Thirty Day Challenge

I have just started the Thirty Day Challenge - a website that teaches you about Internet Marketing. Fascinating stuff.

I am considering for next year becoming an entrepreneur of sorts, especially if my degree grades do not go as well as I hope. Perhaps this will assist me in my task...

Cool laser pointer

I know this is a diversion from my usual blogging, but this just had to be shown!



Laser Flashlight Hack! - video powered by Metacafe

For more information go to http://www.kipkay.com/

The Four Horsemen - A Round Table Discussion

Featuring Christopher Hitchens, Daniel Dennett, Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris. Each video is roughly an hour long.

Video 1:



Video 2:

Sam Harris - The Spiritual Atheist

A post about the article: The Problem with Atheism

I'm not sure whether Sam Harris would like me using the term that I've just given him. But I'm sure he would understand.

As someone who was formerly religious, I understand what it is like to have faith. In fact, in many ways, not having faith has caused me some pain in the last few years. I have suffered from the inability to ascribe a true meaning to my life, because in reality no such specific raison d'etre for the human race exists. But as I have mentioned before, I have begun to practice meditation - and have been able to ream some of the benefits faith gave me, without compromising my same belief (now currently total) in rationality.

Sam Harris argues that scientists do not understand why people meditate or practice religion. It is not just about being a meme. It is about a profound impact on the mind, happiness and well-being of the believer that triggers something which confirms a belief in the supernatural.

I once went to a talk by Susan Blackmore (author of The Meme Machine) who stated, "I wish I could give Richard Dawkins LSD." Why would she want to do that, other than the fact it might be quite entertaining? She explained that when she was a first year at university, she had a profound out-of-body experience that led her into a quest to discover the paranormal, even attempting a PhD on the subject. But she didn't find it. What she had actually experienced was a psychological phenomenon of sorts (I think she didn't use this phrase exactly, but I hope you get the gist of it). Scientists such as Richard Dawkins have not experienced such phenomena, and therefore cannot completely understand it.

I hope one day we will be able to understand this deep level of 'spiritual' consciousness that can make us happy in some way shape or form.

Personal Websites:
Sam Harris - he publishes links to useful articles he writes.
Susan Blackmore - read why she gave up being a paranormal investigator.

Aristotle v. Aristippus

http://pos-psych.com/news/rosie-milner/20071025457

An interesting link on happiness - what is better? Hedonism or Self-actualization?

Why Modernist Architecture Sucks

Stemming on from the previous post, I have been thinking: the three points that Lancioni mentions - those being anonmyity, irrelevance and immeasurability - can be applied to individuals who feel worthless in a collective. And Britain's council housing seems to enforce these three qualities on everyone.

Now I recognise the functionality that modernist architecture poses - equality, efficiency, functionality. But I believe it makes people depressed in certain ways.

Anonymity

• The flats are put along grey, blank balconies which mean people never bump into one another or interact in anyway.
• People come and go rapidly, and are never introduced by the architecture into the community.

Irrelevance

• Each individual housing unit is the same as the next - people cannot overtly express their relevance and individuality through the housing.
• Council housing is perceived as being for people who are not important to others.

Immeasurability

• The houses are all the same, and so cannot be measured against one another.
• Relative to others, there is no way people can improve - they are stuck in the council housing permanently.

The Three Signs of a Miserable Degree

Book: Patrick M. Lencioni (2007) The Three Signs of a Miserable Job: A Fable for Managers.

I just read the book above today when out for a stroll. I was so bored of my revision and studying I decided to browse the bookshelves of Border's. And during my browsing, I came across this book. I thought, "I'm miserable at my job (i.e. studying) - maybe this book is relevant for me." And it hit home why I've felt so useless these past three years in three, simple points.

Anonymity
I am a naturally very loud person. So loud in fact at heart, that I have to tone down my personality to fit in places.

Because I cannot compartmentalise at university, separating out my different desires and aspirations (career, social, intellectual, sexual etc.), I chose the other route - to disappear entirely and become anonymous rather than gain notoriety and be hated by people.

Likewise, trying to be someone at a prestigious institution is difficult. Everyone is fantastic. How are you going to be different? Being a perfectionist, I chose to disappear rather than fail.

Irrelevance
I had high goals and hopes before coming to university. I wanted to genuinely help people - by acquiring skills which would lead me to politics or another profession by which I could give value.

At university, I felt my contribution was irrelevant for two reasons:

1. I felt I was learning nothing of use (i.e. public policy and knowledge relevant for public policy), nor were my tutorials of any use (the grades on my essays did not contribute to my degree mark, and due to the lack of syllabus were not focussed in any way on the course).
2. Any other goal at university would not help the causes for which I felt passionate about, like helping others in poverty (whatever the poverty is - material, economic, or emotional).

Immeasurability

The nature of my degree is that it cannot be measured. There are only four real grades: 1st class, Upper Second, Lower Second, and Third. The proportions are 10%, 75%, 9% and 1% respectively. But earning a first is something that cannot be defined or measured - no one can really tell you how to get a first class result. It's something which is not completely SMART - getting a first might be achieveable, realistic and timed, but it is not specific or measurable.

Now if you think that the work you do every week is not only properly measurable, but in no way directly contributes to your final mark, and you have a problem.

Conclusion

Now, I might be heading for a terrible degree grade. Now I know why. If I had to do my degree again, I would aim to be:

• Known
• Measure my progress in someway
• Do something which I think is relevant