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>Joy is much harder to manufacture than dread Is it though? And is it just harder in our current configuration or absolutely harder no matter how resources are

>Joy is much harder to manufacture than dread Is it though? And is it just harder in our current configuration or absolutely harder no matter how resources are allocated? I'd argue that Joy is easier/cheaper to produce, we just haven't optimized for it (yet).

Swizec 9y ago
Joy is fleeting, fear is forever. Manufacturing joy is easy, yes. Tie a counter to a semi-random process that's semi-controlled by a human and they experience joy when the counter goes up. The so called slot machine. THis is how HackerNews karma, Facebook notifications, your email inbox, and other addictive activities are designed. You experience momentary joy. But fear, fear is forever. How many fears have you been dragging on since childhood that never seem to go away no matter how irrational they are? Could've been from a single event like watching a scary movie about a clown, or a case of near-drowning, or ... well there's a lot of common phobias. The list can go on forever. You always need to make a new slot machine. You rarely need to make a new fear.
- nowarninglabel 9y ago
  I think that's a fair point, but would argue that it's likely not true for a sizable amount of the population (e.g. my childhood fears have mostly left me). But further, there are lots of services which actually sell getting past your fears, perhaps they are just not selling well enough yet to overcome the amount of fear being produced continuously? Mainly, just questioning how much it is "forever" fear vs. a constant influx of new fear.
  - Swizec 9y ago
    Maybe it's not a matter of introducing new fears but of reinforcing old ones and reminding you of them. Everyone's afraid of random unexpected death that's out of their control right? Well most of us on some level at least. So media spends a lot of time reminding us that we could die any moment. Terrorists, natural disasters, wars, car crashes, shootings, all these things that have a low chance of happening to you in particular but that nonetheless happen every day and could happen to you. Or take social exclusion. We all fear being cast out of society. So media keeps reminding us of all these things the cool people are doing that wr arent. Potentially things we can pay to do.
  - pixl97 9y ago
    >but would argue that it's likely not true for a sizable amount of the population I'm afraid you are incorrect. This is neuropsychology. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/24/your-money/why-people-remember-negative-events-more-than-positive-ones.html http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/24/your-money/why-people-reme...
- anigbrowl 9y ago
  That's a pretty weird definition for joy. I can certainly conceive of some fleeting pleasure from a feeling of winning a game or somesuch, but this is no deeper than the pleasure I get from a refreshing drink on a hot day or a fun social interaction. But this doesn't admit of transcendent emotional, spiritual, or aesthetic experiences.
- vacri 9y ago
  When I was growing up, there was a definite fear of Mutually Assured Destruction, which disappeared with the fall of the Soviet Union. On a more local scale, in the 80s in Australia there was a huge fear of European Wasps - you could even buy little plastic protectors for your drink cans to prevent them crawling inside. On a personal scale, when I was young I was scared of being different, now I don't really care whether I'm different or not. Fear is not forever. We shed fears left, right, and center. Yes, if someone is putting energy into maintaining a fear, it will sustain, but it's just not true that once we fear something, we always will.
QAPereo 9y ago
I wouldn't even know where to begin, to make you feel joy. Dread though? That would be easy, just sincere threats of violence would make any rational person feel dread. I think for joy I'd have to offer you something significant, or know you very very well. The triggers to make you feel awful are probably much more universal: fear of death, injury, penury, ostracism, failure, catastrophe.

Swizec 9y ago

Joy is fleeting, fear is forever. Manufacturing joy is easy, yes. Tie a counter to a semi-random process that's semi-controlled by a human and they experience joy when the counter goes up. The so called slot machine. THis is how HackerNews karma, Facebook notifications, your email inbox, and other addictive activities are designed. You experience momentary joy. But fear, fear is forever. How many fears have you been dragging on since childhood that never seem to go away no matter how irrational they are? Could've been from a single event like watching a scary movie about a clown, or a case of near-drowning, or ... well there's a lot of common phobias. The list can go on forever. You always need to make a new slot machine. You rarely need to make a new fear.

nowarninglabel 9y ago
I think that's a fair point, but would argue that it's likely not true for a sizable amount of the population (e.g. my childhood fears have mostly left me). But further, there are lots of services which actually sell getting past your fears, perhaps they are just not selling well enough yet to overcome the amount of fear being produced continuously? Mainly, just questioning how much it is "forever" fear vs. a constant influx of new fear.
- Swizec 9y ago
  Maybe it's not a matter of introducing new fears but of reinforcing old ones and reminding you of them. Everyone's afraid of random unexpected death that's out of their control right? Well most of us on some level at least. So media spends a lot of time reminding us that we could die any moment. Terrorists, natural disasters, wars, car crashes, shootings, all these things that have a low chance of happening to you in particular but that nonetheless happen every day and could happen to you. Or take social exclusion. We all fear being cast out of society. So media keeps reminding us of all these things the cool people are doing that wr arent. Potentially things we can pay to do.
- pixl97 9y ago
  >but would argue that it's likely not true for a sizable amount of the population I'm afraid you are incorrect. This is neuropsychology. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/24/your-money/why-people-remember-negative-events-more-than-positive-ones.html http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/24/your-money/why-people-reme...
anigbrowl 9y ago
That's a pretty weird definition for joy. I can certainly conceive of some fleeting pleasure from a feeling of winning a game or somesuch, but this is no deeper than the pleasure I get from a refreshing drink on a hot day or a fun social interaction. But this doesn't admit of transcendent emotional, spiritual, or aesthetic experiences.
vacri 9y ago
When I was growing up, there was a definite fear of Mutually Assured Destruction, which disappeared with the fall of the Soviet Union. On a more local scale, in the 80s in Australia there was a huge fear of European Wasps - you could even buy little plastic protectors for your drink cans to prevent them crawling inside. On a personal scale, when I was young I was scared of being different, now I don't really care whether I'm different or not. Fear is not forever. We shed fears left, right, and center. Yes, if someone is putting energy into maintaining a fear, it will sustain, but it's just not true that once we fear something, we always will.

QAPereo 9y ago

I wouldn't even know where to begin, to make you feel joy. Dread though? That would be easy, just sincere threats of violence would make any rational person feel dread. I think for joy I'd have to offer you something significant, or know you very very well. The triggers to make you feel awful are probably much more universal: fear of death, injury, penury, ostracism, failure, catastrophe.