Did I miss the idea of non-contradiction? It seems to me that what I should be looking for is not just the collaboration of impressions, but the contradictions. Does this impression contradict other impressions that already have high probably?
Ron, so you probably answered the question yourself, as you say. But for general benefit: yes, contradictions very much enter into the process. If a given impression is contradicted by well established ones then that's a very good reason to lower its apparent probability. To use Carneades's jargon, the impression would not be "undiverted."
I've been using the mnemotechnic ACUTE for my decisions since the first time a similar version of this essay was published by Massimo elsewhere (Apparent, Convincing, Undiverted & Thoroughly Explored). It has been useful, in my case, mostly to let go overthinking trivial matters. Thanks Massimo!
Jason, yes, an impression is your first judgment about a situation, while an impulse is a decision to act on that situation. For instance, impression: I see some dark chocolate gelato. Impulse: I move toward getting me some gelato. To go from impression to impulse, though, one has to assent, in the case of the example to the proposition “dark chocolate gelato is good for me.”
Did I miss the idea of non-contradiction? It seems to me that what I should be looking for is not just the collaboration of impressions, but the contradictions. Does this impression contradict other impressions that already have high probably?
Having re-read, I probably answered my own question.
Ron, so you probably answered the question yourself, as you say. But for general benefit: yes, contradictions very much enter into the process. If a given impression is contradicted by well established ones then that's a very good reason to lower its apparent probability. To use Carneades's jargon, the impression would not be "undiverted."
I've been using the mnemotechnic ACUTE for my decisions since the first time a similar version of this essay was published by Massimo elsewhere (Apparent, Convincing, Undiverted & Thoroughly Explored). It has been useful, in my case, mostly to let go overthinking trivial matters. Thanks Massimo!
I like the acronym!
It’s yours to use :-) I only took the initials of your list
Massimo, is there a difference between 'impression' and 'impulse' in the ancient psychology example you used?
Jason, yes, an impression is your first judgment about a situation, while an impulse is a decision to act on that situation. For instance, impression: I see some dark chocolate gelato. Impulse: I move toward getting me some gelato. To go from impression to impulse, though, one has to assent, in the case of the example to the proposition “dark chocolate gelato is good for me.”
Thank you sir - appreciate the clarification!
Nice essay, Massimo. Really interesting.
Thanks John, much appreciated!