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I wonder if editing a piece of written work would activate some of those same problem solving areas as reading computer code does. It that case you're more conc

I wonder if editing a piece of written work would activate some of those same problem solving areas as reading computer code does. It that case you're more concerned about structure, grammar, correct wording and such. I find personally i'm in a different frame of mind that reminds me, at least, more of a coding frame of mind than a reading frame of mind. A lot of the time editing, I'm not really paying attention to the meaning of what's written, but whether the meaning is conveyed properly and clearly in any given sentence or paragraph.

wanderingstan 6y ago
I had the same thought—reading computer code seems more analogous to editing, especially editing something like a technical manual where you're concerned with how others will interpret the instructions. Reading through the research methods of this study, it says the participants read a single line of English text or Python/Scratch code at a time. (Example English sentence of "NOBODY COULD HAVE PREDICTED THE EARTHQUAKE IN THIS PART OF THE COUNTRY"). So this study was looking only at the very granular level of "reading".
hnick 6y ago
That sounds reasonable, I've helped edit a few things and need to decide on each pass whether I'm reading for content or structure. Totally different mindset. I've also found when I'm deep in a problem solving mode like coding I tend to be far less empathetic. So it seems to mess with my people skills too until I come up for air.
- xwdv 6y ago
  I think many programmers often lose empathy from too many long hours of deep problem solving and never really get it back. A therapist for instance once said that John Carmack had little to no empathy for other human beings.
  - schoen 6y ago
    Apparently this is from a psychiatric evaluation when he was caught perpetrating a burglary at age 14. That's definitely an unusual and disturbing thing for an adolescent to do. But do you have reason to think Carmack got that way at that age specifically because of his interest in programming, or that his interest in programming kept him that way thereafter? I'm skeptical of this because he went on to be a successful, respected computer scientist and business leader, as well as starting a family. While of course many people who've done each of these things may be bad at empathy (or worse!), I'm not aware that Carmack has somehow continued along the course he was on at 14.
    - lmm 6y ago
      He apparently put his desk in the hallway so he could see when everyone left, and fired a guy for not staying late enough (even though that guy was coming in early).
- gatinsama 6y ago
  And reading fiction, on the other hand, seems to improve Theory of Mind. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/342/6156/377.abstract https://science.sciencemag.org/content/342/6156/377.abstract
- vishnugupta 6y ago
  > I've also found when I'm deep in a problem solving mode like coding I tend to be far less empathetic. My experience as well. This is a side effect of a forced WFH. My kids are regularly at the receiving end of my outbursts when they interrupt me when I'm deep in work, more so when I'm debugging. In office on the other hand such 1-1 interruptions are rare.

wanderingstan 6y ago

I had the same thought—reading computer code seems more analogous to editing, especially editing something like a technical manual where you're concerned with how others will interpret the instructions. Reading through the research methods of this study, it says the participants read a single line of English text or Python/Scratch code at a time. (Example English sentence of "NOBODY COULD HAVE PREDICTED THE EARTHQUAKE IN THIS PART OF THE COUNTRY"). So this study was looking only at the very granular level of "reading".

hnick 6y ago

That sounds reasonable, I've helped edit a few things and need to decide on each pass whether I'm reading for content or structure. Totally different mindset. I've also found when I'm deep in a problem solving mode like coding I tend to be far less empathetic. So it seems to mess with my people skills too until I come up for air.

xwdv 6y ago
I think many programmers often lose empathy from too many long hours of deep problem solving and never really get it back. A therapist for instance once said that John Carmack had little to no empathy for other human beings.
- schoen 6y ago
  Apparently this is from a psychiatric evaluation when he was caught perpetrating a burglary at age 14. That's definitely an unusual and disturbing thing for an adolescent to do. But do you have reason to think Carmack got that way at that age specifically because of his interest in programming, or that his interest in programming kept him that way thereafter? I'm skeptical of this because he went on to be a successful, respected computer scientist and business leader, as well as starting a family. While of course many people who've done each of these things may be bad at empathy (or worse!), I'm not aware that Carmack has somehow continued along the course he was on at 14.
  - lmm 6y ago
    He apparently put his desk in the hallway so he could see when everyone left, and fired a guy for not staying late enough (even though that guy was coming in early).
gatinsama 6y ago
And reading fiction, on the other hand, seems to improve Theory of Mind. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/342/6156/377.abstract https://science.sciencemag.org/content/342/6156/377.abstract
vishnugupta 6y ago
> I've also found when I'm deep in a problem solving mode like coding I tend to be far less empathetic. My experience as well. This is a side effect of a forced WFH. My kids are regularly at the receiving end of my outbursts when they interrupt me when I'm deep in work, more so when I'm debugging. In office on the other hand such 1-1 interruptions are rare.