Thank you all for counseling me on how not to live in the past, but the truth of the matter is, I was just digging for something to post. I think all of my inspiration juices are too busy stewing on other projects, so I just have the grainy stuff that's leftover to share with you guys. Sorry - it's not that I don't value your precious, precious time.
Here's something a little more interesting. I'm reading Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking which is a few years old and, for some reason, expensive as hell. Ever heard of it? The book basically deals with the way our unconscious mind (not exactly the one Freud was so fond of) makes snap judgements all the time without us being aware of it, and how so much of our behavior is derived from brain-processes hidden far below the surface. The author demonstrates his point with a miriad of fascinating and puzzling experiments, and I'm reading the book for these little tidbits as much as anything. Human behavior is just so incredible to study, and the best part is, we'll never run out of things to discover.
Anyway, one example involves a test called an IAT (Implicit Association Test) which measures reaction time in milliseconds as the test-taker sorts words and pictures into two "opposite" categories. What the test demonstrates is that, even though we may think we are neutral on certain social topics such as gender, racial, and sexuality-equality, we're actually programmed far more deeply than we know by what we're used to seeing... programming which can affect the way we act even if we strive to be impartial. The author was perplexed to find that, even though he's half black, he showed a positive leaning toward white, and what he realized was that, even though he considered himself anti-racist, he still dealt with a bigotted society on a daily basis and that colored his unconscious perception. He says that no matter how many times you take the test, your score won't really change... unless something in your life changes - like the things you associate with on a regular basis.
The test is too complicated to explain here, but easy enough to understand. You can take a computerized version of it here in just a couple of minutes: an array of Harvard University's IAT's. I took the one on sexuality, seeing as how it's a topic I'm concerned with and I knew I'd be talking about this on SG. It measures your reactions to "gay" and "straight" and which you associate with postive and which with negative. Even though I live in Indiana and deal with a pretty hate-filled demographic, I actually scored "little to no preference" between the gay and straight cateogries which I'll chalk up to being, myself, a fervent equal-opportunity lover, but the tests still pose an interesting concept. I'm going to go back and take more, but I wanted to share with you before I wasted the rest of my day on that website.
You don't have to tell us how you scored if you don't want to, but I'd love comments from everyone on this. Keep in mind: a score that shows a preference for one category over another does not necessarily imply that you feel a preference for one or the other.
Here's something a little more interesting. I'm reading Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking which is a few years old and, for some reason, expensive as hell. Ever heard of it? The book basically deals with the way our unconscious mind (not exactly the one Freud was so fond of) makes snap judgements all the time without us being aware of it, and how so much of our behavior is derived from brain-processes hidden far below the surface. The author demonstrates his point with a miriad of fascinating and puzzling experiments, and I'm reading the book for these little tidbits as much as anything. Human behavior is just so incredible to study, and the best part is, we'll never run out of things to discover.
Anyway, one example involves a test called an IAT (Implicit Association Test) which measures reaction time in milliseconds as the test-taker sorts words and pictures into two "opposite" categories. What the test demonstrates is that, even though we may think we are neutral on certain social topics such as gender, racial, and sexuality-equality, we're actually programmed far more deeply than we know by what we're used to seeing... programming which can affect the way we act even if we strive to be impartial. The author was perplexed to find that, even though he's half black, he showed a positive leaning toward white, and what he realized was that, even though he considered himself anti-racist, he still dealt with a bigotted society on a daily basis and that colored his unconscious perception. He says that no matter how many times you take the test, your score won't really change... unless something in your life changes - like the things you associate with on a regular basis.
The test is too complicated to explain here, but easy enough to understand. You can take a computerized version of it here in just a couple of minutes: an array of Harvard University's IAT's. I took the one on sexuality, seeing as how it's a topic I'm concerned with and I knew I'd be talking about this on SG. It measures your reactions to "gay" and "straight" and which you associate with postive and which with negative. Even though I live in Indiana and deal with a pretty hate-filled demographic, I actually scored "little to no preference" between the gay and straight cateogries which I'll chalk up to being, myself, a fervent equal-opportunity lover, but the tests still pose an interesting concept. I'm going to go back and take more, but I wanted to share with you before I wasted the rest of my day on that website.
You don't have to tell us how you scored if you don't want to, but I'd love comments from everyone on this. Keep in mind: a score that shows a preference for one category over another does not necessarily imply that you feel a preference for one or the other.
VIEW 15 of 15 COMMENTS
alas no celebration, worked all day.. i guess tom pettys playing friday somewhere but im working.. i would give my right arm to not be working and instead seeing tom petty where ever hes at.. yep my right arm, forever right armless for a few hours of live petty music.
I do intend to take some of those tests today at work, along with some people who I think could really use an eye-opening look at their self-righteous selves (uh, me included).
Weird, I just wrote a rather convoluted entry on perception.
I tend to think of myself as sexual though aside from inappropriate contact with a penis when I was little, I've only had an emotional relationship with a gay friend of mine. However, I recently watched the HBO series SIX FEET UNDER which has gay characters. I actually found myself wincing in the beginning, with all the kissing and such. However, as the episodes continued it became more and more familiar to me. I imposed less judgment upon it. So I guess that would fall into the category of change through things I associate with regularly.
Can't wait to see what I really think.