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

Why aren't smart people happier?

theseedsofscience.pub

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

201–210 of 651 posts

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#201

Post by Fraterkes »

cortesoft wrote: post #165
zdragnar wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As I heard someone say, happiness is your reality minus your expectations. Smart people see more variables that could be changed, more components that could be modified, and are less likely to accept things as they are. This creates a false sense of ease by which reality could be modified, and thus higher expectations for the world around them. I suspect this misplaces happiness and contentment, but the two are also…

There was a movie a while back that talked about what makes people happy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_(2011_film) It had some interesting ideas, and one of the things that stuck with me is the idea of your brain being a "difference engine" in that the variation is what matters. If we don't experience pain, we can't experience pleasure. It seems a bit simplistic when stated that way, but I think there is somet…

What I struggle with is that it’s hard to derive meaning from purpose when the best I can hope for is improving the lives of others until they are at the same level of comfort as me: struggling to find meaning and happiness.

We can all derive purpose from trying to improve eachothers lives, but if none of us end up happy, what makes that work actually meaningfull? At some point we need something that is good in and off itself. That’s what happiness is meant to be I think

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#203

Post by mym1990 »

chermi wrote: post #125
koakuma-chan wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Happiness is just chemicals, it has nothing to do with that.

Computers are just electrons moving. Biology is just phyics. See how little that explains? The whole is greater than the sum of its parts, even if it's still encoded in the parts.

I get the sentiment though. Happiness is a mix of the right hormones firing, so the question is: how does intelligence affect different types of hormones, if at all. Given how sensitive our hormones are, it would be difficult to control only for “intelligence”.

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#204

Post by 1minusp »

aleph_minus_one wrote: post #166
impossiblefork wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but then you know it's a game, so there's no self-deception that you're actually doing something meaningful. This realization thus gives the whole sportsmanship concept.

> Yes, but then you know it's a game, so there's no self-deception that you're actually doing something meaningful. I have reasons to believe that many very successful athletes do have this self-deception.

Can be argued that there is intuitive satisfaction/pleasure/utility that spectators gain from watching sports competitions. The payoff is a lot more obvious/instant. Whereas with a lot of tech these days, what needle are we really moving? Are people truly happier scrolling for two hours, compared with watching an edge-of-seat soccer game?

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#205

Post by gishh »

burningChrome wrote: post #93
cosmic_cheese wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This has been a somewhat popular line of thought in internet circles for a while and I'm inclined to agree. I also believe the threshold past which these problems begin to crop up may be considerably lower than commonly thought… One doesn't need to be a chart topper to fall into these cognitive patterns. That said, it probably doesn't need to be this way and I would suggest that the root issue lies with the way that…

>> which is greatly exacerbated when one has the mental acuity to zoom out and see the bigger picture. Do you think this comes with age, or are some people born with the ability regardless of age to see the bigger picture? For myself, I just plodded along through high school and then things started to click more when I was in college, contemplating life in the real world. Many of my classmates in HS seemed to have th…

I’m quite close to being “over the hill” as it were.

I remember being in an honors chem midterm and distinctly thinking “my grade on this test will directly impact my overall grade in this class and have a direct impact on my GPA, which will affect my college selection, and my overall net worth.”

The test wasn’t nearly as stressful as that thought.

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#207

Post by micromacrofoot »

Because you area always capable of seeing how things could be but are stuck with an endless series of reminders of how things are.

There are a significant number of people who simply exist with how things are and don't think much about how things could be, and honestly I think they're often happier for it.

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#208

Post by lordnacho »

fragmede wrote: post #195
lordnacho wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a bit surprising to hear. So what should I have done when my parents died?

There is no "should". Everyone grieves differently. Whats right for GP commenter isn't necessarily right for you. That said, what do you want to optimize for? Time spent grieving? Money spent on the funeral(s)? Money spent on therapy? Time spent in therapy? Lack of having to change as a person? Having to change as a person? Grieving "correctly"? (to reiterate from above there is no right way, but some people think if…

Maybe feeling less sad?

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#209

Post by lr4444lr »

koakuma-chan wrote: post #87
zdragnar wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As I heard someone say, happiness is your reality minus your expectations. Smart people see more variables that could be changed, more components that could be modified, and are less likely to accept things as they are. This creates a false sense of ease by which reality could be modified, and thus higher expectations for the world around them. I suspect this misplaces happiness and contentment, but the two are also…

Happiness is just chemicals, it has nothing to do with that.

Are you not aware that many psych drugs that modify brain chemistry fail to work for people? Even when they are tested to have adequate or high levels?
Post reply on HN