Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality

    Hey friends, I know that I am off the road for a while, so it makes sense if a lot of you are not reading this regularly any more, or at all. But I still have a blog, and things to say, so if you feel like sticking around and reading some stuff by some guy who isn't in a position to be giving advice or perspective, then welcome.
    Today I wanted to talk about something I have been reading lately, something that is going to sound kind of dumb at first glance. It is a Harry Potter fan fiction. As the title states, it is called Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality.
     HPMOR is one of the best, if not the best thing I have ever read. Written by Eliezer Yudkowski, HPMOR tells the story of  Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone, if Harry Potter was an aspiring rationalist. Eliezer Yudkowski has written the first story I have read where the smart characters act smart. Unlike the classic Enders Game, where characters are smart because the author says so, the characters of HPMOR demonstrate thought processes, iweigh decisions, discuss  probabilities, and think outside the box.
    The other think I admire about this story is that Yudkowski has said that he doesn't like "gotcha"  endings. The book never pulls a "It was the Janitor the whole time." Every plot event in the book is foreshadowed, there is always evidence of what is going to happen. The problem with that is that since the story is already so long, there is always evidence to consider, theories and hypotheses to consider. There are whole forums online of people discussing possibilities, making predictions and evaluating evidence. As testament to this style of story telling, there is even a reference somewhere in the first ten chapters to an absolutely crazy and unbelievable event that doesn't happen for about 70 chapters.
    I won't lie to you, this is a long read, and if you don't have a kindle or an ereader, then reading online can be a little daunting. But I also won't lie to you when I tell you that this book can have a huge impact on your life. The science in this book is true, and you can use it to make better decisions, and to look at reality with a new perspective.
    Please don't think "oh a Harry Potter fan fiction" and write this story off with no time to consider it. The common belief is that the book really gets going by chapter 5, so if you are not into it by chapter 10 then you can stop. But I have never heard of that happening.
    The story can be found at hpmor.com, along with the ebook downloads in the side column. I also have to note that the story, although at already 100 chapters, is not finished. The updates come in ever few months, but the author has promised to finish the story by the end of 2014. Please don't let that stop you from reading it, there is still plenty to read, plenty to discus, and plenty to enjoy.
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