What is Digg?56 Comments
- gllopc, on 10/16/2007, -1/+10Well, I'm pretty certain I can at least smoke my brain to happiness.
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8Brain wellness: not spending too much time on Digg.
- Masonry, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8You are missing the point. Correct - Your happiness or sadness does depend on your "condition". However, we have the ability to shape our "condition" because our individual reality is nothing more than the product of our perception (cliche, but true). We control the lens through which external information enters our mind and creates our unique heterophenomenology (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heterophenomenology).
It's nieve to simply say that we are a direct product of our enviornment and are incapable of looking at things differently.
History and great people have tought us repeatedly that you can be happy in ANY situation. EX: Victor Frankl
What's wrong with being happy most of the time? It's healthy and feels good. - IHaveIssues, on 10/10/2007, -2/+9Wow, is it me or is this a great example comment spamming by one's Digg friends?
- Cooperfan, on 10/10/2007, -4/+9I believe you told people you liked it, by digging it.
- edwartica, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5This article does not take into consideration conditions that effect the brain's chemistry, such as Bi-polar, anxiety disorders. OCD, and the like.
- The_Dude, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4I'm glad it told me to use my frontal lobes, otherwise I might sit here cranking away with my medulla oblongata trying to plan with it. Not good.
- Bastiat, on 10/10/2007, -2/+5Sculpting your own brain - a nice way picture the process. Thanks
- trimpton, on 10/10/2007, -4/+7what kind of dystopian world do we live in where we need articles to tell us to train our brain to be happy.
- urcabraz, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3What's more important? Happiness or knowing the truth of nature?
There are techniques, religions, and philosophies, developed over decades or centuries, that optimize human happiness for the typical 80-year lifespan. These same methods may or may not bring one any closer to "truth". Many are just plain escapes.
Pursuit of "truth" is more important than "happiness". We must strive to understand the human relation to transcendence, or determine we're finite, transient, and become dead forever. Understanding this truth is more important than any happiness. - NSMike, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4I foresee a new DS game...
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3Interesting thing about the red/white/brown/green image: if you blur your vision for the first half, the objective is extremely simple even when you can read the words in the second half.
- diiii, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2It doesn't directly take them into consideration, but on a certain level they are irrelevant: regardless of your brain's chemistry you can and should make conscious decisions about how to spend your time and how to direct your attention. This is why no mental illness can be treated by medication alone.
- diiii, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Physically sound? So if I lose a leg I can't be happy?
- smaxl, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2really? all i got from that was watch less tv and play more video games.
- PoorYorick, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I think this article is right when it says that your emotional state depends on a thousand daily decisions. We have no control over the external stresses in our lives, but we owe it to ourselves to try to handle them in the best possible way. I've recently started meditating for 10 minutes a day and joined a gym to do strength training, yoga, and cardio exercise. I've only been doing it for a month, but already I feel I have a better perspective on my life and the events around me. I live up in Seattle, where we're headed into months of short days and constant cloud cover. I figure it's time to either improve my habits or ask my doctor about Focusin.
- rarson, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I can't understand why people would disagree with you, rune. Our entire understanding of "reality" is based on perception. Reality IS perception (or as they would say in the Navy, "perception is reality").
- diiii, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I feel like a lot of people's lack of contentment in life has to do with a sense that they are being undervalued or underappreciated for all their talents and efforts. But the truth is that most people aren't fully recognized or respected for all the talent/potential they have. If people would get out of the mindset that they're a victim of the rest of the world's inability to bow down to their greatness, they would realize that the only way to make people recognize your abilities is to bitch less and do more.
What's especially funny to me about this is that the people I hear the most bitching from aren't single mothers of three who just can't get a break. They're young middle-class white males, and I'm guessing their biggest problem is that they were brought up being told they could accomplish anything they wanted and now they're disappointed to discover that it's not quite as easy as Mom made it seem like it would be. - elianealhadeff, on 10/10/2007, -1/+3I fully agree with the statement that the question should not be whether you are happy but what you can do to become happier. As we train our brain, when presented with a brand new experience or groundbreaking idea, to "listen" for the embedded possibilities -- as opposed to "listening" for the flaw -- we can have a taste of how it works.
- Masonry, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2The truth of nature? Of transcendence?
It's quite simple:
1) There's no transcendence, it's a recurring skyhooked theme that fills voids created by too much consciousness and too few lion attacks. Oh, but it feels oh-so-good to believe in it, I know.
2) Truth of nature apart from transcendence? Sure, I'll buy that ambiguous goal. It's a worthwhile - but why can't we be happy while figuring it out? How does our quest for happiness hinder our search for a more universal understanding of everything? - smolsen, on 10/10/2007, -1/+3I actually think it MIGHT be possible for a scientist to monitor how happy we are... if not right now then within a few years! Would love to hear what people know about what's going on in this area. Blood chemistry, electromagnetic frequencies, MRI... there's gotta be a way.
- blakeage, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Dugg for realization that life lived with less complexity can bring about happiness.
- diiii, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1That's what religion is about for a lot of people. But I wouldn't say all. I'd like to think that there are some out there for whom religion is actually about doing good, not about some cosmic reward. And you'd be surprised at some of the "mind-expanding" experiences that the right religion can offer, but whether those experiences truly come from the religion or the religious practices just create the right conditions in the brain to allow those experiences.... don't know. I'm not religious, but it always makes me sad to see religion universally bashed. A lot of evil has been done in the name of religion, but so has a lot of good.
- rarson, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Too many side-effects.
- metamorfoza, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2red, white, green, brown
green, red, brown, white
white, brown, green, re.....
damn, now I am depressed. - rarson, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1"There are techniques, religions, and philosophies, developed over decades or centuries, that optimize human happiness for the typical 80-year lifespan."
Opiates for the masses. Might as well do real drugs. Seriously, a false sense of security in the belief of some sort of afterlife in exchange for a lifetime of worshipping some hokey "higher power," or mind-expanding experiences that are better and more interesting than anything religion promises you (but never delivers).
Religion is all about repeating the same thing until you believe it, and spending so much time talking about "God" or "being saved" that you don't have enough time to focus on all the negative ***** in your life that made you turn to it in the first place. - bluskygirl, on 10/10/2007, -3/+4nice post about the power we have to control our happiness. Training your brain is not only possible... it's a great idea.
- edithsan, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Very interesting thought.. thanks!
- rarson, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1There IS a transcendence, but it's a false transcendence and most of the people experiencing it recognize that. Recreational drug use allows a person to experience things that no religion can give them. Ironically, responsible drug users tend not to delude themselves like the devoutly religious.
A lot of people don't see the value in such experiences, because they see them to be "fake." To an extent, they are, but at the same time, one must realize that reality is based on perception. It's as real as you want it to be. A lot of the mental states produced by drugs can be produced through meditation, if one is so disciplined. However, drugs are often much easier and faster than meditation, and possibly quite a bit more effective (I wouldn't know, I've never really been able to meditate that deeply). I look at drugs as a way to help myself experience things differently or think about things differently, and it's an enormous benefit in a lot of situations , much more beneficial than Christianity ever was. - TheIinLive, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2didn't help me at all
- rarson, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1You're wrong. Happiness depends on how you react to your condition. It's really easy to see if you're in a bad mood or something puts you in a bad mood and you just try to pretend to be happy. For some reason, people like negative emotions and they just run with them; when they're angry, they stay angry because they WANT to. When they're miserable, they stay that way because they want to pity themselves. They want people to acknowledge how bad they have it.
But if you ignore all that, and realize that you feel bad because you're choosing to let an emotion make you feel that way, you can still turn it around and be happy. I only say this because I tried it myself and saw that it worked.
People who are constantly happy or constantly sad don't sit in institutions, unless it's so overwhelming that they are unable to live their daily lives. Plenty of people continue living miserable lives. - rune420, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2So basically, try to be an optimist instead of a skeptic?
- rune420, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2"There's reality, and there are "perceptions" of reality."
So you believe that your perception of reality is somehow more objective than somebody elses? Therein lies the true delusion. - justo, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1the thing is: understanding the "truth", absolute truth, is itself "happiness" -- liberation and freedom from suffering.
- rarson, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1If not, there's always ecstasy.
- rarson, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1No, you're wrong again. You even said it before: our happiness or sadness is a reaction. You perceive something, your body gives a reaction, and then you choose whether to act on that reaction or take a different action. You're not changing your perception at all. You're changing your preferences.
Achalemoipas, you don't seem to understand the difference between those three steps. - WWWoody, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Give me my computer, some porn, a monster, and my favorite video game.
I promise I'll be happier. - spyd3rweb, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2Get happy by doping yourself up with Prozac.
- Stryder81, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2Or...You could listen to Tony Robbins -=)
- litolist, on 10/10/2007, -3/+3I'm glad I'm not the only one.
Oh, and *fantastic article* - Ruaidhri, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0It is possible for scientists to monitor how happy people are NOW. But you don't need blood chemistry or MRI's-there is a perfectly respectable and effective science of psychology that can do that now.
- BoneheadFarker, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0I like monkeys.
http://people.redhat.com/blizzard/monkeys.txt - HMOG, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Very interesting article on training your brain to be happy. Solid, good info!
- complainforever, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0nice sales pitch for their stuff
- Serge157, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0In my opinion ones need to be hormonally emotionally and physically sound to have happy brain.
- tearor, on 10/10/2007, -4/+3I like TURTLES!!
- ArchieAndrews, on 10/16/2007, -5/+3When I read this article, my brain used the voice of that SNL joyologist (Molly Shannon?) character. I love it, I love it, I love it! Try it, way funnier.
- brannonlacey, on 10/10/2007, -8/+0great article...
- objectcode, on 10/10/2007, -10/+2i would be happy if this comment got dugg up
-
Show 51 - 53 of 53 discussions
Browsing Digg on your phone just got easier with our enhancements to the 
© Digg Inc. 2009
— Content created and posted by Digg users is