anger attracts the frequency of anger, the frequency of greed attracts the frequency of greed, and so on. This is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/the-frequency-of-anger-attracts-the-frequency-of-anger-the-frequency/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [I used to be an angry person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iman-shumpert/i-used-to-be-an-angry-person/) [Iman Shumpert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iman-shumpert/) > [“Another major difference between anger and other emotions results in what we call the angry person’s paradox. When we experience depression, guilt, shame, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-ellis/another-major-difference-between-anger-and-other-emotions-results-in/) [Albert Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-ellis/) > [I like to think I am a happy angry person, if that makes sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alun-wyn-jones/i-like-to-think-i-am-a-happy-angry-person-if-that-makes-sense/) [Alun Wyn Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alun-wyn-jones/) > [“Don’t put people, or anything else, on pedestals, not even your children. Avoid global labels such as genius or weirdo. Realize those closest get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mcraney/don-t-put-people-or-anything-else-on-pedestals-not-even-your-children/) [David McRaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mcraney/) ## More by Eliezer Yudkowsky > [“But I really am Ravenclaw, you know, not Slytherin. I don't want to rule the universe. I just think it could be more sensibly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/but-i-really-am-ravenclaw-you-know-not-slytherin-i-don-t-want-to-rule/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“‎If you regard evidence as a constraint and seek to free yourself, you sell yourself into the chains of your whims. For you cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/if-you-regard-evidence-as-a-constraint-and-seek-to-free-yourself-you/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“I am not sure how to explain it, except that - truth matters to us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/i-am-not-sure-how-to-explain-it-except-that-truth-matters-to-us/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [I see little hope for democracy as an effective form of government, but I admire the poetry of how it makes its victims complicit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/i-see-little-hope-for-democracy-as-an-effective-form-of-government/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“He really really really shouldn't have done that. Amazing how much more obvious that became one second after it was too late.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/he-really-really-really-shouldn-t-have-done-that-amazing-how-much/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [I'm wondering if there's a spell to make lightning flash in the background whenever I make an ominous resolution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/i-m-wondering-if-there-s-a-spell-to-make-lightning-flash-in-the/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“There’s a technique we use in our local rationalist cluster called “Is That Your True Rejection?”, and it works like this: Before you stake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/there-s-a-technique-we-use-in-our-local-rationalist-cluster-called-is/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [Lonely dissent doesn't feel like going to school dressed in black. It feels like going to school wearing a clown suit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/lonely-dissent-doesn-t-feel-like-going-to-school-dressed-in-black-it/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“Knowing that Draco's hopeful face had probably been drilled into him by months of practice did not make it any less effective, Harry observed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/knowing-that-draco-s-hopeful-face-had-probably-been-drilled-into-him/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [The strength of a theory is not what it allows, but what it prohibits; if you can invent an equally persuasive explanation for any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/the-strength-of-a-theory-is-not-what-it-allows-but-what-it-prohibits/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [It is triple ultra forbidden to respond to criticism with violence. There are a very few injunctions in the human art of rationality that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/it-is-triple-ultra-forbidden-to-respond-to-criticism-with-violence/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [The human species was not born into a market economy. Bees won't sell you honey if you offer them an electronic funds transfer. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/the-human-species-was-not-born-into-a-market-economy-bees-won-t-sell/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“Frigideiro! " said Hermione again from the desk next to him. Her water was solid ice and there were white crystals forming on the rim…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/frigideiro-said-hermione-again-from-the-desk-next-to-him-her-water/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“And then Harry Potter had launched in to a speech that was inspiring, yet vague. A speech to the effect that Fred and George…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/and-then-harry-potter-had-launched-in-to-a-speech-that-was-inspiring/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) > [“And I know that I'd just make myself unhappy by comparing that reality to... something perfect that I built up in my imagination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/and-i-know-that-i-d-just-make-myself-unhappy-by-comparing-that/) [Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) [Explore all 274 Eliezer Yudkowsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/) ## More Anger quotes > [“If I let myself think of it the pain and anger were still fresh, adrenalin racing down my limbs to pool, hot and itchy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-ladd/if-i-let-myself-think-of-it-the-pain-and-anger-were-still-fresh/) [Kylie Ladd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-ladd/) > [I receive something we might euphemistically call an 'inappropriately hostile' response - that is to say, more than fair criticism or even fair anger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/i-receive-something-we-might-euphemistically-call-an-inappropriately/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Anger is a rough water; if you can canalize it into a water mill, you can benefit from it. Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“When you feel terribly angry, you're possessed by anger ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-you-feel-terribly-angry-you-re-possessed-by-anger-ghost/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“Medical studies have shown that cursing reduces levels of stress and pain. Repressing your anger is not healthy. It's much better to verbalize it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/medical-studies-have-shown-that-cursing-reduces-levels-of-stress-and/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [My care will be in the heart n not in words My anger will be in Words n not in the Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/my-care-will-be-in-the-heart-n-not-in-words-my-anger-will-be-in-words/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The present contains nothing more than the past, and what is found in the effect was already in the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-bergson/the-present-contains-nothing-more-than-the-past-and-what-is-found-in/) [Henri Bergson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-bergson/) > [Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/depression-is-merely-anger-without-enthusiasm/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I always fight better when my opponent's angry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-haye/i-always-fight-better-when-my-opponent-s-angry/) [David Haye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-haye/) > [ “Where there are kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed), there is worldly life. As long as anger-pride-deceit-greed exist; one is a sansaari \[living a worldly life\] regardless of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-are-kashays-anger-pride-deceit-greed-there-is-worldly/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) [Browse all 7,469 Anger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But then human beings only understood each other in the first place by pretending. You didn't make predictions about people by modeling the hundred trillion synapses in their brain as separate objects. Ask the best social manipulator on Earth to build you an Artificial Intelligence from scratch, and they'd just give you a dumb look. You predicted people by telling your brain to act like theirs. You put yourself in their place. 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