I just finished watching a very interesting conversation between Neil deGrasse Tyson and Richard Dawkins on youtube. Early on, Tyson makes the point that humans aren’t wired to think logically, citing the example that the school subject that most of us have trouble with is math. I see myself as a very logical person. Then I began dissecting that belief. Apparently my illogical brain is not only there, but dangerous.
I am a sucker for a cat, from tiny kittens to big wild cats. Emotionally, I become a 2-year-old wanting to pet the kitty. The best example of this occurred several years back. There was a fully grown wild cougar wandering around the cul-de sac at the end of my street and 99% of me wanted to get some meat and go feed the poor kitty. It was an almost impossible urge to fight.I can’t tell you how hard the remaining 1 % had to work to keep me indoors.
Then again, when it comes to the problems of others, I am all logic, immediately able to cut through the bullshit and find the best solution.
I was never adept at math.The sciences interested me, but math kept me out, so I became more of a wordsmith. Although as I always strive to communicate logically, I do fail more often than i’d like.
It was an interesting exercise, looking honestly at just how often nonsense wins over logic in my life, if a wee bit scary. I encourage you to give it a try.
