Scientific Definition
AI generates content; AI scrapes content; AI trains on its own output.
Plain-English Definition
AI generates content; AI scrapes content; AI trains on its own output.
Feynman Explanation
A snake eating its own tail at internet scale.
Core Principle
AI generates content; AI scrapes content; AI trains on its own output.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
AI generates content; AI scrapes content; AI trains on its own output.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Information ecosystems degrading at industrial speed.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
A snake eating its own tail at internet scale.
Examples
- Search results increasingly populated by AI-generated SEO sludge.
- Information ecosystems degrading at industrial speed.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Content provenance tracking. Source-quality weighting.
Measurement Approaches
Pending editorial review.
Evidence
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
The Perverse Incentive Lens™
How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.
- Content provenance tracking. Source-quality weighting.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Interactive Mini Network
Click any neighbor to re-center the graph and follow the threads of connection.
Knowledge Graph Neighbors
Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.
Autonomous agents deployed before liability frameworks exist.
Individual productivity gains hide collective output degradation.
Models optimized for plausible-sounding answers can hallucinate confidently rather than say 'I don't know.'
Confident incorrect outputs may rank higher than hedged correct ones.
Recommenders optimizing engagement produce radicalization as a byproduct.
Expensive off-range storage cannibalizes funds needed for on-range management.
Outsourcing self-worth to audiences corrodes intrinsic direction.
Federal policy forces homeowners to rebuild doomed structures while waiting on mitigation buyouts.
Discount framing nudges people to buy things they wouldn't otherwise want.
Productivity targets compress visits, raising misdiagnosis and burnout.
A federal mandate intended to lower drug costs for the poor became a profit engine for hospitals and contract pharmacies.
Earn-outs designed to retain founders often demotivate the team they bought.