Becoming Eden

Author: divia

  • A Year of Updates about Operant and Classical Conditioning

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    A year ago and a couple of days ago, we got our dog, Argos! Around then, I dived pretty deeply into learning about operant and classical conditioning, especially with respect to animal training. I read many books and blogs, attended ClickerExpo, and chatted with the trainers at our puppy socials. And after living with a…

  • Skill-Building Heuristics

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    After I gave a talk at Ephemerisle, some months ago, I got some requests for a summary in writing. Here it finally is! My intuitive model of learning spits out that I learn best when I’m “challenged”. I’ve come to believe that a feeling of accomplishment and a desire to “consolidate” what I’ve learned (by…

  • Appreciating Contempt

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    A couple of years ago, Will and I attended an event where someone asked us all to consider which emotion we had the hardest time owning and were most likely to resist and push away. We both gave the same answer: contempt. At the time I remember thinking that contempt seemed mean and not that…

  • Brief Clicker Expo Notes

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    I went to ClickerExpo in January! The whole experience was terrific, and I think I learned quite a bit. I got a few new ideas, but not many. But I do think I understand many of the things I’d previously read about it more fully and in a way that’s more actionable. Real-life examples are invaluable…

  • Balancing Needs in Relationships

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    I don’t have time to write something long this week, but I did want to pose a question that’s been on my mind. When someone you care about wants something and you have mixed feelings about whether to give it to them, what are your heuristics for deciding what to do? Do you have an…

  • One Thought and Two Links

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    I skipped writing a blog post last week because I was tired and busy. I don’t feel up for writing a long one this week either, but I will share a thought and some links. I often look at my (13 month old) daughter’s eyes when I’m trying to figure out what she is thinking.…

  • Other People’s Emotional States

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    Last week I posted as my Facebook status that: “Someone else’s emotional state is almost always a terrible optimization target.” I got a couple of requests to expand the thought to the length of a blog post, so here I go! I’ve been thinking since I posted it, and I think there are two fairly…

  • Memorizing Emotionally Salient Quotations

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    One of the more unusual projects I undertook a few years back was memorizing a bunch of quotations. In particular, I mostly picked ones that seemed emotionally salient. I love it when I read something that lets me glimpse a truth about the world that I hadn’t quite noticed or thought of in that way.…

  • Suffering is Created by Resistance

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    I got an email a few days ago about a card from one of my Anki decks that says “Suffering is created by resistance.” I wanted to explain what that statement meant to me. To start, in my mind there is a companion phrase: “Pain is not suffering.”  Here’s what I’ve written about that statement. I…

  • Feeling Better than Other People

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    divia
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    This post will just be a quick note based on a conversation I had with someone recently on the subject of feeling superior to other people. I’ve been there before, as I suspect many people have. If you find yourself simultaneously thinking you’re somehow better than other people and thinking it’s wrong to think that…