Comments on: Thinking different

By: The Rantings of Eric Nehrlich || Filling in the blanks || November || 2005

Sat, 26 Nov 2005 21:49:22 +0000

[...] I think this is an interesting phenomenon because it illustrates something rather fundamental about the human psyche. I kind of touch on this in my localized generalities post, but one of the amazing things about the human mind is how it effortlessly and automatically fills in gaps in its knowledge; so effortlessly, in fact, that we barely even notice that we’re doing it. It is relatively rare to find people who know what they do not know; most people make assumptions and then are dismayed and shocked when others do not share those assumptions (e.g. my reaction to discovering Orson Scott Card’s reactionary political views). Such assumptions lead to the kinds of confusion I talk about in my thinking different post. [...]

By: The Rantings of Eric Nehrlich || Plans and Situated Actions, by Lucy Suchman

Wed, 07 Sep 2005 07:01:11 +0000

[...] She uses these concepts to study the art of conversation and communication. The thing I found interesting about her take on conversation is that it is not a simple transfer of information, where one person says something, and the other hears it. Because what is said is only the smallest part of the conversation, the listener must actively try to construct meaning from what the speaker is saying. The listener constructs a model in their head, using cues from the conversation to build that model. This can lead to unfortunate misunderstandings if the mental models of the speaker and listener diverge, despite both of them participating in the same conversation. I use the example of people talking past each other in meetings in this post. However, when it is working well, the meaning of the conversation is continually being constructed by its participants. [...]

By: The Rantings of Eric Nehrlich || My personal blogosphere || August || 2005

Wed, 10 Aug 2005 06:32:03 +0000

[...] Stuart Kauffman Google Maps Pedometer More graphic novels Moneyball, by Michael Lewis Thinking different Irony as pointer Invisible Cities, by [...]

By: The Rantings of Eric Nehrlich || What should I do with my life?, by Po Bronson || July || 2005

Sun, 17 Jul 2005 00:47:17 +0000

[...] Stuart Kauffman Google Maps Pedometer More graphic novels Moneyball, by Michael Lewis Thinking different Irony as pointer Invisible Cities, by [...]