3 ms·

What also helps, arguably more directly and backed up by more research, are mindfulness and compassion meditation. Mindfulness meditation makes one more observa

by ma2rten 13y ago

What also helps, arguably more directly and backed up by more research, are mindfulness and compassion meditation. Mindfulness meditation makes one more observant, while compassion meditation is a way of directly stimulating that part of the brain. Here is a quick reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mett%C4%81#Benefits http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mett%C4%81#Benefits http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/07/opinion/sunday/the-morality-of-meditation.html http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/07/opinion/sunday/the-moralit...

001sky 13y ago
This suffers from lack of priors. The purpose of fiction, is to get those priors. meditation is ultimately narcisistic (ie, self-referential), whereas fiction is highly scalable (you get a bunch of external characters and their internal motivations provided for you). So in this sense, the purpose of fiction is providing something akin to genetic diversity.
- ma2rten 13y ago
  You don't really need priors to understand other people, because other people feel exactly the same emotions as you do. The problem is that we are often in a narcissistic frame of mind, where we care more about our own problems and worries, then paying attention to people around us. Both reading and meditation, can help to get you out of that frame of mind. At least that is my understanding.
  - 6d0debc071 13y ago
    > You don't really need priors to understand other people, because other people feel exactly the same emotions as you do. Under very different conditions, with different emotions running alongside them and in very different intensities arising from a wide range of possible causes. Other people do not all feel as I do, any more than they want what I do. The contrary claim is roughly analogous to claiming that all programs are the same because they're all made of 1s and 0s.

3 ms·

What also helps, arguably more directly and backed up by more research, are mindfulness and compassion meditation. Mindfulness meditation makes one more observa

by ma2rten 13y ago

001sky 13y ago
This suffers from lack of priors. The purpose of fiction, is to get those priors. meditation is ultimately narcisistic (ie, self-referential), whereas fiction is highly scalable (you get a bunch of external characters and their internal motivations provided for you). So in this sense, the purpose of fiction is providing something akin to genetic diversity.
- ma2rten 13y ago
  You don't really need priors to understand other people, because other people feel exactly the same emotions as you do. The problem is that we are often in a narcissistic frame of mind, where we care more about our own problems and worries, then paying attention to people around us. Both reading and meditation, can help to get you out of that frame of mind. At least that is my understanding.
  - 6d0debc071 13y ago
    > You don't really need priors to understand other people, because other people feel exactly the same emotions as you do. Under very different conditions, with different emotions running alongside them and in very different intensities arising from a wide range of possible causes. Other people do not all feel as I do, any more than they want what I do. The contrary claim is roughly analogous to claiming that all programs are the same because they're all made of 1s and 0s.