# Important Areas Here is my attempt to shortlist some areas I consider important after reflecting on the amount of time I have dedicated to studying or working on them -- in an unordered and non-exhaustive way. Note that these are all just personal opinions biased toward my interests, and there is still a lot for me to learn, so I will continuously update them. ## Education In my experience, when talking about quality of life somewhere, one of the most common discussions is about culture. And I think this is where education plays a vital role, as it helps shape norms. From my perspective, literacy stands out as one of the most crucial issues in education. By that, I don't simply mean basic abilities to read and write. However, it is also about how people understand what they read and how they can express their thoughts in writing.[^1] Additionally, there are extensions like the ability to consider multiple perspectives and utilize available literature. One measure is critical thinking ability, which affects behaviors and, in turn, our collective welfare, especially when it involves appropriating commons. I'm most interested in two subareas: resource allocation and collaboration mechanisms. ## Healthcare Aside from altruism,[^2] my interest in healthcare stemmed from personal observations on how they could hamper productivity. I feel it's such a pity if people cannot realize their true potential because of the broken system they live with. Among many crucial problems, there are two I'm most concerned with. First, we must avoid problems like malnutrition to give everyone an equal opportunity to develop their physical and cognitive capabilities. Second, I think it's essential to commoditize access to basic preventive and risk-hedging measures (e.g., medical checkups and insurance) as their absence could cause much more complex problems. In short, my primary interest is around [common goods for health](https://www.who.int/health-topics/common-goods-for-health). Besides, I believe it's essential to have a robust system to ensure policies, incentives, institutions,[^3] etc., are well-designed to promote collective welfare. ## Media Since the advent of the printing press, media have only become increasingly prevalent in shaping public opinions. They -- social media, television, radio, newspapers, books, or whatever form[^4] they take -- shape our perspectives, culture, and actions. They influence our minds.[^5] At least for me, my thinking probably got shaped more by what I found on the internet than by any other source. Unfortunately, the incentives in media do not always align with the collective's best interests. Controversial or sensational posts often garner higher engagement. Amplifying bias could lead to more supporters or revenues. There are even many instances where they become political tools. And if one doesn't follow where the incentives dictate, someone else probably will. Trapped by a prisoner's dilemma, the situation is often not straightforward. My primary interests lie around devising mechanisms to promote the behaviors we want to see in this world so that we can always orient toward the truth and the collective good, not mere captives of a select few's power plays. ## Others There are, for sure, still many other important areas. After all, life is pretty complex with a multitude of factors. However, if I were to summarize my interests, it would probably be about how to take care of the critical ingredients of life. --- [^1]: Quoting [PG](https://paulgraham.com/read.html): "You can't think well without writing well, and you can't write well without reading well." [^2]: Well, there's a [theory](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61535.The_Selfish_Gene) that humans tend to be altruistic because it ultimately promotes the survival and replication of genes. [^3]: As highlighted by Marty Makary in [The Price We Pay](The%20Price%20We%20Pay.md), there needs to be a lot of transparency and proper checks and balances to keep institutions (e.g., insurance providers, hospitals) from pursuing their own interests at the expense of the public good (e.g., price gouging, over-treatment). [^4]: Neil Postman also presented an interesting argument in [Amusing Ourselves to Death](Amusing%20Ourselves%20to%20Death.md) on how different mediums promote different behaviors, which further shape culture. [^5]: One compelling evidence of media influence is their role in catalyzing or amplifying numerous political revolutions throughout history.