Psychology

Meditations on Frame: Manipulation and the Framing Effect

Welcome back to another wildly speculative article- today, we’re going to return to a topic I talked about in an article last year, the concept of frame. This isn’t going to be a continuation of that article, and to be completely honest, I’m not going to reread it before writing this one- I’m primarily looking to explore some ideas today and see where it goes. We’re going to start with the “framing effect” in psychology, then we’ll take a look at the various lenses we use to see the world as they relate to our overarching frame, and from there, how our frames compete in social situations and why that matters.

The Power of Symbolism and The Architecture of Mind

I was originally going to make this a Twitter thread when I thought about the idea for this article during a run, but I think this probably deserves a full article. If you’re familiar with me or this site (re: The Meaning of AION, I), you probably know I’m a huge fan of symbolism, both for graphic design purposes (check out my work) and for more meaningful pursuits. Today, we’re going to take a look at the power of symbolism with some of the underlying mechanics that symbols operate on in the mind, their value in the culture, their role as memes, and a whole lot more.

The Third Eye: Value in the Structure of Mind

Today, we’re going to be combining two of the broader subjects I’ve covered. First, we have the series I began with Value in the Highest, and the articles I wrote on the three core values, Love, Will, and Truth. Next, we have the Pieces of Mind series- both series will be suggested reading for this article, as well as The Desert of Nihilism and the Throne of God. I’ve talked about how the values are important, and how the mind seems to have some overarching structure, but in this article I’m going to attempt to join the two concepts and show how the values actually emerge from the structure of the mind itself. Along the way, we’re going to talk about the “Third Eye” symbol, polarity, submission and dominance, and more.

The Shattered Will: Neural Circuits and Compound Failure

This article is going to be something like a follow-up to the two willpower articles I wrote around this time last year (which will be required reading here), Defeating the Three Demons of Failure and the 10 Day Challenge. Since I wrote those, I’ve done a lot of experimenting with building willpower, some of it based on what’s in the book I co-authored, The Five Pillars of the Ascendant Mind. Anyway, if you’re really compelled it may be beneficial to read my recent article, The Origin of Consciousness, but that’s way more complex than what I’m writing about today, so it’s not super necessary. Also consider reading Value in the Highest and To Choose Life, as they both cover a more philosophical approach to the capital-W Will. Today, though we’re going to talk about what I’m going to call the Shattered Will, neural circuitry, and some strategies to use to start developing your willpower.

The Origin of Consciousness: Dreamtime and the Lotus on the River

Today we’re going to be taking a look at a pretty nebulous, complex concept- the origin of consciousness. This is no small task, so for the sake of your sanity, reader, make sure you’ve read Solomon, Pieces of Mind 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3, Triple Meta, and AION, II), Myth and Meaning I and II, and, if you’ve seen the show, the Westworld article as well. We’re going to hit all kinds of stuff here, from an old Buddhist story about the lotus, Julian Jaynes’ theory of consciousness, the Aboriginal Dreamtime, the Triune Brain theory, artificial intelligence, and we’ll even discover what the opposite of the word ‘meta’ is.

The New Ideal: In Search of the Perfect System

One of the things I’ve been interested in for ages is the idea that there could theoretically be a perfect system, an ideal means by which a man could live his life. Many of the strange things I’ve done (like going over a month without food and eating only meat for three months) can be attributed to this, as well as the overarching theme of this site. For a long time, I was only theorizing that such a system could be possible, but now that I’ve mastered a few of the basics, I’m convinced that it exists. To that end, I’m going to explore some of the components I think are essential in the defining of this new ideal, as well as discussing one of my crazier plans for the next few years. (This article is more or less a follow-up to “The Birth of the Hero,” so that’s probably worth a read here.

Self Love (Like Kanye Loves Kanye)

I came up with the idea for this article’s title in the shower this morning, and while at first I thought that was just a great article name, I’m convinced that Kanye West is probably the best person to use as an example when talking about self-love. (To be fair, I hadn’t really thought about this topic before I came up with the title, but let’s see what I can do with it.) As of right now, I’m thinking this will be the first of three articles exploring Love, Will, and Truth in more depth (although only this one will be Kanye-centric, unfortunately). Without further ado, let’s get learn how to practice self-love (like Kanye loves Kanye).

The Problem of Solipsism: Self and Other (Pieces of Mind 0.3)

Today I’m going to be discussing something I’ve touched on briefly before- solipsism. Now, in the past, I’ve looked at a more metaphysical/epistemological sort of solipsism, the kind you get in a lot of religions and bad philosophy. In this case, however, we’re going to be taking a fundamentally different approach to solipsism- what it looks like in practice. Let’s begin by defining the term. Solipsism, as per the OED, is defined as: “The view or theory that the self is all that can be known to exist.”

The Candlemaker's Fallacy: Innovation, Pencils, and Metallica

The NPC Meme: Narcissism, Personality, and Collectivism

Watch out pardner, there’s a new meme in town. If you haven’t had the pleasure of being introduced yet, meet the NPC meme. It allegedly originated on 4chan, but the real groundwork was done on Twitter by @thefaceberg (editor's note, he has since been banned). This meme would prove to be probably the most devastating usage of memetic engineering to psychologically traumatize people on the internet that I’ve personally ever seen. Let’s get down to it.

Triple Meta: Metaconsciousness, Metamind, Metanarrative

We’re going to be getting in to some seriously heavy stuff today. I’ve been toying with writing about these concepts for a while, but they’re so abstract and hard to define that I’ve ended up putting it off. No more, however- I’m going to jump right in and start trying to get some degree of definition established. The three metas we’re going to be looking at are metaconsciousness (also called metacognition, but I don’t like that as much), the metamind, and the metanarrative.

Melodies of the Mind: Using Music To Change Your Mood

If you haven’t been living on the moon for the past 20 years, you’ve probably realized that music can definitely have an effect on your mood. Whether it’s listening to LoFi Hip-Hop Beats Mix for Studying, some Studio Ghibli Cafe Jazz, or The Best Of Vocal Deep House Chill Out, there’s obviously a connection between what you’re listening to and how it makes you feel. If those titles look familiar, it’s because they’re some of the most popular playlists on Youtube. More importantly, they each have a specific vibe- listen and tell me you don’t agree. However, you already knew that music was related to your mood, so what we’re going to do is talk about using music to change your mood.

Pieces of Mind: Introduction to the Structure of Self (0.1)

In this article I’m going to attempt to outline a (prototypical) general structure of the Self, from a variety of angles and perspectives. This will be based on my own experience and understanding, as well as on the reading and research I have done in the past.

Real Talk, II: The Magic of Words

In this edition of Real Talk, we’re going to be getting into words, your brain, and the fact that semantics are much more important than you’ve ever known. Sounds crazy? Maybe- but stick around and you might just learn something.

Real Talk, I: Are You Failing To Communicate

Have you ever gotten into an argument with someone? I’m sure you have. Because of my charming personality, I used to get in arguments with people all the time. More often than not, I (and you, too) probably walked away from those arguments thinking, “If only they understood what I was saying, they’d agree with me!” I have some bad news for you- if someone doesn’t understand what you’re saying, it’s your fault. You’re failing to communicate.