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Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

bbc.com

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Re: Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

#81

Post by rpastuszak »

calme_toi wrote: post #60

I feel like the city life makes us talk less to strangers. Living in London, I cannot really remember when was the last time I talk to a stranger except asking/being asked for directions. Back when I was living in a small town outside Amsterdam called Abcoude, I had much more conversations with strangers even I don’t speak Dutch at all. Learnt from them that it’s the only place in the world with name starts with abc…

Heh, one of the elevators at my uni had a sign saying "eye contact forbidden". It was a joke, obviously, but I could imagine seeing it in an office, somewhere between Liverpool St and St Paul's.

Re: Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

#83

Post by baxtr »

ChuckNorris89 wrote: post #67
macleginn wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After living in a small town for a considerable amount of time, it is possible to run out of strangers.

What if there are middle grounds between small towns and large metro areas? Running out of strangers isn't that bad for everyone. For some it's nice to be a regular somewhere and grow roots and feel part of the community.

Good point. I think that cities above 100k are pretty decent in that regard.

Re: Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

#85

Post by nonrandomstring »

I loved the understated humour of:

  "Some social scientists believe teaching kids that literally
   everyone in the world they hadn't met is dangerous may have been
   actively harmful."
Harms take many guises. Mutual distrust drives people to mediate and avoid others through technology as a psychological shield.

That breeds bad technology which divides and dehumanises, and feeds the loop.

Here on HN some people have argued for using cashless and automatic systems, not because they are "more efficient" but as a way to avoid smalltalk with a cashier or waiter. Having a map/GPS smartphone is handy, but it stops casual interaction for directions or local advice.

Re: Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

#86

Post by tdehnel »

unpopularopp wrote: post #21

>As a straight white guy, I recognised from the outset that my interactions with strangers can be less fraught than they are for people who aren't straight white guys. Classic BBC, everything is race and gender nowadays. Do people really live like that? Sexuality would be the last thing I think about when I talk to a stranger that I never see again in my life for 30 seconds > Additionally, I strongly suggest men in m…

I’m sick of it too. I think, like masking, people will eventually get bored of the performative compassion, or at least they’ll stop getting so many social upvotes for it, and move on to something else.

Re: Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

#87

Post by AlecSchueler »

booleandilemma wrote: post #78
AlecSchueler wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quoted post unavailable.

What luxury do men have in 2022? The luxury of not being able to express feelings? The luxury of having a smaller chance of getting hired? The luxury of having a higher suicide rate? The luxury of getting constantly called out on social media? The luxury of being told to stop whining when we point these things out?

The daily luxury of speaking with strangers shit fear of sexual assault. I thought that was clear from the context

Many of your other points are valid issues which are good points for discussion in other threads.

Being called out for reinforcing patriarchal social norms, however, is fair enough. Don't take it as a personal attack but rather a little reminder to consider the effect your speech can have on others.

If you are being told to "stop whining" for discussing the other issues that do effect men's mental health then that's a pity, but do please be aware if you're bringing them up in order to minimise or divert from the issues faced by other groups as you seem to be doing in this case.

Re: Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

#88

Post by AlecSchueler »

unpopularopp wrote: post #47
AlecSchueler wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quoted post unavailable.

Do you really think about someone being hetero or bi or gay or whatever when you talk to them for 30 seconds (how do you even notice)? Especially a stranger that you never see again?

If I'm speaking to a strange woman then I'm very much aware, yes, of all the previous bad experiences she's statistically likely to have had with strange men and I'll do my best to avoid adding to her rightful discomfort.

Re: Talking to strangers can make us smarter?

#89

Post by [deleted] »

booleandilemma wrote: post #78
AlecSchueler wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quoted post unavailable.

What luxury do men have in 2022? The luxury of not being able to express feelings? The luxury of having a smaller chance of getting hired? The luxury of having a higher suicide rate? The luxury of getting constantly called out on social media? The luxury of being told to stop whining when we point these things out?

[deleted]
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