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Review of Sam Harris’s “Waking Up,” Chapter 1

August 25, 2014 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

To put Sam’s intentions in my terms, he wants people to learn to access experiences most people’s brains are capable of, but that aren’t widely promoted in western culture. He thinks this will be good for them, and for anyone … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2014 Tagged With: consciousness, Dogen, Lao Tsu, LSD, MDMA, meditation, mystical, religion, Sam Harris, spiritual, Zen

Ignorance, Stupidity, Racism, and Morality

June 17, 2014 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

I was raised in the rural South, and while I never cared for fried fish that much, hushpuppies were a different story. I would love to gorge myself on them right now if I hadn’t learned in adulthood that there were healthier … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2014 Tagged With: ignorance, morality, racism, stupidity, Will Rogers

Vertigo, Depression, Meditation, and Dealing With the Inevitable

May 27, 2014 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

(This is a transcript of a podcast, available here.) In early March of 2006, I had a very unpleasant experience, and I believe it may turn out to be a life-altering experience. It certainly has had a profound affect on my … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2014

Multiple Selves: Continuity and Change

March 12, 2014 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

There are many continuities in our lives: Our height doesn’t change noticeably from day to day; weight is more variable, but we don’t gain or lose 30 pounds overnight; we usually have a stable occupation and place to live, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2014

The Movie, “Her;” Artificial and Human Intelligence

January 3, 2014 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

When I left the theater after seeing “Her,” the world outside looked edgy and slightly surreal, as if I’d taken a light hit of acid. Part of that was due to the exotic visual beauty of the film, but in addition, my thinking … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2014

Reaction To “You Don’t Have To Be Sad”

October 3, 2013 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

I received some thoughtful feedback on my last post from a couple of people who believe that when Louis C.K. was talking about the empty place inside that everyone supposedly has, he was referring to “existential aloneness.” … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013

You Don’t Have To Be Sad; Response to Louis C.K. on Conan O’Brien

September 23, 2013 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

Louis C.K. doesn’t want his kids to have cell phones because texting eliminates the immediate visual feedback you get in face-to-face interaction. That kind of feedback facilitates the development of empathy—excellent point. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013

The Brain and the Self: How the Brain Creates Its Own Admirer

September 6, 2013 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

I got stuck early on with the idea that if you know the truth, the truth will set you free, and it has given me the courage to confront the most unpalatable truths about myself—and life—head on, believing I would be better … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013

Exercising, Making Your Bed, and Happiness

August 5, 2013 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

Most of the stuff I write involves how thinking about things from the perspective of naturalism—of not believing in free will—can increase your happiness, but there’s more to happiness than just changing your perspective, and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013

Free Will and the Brain

July 16, 2013 by Norm Bearrentine Leave a Comment

Our brains have done pretty well at understanding the world outside themselves, but progress on the world inside has been limited—it’s easier to look outward than inward. Understanding the world has given us the power to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013

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What This Site Is About

When I realized that the idea of god was a joke, I thought that was the end of the story. Later I found that Christianity had shaped my values, and while some were worth keeping, many had lost their foundation—the meaning of life, for example. Something similar happened when I realized that the idea of free will was a joke, and I’ve spent the decades since both those realizations discovering and editing what Julia Galef calls the “orphan beliefs” they left behind. It’s a tricky business, and this blog has been a chronicle of my efforts to puzzle it all out, including reviews of related books. I hope you find it helpful.

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