How to Think: The Skill You’ve Never Been Taught

How to Think: The Skill You’ve Never Been Taught
No skill is more valuable and harder to come by than the ability to critically think through problems. And schools don’t teach you a method of thinking. It’s one of those things that can be learned but can’t be taught.  When it comes to thinking and making decisions the mind has an optimal way to be operated. When operated correctly you’ll find yourself with plenty of free time. When operated incorrectly, most of your time will be consumed correcting mistakes.

Good initial decisions pay dividends for years, allowing you abundant free time and low stress. Poor decisions, on the other hand, consume time, increase anxiety, and drain us of energy.

But how can we learn how to think?

For the answer we turn to Solitude and Leadership, a lecture given by William Deresiewicz. The entire essay is worth reading (and re-reading).   https://fs.blog/great-talks/solitude-and-leadership/

Learning How To Think

Let’s start with how you don’t learn to think. A study by a team of researchers at Stanford came out a couple of months ago. The investigators wanted to figure out how today’s college students were able to multitask so much more effectively than adults. How do they manage to do it, the researchers asked?  The answer, they discovered—and this is by no means what they expected—is that they don’t. The enhanced cognitive abilities the investigators expected to find, the mental faculties that enable people to multitask effectively, were simply not there. In other words, people do not multitask effectively.

And here’s the really surprising finding: the more people multitask, the worse they are, not just at other mental abilities, but at multitasking itself.  One thing that made the study different from others is that the researchers didn’t test people’s cognitive functions while they were multitasking. They separated the subject group into high multitaskers and low multitaskers and used a different set of tests to measure the kinds of cognitive abilities involved in multitasking.

They found that in every case the high multitaskers scored worse. They were worse at distinguishing between relevant and irrelevant information and ignoring the latter. In other words, they were more distractible.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://fs.blog/2015/08/how-to-think/

How People Learn to Become Resilient

How People Learn to Become Resilient

By Maria Konnikova   February 11, 2016

Perception is key to resilience Do you conceptualize an event as traumatic or as a chance to learn and grow

What Matters Is The Intensity And The Duration Of The Stressor

Norman Garmezy, a developmental psychologist and clinician at the University of Minnesota, met thousands of children in his four decades of research. But one boy in particular stuck with him. He was nine years old, with an alcoholic mother and an absent father. Each day, he would arrive at school with the exact same sandwich: two slices of bread with nothing in between. At home, there was no other food available, and no one to make any.

Even so, Garmezy would later recall, the boy wanted to make sure that “no one would feel pity for him and no one would know the ineptitude of his mother.” Each day, without fail, he would walk in with a smile on his face and a “bread sandwich” tucked into his bag.

The boy with the bread sandwich was part of a special group of children. He belonged to a cohort of kids—the first of many—whom Garmezy would go on to identify as succeeding, even excelling, despite incredibly difficult circumstances.

These were the children who exhibited a trait Garmezy would later identify as “resilience.” (He is widely credited with being the first to study the concept in an experimental setting.) Over many years, Garmezy would visit schools across the country, focussing on those in economically depressed areas, and follow a standard protocol.

He would set up meetings with the principal, along with a school social worker or nurse, and pose the same question: Were there any children whose backgrounds had initially raised red flags—kids who seemed likely to become problem kids—who had instead become, surprisingly, a source of pride? “What I was saying was, ‘Can you identify stressed children who are making it here in your school?’ ” Garmezy said, in a 1999 interview. “There would be a long pause after my inquiry before the answer came.

If I had said, ‘Do you have kids in this school who seem to be troubled?,’ there wouldn’t have been a moment’s delay. But to be asked about children who were adaptive and good citizens in the school and making it even though they had come out of very disturbed backgrounds—that was a new sort of inquiry. That’s the way we began.”

Resilience presents a challenge for psychologists. Whether you can be said to have it or not largely depends not on any particular psychological test but on the way your life unfolds. If you are lucky enough to never experience any sort of adversity, we won’t know how resilient you are. It’s only when you’re faced with obstacles, stress, and other environmental threats that resilience, or the lack of it, emerges: Do you succumb or do you surmount?

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.newyorker.com/science/maria-konnikova/the-secret-formula-for-resilience

How Do Today’s Dads Differ From Prior Generations?

How Do Today’s Dads Differ From Prior Generations?

Ryan Howard  Last Update: December 17, 2020

If you’ve ever watched a sitcom from the 80s, you wouldn’t be faulted for thinking that the only thing dads back then did was drink beer and crack wise after a hard day’s work. The concept of fatherhood, however, has changed dramatically since then, and new dads these days are far more involved in the lives of their children.

Gender roles are breaking down at breakneck speeds, and dads these days are more than willing to rise to the challenge. We examine these many changes in this article and discuss how dads these days differ from prior generations.

In It, Right From The Get-Go

A recent study by Cornell University highlighted the fact that fathers who take longer paternal leave tend to be more involved and engaged in the lives of their children. This type of data particularly highlights the difference between dads from different generations.

It would have been quite a strange request for dads in the 50s and 60s even to consider taking paternity leave, let alone to think about how deeply it would help them engage with their children. Parenting, especially for fathers, has changed from being a hands-free experience to a hands-on experience over the years.

Fathers previously would not be seen anywhere near the birthing room floor. Instead, they would be in the waiting room, quite literally waiting for the good news from the nurse or doctor.

The Lamaze technique only came up during the 1950s, and it wasn’t adopted by both genders whole-heartedly until the 60s and 70s because it required fathers to be a lot more involved in the birthing process.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://smartparentadvice.com/todays-dads/

The Blind Men and the Elephant

The Blind Men and the Elephant

Emailed To Dinar Recaps

Please entertain yourself while being very enlightened with this story that is a parallel to the Dinar - the Dinar Community and Dinar Intel Providers - It was very well thought out and put together - Thank you Rhino!

​Once there were three blind men who were given the task of describing an elephant. Each was led into an elephant pen by way of a different gate.

The first man approached the elephant from the front and groped around the elephant’s trunk. The second encountered the elephant from the rear and grabbed the tail. The last man walked into a leg and felt around that part of the elephant. Then the men were led out of the pen and asked to describe the appearance of an elephant.

​Well, being blind, none of them had ever actually seen an elephant, but each of them did have a very real perspective from which to share; and share they did.

​Then the men were led out of the pen and asked to describe the appearance of an elephant. Well, being blind, none of them had ever actually seen an elephant, but each of them did have a very real perspective from which to share; and share they did.

They all agreed that an elephant is round. After all, the trunk, tail, and leg are all basically round in shape. But that is where the similarities ended. Before long, the discussion turned ugly. ​

Each man knew that he was correct. After all, he had touched the elephant! You can’t get much closer to a source that than that.

Two of the men, each armed with unequivocal, undeniable, unimpeachable information, felt compelled to argue their cases. They felt it was their duty to convince all other blind people the “truth” about the elephant. These two men looked for every opportunity to pursue their duty, sharing elephant truths.

And other blind people appreciated their efforts and began to ask questions. Some members of the blind community liked hearing about the “trunk” description. Others thought that the “tail” description was closer to the truth. And these two men enjoyed their new-found popularity greatly.

In order to have more things to talk about, one of these same two men, researched Braille articles about elephants.

Unfortunately, some of the articles were written by folks with ulterior motives—ivory hunters, ruthless poachers, who cared only about the monetary value of elephants.

The blind man either didn’t know that some of the articles were intentionally deceptive, or perhaps he didn’t care. After all, the articles did provide talking points, which in turn increased his popularity.

​The second argumentative blind man was content simply to argue. The louder he argued the more attention he got. Healthy, informed debate is good and productive.

​Too bad this one fellow would occasionally resort to name calling, all the while claiming to be the only source of real elephant truth.

Nevertheless, he maintained a substantial following among the blind community and, to a large degree, that was all that mattered; much more so than the elephant.

What about the third blind man? Well, he was out there all the time. He too shared his perspective of the elephant, his own brand of elephant truth. His perspective was limited too, but he shared what he knew to be true.

The difference is, this man stayed true to his mission—sharing truth about elephants. He didn’t rail against the tail perspective. He didn’t throw a tantrum when new trunk information got released. He merely shared what he knew and let members of the blind community do with it what they will.

As you can see, not all the blind men behaved the same way. They did however, have several things in common. They all had great connections (which explains why they were selected as elephant describers in the first place).

These connections afforded them a certain measure of special status within the blind community. Additionally, all three blind men had valid perspectives. After all, their descriptions of the trunk, tail and leg were all accurate.

And let’s not forget the last thing they had in common—they were all blind! Special status or not, they were all members of the blind community.

Thus, while all of them had real information regarding a portion of the elephant, none of them understood the whole elephant.

Ultimately, the complete truth about the elephant resides with one Person—the Creator of the elephant.

If only the blind men knew this. I believe they did. Perhaps all that talk about the elephant created a temporary blind spot.

Go Elephant!

AND THEN IT IS WINTER

AND THEN IT IS WINTER  Author Unknown

 You know. . . time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I was young, just married and embarking on my new life with my mate. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams.

 But, here it is... the winter of my life and it catches me by surprise...How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go and where did my youth go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and thinking that those older people were years away from me and that winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.

 But, here it is...my friends are retired and getting grey...they move slower and I see an older person now. Some are in better and some worse shape than me...but, I see the great change...Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant...but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used to see and never thought we'd be.

 Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day! And taking a nap is not a treat anymore... it's mandatory! Cause if I don't on my own free will... I just fall asleep where I sit!

And so...now I enter into this new season of my life unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!!  But, at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I'm not sure how long it will last...this I know, that when it's over on this earth...its over. A new adventure will begin!

Yes, I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn't done...things I should have done, but indeed, there are many things I'm happy to have done. It's all in a lifetime. 

So, if you're not in your winter yet...let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think. So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life please do it quickly! Don't put things off too long!!

Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today, as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not! You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life...so, live for today and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember...and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past!!   "Life" is a gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one.   Live it well!  Enjoy today!   Do something fun!   Have a great day!

Be Safe! Be Careful! Be Well! Be Happy! Be Brave! Be Truthful! Most of ALL – Be KIND! 

 Remember "It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.

 Today is the oldest you've ever been, yet the youngest you'll ever be so - enjoy this day while it lasts.

Author Unknown

https://www.inspirational-words-phrases.com/AndThenItIsWinter.html

$2,000 stimulus checks: How soon could you get one?

$2,000 stimulus checks: How soon could you get one?

Doug Whiteman  Tue, January 12, 2021

Joe Biden's $2,000 stimulus checks: How soon could you get one?

President-elect Joe Biden is getting ready to unveil a multitrillion-dollar coronavirus rescue package that'll include his plan for a quick, third round of "stimulus checks" for most Americans.  Biden last week promised $2,000 direct payments would "go out the door" soon if voters in Georgia gave him a Democratic majority in the U.S. Senate — and they did, through a pair of runoff elections.

Over the past two weeks, many people have been receiving their second COVID relief payments in the amount of $600. That's after an attempt to raise the amount to $2,000 failed in the closing days of 2020. Biden has referred to the $600 as a "down payment," with more to come.

Here's what we can currently say about whether and when you're likely to see a third stimulus check.

Vote results in Georgia set wheels in motion for new checks Biden made his remarks about $2,000 checks at a campaign rally in Atlanta, one day before a vote that unseated two Republican U.S. senators from Georgia. The Democratic wins in those races gives Biden's party control over both houses of Congress. That could make it easier for his proposals, like $2,000 stimulus checks, to become reality.

"That money will go out the door immediately to help people who are in real trouble," Biden said at the rally.

Many struggling consumers have been eager for the government to keep sending cash. Americans largely used their first stimulus payments for basics like groceries and utility bills, a survey from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found. Some also invested the money, the survey said, or used it to meet various other needs. Those may have included buying affordable life insurance, as sales of policies have surged amid the pandemic.

When Biden says "immediately," just how quickly might that be? He's not scheduled to take office until Jan. 20, and the new Senate — with Democrats in charge — may not be seated until the 22nd. So, if there will be fresh relief payments, you're not likely to get one until February, at the earliest.

What if you need more than $600 right now?

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/expect-third-stimulus-check-under-160500295.html

How Billionaires See Themselves

How Billionaires See Themselves

By Nathan J. Robinson

Originally published in our magazine’s hallowed print edition2020SEPT/OCTDETAILS

Reading the dreadful memoirs of the super-rich offers an illuminating look at their delusions.

Most billionaires stay out of the public eye. This makes sense, because according to polls, far more people distrust billionaires than admire them, and the overwhelming majority of the public want the government to seize a portion of billionaires’ wealth. It’s easy for anyone in possession of a billion dollars to make their name widely known, but evidently wealth without fame is preferred to fame without wealth (or the possibility of losing a small chunk of wealth).

Some billionaires, however, write books. These are some of the only documents that the ruling class has produced for the consumption of the masses. What is it they wish us to know?

I have on my desk a stack of “billionaire books,” mostly memoirs. They include: Sam Zell’s Am I Being Too Subtle, Richard Branson’s Losing My Virginity, Richard DeVos’s Compassionate Capitalism, Charles Koch’s Good Profit, Ken Langone’s I Love Capitalism!, Stephen Schwarzman’s What It Takes, Peter Thiel’s Zero to One, Marc Benioff’s Trailblazer, Sam Walton’s Made in America, Joe Ricketts’ The Harder You Work, The Luckier You Get, and Michael Bloomberg’s Bloomberg by Bloomberg. (What a title. Bloomberg, whose company is Bloomberg L.P., also made his fortune on a device he invented called “the Bloomberg,” so it is clear he likes saying “Bloomberg.”)

What you may have noticed even from the titles of these books is that many billionaires are slightly defensive. Koch Industries, for instance, is significantly invested in fossil fuels and has been fined hundreds of millions of dollars for violations of environmental regulations. Charles Koch, however, wants us to know that he makes “good profit,” by which he means that he creates “value for others” rather than just enriching himself.

Richard DeVos (Amway) and Marc Benioff (Salesforce) have actually both written books called Compassionate Capitalism. John Mackey (Whole Foods) called his Conscious Capitalism. “I am good,” they are saying. “I am not what you think. Please don’t hate me.” (The plea falls on deaf ears; to me, all of these books might as well be titled Expropriate Me.)

Some, like Ken Langone (Home Depot), are a little less concerned with appearances. Titling a book I Love Capitalism! is bold for a billionaire, since it invites the obvious reaction: “Yes, well, of course you do. It gave you a *** billion dollars. If you were the king you would probably write a book called I Love Monarchy! but it wouldn’t tell us much about whether monarchy is good for anyone else.”

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/01/how-billionaires-see-themselves/

Concluding our 25-year Bet on Global Collapse

Concluding our 25-year Bet on Global Collapse

The Technium Making the Inevitable Obvious

Twenty five years ago I made a bet in the pages of Wired. It was a bet whether the world would collapse by the year 2020. I made the bet at the end of an interview I conducted with author Kirk Sale, who had some notoriety for smashing computers with a sledge hammer in the tradition of the Luddites. He predicted the collapse of civilization in 25 years. I asked him if he was willing to bet on his vision of global collapse. (You can read the interview and original bet here in the article Interview with the Luddite. We agreed to bet $1,000 on the state of the world in 2020. Sale was betting on a trinity of three global disasters; I was betting on progress.

At the time we agree to let our mutual book editor, Bill Patrick, hold our checks. As 2020 rolled around, what I thought was an easy win, turned out to be not so obvious, so Kirk and I agreed to let Bill Patrick made the big decision at the very end of 2020. So last night, December 31, 2020, Bill Patrick made his decision. I am posting it below. In the run-up to the end of the year, I wrote out my defense of why I thought I should win, which I sent to Bill Patrick as he was making his decision. Also, Steven Levy spoke to me and Kirk Sale and Patrick, and wrote up the story of the bet for Wired, which you can read here.

Subject: Big Decision  Date: Thursday, 31 December 2020

From: William Patrick  To: Kirk Sale, Kevin Kelly

Thank you gentlemen for entrusting this grave decision to me.

In deciding who wins, I find myself with no choice but to be an originalist, working closely from the words on the page, and the most significant are “not even close,” and “convergence.”

To deal with the former, it seems best to try to score the contest round by round:

Global Environmental Disaster

Environmental problems have far more to do with old school, industrial technology (slowly being retired) than with information technology (which may well be the only hope for a solution). Even so, with fires, floods, and rising seas displacing populations; bugs and diseases heading north, ice caps melting and polar bears with no place to go; as well as the worst hurricane season and the warmest year on record, it’s hard to dispute that we are at least “close to” global environmental disaster.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://kk.org/thetechnium/

10 “Holidays” to Celebrate in January

10 “Holidays” to Celebrate in January

And you thought the holidays were over! The good news is that while all the high-pressure ones have come to an end, the fun ones never stop — unless you want them to, that is. But with everything from Science Fiction Day to Dress Up Your Pet Day, why would you? Here are 10 extra holidays to celebrate in January.

January 2: World Introvert Day

Even over Zoom, the holidays can be exhausting — especially for introverts. If you’re still feeling drained by all the social interactions that come with Christmas and New Year’s Eve, take World Introvert Day to recover by your lonesome. German psychologist Felicitas Heyne came up with the idea in 2011, making this the 10-year anniversary of the rare holiday that’s solitary by design.

Celebrate by reading a book, going for a long walk, or studying up on some of the world’s most famous introverts. That list includes everyone from Abraham Lincoln to Albert Einstein, so those who prefer time alone to the company of others are in, well, good company.

January 2: Science Fiction Day

Jules Verne, Ursula K. Le Guin, H.G. Wells — these are just some of the innovative minds who helped make science fiction so bold and imaginative. Their work is celebrated on the second day of the year, which was chosen for a reason: Isaac Asimov was born on January 2, 1920, and the I, Robot author looms as large among the giants of sci-fi as any other writer.

January 5: Screenwriters Day

Actors and directors tend to get most of the credit, but there’s no movie without a script. Whether it’s all-time giants like Billy Wilder (Double Indemnity, Some Like It Hot, Sunset Boulevard) and Nora Ephron (Silkwood, Sleepless in Seattle, When Harry Met Sally…), or contemporary heroes like Quentin Tarantino and Spike Lee, screenwriters rarely get their due in moviegoers’ collective imagination. If you’ve never actually read a screenplay before, there’s no time like the present to try it — thousands of them are readily available online, and you don’t have to be an aspiring scribe to appreciate this highly specialized art.

January 10: Save the Eagles Day

Known as the king of all birds, the mighty eagle actually consists of some 60 different species, most of them in Africa and Eurasia. And while America's national symbol was removed from the list of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife in 2007 thanks to successful conservation efforts, many other species haven’t had the same luck — hence Save the Eagles Day, which endeavors to do just that.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.triviagenius.com/holidays-to-celebrate-in-january/X9ovq-v_UAAGBs2M



When Will Your Second Stimulus Check Arrive?

When Will Your Second Stimulus Check Arrive? It May Already Be On Its Way

Tue, December 29, 2020, 8:49 PM EST  Kiplinger

When are second stimulus checks coming? Now! On Tuesday, the IRS announced that it has already begun delivering second-round stimulus checks to millions of Americans who received a first-round payment earlier this year. In fact, initial direct deposit payments could arrive as early as Tuesday night for some people. Electronic payments will then continue into next week. Note, however, that you could see a direct deposit payment as pending or as a provisional payment in your accounts before the official payment date of January 4, 2021.

• SEE MORE Second Stimulus Check Calculator

If you don't receive a direct deposit by early January, watch your mail for either a paper check or a debit card. The IRS will start mailing paper checks on Wednesday, December 30. To speed up delivery, a limited number of people will receive their second stimulus payment by debit card.

But the form of payment for your second stimulus check may be different than your first payment. Some people who received a paper check last time might receive a debit card this time, and some people who received a debit card last time could receive a paper check.

If you receive a debit card, don't throw it out thinking it's junk mail! The debit cards will be issued by MetaBank, and they will arrive in a white envelope that prominently displays the U.S. Treasury Department's seal. The Visa name will be on the front of the card, and it will say "MetaBank" on the back. More information about these cards is available at EIPcard.com.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/second-stimulus-check-arrive-may-014940904.html

The True Origins Of Your Favorite Christmas Traditions

The True Origins Of Your Favorite Christmas Traditions

12 | 12 | 2019  By Trivia Genius

It’s almost that time of year again when we travel from near and far to spend time with friends and family for the holidays. Even if you’re not a big fan of the Christmas season, you’re probably familiar with some of the more well-known traditions such as Christmas trees, yule logs, eggnog, and gift-giving. But where did these traditions come from? Hold onto your hats because Christmas is one of many Christian holidays with an origin that’s going to surprise you.

Christmas Trees

One of the most iconic symbols of the Christmas season is, of coure, the tree. Early Christians decided to “borrow” an ancient pagan holiday known as Saturnalia, and thus, they borrowed other symbols and incorporated them into Christian celebrations. The classic Christmas tree is yet another item the Christians borrowed from pagan religions.

In particular, the Romans were fond of  fir trees during Saturnalia. And as Saturnalia gave way to Christmas, the fir tree continued to be used.

Christmas Stockings

Family room decorated with Christmas tree and stockingsCredit: Alena Ozerova/ Shutterstock

We don’t know about your house, but many people start their Christmas Day celebrations by opening their stockings for little gifts. This is one tradition that is firmly rooted in Christianity.

 There are competing origin stories for Christmas stockings — some of which are controversial. But of them, the most popular include one that also serves as the origin story for a more secular Christmas symbol — Santa Claus.

 We won’t give that one away because Santa is also on this list. But the other story centers on a wealthy man and his daughters and their recent bad luck that left them poor. Naturally, the father was worried that his daughters wouldn’t be able to marry well. As luck would have it, St. Nicholas passed through their town and tossed three big bags of gold coins down the man’s chimney — and those bags magically fit perfectly in the daughters’ stockings that were drying by the fireplace.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.triviagenius.com/the-true-origins-of-your-favorite-christmas-traditions-2/