What, exactly, are the principles of good mental posture for the Art of Rationality?
What came to mind for me is the term “whimsical curiosity”. That’s what tends to lead my thoughts down various avenues and thought experiments. That attitude is open to all possibilities for their own sake.
Perhaps there’s a hint of trollish obstinace in there too, which motivates me to consider the opposite. It’s just mildly satisfying to figure out that something is or isn’t true. I suspect a stronger form of this mindset is what caused OP to stick a wrench in his sensei’s technique.
An exaggerated form of the mindset would be “the more bizarre the idea, the better”. Although not ideal, I feel like it may be useful in order to take seriously things you don’t actually believe. It’s a counter to the dutiful obligation to mechanically think through an idea I disagree with. In my experience, this mindset first causes the reductio ad absurdum to spring to mind, but then I ask myself “what else” and a mix of positive and negative consequences start to occur to me. Sure, this hypothetical world has some insane components, but it also has some interesting unexpected benefits. Sometimes following this train of thought will even lead me to question whether the reductio ad absurdum is really absurd.
What came to mind for me is the term “whimsical curiosity”. That’s what tends to lead my thoughts down various avenues and thought experiments. That attitude is open to all possibilities for their own sake.
Perhaps there’s a hint of trollish obstinace in there too, which motivates me to consider the opposite. It’s just mildly satisfying to figure out that something is or isn’t true. I suspect a stronger form of this mindset is what caused OP to stick a wrench in his sensei’s technique.
An exaggerated form of the mindset would be “the more bizarre the idea, the better”. Although not ideal, I feel like it may be useful in order to take seriously things you don’t actually believe. It’s a counter to the dutiful obligation to mechanically think through an idea I disagree with. In my experience, this mindset first causes the reductio ad absurdum to spring to mind, but then I ask myself “what else” and a mix of positive and negative consequences start to occur to me. Sure, this hypothetical world has some insane components, but it also has some interesting unexpected benefits. Sometimes following this train of thought will even lead me to question whether the reductio ad absurdum is really absurd.