Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

theguardian.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

161–170 of 468 posts

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#161

Post by EGreg »

codechicago277 wrote: post #50

This quote comes from Blaise Pascal's Pensées, accessible here. "That is why we like noise and activity so much. That is why imprisonment is such a horrific punishment. That is why the pleasure of being alone is incomprehensible. That is, in fact, the main joy of the condition of kingship, because people are constantly trying to amuse kings and provide them with all sorts of distraction.—The king is surrounded by peo…

You should instead quote about him chasing the rabbit. It is even far more relevant.

Someone can paste it here after googling.

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#162

Post by coldtea »

claudiawerner wrote: post #87
codechicago277 wrote: post #50

This quote comes from Blaise Pascal's Pensées, accessible here. "That is why we like noise and activity so much. That is why imprisonment is such a horrific punishment. That is why the pleasure of being alone is incomprehensible. That is, in fact, the main joy of the condition of kingship, because people are constantly trying to amuse kings and provide them with all sorts of distraction.—The king is surrounded by peo…

>The king is surrounded by people whose only thought is to entertain him and prevent him from thinking about himself. This is really interesting from a modern perspective. I'm an audiophile - I've spent countless hours just sitting in a chair in front of a stereo system I've spent a couple thousand on. If I ever lapse into non-attention to the music, I try and get back to the music. It's like mindfulness meditation,…

>To think that in the 19th century, there were men being compared to Hegel and Feuerbach at age 21

Like 3-5 men (i.e. the Young Hegelians) among a billion people?

It's not like it was some common accomplishment...

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#163

Post by VladimirGolovin »

hindsightbias wrote: post #112
ummonk wrote: post #17

Why would you sit quietly alone in a room when you could be enjoying a sauna, soaking up the sun at the beach, or picnicking in a park? I don’t think the problem is sitting alone with one’s thoughts - but rather that an indoor room isn’t a particularly desirable environment. At least it isn’t as undesirable as an airplane seat though.

Before small screens and walkmans, millions of people flew every day in an airplane seat trapped with their own thoughts. For many, it was probably the only time they experienced this. I actually get comments from other passengers now how I can sit and look out the window for hours without music, movie or book. In their rooms, they have other venues and probably less fear of negative self-conscious thoughts (too fat,…

This is exactly why I love airports and flying -- and I always buy the window seat too.

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#164

Post by tomcam »

EGreg wrote: post #161
codechicago277 wrote: post #50

This quote comes from Blaise Pascal's Pensées, accessible here. "That is why we like noise and activity so much. That is why imprisonment is such a horrific punishment. That is why the pleasure of being alone is incomprehensible. That is, in fact, the main joy of the condition of kingship, because people are constantly trying to amuse kings and provide them with all sorts of distraction.—The king is surrounded by peo…

You should instead quote about him chasing the rabbit. It is even far more relevant. Someone can paste it here after googling.

“Men spend their time in following a ball or a hare; it is the pleasure even of kings.“

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#165

Post by 3D4y0 »

chordalkeyboard wrote: post #159
op03 wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does this apply to Ants and Amoebas? They don't seem to enjoy sitting quite either.

This is an insightful question and likely points towards several fruitful modes of analysis. Why are ants and amoebas always moving? Their biological drives continue to give them orders and so they are never satiated.

Perhaps thats is because ants and amoebas have to find food in a bid to continue thier existence. Its safe to asume that for them to be satiated (not just resting) is to die.

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#166

Post by thotsBgone »

NoOneNew wrote: post #155
hypervisorxxx wrote: post #142

Yeh and to think society rewards extroverts as leaders but often introverts make the best leaders as in they take long periods of time to think alone and often avoid many pitfalls by doing so instead of moving fast and breaking everyone and everything along the way.

>introverts make the best leaders To be a good leader, you have to be willing to confront AND navigate conflict within a group setting in a productive manner that ultimately achieves an agreed upon goal. One of the defining traits of an introvert is avoiding conflict. Thus, no, introverts don't INHERENTLY make good leaders. If you've ever dealt with even a moderately diverse group of individuals due to their capabili…

> One of the defining traits of an introvert is avoiding conflict.

No it's not. That's one of the defining traits of disagreeableness, which is known to be independent from introversion.

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#167

Post by chordalkeyboard »

3D4y0 wrote: post #165
chordalkeyboard wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is an insightful question and likely points towards several fruitful modes of analysis. Why are ants and amoebas always moving? Their biological drives continue to give them orders and so they are never satiated.

Perhaps thats is because ants and amoebas have to find food in a bid to continue thier existence. Its safe to asume that for them to be satiated (not just resting) is to die.

Yes! So one wonders if aboriginal foraging humans have a concept of enlightenment.

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#169

Post by drevil-v2 »

Bakary wrote: post #132
mensetmanusman wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With all the sociological data we have now, it’s almost certain that Pascal’s wager has never been more true for those looking to lead a meaningful life.

Which deity do you pick in that case? There are many of them.

I think you will find most theological traditions aka religions have a lot of common ground. So much so that you can actually abstract out lot of the ancient wisdom from the religion itself.

The book "Happiness Hypothesis" by Johnathon Haidt examines this in detail if you wish to purse it further.

Re: All problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone (2014)

#170

Post by prox »

nine_k wrote: post #160
pmoriarty wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just a bit more on why Pascal thought even a king is unhappy when he thinks about himself: Whatever condition we picture to ourselves, if we muster all the good things which it is possible to possess, royalty is the finest position in the world. Yet, when we imagine a king attended with every pleasure he can feel, if he be without diversion, and be left to consider and reflect on what he is, this feeble happiness wil…

I think that the Buddhist principle of dukkha, the first noble truth, explains this most succinctly: "to exist is to be dissatisfied / suffer".

It is worthy of mention that the Buddha was a prince, destined to be come king, yet his father tried to lock him up in his golden palace with nothing but entertainment.

Eventually the prince does come into contact with suffering, and leads to him trying to find an end to suffering.

Post reply on HN