←back to thread

Interview with gwern

(www.dwarkeshpatel.com)
308 points synthmeat | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0.201s | source
Show context
resiros ◴[] No.42134728[source]
>Wait if you’re doing $900-1000/month and you’re sustaining yourself on that, that must mean you’re sustaining yourself on less than $12,000 a year. What is your lifestyle like at $12K?"

>I live in the middle of nowhere. I don't travel much, or eat out, or have health insurance, or anything like that. I cook my own food. I use a free gym. There was this time when the floor of my bedroom began collapsing. It was so old that the humidity had decayed the wood. We just got a bunch of scrap wood and a joist and propped it up. If it lets in some bugs, oh well! I live like a grad student, but with better ramen. I don't mind it much since I spend all my time reading anyway.

Not sure what to think of that. On one hand, it's so impressive that gwern cares only about the intellectual pursuit. On the other hand, it's sad that society does not reward it as much as excel sheet work.

replies(7): >>42134748 #>>42135045 #>>42135063 #>>42135088 #>>42135384 #>>42135461 #>>42135571 #
bondarchuk ◴[] No.42135088[source]
Many many people in the US live on that kind of money, it's not uncommon at all.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_the_United_States

"Among individuals living alone: 19.1% lived in poverty."

Poverty line (max yearly income) for single households: $14,580

replies(3): >>42135257 #>>42136038 #>>42137454 #
1. mitthrowaway2 ◴[] No.42137454[source]
It's not uncommon, but hopefully it offers some perspective to those commenters who say things like "this-or-that subscription fee should be trivial pocket change to the sorts of people who comment on HN".