Gilbert Ames Bliss, $1876-1951$

Algebra Notes: Gilbert&Gilbert

Sets and Intervals • An interval with round brackets such as (a, b) means all the numbers between a and b not including a and b. We call this interval an open interval. • An interval with square brackets such as [a, b] means all the numbers between a and b including a and b. We call this interval a closed interval. • An interval with one square bracket and one closed bracket is called a clopen ...

When Ignorance is Bliss

It is commonly-accepted wisdom that more information is better, and that information should never be ignored. Here we argue, using both a Bayesian and a non-Bayesian analysis, that in some situations you are better off ignoring information if your uncertainty is represented by a set of probability measures. These include situations in which the information is relevant for the prediction task at...

Is Ignorance Bliss?

ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise. " Thomas Gray If ignorance were bliss, there is information you would pay not to have. Hence the question is whether a rationally-behaving agent would ever do such a thing. This paper demonstrates that 1. A Bayesian agent with a proper, countably additive prior never maximizes utility by paying not to see cost-free data. 2. The definition of " cost-fre...

Ames, the Ames test, and the causes of cancer.

The Bliss of Madness

Although mental illness often brings feelings of gloom and despair, sometimes a person classified as mentally ill feels supremely happy-the bliss of madness.