Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Self-Remembering
(4)
How well can you 'divide your attention?' And is the 'division of attention' a desirable cognitive skill? Here is a simple test of your ability to divide your attention. Congratulations if you can pass it:
Next time you do your shopping, you must remember all the while that you are alive. You must not only remember the shopping list you must remember that you are alive. You must not only remember the location of the items on your list you must remember that you are alive. As you pay for the items you have collected you must remember that you are alive. And so on. If you meet an acquaintance and have a conversation you must remember that you are alive. This remembering is called, 'self-remembering,' and it is a basic cult skill. This 'self-remembering' must be continuous, not episodic. If you suddenly realize that in the course of concentrating on 'what you were doing' or 'what you were saying' you forgot to remember that you are alive, you flunk the test.
Division of attention is the opposite of concentration. Nature demands concentration as a prerequisite of survival. Can't concentrate? Die. It would seem, then, that Nature fails to reward the particular skill in question. But that is an illusion. Self-remembering has powerful advantages leading to stable relationships with not only Nature but The Other. The Self also benefits, obviously.
How well can you 'divide your attention?' And is the 'division of attention' a desirable cognitive skill? Here is a simple test of your ability to divide your attention. Congratulations if you can pass it:
Next time you do your shopping, you must remember all the while that you are alive. You must not only remember the shopping list you must remember that you are alive. You must not only remember the location of the items on your list you must remember that you are alive. As you pay for the items you have collected you must remember that you are alive. And so on. If you meet an acquaintance and have a conversation you must remember that you are alive. This remembering is called, 'self-remembering,' and it is a basic cult skill. This 'self-remembering' must be continuous, not episodic. If you suddenly realize that in the course of concentrating on 'what you were doing' or 'what you were saying' you forgot to remember that you are alive, you flunk the test.
Division of attention is the opposite of concentration. Nature demands concentration as a prerequisite of survival. Can't concentrate? Die. It would seem, then, that Nature fails to reward the particular skill in question. But that is an illusion. Self-remembering has powerful advantages leading to stable relationships with not only Nature but The Other. The Self also benefits, obviously.
