Science of the SpiritS


Snow Globe

The pursuit in 'interestingness': Giving goals a fluidity that can accommodate new information

Zat Rana
Medium
Wed, 07 Nov 2018 00:00 UTC
woman dreaming, hyperdimensional
The late physicist Richard Feynman famously won a Nobel Prize for his work on quantum electrodynamics. But here's something most people don't know about him: He was also a world-class safecracker.

In the 1940s, in the New Mexico Desert, Feynman was bored while working on the Manhattan project that would birth the atomic bomb. Naturally, then, he decided to occupy himself by pulling pranks on his colleagues.

Knowing that most of them were relatively careless when dealing with the safes that stored top secret documents - whether forgetting to lock them, or leaving them on factory settings, or choosing obvious dates as their codes - he began leaving notes in the place of their work like:
"I borrowed document no. LA4312 - Feynman the safecracker."
Eventually, he got so good at it that the Colonel in charge of his unit began advising people that if Feynman had been anywhere near their safe, it was a part of their job to change their combination lock once more.

This story is one of many stories Feynman tells in his autobiography Surely, You're Joking Mr. Feynman!, where his playful nature gets the better out of both him and his attention.
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NPC

Why some people are unable to admit when they're wrong

Guy Winch, Ph.D.
Psychology Today
Sat, 03 Nov 2018 00:00 UTC
white flag
Psychological rigidity is not a sign of strength.

We all make mistakes and we do so with regularity. Some errors are small, such as, "No, we don't need to stop at the store; there's plenty of milk left for breakfast". Some bigger, such as, "Don't rush me; we have plenty of time to get to the airport before the flight leaves". And some are crucial, such as, "I know it was raining and dark but I'm sure that was the man I saw breaking into the home across the street."

No one enjoys being wrong. It's an unpleasant emotional experience for all of us. The question is how do we respond when it turns out we were wrong when there wasn't enough milk left for coffee, when we hit traffic and missed the flight, or when we find out the man who sat in jail for 5 years based on our identification was innocent all along?

Some of us admit we were wrong and say, "Oops, you were right. We should have gotten more milk."

Some of us kind of imply we were wrong but we don't do so explicitly or in a way that is satisfying to the other person, "We had plenty of time to get to the airport on time if the traffic hadn't been unusually bad. But fine, we'll leave earlier next time."

But some people refuse to admit they're wrong, even in the face of overwhelming evidence. "They let him go because of DNA evidence and another dude's confession? Ridiculous! That's the guy! I saw him!"

Comment: This is where the tools of gaining insight become invaluable: Getting to know how others see you can help you see yourself

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Book 2

Reviewing Germaine Greer's 'On Rape': Lots of opinion, few facts

Matthew Scott
Quillette
Mon, 05 Nov 2018 17:22 UTC
germaine greer
A review of On Rape by Germaine Greer. Bloomsbury Publishing (September 2018) 92 pages.

Germaine Greer's On Rape is roughly the size and thickness of a Beatrix Potter story. And why not? As it happens, The Tale of Jemima Puddleduck also says a great deal of what young people need to know about the topic: beware of polite, well-dressed gentlemen (especially if they have foxy whiskers and black prick ears); don't go uncritically into dismal summerhouses in the woods; and accepting a dinner invitation does not imply consent to everything the polite gentlemen is looking for.

Greer's book is not as incisive as Potter's and it is considerably more expensive. But that is not to say it is a complete waste of money. In some ways it fizzes along with ideas and raises lots of questions that others are frightened to ask. Why are we so afraid of the penis when a fist and a thumb can do more physical damage? Why do some women fantasise about being raped? Are sentences for rapists too long? Should rapists be compulsorily castrated? That it is less good at answering them is not necessarily a criticism. Indeed, as she says (of her proposal that rape sentences should be shorter) "the mere suggestion will cause an outcry which is one good reason for making it."
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Fire

Gabor Maté: How a traumatized America finds relief in hate

Abraham Gutman
The Inquirer
Mon, 05 Nov 2018 11:10 UTC
Gabor Maté
© ABRAHAM GUTMAN / Staff
Robert Bowers allegedly killed 11 worshipers in a synagogue in Pittsburgh because he hates Jews. Dylann Roof killed nine worshipers in a church in South Carolina because he hates black people. Cesar Sayoc is believed to have sent more than a dozen pipe bombs by mail because he hates Democrats and CNN.

Hate seems to be everywhere we look - and it is violent. According to a Government Accountability Office report, in the 15 years after 9/11, right-wing domestic terrorists killed 106 people. The FBI recorded more than 6,000 hate crimes in 2016 - the last year for which data are available.

What drives so much hate and can it be stopped?

Comment: See also:

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Eye 1

7 things covert psychopaths, narcissists and sociopaths do differently

Shahida Arabi, M.A.
PsychCentral Blog
Thu, 01 Nov 2018 10:15 UTC
7 things psychopaths, narcissists and sociopaths do
© Shutterstock
The only truly effective method for dealing with a sociopath you have identified is to disallow him or her from your life altogether. Sociopaths live completely outside of the social contract, and therefore to include them in relationships or other social arrangements is perilous. ~ Dr. Martha Stout, The Sociopath Next Door
When many of us think of malignant narcissists, sociopaths and psychopaths, the image of the egotistical megalomaniac is called to mind: overly proud, boastful, arrogant, vain, self-centered, even violent, depending on how psychopathic we think they might be. Yet many of the most conniving and dangerous manipulators are not overt in their tactics - and their violence does not leave visible scars.

Predators who fly under the radar are able to so because they disguise their tactics behind false humility, a convincing facade and an arsenal of underhanded tactics meant to keep their victims bewildered, gaslighted and striving to regain the abuser's approval.

Here are seven ways covert malignant narcissists, sociopaths, and psychopaths differ from their more overt counterparts.

1. They apologize strategically to keep you hooked

It is a common misconception that those who have narcissistic or even sociopathic tendencies never take accountability for their actions. While it's true that more overt narcissists rage at any perceived slight and suffer narcissistic injury, covert manipulators are able to keep their contempt in check if it means sustaining a relationship or furthering an agenda. For example, an abusive relationship partner may still apologize and acknowledge what they did wrong if they find it more convenient than to disagree.

Comment: See also: Political Ponerology: A Science on The Nature of Evil adjusted for Political Purposes

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Attention

Social contagion: Trigger warnings are a mass psychogenic illness

Stewart Justman
Quillette
Fri, 02 Nov 2018 16:56 UTC
hospital gurney
Contrary to the tradition of free inquiry, many college students now demand the suppression of ideas they find offensive. As if to raise the stakes by transforming the issues in play into medical ones, many also claim that such ideas traumatize them. Implying as it does that offensive material doesn't just insult decency or pollute the public realm but wounds the very psyche of those exposed to it, the term "trauma" as deployed by the critics of free inquiry has indeed taken the argument to a new level. What are we to make of the contention that students are so vulnerable that the syllabus of a lit course should carry a "trigger warning" to the effect that their psyches might suffer damage merely as a result of the reading?

A medical argument calls for a medical reply.

Suppose rumors begin to circulate in a small town that the insulation stuffed into local walls and attics contains a toxic substance. Literally surrounded by toxicity, the residents begin to report symptoms like nausea, headache, dizziness and poor concentration, with each new case producing others in a cascade effect. The Emergency Room overflows. Upon investigation, however, no toxic source can be found. According to the medical literature, we have here a case of mass psychogenic illness (or mass hysteria): a social phenomenon in which people suddenly fall ill, and inspire others to do so as well, in the belief that they have been exposed to a toxic agent, though in fact the belief itself is making them sick. Such an outbreak poses a spurious emergency.


Comment: In other words, a social contagion:


Comment: Jordan Peterson recently interviewed Lukianoff and Haidt on their book, pointing out that the trigger-warning approach is actually the exact opposite of how to deal with fears and trauma. Rather than shield oneself from triggers, the only thing that actually works is to build resilience by exposing yourself to 'triggers'. Trigger warnings only make things worse.



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SOTT Logo Radio

SOTT Focus: The Truth Perspective: Churches Behaving Badly: How Religions Succeed or Fail to Prevent Pathocracy

Harrison Koehli, Elan Martin and Corey Schink
Sott.net
Sat, 03 Nov 2018 16:00 UTC
inquisition
Some critics of organized religions argue that religions are the root of all evils. Some of the faithful argue that atheism and secular ideologies like communism or capitalism produce the worst atrocities. But is either side correct? Or are they missing an important piece of the puzzle?

Today on the Truth Perspective we discuss a chapter in Andrew Lobaczewski's Political Ponerology on religion and pathocracy: how religious ideologies get infected with pathological material, which can remain semi-dormant for centuries; how religions can be hijacked by malevolent individuals and groups; how the same pathological influences produce secular systems that then attack the faithful; and how despite their errors, religions still offer the best defense against political and interpersonal evil.

Religion is both our greatest aid against evil, and also - because of its importance - one of the greatest portals for evil to manifest itself. Both sides of the debate are correct, in a sense. Ponerology fills in the holes of our understanding of spirituality and evil, bridging the gap between the two and pointing the way to a reconciliation between the scientific and religious domains, where each has an important role to play.

Running Time: 01:42:40

Download: MP3

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Family

Researchers identify three different types of depression

Dr. Jeremy Dean
Psyblog
Thu, 01 Nov 2018 13:32 UTC
nervous breakdown depression
Three sub-types of depression have been identified for the first time, new research reveals.

One type does not respond to SSRI antidepressants, the most common treatment for depression.

The type that does not respond to antidepressants exists in people with experience of childhood trauma, along with certain patterns of brain activity.

SSRIs are thought to work by boosting levels of serotonin in the brain, but they do not work on some people.
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People 2

Like attracts like: Study shows psychopaths attracted to each other

Eric W. Dolan
PsyPost
Sat, 27 Oct 2018 18:16 UTC
couple man woman
New psychology research suggests that most people do not view psychopathic personality traits as particularly desirable in a romantic partner. But the study also provides evidence that psychopaths are more attracted to other psychopaths.

"To a large extent, our findings support a 'like attracts like' hypothesis for psychopathic traits," wrote the authors of the study, which was published in the Journal of Personality.

"Until recently there has been scant systematic evidence bearing on the question of whether people are especially attracted to psychopathic individuals, and if so, which personality traits may account for such attraction," they said.

In the study, 696 participants were asked to imagine a good-looking young man or woman, and then construct his or her personality from a list of 70 traits.

The researchers found that the participants preferred Factor 1 psychopathic traits (such as superficial charm, manipulativeness, and lack of empathy) over Factor 2 traits (such as impulsiveness and irresponsibility). But, overall, romantic interest in psychopathic traits was low on average.

However, participants who themselves scored higher on a measure of psychopathy tended to prefer higher levels of psychopathic traits in their ideal romantic partner.
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Marijuana

Well, whodathunkit! When adolescents give up pot, both learning and memory quickly improve

Rachel D. Cohen
NPR
Tue, 30 Oct 2018 06:01 UTC
pot marijuana cognition learn and remember
© BURGER/Canopy/Getty ImagesEven a week without marijuana use improves young people's ability to learn and remember.
Marijuana, it seems, is not a performance-enhancing drug. That is, at least, not among young people, and not when the activity is learning.

A study published Tuesday in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry finds that when adolescents stop using marijuana - even for just one week - their verbal learning and memory improve. The study contributes to growing evidence that marijuana use in adolescents is associated with reduced neurocognitive functioning.

More than 14 percent of students in middle school and high school reported using marijuana within the past month, finds a National Institutes of Health survey conducted in 2017. And marijuana use has increased among high-schoolers over the past 10 years, according to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

At the same time, the percentage of teens who believe that regular marijuana use poses a great risk to their health has dropped sharply since the mid-2000s. And legalization of marijuana may play a part in shaping how young people think about the drug. One study noted that after 2012, when marijuana was legalized in Washington state, the number of eighth-graders there that believed marijuana posed risks to their health dropped by 14 percent.

Researchers are particularly concerned with marijuana use among the young because THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, most sharply affects the parts of the brain that develop during adolescence.

Comment: Marijuana's effect on the brain is controversial - some studies show neuro-protective effects and potential amelioration of diseases such as Alzheimer's while others claim it actually shrinks the brain:

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