Please open up your head for me.
July 14, 2011 9:54 AM Subscribe
How do you think? How would you describe what happens in your head? Additionally, describe what you mean by "visualizing".
For instance, I do not have a clear monologue in my head. I feel like my head is mostly empty -- I can stare at the wall and think nothing. Thoughts will every now and then randomly pop up, more so during certain activities (showering, walking, and right before sleep -- although the hypnagogic state is much different). Some of my friends are very confused at this, as they claim to always have thoughts flowing in their head.
Consumption of marijuana appears to bring me a flow of thoughts, and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. Interestingly, other people I have known said they smoked marijuana to remove their inner voice(s).
Additionally, I will sometimes have music in my head. It could be a song I know, or something I cannot recognize and that my head is apparently creating. Some friends of mine think in pictures (and prefer to paint)
When I do mathematics, again, there is nothing in my head. The next step often appears kind of...obvious to me. When I struggled to prove some theorem (which was itself an intuition), I basically had intuitions which I followed. It has worked quite well.
Now, about visualization. I see nothing. I cannot conjure colors or objects. I know what a car looks like, and I can think of the shape of (say) a VW Beetle, but I cannot see anything. Maybe that is normal.
Another point: reading. When I read, I hear nothing. I don't visualize anything either. Or barely so. Apparently many people have an inner repeater, with different voices for different characters, etc. To me this is absolutely fascinating.
And finally: dreams. I barely recall my dreams, and often feel like I have not dreamed at all. Seldom will I have a more vivid dream which will evaporate by the time I've reached for my notebook and pencil.
I would be interested to know what your experience is. In particular, I am wondering if any of this can be correlated to certain habits or psychological traits. A few questions: do you have a monologue? A dialogue? Is it constant? Words or sentences? Maybe pictures? Or music? Maybe even smells? What happens when you decide to think of your mother? Your house? Is the "image" somehow abstract and removed from your visual field? Vivid and colorful? An extra layer, if you will? How do you read? Do you think in your dreams the same way you think in real life?
I'm hoping to see a pattern emerge from the answers.
A quick self-portrait: analytic (mathematician), very disorganized, indecisive (paralysis by analysis is my modus operandi), pretty much perfectly bilingual, with two weaker languages. Artistic expression of choice: drumming.
For instance, I do not have a clear monologue in my head. I feel like my head is mostly empty -- I can stare at the wall and think nothing. Thoughts will every now and then randomly pop up, more so during certain activities (showering, walking, and right before sleep -- although the hypnagogic state is much different). Some of my friends are very confused at this, as they claim to always have thoughts flowing in their head.
Consumption of marijuana appears to bring me a flow of thoughts, and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. Interestingly, other people I have known said they smoked marijuana to remove their inner voice(s).
Additionally, I will sometimes have music in my head. It could be a song I know, or something I cannot recognize and that my head is apparently creating. Some friends of mine think in pictures (and prefer to paint)
When I do mathematics, again, there is nothing in my head. The next step often appears kind of...obvious to me. When I struggled to prove some theorem (which was itself an intuition), I basically had intuitions which I followed. It has worked quite well.
Now, about visualization. I see nothing. I cannot conjure colors or objects. I know what a car looks like, and I can think of the shape of (say) a VW Beetle, but I cannot see anything. Maybe that is normal.
Another point: reading. When I read, I hear nothing. I don't visualize anything either. Or barely so. Apparently many people have an inner repeater, with different voices for different characters, etc. To me this is absolutely fascinating.
And finally: dreams. I barely recall my dreams, and often feel like I have not dreamed at all. Seldom will I have a more vivid dream which will evaporate by the time I've reached for my notebook and pencil.
I would be interested to know what your experience is. In particular, I am wondering if any of this can be correlated to certain habits or psychological traits. A few questions: do you have a monologue? A dialogue? Is it constant? Words or sentences? Maybe pictures? Or music? Maybe even smells? What happens when you decide to think of your mother? Your house? Is the "image" somehow abstract and removed from your visual field? Vivid and colorful? An extra layer, if you will? How do you read? Do you think in your dreams the same way you think in real life?
I'm hoping to see a pattern emerge from the answers.
A quick self-portrait: analytic (mathematician), very disorganized, indecisive (paralysis by analysis is my modus operandi), pretty much perfectly bilingual, with two weaker languages. Artistic expression of choice: drumming.
This post was deleted for the following reason: this is way too broad and all over the place to be answerable here. Maybe try to keep it to a "what is the problem you're trying to solve" without making it look like such an open invitation to chat about the nature of mind and brains next week? -- jessamyn
This thread is closed to new comments.
This not-quite-a-question seems pretty chatty, though.
posted by phunniemee at 10:02 AM on July 14, 2011