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What happens when the mind wanders?

Trying2Bopen

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A paper published in last week’s issue of Science reports what our brains look like when we daydream. Below is a review of the findings by the Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/18/AR2007011800997.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/18/AR2007011800997.html

It goes into all sorts of juicy areas- like a finding that an autistic individuals mind wanders differently than that of a normal person, or a possible reason why you can’t for the life of you remember something when you want to, only to have the memory pop up out of no where while your doing something completely different.
Just thought it was cool :)

(Here is a reference to the original Science paper, for those interested:
Wandering Minds: The Default Network and Stimulus-Independent Thought
Malia F. Mason, Michael I. Norton, John D. Van Horn, Daniel M. Wegner, Scott T. Grafton, C. Neil Macrae Science 19 January 2007: Vol. 315. no. 5810, pp. 393 – 395)
 
Gaaa,... my mind often goes wandering without my permission - I gotta read that. Uh, where was I? Oh, yeah, I just remembered the name of that theme song I've been wracking my brain for for 2 weeks. [... goes off to read...] :)
 
Yep, back from reading... and, How bizarre, I got to "stimulus-independent thought" and suddenly remembered what it was that I going to do an hour ago but forgot to do when a more pressing task sidetracked me. [... goes off to DO that thing... fully intending to finish reading article and hoping I remember to do so...:rolleyes: ]

Edit: Incubation complete! Fascinating stuff - our brains never cease to amaze me!
 
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Time had a huge section on the mind this week. They talked suggested that the natural state of the human mind was wandering, They fancily called it time traveling, but essentially meant you spent most of your time either thinking about past events and how they could have been played differently or thinking about how future events might play out. Spending little time in the actual Now.
 
Orangutan, this is a bit off-topic, but my brain is not wrapping around what the Heck the "Raputre" is in your sig - some variation of "Rapture"? I only ask, you see, because my mind was off wandering around somewhen when it suddenly tripped on your sig. :)
 
gdtbiker said:
Yep, back from reading... and, How bizarre, I got to "stimulus-independent thought" and suddenly remembered what it was that I going to do an hour ago but forgot to do when a more pressing task sidetracked me. [... goes off to DO that thing... fully intending to finish reading article and hoping I remember to do so...:rolleyes: ]

Edit: Incubation complete! Fascinating stuff - our brains never cease to amaze me!
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Hah, that's really funny :D Yeah, I totally agree, the brain is just amazing. The Man who Mistok His Wife for a Hat is my next read.

Reading the article really made me want to look at the minds of extraordinary/unique people and see how they differ. What does the mind of a genius look like when he/she day dreams? What about Silvia Brown? Hah, that would be funny. But more than anything I would like to see the mind of a Buddhist monk, I bet it would be like watching a TV that was turned off. Nothing. Now, what was I going to write next? ….
 
As long as it comes back, nothing major. If it gets lost, you might have a problem though!
 
Tanstaafl said:
You are definitely extraordinary and unique!

But I think he was looking for people that are unique in a good way...
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If autistics and Silvia Brown are on that list, what makes you think Piscivore can’t make it on? :D Come on Piscivore, list of abnormalities?
 
Piscivore said:
Geeze, where to start?

Pick a subject. Otherwise, just peruse. :)
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Lol, ah yes, the gift to fling insults as if hot potatoes and making nonsense sense is truly one you are blessed with (and by blessed with I mean your parents have some trippy DNA ;)). As for getting off topic, perhaps we ought just go wander over to the “annoying creationist” thread/killing ground to do a bit of uterus ripping-molar smashing-eye gouging-spleen puncturing-exploding until I eventually kill myself and die.:p
:catfight:

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to go watch Anderson Cooper rip Sylvia Browne a new one :D
 
Much of my life has been spent wondering what my life would be like if only my mind didn't wander so much.

By the way- shouldn't Anderson Cooper be a firm of accountants?
 
Yeah, I often feel guilty when walking through a beautiful forest or enjoying a sunset only to realize I was thinking about something completely trivial the whole time and missed the moment entierly. Or I get really freaked out, like when I know I drove home because before I was at work and now I am at home, but I don’t remember the drive at all…

Anderson Cooper? Did I spell it wrong? No, I think it was an accounting firm that folded. “Anderson Cooper 360” is a show on CNN, and he did in fact do a nice job on the Sylvia Browne story, and the wonderful James Randi was awesome. My only beef is that Sylvia Browne’s representative kept negating Randi’s argument because ‘he is an atheist and has no place judging a psychic acting through God’ to paraphrase.
 
Trying2Bopen said:
Lol, ah yes, the gift to fling insults as if hot potatoes and making nonsense sense is truly one you are blessed with (and by blessed with I mean your parents have some trippy DNA ;)).
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Well, just for starters that was meant to flatter the Monkey. :)

As for getting off topic, perhaps we ought just go wander over to the “annoying creationist” thread/killing ground to do a bit of uterus ripping-molar smashing-eye gouging-spleen puncturing-exploding until I eventually kill myself and die.:p
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Are we getting off topic?

Okay, here's something unique about me: I think the Atomic Bomb has done more for peace in the Western world than any six activists you might name.
 
Even if the six activists included Albert Einstein, Robert Oppenheimer and Edward Teller?
 
Trying2Bopen said:

Lol, ah yes, the gift to fling insults as if hot potatoes and making nonsense sense is truly one you are blessed with (and by blessed with I mean your parents have some trippy DNA ;)). As for getting off topic, perhaps we ought just go wander over to the “annoying creationist” thread/killing ground to do a bit of uterus ripping-molar smashing-eye gouging-spleen puncturing-exploding until I eventually kill myself and die.:p
:catfight:

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to go watch Anderson Cooper rip Sylvia Browne a new one :D
Click to expand...
Good idea - since she's been an old one all the time I've known of her.:D :jaw-dropp
 
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