MLP - human unconscious, emotions, and control
I just stumbled across a nifty 10-minute interview "Leonard Mlodinow on the unconscious":
http://itunesmedia.economist.com/sites/default/files/audio/20120508_mlodinow.mp3
Among the bits that fascinated me the most was the one about how humans create causal connections between emotions and events: we are liable to get it backwards. For example, if we are in an angry mood, and then enter a discussion, we may attribute the anger to the discussion, and when reflecting later, we may invent ways in which the discussion caused the anger.
He also wrote a small essay for the NYT called The Limits of Control, which I also found thought-provoking.
Also: I'm not dead! :)
http://itunesmedia.economist.com/sites/default/files/audio/20120508_mlodinow.mp3
Among the bits that fascinated me the most was the one about how humans create causal connections between emotions and events: we are liable to get it backwards. For example, if we are in an angry mood, and then enter a discussion, we may attribute the anger to the discussion, and when reflecting later, we may invent ways in which the discussion caused the anger.
He also wrote a small essay for the NYT called The Limits of Control, which I also found thought-provoking.
Also: I'm not dead! :)