Of course, by simply trying to articulate this quote, I am betraying the idea. But I will try unpack it anyway. First, let’s start with a definition. A philosophy is a set of ideas that can be articulated. A philosophy is symbolic of a deeper reality. But inevitably, any philosophy, no matter how profound, cannot … Read more
If you’re looking for a house to buy, or you want to hire an employee, when should you stop searching? The rational answer would be to consider all options available, and then, by going through all the data, to choose the option that is superior to all the other options. But if the decision must … Read more
The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes Author(s): Donald D. Hoffman First published: 2019 How can it be possible that the world we see is not objective reality? And how can our senses be useful if they are not communicating the truth? The Ghost in the Machine Author(s): Arthur Koestler First … Read more
The problem of self-discipline concerns each person, no matter what their beliefs or background. There is no need to expand on why self-discipline is important. Naturally, many approaches to practicing it have developed with time, each with its own ideological slant. Throughout history, different types of individuals have emerged, each a product of their own time. First, … Read more
Why Buddhism is True by Wright is about how the central insights of Buddhism with regards to habits and pleasure has been corroborated by modern scientific evidence. Evolutionary psychology is described as the study of how the human brain was designed—by natural selection—to mislead us, even enslave us. Natural selection has its virtues, and being … Read more
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do. He may as well concern himself with his shadow on the wall. Speak what you think now in hard words, and to-morrow speak what to-morrow thinks in hard … Read more
One of the important ways in which modern people differ from ancient people, is that modern society has mastered risk. That is not to say that each individual has mastered risk, but that each individual has at their disposable extremely powerful tools, passed down from great thinkers, that allows them to understand risk better than … Read more
How We Know What Isn’t So Title: How We Know What Isn’t So Author(s): Thomas Gilovich First Published: 1991 Thomas Gilovich offers a guide to the fallacy of the obvious in everyday life. Summary 1 Summary 2 Thinking: Fast and Slow Title: Thinking: Fast and Slow Author(s): Daniel Kahneman First Published: 2011 System 1 is … Read more
The Selfish Gene by Dawkins is an ambitious project that seeks to explain how and why evolution selected for the behaviors, characteristics, and ideas that are now prevalent in any society. The gene is the basic unit of evolution. It is essential information that can exist for a very long time, which is why it … Read more
In Thinking: Fast and Slow, Kahneman explains the representativeness heuristic, by giving us the example of Tom W, a fictional graduate student. Assume that you know nothing about Tom W, and you were asked to guess which major he is most likely in. I will simplify the example and include only three of these majors. … Read more