Factor 2.9

Have you thought about why some people tend to think they have all the answers and not need to discuss matters to reach conclusions, whereas others are very reasonable and take all sides into consideration before deciding what they think? It’s a matter of Integrative Complexity, a concept we explain and discuss at length in this episode. 00:30 Introduction to the concept Integrative Complexity 3:20 Integrative means integrating pieces from different perspectives 3:50 In what fields are IC used? 5:00 How fixed are personality traits? 7:20 About social psychology 9:00 The effects of psychedelic drugs on the human brain 11:00 The current biochemical state of any person is hugely influential on their behavior 13:00 The implications of IC in human interactions 16:00 The importance of being able to synthesize perspectives into a new one 17:30 Is more IC always a good thing? 18:15 The marginal cost of increased synthesizing 19:30 Path-dependence in decision-making 26:00 The mechanics of politics act as an obstacle to IC 30:00 Politicians invest in their opinions, confirmation bias and sunk-cost effects make these opinions difficult to revise 34:00 We as voters have a responsibility to not favor politicians who are too one-dimensional 36:00 Book tip: How to Cure a Fanatic by Amos Oz 38:30 Thanks and…Merry Christmas! CONTACT --------------- Website: www.factor2point9.com E-mail: factor2point9@gmail.com Twitter: twitter.com/factor2_9 Facebook: www.facebook.com/Factor2point9/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/factor2.9/

The discussion in this episode ranges from whether it's OK to impose your behaviour on someone else if it disturbs them when they try to focus, to dealing with your own problems, equanimity and happiness. TIME STAMPS -------------------- 1:00 About the discussion in this episode 2:15 Is it OK to disturb someone else’s focus? If so, under what circumstances? 10:25 Can we evaluate a situation objectively or are we necessarily always subjectively biased in our views? 16:00 Dissatisfaction as a driver for action and improvement 18:20 Equanimity as a means to cope with disturbances 21:20 When to fully embrace joy and happiness 24:45 Thanks & bye CONTACT --------------- Website: www.factor2point9.com E-mail: factor2point9@gmail.com Twitter: twitter.com/factor2_9 Facebook: www.facebook.com/Factor2point9/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/factor2.9/

It is easy to let anger and irritation take control when things don't go your way. You should fight these instincts because they are counter-forces to long-term improvement, Be grateful - both for your own and for others' sake.

It's not only one of the most demanded skills in the world - it's one of the most intimidating for many people. This simple introduction teaches you the basics of the programming world and how to evolve your coding skills.

In this first epidode under the headline "Why it is important to" Magnus contemplates the importance of sustained economic growth for any economy. Some people argue that economic growth isn't as imortant anymore, instead we should focus on distributing the wealth better. Listen to get the case against that argument. More compelling & exhaustive arguments for the importance of growth here: https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2006/11/xxx.html

Change bias is becoming more common. As we seek more & more stimuli from our foods and phones we go to the sources of information which will give us the most reward in the moment, the newest, most flashy, the Change. This at the expense of what will actually yield the best long-term results for us. If you REALLY want to gain or lose weight, first of all, don't forget muscle mass is generally healthy, but second, get the basics right before you go in to the nitty gritty.

In this first episode with a freer discussion format we talk about how we form new habits and the difficulties we face as we try to keep them, in particular regarding Magnus’ attempt to start meditating regularly. David tells us about his own mindfulness meditation habit and we contrast our personal experiences against Charles Duhigg’s “The Power of Habit” and Sam Harris’ “Waking Up”. TIME STAMPS -------------------- 00:30 Today’s topic: Unknown 01:10 Background: Charles Duhigg’s “The Power of Habit” and Sam Harris’ “Waking Up” 01:30 David: How is your meditation habit going? 01:55 Magnus: How I’ve failed 03:00 Not being disciplined might be a question of the chicken or the egg 04:35 Magnus trying to explain…(away?) 05:10 Analogy: the successful habit of exercising 06:50 How more positive self-talk motivates 07:10 Magnus: A conscious decision not letting reality get in the way of the exercise habit 09:15 The connection between the two books and the question of not being able to create the habit to meditate 11:30 The parts of a habit: Cue, routine, reward 12:00 The conscious decision to exercise might not be conscious 14:10 Sam Harris: All our experiences are products of our consciousness -> The illusion of the I (or the self) 17:00 Motivation comes out of the narratives we tell ourselves 17:20 Mindfulness helps us see these narratives 18:30 Narratives are useful to create meaning. Unsound behaviours can be avoided by seeing and getting rid of counter-productive narratives 19:40 Meditation can help your long-term ego 21:20 If you can be fully content in the present, are long term plans then really important? 23:35 Meditation is not removing meaning, rather to be able to see it (and its roots) clearly. 25:50 You can keep, see and experience your narratives if you do mindfulness 27:20 When meditating don’t try to analyze the narratives, just experience them and let them move on 28:50 David’s meditation habits 31:50 About The Power of Habit 32:50 Combining mindfulness meditation and meta-cognition 34:30 Bye! CONTACT --------------- Website: www.factor2point9.com E-mail: factor2point9@gmail.com Twitter: twitter.com/factor2_9 Facebook: www.facebook.com/Factor2point9/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/factor2.9/

Truth of Thursday! Any purpose or goal that you have set up for yourself is interdependent on some of the complex sub-systems of reality. The brain which came up with your purpose/goal is one! Join David on this first ever Truth of Thursday episode as he explores a property of the majority of the complex sub-systems of the universe, Anti-Fragility. Practically applicable to everything you do, are and think about.

In this special podcast update we tell you about the new format of the podcast, what you can expect from us in the future and why we are doing the makeover. TIME STAMPS -------------------- 00:20 Welcome to the new Factor 2.9 podcast 1:00 We will not follow scripts anymore 3:25 We drop the two-week publishing schedule 5:20 We will, on occasion, bring our all-own discussions and topics to the podcast 8:00 We will expose each other's weaknesses on the podcast 12:30 We align the process of working with the podcast with the intention of the podcast CONTACT --------------- Website: www.factor2point9.com E-mail: factor2point9@gmail.com Twitter: twitter.com/factor2_9 Facebook: www.facebook.com/Factor2point9/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/factor2.9/