LessWrong (30+ Karma) “The System You Deployed Is Not the System You Designed” by Thane Ruthenis
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Sep 7, 2025 Explore how system designs often fail to align with actual outcomes. The discussion highlights the importance of questioning your assumptions about what your design can achieve. An illustrative example involving sound walls reveals unexpected factors, like varying sound speeds, that can undermine your plans. This prompts listeners to rethink their models and embrace uncertainties, ultimately improving critical thinking. The insights provided are a valuable reminder of the complexities in system design.
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Soundwalls Becoming Acoustic Lenses
- Sound walls meant to block noise can act as converging acoustic lenses under realistic atmospheric conditions.
- Height-dependent sound speed and refraction can focus sound into the supposedly shielded area and amplify noise behind the wall.
HFTs Causing Hot-Potato Volatility
- Deploying high-frequency trading in an environment full of HFTs can create feedback loops that amplify volatility.
- A tool intended to stabilize markets may instead trigger hot-potato trading and destabilize prices.
Side Channels Exploiting Flawed Proxies
- Designing for zero correlation in radio emissions failed when adversaries used higher-order statistics to extract information.
- A simplistic proxy (zero correlation) proved insufficient under adversarial optimization pressure.