Mental Pivot #71: Frequent Illusions
The Baader-Meinhof phenomenon, reflecting on the status games you’re optimized to play, and thoughts on virtue signaling.
There’s a funny phenomenon I always notice when driving a new car: I start seeing that make, model, and even color everywhere I look.
It’s not like everyone in my vicinity made identical purchases at the same time (admittedly, a few might have), but it sure seems like it. No, these automotive doppelgängers were always present. I just hadn’t noticed them before; they weren’t top-of-mind. But once I started paying attention, I saw the same car everywhere.
I imagine everyone has experienced this. If not with a car, then perhaps with something else like a new piece of vocabulary or a new concept or idea.
The phenomenon is known as the “frequency illusion” or “Baader-Meinhof phenomenon.”
This article from 2013 explains the frequency illusion:
Stanford linguistics professor Arnold Zwicky coined the former term [frequency illusion] in 2006 to describe the syndrome in which a concept or thing you just found out about suddenly seems to crop up everywhere. It’s caused, he wrote, by two psychological processes. The first, selective attention, kicks in when you’re struck by a new word, thing, or idea; after that, you unconsciously keep an eye out for it, and as a result find it surprisingly often. The second process, confirmation bias, reassures you that each sighting is further proof of your impression that the thing has gained overnight omnipresence.
It’s a good reminder of the ways our mental focus influences our perception of reality (by both commission and omission), and the importance of vetting those perceptions against objective reality. Sometimes the increased frequency is real, but other times it’s largely a function of our newfound attention.
Now onto this week's recommendations…
Thinking Tools:
Choose Your Status Games Wisely: “Whatever status game you choose in life ultimately determines what you optimize for. Choose money and you’ll end up working all the time. Choose beauty and you’ll always want to look better. Choose fame and you’ll constantly be seeking attention.” Nick Maggiulli’s recommendation? Diversify your portfolio and play multiple status games at once (rather than investing your identity in a single game).
How to Focus in the Age of Distraction: Practical tips about two kinds of focus. The first type is “strategic focus” (e.g., “what should I focus on?”). The second type is “task focus” (e.g., “what actions must I take to enhance my focus, be it by ignoring distractions or improving my concentration?”).
How to Remember Anything Forever-ish: Even if you’re familiar with the concept of “spaced repetition” as an effective learning technique, this interactive, illustrated explainer from Nicky Case is a whimsical refresher for a simple but powerful memory tool.
Is Virtue Signaling a Vice?: Those of us who view virtue signaling with skepticism and derision might soften our position (if only slightly) after reading Tadeg Quillien’s essay, in which he lays a case for the benefits of virtue signaling.
Reading Enrichment:
Beware the Idle Kantian: “To be an Idle Kantian is to believe that any proof that an action isn’t a universal law means that it's not lawful and should be toppled forthwith. It’s a worry that all acts will eventually aim to become universal, and therefore the proof that one can’t is sufficient to sink it.” In other words, if it doesn’t work for me, it won’t work for anyone (which, as the author argues, is obviously a flawed way of thinking).
The Forgotten Joy of Hanging Out in ‘Third Places’:: “Third places” are physical locations outside of work and home that serve as anchors of community, socializing, and serendipity. Examples include French cafés and English pubs. Allie Conti recounts her experiences (or lack thereof) with these important public venues and laments that “the art of hanging out seems to be waning…”
What Do Cities Lose When they Lose Pro Sports?: “American sports history is littered with the stories of franchise owners who abandoned cities their teams were once assumed fundamental to—and left fans disillusioned and unmoored in their wake.” The Ringer’s Dan Moore profiles the travails of Oakland, California, and explores the politics and economics of keeping a professional sports team from skipping town.
What Makes a Great Opening Line?: Allegra Hyde asks strangers on Twitter what their favorite first lines in literature. She serves up some delightful examples and concludes that the key ingredients of an effective opening line are “an elegantly balanced dose of clarity and curiosity.”
Odds & Ends:
Radioooooo is a “musical time machine” for iPhone or Android that lets users listen to music from specific decades and countries. Say you want to listen to music from 1920s Brazil, just click on the country on the world map and select the desired period. Countries from every continent are represented—Antarctica excepted—and listeners can journey back as far as the early 1900s. The basic service is free, with paid premium upgrades available.
Information Is Beautiful is a resource for infographics and data visuals. You’ll find hundreds of fascinating entries such as The World’s Biggest Cash Crop (cannabis on a valuation basis, Varieties of Intimate Relationships (a comprehensive chart of monogamous, non-monogamous, and celibate arrangements), and a chart of 77 Cocktails Every Bar Person and Party Monster Should Know.
The Vehicles of James Bond celebrates the 60th anniversary of the cinematic series by showing—via a series of infographics—how much time Bond spends in cars, airplanes, boats, tanks, and even space shuttles. You can view statistics for individual films or aggregate data from all 25 films. The vehicle with the most screen time? Bond’s iconic 1964 Aston Martin DB5.
Cross-Promotions:
Refind is a content discovery tool that sends curated articles to your email inbox or via mobile app (iOS and Android). Focus your attention on what’s really relevant to you.
The Sample: A newsletter discovery tool. Based on your interests and feedback, The Sample sends a new newsletter recommendation to your inbox on a daily or weekly basis.
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