4 ms·

> your subconscious invents an explanation that you think is a fact. That may be the case for some people, but it isn't the typical case for me. Quite the oppo

> your subconscious invents an explanation that you think is a fact. That may be the case for some people, but it isn't the typical case for me. Quite the opposite. My subconscious drives the show and after the fact if someone asks me about something or if I'm forced to confront why I did things in the very unlikely way I did them my conscious mind tries to create an explanation for the unconscious actions I've already taken.

rojobuffalo 4y ago
I agree. I heard a researcher put it like "we often think of the conscious mind as being the guy in the driver's seat, making decisions, and guiding behavior; but really *most of our decision making and behavior is guided by subconscious processes and the conscious mind is more like the PR person who comes up with stories that justify our behavior."
- 3pt14159 4y ago
  Well, I don't agree with that fully either. For me, if there is a moral quandary or a highly analytical situation where the subconscious can't quite estimate it then it gets kicked up to the conscious layer for a real, expensive (computationally speaking) decision. Something like "do I really want to flirt with this woman, given that I'm married" or "wait a second the abstraction here is leaking across domains which may ruin the architecture of this program in the long run" get kicked up to the upper layer. But for most of my programming, I honestly just keep it at the subconscious layer and so long as there is music that the conscious mind can check out on we're good.
ergonaught 4y ago
The entire point is that your plausibility generator generates things that seem plausible to you. Disagreeing with this basic human brain function is at least ironic in context.
- 3pt14159 4y ago
  It's a funny bit of musefulness, but again I disagree on terms. The subconcious layer of my mind does not merely generate plausibilities. That is part of it, yes, especially at the bounds of my senses colours will shade in that aren't there or shapes will look like people or characters. This is especially prevelent when I'm learning something new. For example, I'm learning how to read and write Traditional Chinese right now and when I move my eyes fast symbols will briefly look like Chinese ones that I know, even if they're actually Japanese characters that closely resemble them. But the subconcious also handles two other major functions that are not involved in plausibility generation. 1. Prediction. Not just "predict something plausible" but "predict the time down to the second" or "predict what people are about to say on this podcast I'm listening to" and when it gets it uncannily right or surprisingly wrong it generates laughter of some kind. 2. Tacit learning. The type you only get by bathing in a topic for a good long time so that connections can form that are below a linguistic layer and to surface them requires abstract philosophical pondering after the fact. There are other functions (snap judgements, feeling generation to guide strategic choices, creativity[0], and um, "connection"[1]) but those three together I would say comprise the bulk of the subconcious experience from my perspective. [0] Some disagree that this subconcious. All I can say is that they're 100% wrong for me. [1] Something I wish I had a word for but it's essentially the feeling and thinking generated by joining yourself with a piece of technology like a bike or a computer or a car. Its as if ones exoskeleton is donned and the neural pathways update to take it on.

rojobuffalo 4y ago

I agree. I heard a researcher put it like "we often think of the conscious mind as being the guy in the driver's seat, making decisions, and guiding behavior; but really *most of our decision making and behavior is guided by subconscious processes and the conscious mind is more like the PR person who comes up with stories that justify our behavior."

3pt14159 4y ago
Well, I don't agree with that fully either. For me, if there is a moral quandary or a highly analytical situation where the subconscious can't quite estimate it then it gets kicked up to the conscious layer for a real, expensive (computationally speaking) decision. Something like "do I really want to flirt with this woman, given that I'm married" or "wait a second the abstraction here is leaking across domains which may ruin the architecture of this program in the long run" get kicked up to the upper layer. But for most of my programming, I honestly just keep it at the subconscious layer and so long as there is music that the conscious mind can check out on we're good.

ergonaught 4y ago

The entire point is that your plausibility generator generates things that seem plausible to you. Disagreeing with this basic human brain function is at least ironic in context.

3pt14159 4y ago
It's a funny bit of musefulness, but again I disagree on terms. The subconcious layer of my mind does not merely generate plausibilities. That is part of it, yes, especially at the bounds of my senses colours will shade in that aren't there or shapes will look like people or characters. This is especially prevelent when I'm learning something new. For example, I'm learning how to read and write Traditional Chinese right now and when I move my eyes fast symbols will briefly look like Chinese ones that I know, even if they're actually Japanese characters that closely resemble them. But the subconcious also handles two other major functions that are not involved in plausibility generation. 1. Prediction. Not just "predict something plausible" but "predict the time down to the second" or "predict what people are about to say on this podcast I'm listening to" and when it gets it uncannily right or surprisingly wrong it generates laughter of some kind. 2. Tacit learning. The type you only get by bathing in a topic for a good long time so that connections can form that are below a linguistic layer and to surface them requires abstract philosophical pondering after the fact. There are other functions (snap judgements, feeling generation to guide strategic choices, creativity[0], and um, "connection"[1]) but those three together I would say comprise the bulk of the subconcious experience from my perspective. [0] Some disagree that this subconcious. All I can say is that they're 100% wrong for me. [1] Something I wish I had a word for but it's essentially the feeling and thinking generated by joining yourself with a piece of technology like a bike or a computer or a car. Its as if ones exoskeleton is donned and the neural pathways update to take it on.