Nondualism Nondualism, also called non-duality, "points to the idea that the universe and all its multiplicity are ultimately expressions or appearances of one essential reality." It is a term and concept used to define various strands of religious and spiritual thought. It is found in a variety of Asian religious traditions and modern western spirituality, but with a variety of meanings and uses. The term may refer to: Its origins are situated within the Buddhist tradition with its teaching of sunyata, the absence of inherently existing natures; the two truths doctrine, the nonduality of the absolute and the relative; and the Yogacara notion of "pure consciousness" or "representation-only" (vijñapti-mātra). The term has more commonly become associated with the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Adi Shankara, which took over the Buddhist notions of anutpada and pure consciousness and provided an orthodox hermeneutical basis for heterodox Buddhist phenomology. Definitions[edit] Indian Buddhism[edit] D. 1.
The Elements of Change ‘Without accepting the fact that everything changes, we cannot find perfect composure. But unfortunately, although it is true, it is difficult for us to accept it. Because we cannot accept the truth of transience, we suffer.’ ~Shunryu Suzuki Post written by Leo Babauta. Change can be a difficult thing. I’m happy to report that after years of studying it, I’ve become fairly good at it (though happily failing all the time). What have I learned from my changes? It can be incredibly difficult, or it can be wonderfully joyous. My Recent Changes I’ve made dozens of changes over the last few years (read My Story for a partial list), but here’s a short list of a few I’ve made just this year: Lost over 40 lbs since last year. Again, this is a short list — there are others that are less noteworthy, and probably a few I’m forgetting. The Elements of Change So what’s the joyous path to making these changes and others? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. And lastly One last note, to anyone making changes: you will fail.
Why Questions Are More Important Than Answers Why Questions Are More Important Than Answers by Terry Heick Clocks and old watches are miracles. If you’ve ever taken one apart and had a look at the intricate gears with their jutting teeth reaching out with just the right math to tick in rhythm with the pulse of the universe, you’ll see that whatever mind conjured the thing and all its parts is mad. Imagine the dogged pursuit of a proper clock-maker, day after day bound up in design and measurement and function and orderly thinking, forcing exactitude on little bits of metal that never asked for it. And then finally getting it right–so many decisions and matters of design suddenly set the clock off ticking forever. Get inside the mind of a clock-maker—one who still experiments with matters of design, improving their craft with minor revisions of planning and execution—and suddenly you’re seeing from ground zero how things come to be, first in a humble glow, then a blinding white starlight that bleaches everything. There’s a lesson here.
20 History Questions They Refuse To Answer In School Traditional educational systems basically teach us that the history of man only dates back to about 8,000 years ago while religious texts date mankind to approximately 6,000 years ago. It is more than obvious that there a massive push to occlude our true history and origins. While you may not agree with some of the questions, please try to view them with an open mind. As you’ll see, the history we have been taught has been manipulated and obscured from us. Ask yourself (or others) the following questions and feel free to comment at the end of the article! A map drawn on a gazelle skin of an unfrozen Antarctica was found in 1929. 1. The last time Antarctica was not frozen was at least 4,000 BC, so… 2. A tiny figurine made of baked-clay (right) was brought up in amongst the debris churned out by a huge drill bit during the drilling of a well in Nampa Idaho in 1889. 3. 4. According to Darwinism, man evolved from ape. 5. 6. In Ecuador, one large Jade cup and 12 smaller Jade cups were found. 7.
Why Atheists Don't Really Exist Confirmation bias is the tendency to ascribe greater significance to information which supports our pre-existing theories and lesser significance to information which contradicts those theories. We often do this subconsciously. For example you get a new car, and suddenly you notice that type of car on the road with a much greater frequency than you had noticed before. But though confirmation bias generally refers to the inclusion or exclusion of data, there are other ways we can shoehorn the obvious to make it fit within our world view. Last month in The Atlantic, Matthew Hutson wrote a fascinating article titled: “The Science of Superstition: No One Is Immune to Magical Thinking.” Of course modern theories about the evolution of plants and animals posit that the capacity of plants to produce oxygen is merely an accident that just so happens to facilitate the breathing of animals. Skeptics call this patternicity, or projecting pattern where there is none. Fr. When C.S.
Zen Zen is a school of Mahayana Buddhism[note 1] that developed in China during the Tang dynasty as Chán. From China, Zen spread south to Vietnam, northeast to Korea and east to Japan. Zen emphasizes rigorous meditation-practice, insight into Buddha-nature, and the personal expression of this insight in daily life, especially for the benefit of others. The teachings of Zen include various sources of Mahāyāna thought, especially Yogācāra, the Tathāgatagarbha Sutras and Huayan, with their emphasis on Buddha-nature, totality, and the Bodhisattva-ideal. Etymology[edit] The word Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪 (dʑjen) (pinyin: Chán), which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "absorption" or "meditative state". Zen practice[edit] Dhyana - Zen meditation[edit] Central to Zen is the practice of dhyana or meditation. Observing the breath[edit] Venerable Hsuan Hua meditating in the Lotus Position. Soto[edit]
Divergent thinking Divergent thinking is a thought process or method used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions. It is often used in conjunction with its cognitive opposite, convergent thinking, which follows a particular set of logical steps to arrive at one solution, which in some cases is a ‘correct’ solution. By contrast, divergent thinking typically occurs in a spontaneous, free-flowing manner, such that many ideas are generated in an emergent cognitive fashion. Many possible solutions are explored in a short amount of time, and unexpected connections are drawn. Traits associated with divergent thinking[edit] Psychologists have found that a high IQ (like Albert Einstein) alone does not guarantee creativity. Promoting divergent thinking[edit] Activities which promote divergent thinking include creating lists of questions, setting aside time for thinking and meditation, brainstorming, subject mapping, bubble mapping, keeping a journal, creating artwork, and free writing. 1. 2.
Artificial Stupidity Artificial Stupidity by Ali Minai "My colleagues, they study artificial intelligence; me, I study natural stupidity." Not only is this quote by Tversky amusing, it also offers profound insight into the nature of intelligence – real and artificial. The work of Tversky and Kahneman focused on showing systematically that much of intelligence is not rational. The field of AI began with the conceit that, ultimately, everything is computation, and that reproducing intelligence – even life itself – was only a matter of finding the “correct” algorithms. When an animal produces a fruitful or futile behavior, it is because of how the electrical and chemical activity of its cells (including the neurons of the nervous system) is shaped by this interaction. One of the biggest gaps between AI and natural intelligence is speed. When an artificial system such as a car or computer is first deployed, it is not surprising to see it work perfectly. Two things may provide some insight here.
Biohacking Biohacking is the practice of engaging biology with the hacker ethic.[1] Biohacking encompasses a wide spectrum of practices and movements ranging from Grinders who design and install DIY body-enhancements such as magnetic implants to DIY biologists who conduct at-home gene sequencing.[2][3][4][5] Biohacking emerged in a growing trend of non-institutional science and technology development.[1][6][7] Many biohacking activists, or biohackers, identify with the biopunk movement as well as transhumanism and techno-progressivism.[2][8][9] "Biohacking" can also refer to managing one's own biology using a combination of medical, nutritional and electronic techniques. This may include the use of nootropics and/or cybernetic devices for recording biometric data.[5][10] Ideology[edit] Contemporary biohacking movements[edit] One of the larger biohacking movements is the DIY biology movement. Notable persons[edit] Meredith L. Groups and organizations[edit] Current projects[edit] See also[edit]
the observer effect List of computer simulation software The following is a list of notable computer simulation software. Open Source[edit] Proprietary[edit] binary Are You Living in a Computer Simulation? Many works of science fiction as well as some forecasts by serious technologists and futurologists predict that enormous amounts of computing power will be available in the future. Let us suppose for a moment that these predictions are correct. One thing that later generations might do with their super-powerful computers is run detailed simulations of their forebears or of people like their forebears. Because their computers would be so powerful, they could run a great many such simulations. Suppose that these simulated people are conscious (as they would be if the simulations were sufficiently fine-grained and if a certain quite widely accepted position in the philosophy of mind is correct). Apart form the interest this thesis may hold for those who are engaged in futuristic speculation, there are also more purely theoretical rewards. The structure of the paper is as follows. A common assumption in the philosophy of mind is that of substrate-independence. Writing and thus: .
List of cognitive biases Systematic patterns of deviation from norm or rationality in judgment Cognitive biases are systematic patterns of deviation from norm and/or rationality in judgment. They are often studied in psychology, sociology and behavioral economics.[1] Although the reality of most of these biases is confirmed by reproducible research,[2][3] there are often controversies about how to classify these biases or how to explain them.[4] Several theoretical causes are known for some cognitive biases, which provides a classification of biases by their common generative mechanism (such as noisy information-processing[5]). Explanations include information-processing rules (i.e., mental shortcuts), called heuristics, that the brain uses to produce decisions or judgments. There are also controversies over some of these biases as to whether they count as useless or irrational, or whether they result in useful attitudes or behavior. Belief, decision-making and behavioral[edit] Anchoring bias[edit] Apophenia[edit]