• Excessive thinking in modern society
    Well, there's bound to be fewer leftovers given excessive food consumption, so perhaps excessive thinking isn't that much of a problem.Ciceronianus

    It might be if it gets itself in the way of more pressing matters.
  • Excessive thinking in modern society
    Probably not enough of the right sort.Cuthbert

    I can agree with that last sentence. Thanks.
  • Excessive thinking in modern society
    Beyond that, I don't see any reason to believe that we need our cognitive abilities less now than we did in the past.T Clark

    Perhaps it is not about 'less' but in the way we are using it differently from 'before' and the way that it impact's us in our ongoing development as a species. Outsmarting lions vs avoiding peer conflict might have very different implications in the way our grey matter is impacted. I can see your reasoning though, survival equals survival no matter the habitat. Thanks.

    Forgot to mention - your English is fine. Clear and easy to understand.T Clark

    Thanks for the confirmation but I do feel sorta 'linquistically handicapped' as I do get the gist of most of the (English) things I come across but still have to use Google translate extensively for the translation of my (native) vocabulary to English with the grammar being yet another thing alltogether. Appreciate the feedback :up:
  • Excessive thinking in modern society


    Thank you for the extensive reply, there's a lot of sense in it and allthough I am not in total agreement it is food for thought nevertheless, appreciate it.
  • Excessive thinking in modern society
    Perhaps it's not excessive thinking (do you mean rumination?)Tom Storm
    Not rumination but the constant accumulation of new information and the process of thinking it all through even though there isnt any point to doing so as it doesnt impact us in any other way than keeping us busy thinking.

    Do you have specific evidence that justifies the claims that 1) there is too much thinking and that 2) it is causing us harm in some way?Tom Storm

    The rapidly growing pile of useless information found online might be just the evidence backing up such claims. However all is relative, my perspective might be distorted or obscured by my personal perception of things. Thanks for the input.
  • Excessive thinking in modern society
    But I think that's a misery. One of the things which triggers me the most is the fact that the less thinkers tend to be happier than the rest or even they can achieve good positions in their professional carriers.
    To be honest, think less is the easiest way possible of existence. We are forced (sooner or later) to think and rethink about everything. This is the point of evolution of our especie and what differences us from the rest of the living world.
    javi2541997

    I agree as 'blissed ignorance' only takes it so far. Thanks for your input.
  • Excessive thinking in modern society


    I see what you mean allthough I am also of the opinion time must be taken for thinking things through as well depending on the (perceived) problem, variables do exist. Thanks.
  • What are you listening to right now?
    This is one of those typical examples of disliking a character while loving some of his music as this is just too much an awesome track to ignore.

  • What are you listening to right now?
    Dig the Nick Drake by the wayNoble Dust

    Discovered his music only a few years back. Despite the fact he only left a few albums and wasnt well known at the time of his death (1974) he left an impression for the ages.
  • What are you listening to right now?
    He looks like if my dad accidentally ended up on a stage in front of five thousand people.Noble Dust

    Or as I for that matter :sweat:

    Self-awareness is hard to get rid off for some of us. I used to have some singing ambitions myself but I couldnt get past the stage-fright so I gave it up eventually. I still sing though but only when there isnt another soul in the vicinity.

    p.s.
    Your last post video isnt working.

    Video unavailable
    This video is not available
  • What are you listening to right now?
    Hans Zimmer watching Gurthrie Govan solo might be the most awkward thing I've ever seen on a stageNoble Dust

    Nothing awkward about it, the man seems to be utterly enjoying the entire thing, as would I I guess, epic stuff.
  • Deep Songs


    There is a house built out of stone
    Wooden floors, walls, and window sills
    Tables and chairs worn by all of the dust
    This is a place where I don't feel alone
    This is a place where I feel at home


    And I built a home
    For you, for me
    Until it disappeared
    From me, from you
    And now, it's time to leave
    And turn to dust


    Out in the garden where we planted the seeds
    There is a tree as old as me
    Branches were sewn by the color of green
    Ground had arose and passed its knees


    By the cracks of his skin I climbed to the top
    I climbed the tree to see the world
    When the gusts came around to blow me down
    Held on as tightly as you held onto me
    Held on as tightly as you held onto me


    And I built a home
    For you, for me
    Until it disappeared
    From me, from you
    And now, it's time to leave
    And time to die
  • What are you listening to right now?
    Just that Kate Bush has suddenly become big with gen Z after a song of hers was in Stranger Things.Noble Dust

    I see. I was about 6 years old when her first album got published back in 1978. She has always intrigued me but I only started to appreciate her music during the early 90's. She has written many great songs but I consider "The man with the child in his eyes" to be her opus magnum as it is one of those rare songs I could never get enough of.
  • What are you listening to right now?
    Gotta ask how old you are, I'm sorry. Just a litmus test.Noble Dust

    Personally I consider curiosity to be a good thing, promoting neuroplasticity and what more, so I'll counter first as I'm equally curious. What sparked it, was it the average age of the songs or was it the frequency with which they are posted or do you use it somehow as an offset against my posting behaviour in general? Should I feel offended in any way or are you perhaps the Confucian proverbial teacher?
  • The moral instinct
    Here's a link to a 60 Minutes piece on her work with moral judgement in very young children:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRvVFW85IcU
    T Clark

    Incredible stuff, thanks for sharing.

    Here's the transcript from CBS News

    So basically we are all little bigots from the moment we leave the whomb right up till the moment our upbringing steers us otherwise.
  • Jesus as a great moral teacher?
    All I know is the Bible is a piece of political propaganda written after his death and edited/censored to serve an institution rather than as a moral compass for humanity.I like sushi

    The truth lies in the past but it is a logical conclusion considering.
  • Artificial intelligence
    Well, here's something to chew on for now.

    Mankind has always looked for ways to reduce manual labor and repetitive tasks. To that end, and in the absence of technology, civilization exploited various methods, often by taking advantage of their fellow humans. Robots, as a potential solution, have long fascinated mankind, capturing our imagination for centuries. Even in Greek mythology, the god Hephaestus had « mechanical » servants. But not until recently, has artificial intelligence finally progressed to a level that will become more and more life-changing for the future of humanity. — Free Documentary

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh45OBLeCu8
  • Lucid Dreaming
    Yohan

    Thanks.
  • Lucid Dreaming
    So I think you can train yourself to dream lucidly.universeness

    I do hope so and I'm gonna try as well but I also wonder about the genetic components involved and any possible inhibitions because of it. After having experienced lucidity a few times allready I'm a bit more confident about it but I'm still having a bit of a hard time imagining the amount of control you describe. I'm also past my 50's and was never able to will anything during the dreamstate, just until very recently that is and then it happened spontaneous.
  • Lucid Dreaming
    The key is steady eye contact.Yohan

    The key to what? And with whom?
  • Lucid Dreaming
    universenessuniverseness

    I would love to be able to get such experiences. Up until now whenever I have a nightmare it is always about unseen threats and any erotic content manifests itself exclusively during periods of sexual abstinence. To be able to will such dreams or atleast direct it the way I want it to presents itself high on my list of most wanted experiences. Btw I have also never experienced the same erotic quality in dreams compared to the physical world though I have never been lucid during such dreams either.
  • Lucid Dreaming
    I don't want to bring the tone down here but erotic lucid dreams can be very interesting indeed but how far can you get? Climax?
    I think this is interesting from the standpoint of how the mind can control your own physical reactions in a lucid dream state
    universeness

    A dream come true :naughty: :yum:
  • Lucid Dreaming
    If you undertake a dream journal, and thoroughly and regularly document your dreams, your dreams will grow in extent and clarity (at least your recollection thereof), and you will naturally achieve lucid dreaming. I have done it, the results are quite remarkable.Pantagruel

    Never heard about it before but it might be worth a try, I would love to expand on my experiences thus far.
  • Pre-science and scientific mentality
    All is relative and therefor I find this first draft a bit shortsighted and prejudiced as not every person with a religious orientation is exclusively non-scientific and vice versa. It would atleast take an entire book to distinquish between the different characters of which this forum is comprised.
  • Artificial intelligence
    What we need, as far (artificial) intelligence is concerned, is what is described as the technological singularity - an exponential growth of intelligence - each subsequent intelligence should be greater than the one preceding it by a factor that would depend on what's possible given physical/chemical/biological constraints. This kinda growth actually occurs at a small scale with individuals - a person is today more intelligent than she was yesterday (books & experience as invaluable teachers).Agent Smith

    Isnt that implying the expectation (or need) for AI('s) to be exactly like us in order to satisfy the criteria for intelligence? If so, wouldnt that also introduce the need for emotional awareness enabling regulation of the outcome per any given cycle of growth?
  • Global warming discussion - All opinions welcome
    I know there's people focusing especially on existential risk, for humans to survive as a species, but frankly I couldn't care less about "the species" if the world is turned into an arid hothouse where most of the other species have died off and only small portions of the globe are really livable without technological assistance. Seriously, I don't get this type of reasoning, it's like saying to someone you will lose most of your limbs, your eyes, your stomach etc, but don't be alarmed we can keep you alive just fine by hooking you up to this machine for the rest of your life.ChatteringMonkey

    :100:

    Humans seem to have long forgotten that the other species are 'our own' as well and that our survival/quality of life heavily depends on their survival/quality of life.
  • Technoshamanism is the real, ripe fruit of all our modern world's spiritual practices
    One could argue for all virtual alterations to be just other forms of escapism.