
The Human Brain Is a Time Traveler - joubert
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/11/15/magazine/tech-design-ai-prediction.html
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edoo
I consider intelligence to be the ability to predict the future. The average
human has reached a level of intelligence that allows them to bypass immediate
impulses for a greater reward at a later time. Also in a way we are a nested
intelligence. DNA and the biological structures it creates abstractly speaking
exhibit intelligent interaction with the environment. Our self awareness
emerges on top of that 'intelligent' biological structure.

~~~
placebo
I think that there's another way of looking at it. My definition of
intelligence would be the ability to tell what is true from what is false. The
ability to predict the future is a by-product of that ability.

regarding what is the nature of truth and the issue of self awareness - that's
a can of worms that I'll refrain from opening :)

~~~
umanwizard
> intelligence [is] the ability to tell what is true from what is false.

This is a poor definition. There are very intelligent Christians and very
intelligent atheists. They can't both be right. Isaac Newton, one of the most
intelligent people in history, believed in all sorts of weird astrological
stuff. Etc.

My view is that intelligence is a number that's correlated with a wide variety
of different measures of cognitive performance. So it's not really possible to
give a glib, one-sentence description of it.

~~~
placebo
> _It 's not really possible to give a glib, one-sentence description of it._

And yet, you just did.

My definition is poor if you turn it into something simplistic and not realise
the vast number of ways and levels of abstraction in which truth can be
distinguished from falsehood, which gives rise to various forms of
intelligence. It boils down to having a less limiting understanding of the
concept of truth.

Intelligent atheists and intelligent Christians can't both be right about
what? They can both be right about some things and wrong about other things,
but that is true of any two different people, not only any two different
groups.

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jesperlang
> In our resting states, we do not rest.

It's funny how language shapes our thinking. The word rest has a bias towards
related words such as inactivity and being passive. Hard to change that now!
Imagine a culture/language where we would say "time travel" instead of "rest"!
It would completely change how we look at resting..

I need to go time travel a bit now :)

~~~
kartan
> It's funny how language shapes our thinking.

Yes. We need to change "I need some rest" for "I need some introspection". I
agree that is a change from "lazy" or "not-doing-anything" towards "profound"
and "self-improvement".

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BerislavLopac
"Time off" is a solid generic catchphrase for this.

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crawfordcomeaux
What I've been calling "time travel" is a technique for personal growth. I
imagine an idealized future world I'd like to live in (ie. using the time
travel mechanisms in the article) and imagine how people and/or myself might
respond to events differently based on how the world works. I imagine what I
would do with my time, how I'd go about it, and what kind of person I'd be.
Then I choose to be that person now.

It's like my present self is reaching out and pulling a future self backwards
in time to their past.

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rptr_87
I suggest you read this book “On Intelligence” by Jeff Hawkins on similar
topic:

[https://www.amazon.com/Intelligence-Understanding-
Creation-I...](https://www.amazon.com/Intelligence-Understanding-Creation-
Intelligent-Machines/dp/0805078533)

~~~
arxpoetica
Jeff Hawkins dismisses the metaphysical in his theories. Is this true of the
neuroscience world in general?

~~~
_Schizotypy
Well depending on what is defined as "metaphysical" there is scant if any
evidence. Scientists tend to dismiss things when there is no supporting
evidence.

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eigenschwarz
As with anything, too much of a good thing can be detrimental: hyperactivity
of the DMN has been linked with things like schizophrenia, anxiety, and ADHD.
(Indeed, some point to the hypothesis that the DMN was not evolved for today's
distraction filled world.) It's interesting that things like meditation (and
apparently psychedelics) can quiet the DMN and bring clarity and happiness in
people by doing so.

~~~
fmihaila
> As with anything, too much of a good thing can be detrimental: hyperactivity
> of the DMN has been linked with things like schizophrenia, anxiety, and
> ADHD. [...] It's interesting that things like meditation (and apparently
> psychedelics) can quiet the DMN and bring clarity and happiness in people by
> doing so.

The discovery of the default mode network (DMN) and the role it plays in our
perception of reality are also mentioned in "How to Change Your Mind", a
recent book by Michael Pollan [1], which examines in great depth all the
issues you mention and more. I _highly_ recommend it to those interested in
the nature of consciousness.

[1] [https://www.amazon.com/Change-Your-Mind-Consciousness-
Transc...](https://www.amazon.com/Change-Your-Mind-Consciousness-
Transcendence/dp/1594204225/)

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intralizee
Time is so mysterious and it may not even be a constant rate. I think the
universe could be doing calculations while paused for a non-fixed period and
resume for a millisecond until pausing again. Observing how every living thing
is able to stay in sync to function normally is interesting. I only once had
the experience where time felt like it was slower than normal and was with
using cannabis. I still doubt if it really happened.

~~~
moneytide1
Time is a construct we have created to describe perception. If our brain is
well nourished and operating at its peak, time feels slower (especially with
caffeine or cannabis). Likewise, if we're tired and mental energy is spent,
"time" moves faster because our perception circuits are not operating at peak
efficiency.

~~~
benjaminsuch
For me its the opposite. When I'm into something really deep, time travels so
much faster and I wonder where all that time went.

~~~
moneytide1
Perhaps time becomes irrelevant in that state because mental activity is
filled with productivity rather than idle moments. Or maybe time can only be
slow for those that are waiting, rather than making something happen.

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mkagenius
It doesn't have anything to do with time travel, does it, like the one in
physics?

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dubrocks
Nope. Just pop-sci clickbait.

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joe_the_user
A nice article that actually shows a value to introspection in brain research.

