midstream
I
we are suddenly
one that needs care.
germinating in a culture,
located within a history,
of lives living midstream,
even as we do
The overview effect
Can space travel – at least orbiting the Earth – cause cognitive shifts? Really be transformative – have lasting impact? [1]
Generally, studies note variability in the experience. And not all astronauts experience the overview effect.
(Wiki) Author [“space philosopher”] Frank White, who in the 1980s coined the term overview effect after interviewing many astronauts, …
Yaden et al. observed that cultural differences, including differences in religious and social identity, affect the ways in which the effect is experienced and interpreted. Expressions range from the religious, to the “vaguely spiritual”, to the naturalistic, to calls to social duty.
Wiki even notes that there’s some research on whether immersive virtual reality simulations might “induce the overview effect in earthbound participants.”
This Big Think article is a personal perspective by astronaut Ron Garan.
Continue reading The overview effectGaslighting – word of the year 2022
I’ve read online articles about gaslighting. By publishers such as Psychology Today, Washington Post, Wired, Huffpost. Hopefully most everyone understands what this is about – in personal & social relationships, corporate PR, and politics. Misleading communications, misinformation, manipulation, abuse.
As Carl Sagan discussed regarding critical thinking skills, a good “baloney detection kit” protects against false narratives, especially in unequal power relationships.
This article includes some historical recap. As well as mentioning the rest of the year’s Top 10 words.
• AP News > “‘Gaslighting’ is Merriam-Webster’s word of the year for 2022” by LEANNE ITALIE (November 28, 2022)
(quote) Merriam-Webster’s top definition for gaslighting is the psychological manipulation of a person, usually over an extended period of time, that “causes the victim to question the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and typically leads to confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, uncertainty of one’s emotional or mental stability, and a dependency on the perpetrator.”
“It’s a word that has risen so quickly in the English language, and especially in the last four years, that it actually came as a surprise to me and to many of us,” said Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Webster’s editor at large, in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press ahead of Monday’s unveiling.
The meaning of life in one word?
The meaning of life in one word?
Well, sort of …
• Matter
• It matters
• What matters
• Mattering – you matter
The appearance of legitimate debate
• YouTube > University of Queensland > Denial101x: Making Sense of Climate Science Denial > FLICC – The Techniques of Science Denial Part 1 (Mar 9, 2020)
A titan’s quest
A titan’s quest
years from now, after all,
will we aptly recall
throughout many seasons
the road of our reasons
which pushed electric cars
and pilgrimage to Mars?
step quickly inside …
Room Pasadena *
[Revised 4-9-2022]
on a bright sunny morning
no clouds in the sky,
in the hall nearby his room,
i decided to drop by
behind the door (i) heard motion,
i knocked to say hi,
the way cracked a tad open,
a dim voice spoke by-and-by
“you’re welcome to pass,
but step quickly inside,
you’re letting out the darkness
which i hope you can abide”
Conflicting perspectives
And then the worldly context of any discourse:
It was a time of hope, it was a time of fear,
it was an age of science, it was an age of ignorance,
it was an epoch of climate change, it was an epoch of disbelief,
it was a period of dreams, it was a period of politics,
it was a spring of recovery, it was a season of collapse (1)
Generational battles
The notion that the battles of prior generations are “won” for the next – just doesn’t happen. The battles over civil rights, women’s rights, … realizing the dream of the Constitution. A long slog, a forever journey. An evolution of minds, hearts, … and habits.
And sometimes conflicts are not so much won as just left behind by succeeding generations (without necessarily any linear progress either).
Continue reading Generational battlesTwo sides to every argument?
“If there are two sides to every argument – or, more to the point, if there are people willing to take up two sides to every argument – they both must be right or, at least, equally valid.” (1)
So, on any particular subject or topic, there may be two or more opinions. Today I’d trust that no one (hmm) believes that the earth is flat (2); so, let’s rule that out as subject to opinion.
Continue reading Two sides to every argument?