Original Eyal Winter Cool Brain
Tinker Bell: Legend of the Never Beast
Author | Eyal Winter
Translation | Xu Tianyan
Rewrite the | Chen yang
Review | Cool Brain Creator & Small Bet
Read | aloud Hun
Artist | Snow is now golden
Edit | Xiang Rong
Don't reject sensibility, don't ignore reason, find the right way to make good use of them is the key to a happy life.
Have you ever been in a state where you always wanted to quit your disliked job, actively exercise to lose weight, and embrace a new life? The reality is: fear of unemployment, still being overweight, and the more stressed you are, the more you eat.
In the struggle between reason and emotion, it seems that emotion always prevails – can people never get rid of the manipulation of emotions? If so, what is the point of reason?
To answer these questions, start with a brain-injured patient named Phineas Gage. In an accident, Geji's head was pierced by an iron rod. Although he lost part of his brain, he miraculously survived and even retained most of his cognitive function. He still did math problems, but couldn't make decisions—especially socially-related decisions. The part of Gege's brain that Gaige lost is located in the prefrontal cortex, a brain region involved in many higher functions—including decision-making, reasoning, and emotion.
Phineas Gage
Decision-making is a complex process that is influenced by both reason and emotion. When it comes to emotions, emotions, people usually only see its negative impact on decision-making, and think that only absolute rationality can make perfect decisions. But the reason why human beings have retained both emotion and reason in the process of evolution is precisely because these two abilities are indispensable to us. In short, emotion governs the desires of the present, while reason guarantees future interests.
If human beings lose their rational thinking, they will fall into the abyss of instant pleasure and cannot extricate themselves. We no longer learn, produce, or even forget how to protect ourselves. In this addictive state of life, humanity will perish rapidly.
vice versa. Without the emotions of the moment, human survival would be difficult. When danger is imminent, it is the emotions of the moment that make us make quick choices. For example, when crossing the road, when we encounter a vehicle coming from the opposite side, fear will make us stop immediately. At this moment, although rationality can also calculate the distance and speed of the car, to determine whether it is dangerous. But the process is relatively slow, and by the time a conclusion is reached, it may be too late.
Emotions also reinforce our social behavior. Positive emotions like love and empathy help us build good social bonds, and even some negative emotions can have a positive impact. Studies have shown that in bargaining and debating activities, some degree of humiliation or anger of the opponent helps to win.
We can open a brain hole to appreciate the importance of emotions. Renowned ai researcher Naftali Tishby believes that in the coming decades, AI will bring "immortality" to humans – after the death of the body, the mind will exist in the form of data. Our "life" is divided into two stages. The first stage is the stage when the body is still alive, and all our decisions, opinions, comments, ideas, and the circumstances in which these mental activities take place are recorded. Artificial intelligence technology will analyze this data and simulate our decision-making process. When we "die" on a biological level, we enter the second stage. Although we can't have any experience at this time, the data recorded before we die and the simulation algorithm can replace us in many other things, such as business negotiations and talking to family members.
Artificial Intelligence
This "second stage" of life is the best example of life accepting only sexual domination and not sensibility. However, when life is equated with computer algorithms, are humans still "human" as we understand them?
Human beings in reality, whether extremely emotional or extremely rational, invariably use both sensibility and reason. Those who are lazy and do not exercise, and feel that they are defeated by emotion and unable to achieve their goals, have actually set a certain goal with reason.
Since reason and emotion are indispensable, how do you balance the two? Psychological research shows that people's patience with reason is very limited. This is also logical, because reason hinders our enjoyment. At a young age, our parents played a rational role in constraining our behavior. Growing up, we still need help and reminders from time to time. On the one hand, you can ask your partner or friend to push yourself, and on the other hand, you can also think of yourself as a bystander, imagining how others will deal with the same situation. No one likes to be preached, but most people will still be willing to listen to advice. Although this method may sound a bit self-deceptive, the "bystander perspective" can help you temporarily escape the influence of sensibility, which is a good way to remain rational.
《Reprint》
Reason and emotion, though they have opposite meanings, can complement each other and serve our decision-making process together. The best rational decisions take into account emotional factors. To give an example of dieting and weight loss: when it comes to controlling your diet, the best way to do this is not to always eat the lowest calorie foods, but to choose what you like to eat in low-calorie foods, because you can stick to it.
Therefore, do not reject sensibility, do not ignore reason, find the right way to make good use of them is the key to a happy life.