This week's Monday assortment of links from Marginal Revolution — the influential economics and culture blog maintained by economists Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok — covers a range of topics spanning philosophy, aesthetics, mathematics, and culture.

1. A new simulation argument?

A post on X raises the possibility of a new take on the simulation hypothesis, a topic famously popularized by philosopher Nick Bostrom in his 2003 paper arguing that at least one of three propositions must be true: humanity is likely extinct before becoming posthuman, posthuman civilizations run few ancestor simulations, or we are almost certainly living in a simulation. Bostrom's framework has remained a staple reference point in both academic philosophy and popular technology discourse, frequently surfacing in discussions about advances in AI-generated worlds and virtual reality.

2. Patrick Collison on aesthetics

Patrick Collison, co-founder and CEO of Stripe, shares thoughts on aesthetics. Collison has developed a reputation for wide-ranging intellectual interests beyond fintech, notably co-authoring a widely discussed 2019 Atlantic essay with Tyler Cowen arguing that scientific and technological progress has slowed relative to mid-20th-century peaks.

3. An interview with Yiyang Zhuge

The Jack Miller Center publishes an interview with Yiyang Zhuge. The Jack Miller Center is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the teaching of America's founding principles and political philosophy on college campuses.

4. The truth and aesthetics of going to church

An essay at Ends Don't Justify the Means explores the question of churchgoing from perspectives of truth and aesthetics.

5. Some forms of math cope?

A post on X discusses forms of what the author terms "math cope," accompanied by a different view from another contributor.

6. At the demolition derby

The Common Reader takes readers inside the world of the demolition derby.