On HN, I often take a look at the comments first, to get a feel for whether the linked material is likely to be informative or thought-provoking. If there is an interesting discussion starting or if there is a submission that is getting lots of upvotes yet few comments (as this one was when I first saw it this evening) then that's usually a good sign.

FWIW, I've just spent well over an hour reading the article here all the way through, following some of the links to further pieces by the same author and others, and thinking about the ideas. It was probably the most interesting material I've seen all week.