Memetics Pt. 4: Short Towers + Secret Gnosis
In the first two videos on memetics (see schedule below), we talked about how truth — and other things we like — may not be decisive when it comes to the “spreadiness” and “stickiness” of certain ideas. In other words, “goodness” does not necessarily yield “fitness.”
In the third video, we talked about how some of the neuropsychological patterns that drive our decisionmaking can prompt and prevent virulence and resilience (“spreadiness” and “stickiness”). In that video, we focused primarily on loss aversion.
In this video, we’re going to talk about another such pattern, called secret gnosis stimulation.
We’ll find out why having and enjoying “hidden knowledge” can make you feel privileged, validated, and “rooted” to your local “tower,” even if it’s not tallest. This “hidden knowledge” often takes the form of esoteric or counterintuitive claims that can be convincing when internally consistent, and/or without a competitor recognized as viable.
We’ll also discuss several specific case examples of groups of people who are rooted to false conspiracy theories. Controversial!
Secret gnosis stimulation is very effective here, too. … It gets you locked into conspiracy theories when the body of [apparent evidence for the conspiracy] is dwarfed by reality.
Schedule
- Memetics Pt. 1: Introduction, and the “Fitness” Snag
- Memetics Pt. 2: The Four Brothers (and Their Business Booths)
- Memetics Pt. 3: The Short Tower Problem
- Memetics Pt. 4: Short Towers + Secret Gnosis
Popular Posts
Latest: stan rock
Are Actual Loops of Objects Impossible?
Horace, Irene, and Julia are discussing what kinds of numbers and arrangements of objects are actually possible. Horace comes up with a thought experiment with the following premise: It’s clear to all three friends that this situation is logically impossible. This is because even though each premise of the setup is conceivable individually, their combination […]
A Stupid Electoral System for Goofs
(Or, “How to Keep a Republic.”)
Potentially Bad Philosophy
Quietude might be described as as figuring out under what odd conditions it might be good to question some of our most trustworthy guides in philosophy and theology. This is dangerous stuff, because we depend on those guides. We rely on their investment of (life)time, their investment of contentious discourse, and we take advantage of […]
All Metaethics in Brief
The time has now come to make a “clip show” post on metaethics. Brazenly I assert that all metaethics can be captured in brief.
The Ontological Argument’s Trojan Horse
The Ontological Argument for God has always been controversial. Some believers think it works. Other believers say it does not. I am in the latter group. It’s good to explore when and if arguments for God are dysfunctional. I am indeed asserting that the Ontological Argument does not work. It’s tricky, though, because OA’s power is in […]
Please Stop Saying Free Will Contradicts Universal Reconciliation
There’s a meme that universal reconciliation (wherein the Gehenna of Judgment doesn’t last forever) doesn’t work with free will (or agency, or dignity, or cooperation, or what have you). We’ve discussed this before on this blog, but that material had some distractions that I hope we can avoid this time around. The point this time […]
But He is Also Just: The Simplicity & Complexity of Biblical Justice
The Bible talks about justice a lot. In the abstract, Biblical justice is really straightforward. But the manner in which Biblical justice plays out is complicated. That’s because justice…
Determinism Doesn’t Mean a Micromanaging God
“Durdle Dwarves” is a simulation where little “Dwarf” pixels dig-through and build rock-like structures. They do this according to a set of 20 rules. A rule tests a Dwarf’s vicinity and provides a response. (For example, if a Dwarf notices a drop-off to his left, he’ll build a new piece of “bridge”; that’s 1 rule […]
A Musical Guide to How Morality Works
Until confronted with moral dilemmas, right decisionmaking — after we untangle our interests — seems pretty straightforward. Like this guy. One happy fellow, playing his guitar: And when we’re no longer “in dilemma,” we can forget about the complexity of morality, and revert to this “straightforward” / “common sense” / “plain to see” / “easy” falsity. But […]
Schrödinger’s Cup: A Closed Future of Possibilities
Adequate determinism (or determinism for short) is the idea that on the level of human decisionmaking, history flows into the future in a deterministic way — there aren’t really multiple futures, but we talk and imagine as if there are. Because we talk and imagine as if there are really multiple futures, confronting an assertion […]
stan rock 
Recent Comments