The two core dimensions
Chapter 1 - Worldview
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Welcome to The two core dimensions page
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Key takeaways
- Dimensions are guiding metaphors for the complex reality that we are and our context is. They structure the totality of our world of experiences
Direction provides the 'expansiveness' of your world model
Hidden layers are fields created by the 'action' and 'evaluation' dimension
On top, all layers together create the third 'potention' dimension
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Core ideas
Action dimension
A substantial body of research across neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and philosophy of mind converges on a striking conclusion: human action — whether triggered by external stimuli, internal states, or spontaneous volition — is initiated by the brain before conscious awareness arises. This finding, replicated through multiple paradigms over four decades, challenges the folk-psychological assumption that we consciously decide to act first and then act. The evidence draws from electrophysiology (EEG, readiness potentials), neuroimaging (fMRI), reflex physiology, dual-process theory, subliminal priming, predictive coding, and interoceptive research.
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| Robert Sapolsky - Behave - Bodley Head - 2017 |
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| Mothers and peers don’t teach the motoric features of fixed action patterns; those are hardwired. They teach when, where, and to whom, the appropriate context for those behaviours. They give the first lessons about when touching someone’s arm or pulling a trigger can be among the best or worst of our behaviours. |
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| Lisa Feldman Barrett - How emotions are made - Pan Books - 2017 |
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| Let's engage in a creative thought experiment involving a bee. In your mind's eye, imagine a bee lightly bouncing on the petal of a fragrant white flower, buzzing around as it searches for pollen. If you have a fondness for bees, the flutter of imaginary wings may cause your body to prepare for a closer look—your heart might beat faster, your sweat glands could activate, and your blood pressure may decrease. Conversely, if you have previously been stung by a bee, your brain might ready your body to run away or make a swatting motion, triggering a different set of physical responses.
Each time your brain simulates sensory input related to the bee, it prepares automatic changes in your body that can influence your feelings. Your mental simulation of a bee is rooted in your understanding of what a "bee" is. This concept not only includes information about the bee itself (such as what it looks like, how it sounds, your possible reactions to it, and the changes in your autonomic nervous system that accompany those reactions) but also encompasses related concepts like "Meadow," "Flower," "Honey," "Sting," and "Pain." All this information is integrated into your concept of a "bee," guiding how you envision the bee in a particular context. Thus, the concept of "bee" consists of a collection of neural patterns in your brain that represent your past experiences. Your brain combines these patterns in various ways to perceive and flexibly guide your action. |
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Evaluation dimension
Action and evaluation is highly intertwined. Joseph LeDoux describes two pathways the brain uses to process emotions: the ‘Low Road’ and the ‘High Road.’
The ‘Low Road’ involves a direct connection from the thalamus to the amygdala. This pathway is fast, coarse, and operates without conscious attention. When a stimulus triggers this route, it can lead to an immediate response, such as freezing, increased heart rate, or hormone release. This response happens before the cortex has finished identifying what the stimulus actually is.
In contrast, the ‘High Road’ runs from the thalamus to the sensory cortex and then to the amygdala. This pathway is slower and provides a more detailed evaluation of the stimulus. Here, full perceptual and semantic processing occurs, allowing us to identify and assess what we are consciously responding to.
The key implication of LeDoux's findings is that the ‘Low Road’ can prompt actions, before the ‘High Road’ has completed its evaluation. As a result, we begin to act physically before our cortex has determined the exact nature of the stimulus.
Overall, the evidence suggests that action and evaluation are closely interconnected and mutually influential. A fast, body-mediated, pre-conscious emotional signal arises before we consciously experience emotions (evaluation), and it already influences our behaviour before we have the chance for deliberate appraisal.
As a result, the subjective experience of ‘evaluating something’ follows a physiological reaction that has already begun. People use their current emotional state as information to evaluate unrelated objects, making emotions serve as inputs for evaluation rather than outputs.
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| Lisa Feldman Barrett - How emotions are made - Pan Books - 2017 |
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| Simulations are your brain's interpretations of what is happening in the world. In every waking moment, you encounter ambiguous and noisy information from your senses - your eyes, ears, nose, and other sensory organs. Your brain draws on past experiences to construct a hypothesis or simulation, then compares it to the sensory information it receives. This process allows your brain to impose meaning on the noise, identifying what is relevant and filtering out the rest.
While common sense might suggest that thinking, perceiving, and dreaming are different mental processes, a single overarching process describes them all. Simulation is the default mode for all mental activity and is crucial for understanding how the brain generates emotions. When it comes to your perceptions of bees, your simulations are based on your mental concept of what a "bee" is. This concept includes not only information about the bee itself, such as its appearance, sounds, and how you might react to it, but also related concepts like "meadow," "flower," "honey," "sting," and "pain." All this information is integrated into your concept of "bee," shaping how you simulate encounters with bees in different contexts. |
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