Our growing addiction to “cognitive ectasy” drives technology’s progress… and that’s okay
Why are humans so damn curious? Because discovery is pleasurable. Jason Silva, in his latest video, says humans don’t care about spectacle—what we care about is ecstatic understanding: “In other words, cognitive ecstasy defined as an exhilarating neurostorm of intense intellectual pleasure.” Maybe you’ve experienced this “cognitive ecstasy” at one time or another. I get a jolt of it after small discoveries in a book, conversation, or after writing an article. Silva notes it happens with great regularity as children, and then tails off. And to a certain extent, I think he’s right. But it isn’t true for everyone. I tend toward the curious and may be more interested in learning and adventure now than ever before. ….[READ]
LAVREB Laboratory of Virtual Reality and Economic Behavior 