As humans, we've been endowed with this formidable capacity to create meaning. Meaning-making is quite a fascinating process that happens in our minds. However, the mind is not something tangible. It would be false to define the mind only as thinking, and it's correlated neural activity that happens inside our heads. The connectome, namely the connections between neurons, correlates with specific behavioral patterns or actions, but there's no possible way to infer thought, ideas, or concepts from the brain's wiring. I believe the mind is a highly dynamic process that emerges between a person and at least one observer. Therefore sense-making or meaning-making happens between one or more agents.
Communication between individuals requires a consensus, a language or jargon, comprised of several definitions primarily agreed upon. That's valid not only for us humans but also for other species, (do you know of any exceptions?). One must resort to a specific spectrum of units of language (words) to convey a message. The message can carry different degrees of meaning; some messages are more compelling than others. The most compelling ones are characterized by originality - a novel way of seeing the world. I'm talking, in general, meaningful information feels good, elegant, and simple, and our minds grasp it with ease.
In today's world, oversaturated with information, it's getting increasingly hard to come across thoughtful content that raises above triviality. This is bad for our minds because it atrophies our capacity to produce more meaningful content.
On a separate note, I'd note content that appeals primarily to the limbic system and not to higher thought. Reinforcing neural pathways in the limbic system makes us more susceptible to seeking more of the same type of content (stimulation). It decouples the cortex over time, making it increasingly difficult to focus for extended periods. Focusing is necessary to grasp a more elaborated message.
Communication between individuals requires a consensus, a language or jargon, comprised of several definitions primarily agreed upon. That's valid not only for us humans but also for other species, (do you know of any exceptions?). One must resort to a specific spectrum of units of language (words) to convey a message. The message can carry different degrees of meaning; some messages are more compelling than others. The most compelling ones are characterized by originality - a novel way of seeing the world. I'm talking, in general, meaningful information feels good, elegant, and simple, and our minds grasp it with ease.
In today's world, oversaturated with information, it's getting increasingly hard to come across thoughtful content that raises above triviality. This is bad for our minds because it atrophies our capacity to produce more meaningful content.
On a separate note, I'd note content that appeals primarily to the limbic system and not to higher thought. Reinforcing neural pathways in the limbic system makes us more susceptible to seeking more of the same type of content (stimulation). It decouples the cortex over time, making it increasingly difficult to focus for extended periods. Focusing is necessary to grasp a more elaborated message.
it takes risk.
and just like that exercise where you have to fall back without looking and trust your partner to grab you and stop you from falling on the floor, it takes trust.
these days with hyperinformation and hyperfragmentation of people's tastes in info it can feel like you don't wanna take that risk. you don't wanna fall. you're too scared of falling on your head and getting hurt.
so we go for the easy stuff. hating on something that's kosher to hate.
being down with the simplest of messages. memes.
we don't wanna take the plunge. too cold. too dark.
I think the balance is somewhere in between; if we resort too much to conventionality for the sake of being understood, then we sacrifice originality. If we're too far from it, then we risk being understood by a few. Now, the medium is key; I think we adjust our degree of "conventionality" based on the medium. You see, Brandon decided to leave because the increasing adoption of fiction as a means of self-expression on this medium did not appeal to his needs of conventionality.