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Studies Show the Value of Not Overthinking

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the have-no-choice-but-to-post-this dept.

WSJdpatton writes "Fishing in the stream of consciousness, researchers now can detect our intentions and predict our choices before we are aware of them ourselves. The brain, they have found, appears to make up its mind 10 seconds before we become conscious of a decision — an eternity at the speed of thought. Their findings challenge conventional notions of choice, writes WSJ's Robert Lee Hotz."

10 of 244 comments (clear)

  1. I believe it. by zippthorne · · Score: 5, Funny

    A common trick I like to do to figure out what I'm thinking:

    If I'm having trouble deciding something, I flip a coin. Then, I go with the side I was hoping would come up.

    --
    Can you be Even More Awesome?!
    1. Re:I believe it. by InvisblePinkUnicorn · · Score: 5, Funny

      And if your decision requires more than a yes/no answer? Do you use a 64-sided die and assign a choice to each side, and then memorize those assignments?

    2. Re:I believe it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Sure. Don't you? :)

    3. Re:I believe it. by rnswebx · · Score: 5, Funny

      What is important, however, is that, despite all this, we can actually, with enough thought, make decisions based on logic, as opposed to "feelings" or "what we think is reasonable."

      That's a lot of commas.

  2. Re:10 seconds. by oodaloop · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well, give yourself a little more time and think it over, then maybe you'll accept it.

    --
    Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
  3. All women do this by BenEnglishAtHome · · Score: 5, Funny

    I've never met a sane woman who took more than 10 seconds to decide she'd NEVER sleep with me.

    This is news?

  4. Lag!! by NovaHorizon · · Score: 4, Funny
    Hah! I knew the gamers that complain about 500Ms lag were full of it!

    They haven't even become aware of their decision to shoot within that space of time!

    --
    Defective Logic
  5. Snip FTA... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    They monitored the swift neural currents coursing through the brains of student volunteers as they decided, at their own pace and at random, whether to push a button with their left or right hands.

    But it's so simple. All I have to do is divine from what I know of the researcher: are you the sort of man who would press the button on the left or on the right? Now, a clever man would press the button on the left, because he would know that only a great fool would press the button on the right. I am a great fool, so I can clearly not press the button on the right. But you must have known I was not a great fool, you would have counted on it, so I can clearly not press the button on the right.

    Researcher: You've made your decision then?

    Not remotely! Because these buttons come from Australia, as everyone knows, and Australia is entirely peopled with criminals, and criminals are used to having people not trust them, as you are not trusted by me, so I can clearly not press the button on the left.

    Researcher: Truly, you have a dizzying intellect.

    WAIT TILL I GET GOING! Where was I?

    Researcher: Australia.

    Yes, Australia. And you must have suspected I would have known the buttons' origin, so I can clearly not press the button on the right.

    Researcher: You're just stalling now.

    You'd like to think that, wouldn't you?

  6. Re:10 seconds. by Jay+L · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm very sure I can't accept it. Having studied various martial arts for the past 30 years, I can tell you with certainty that I can engage in action the instant I decide

    I, too, am manly and decisive, with lightning-fast reflexes.

  7. Re:10 seconds. by Xyrus · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yeah, you're girlfriend told me. The manly and decisive part is ok, but the lightning fast part, not so much.

    ~X~

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    ~X~