A brain of its own

Posted on May 15, 2008
Tags: Brain, Facts |

Some interesting concepts and ideas in this artcile. Most aren’t new but some have an interesting twist like the following approach to circumventing our primal instincts.

Does your brain have a mind of its own? - Los Angeles Times

Consider, for example, the difficulty that most people having in sticking to abstract goals like “I intend to lose weight” or “I plan to finish this article before the deadline.” Nice thoughts, but not formulated in terms that your ancestral, reflexive brain might understand. The work-around? Translate those abstract goals into a form your ancestral systems — which traffic largely in dumb reflexes — can understand: if-then. If you find yourself in a particular situation, then take a specific action: “If I see French fries, then I will avoid them.” As Peter Gollwitzer, my colleague in New York University’s department of psychology, has shown, even simple changes like these can markedly increase the chances of success.

If the brain has a brain of its own, might that brain also have another brain of it own… :-)

Comments

2 Responses to “A brain of its own”

  1. yo on May 15th, 2008 7:43 am

    wow. these geniuses figured out that besides a goal, you need a plan to achieve that goal.

    they think they’re the first to figure that out. and that it proves ….evolution..lol…..prolly think it proves global warming, too. roflmao

  2. eyal on May 15th, 2008 8:18 am

    yo - yeah some of the points there are rehashes, or built on “old technology” :-) I think the interesting thing is why we need a plan for some things and not others, like to eat less? Or to remember to go to the grocery store? It’s not exactly rocket science or needs a gantt chart to work out how to achieve that goal.

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