Pattern-Finding a Wired Trait?

Fuzzy, indistinct, images of "mining" operations on the moon.....pyramids, faces, and buildings on Mars.....bizarre links connecting religious orders, governments, "New World Orders".....

All of these are examples of subjects that many contributors here simply shrug-off as fanciful, delusion, or farcical musings. I know I've squinted at many an image here; trying in vain to make sense of the pixelated, and monochromatic blobs.

If you're like me....you're left scratching your head...."what are these people seeing and where is this coming from".....

Ah....finally, some research into the subject may shed a little light. Behold:

It turns out that the less control a person feels, the more likely they are to see patterns or make connections that don't exist. The good news is there is a way to fortify yourself against this sort of hard-wired self-deception. Source

Yup....I know....this may be some flame bait. But I'm willing to bet a mature, reasonable discussion can be held about this article and what it means about the cognitive functions in general.

Editing.....that's what I get for multi-tasking....

[edit on 3-10-2008 by MrPenny]

Our intelligence is based on being able to understand patterns and separations. So of course pattern finding is wired into us. When you take an IQ test, your IQ is generally based on how well you are able to make out the patterns. The ability to find the patterns that other people can't is what gives someone a higher IQ.

But when you find patterns in things that others can't see, they claim you are crazy. Because they don't see the patterns, in their opinion it doesn't exist. The patterns the majority of people are able to see is what is catered to.

What you are talking about with seeing things that don't exist is actually a result of people NOT seeing the bigger patterns. Where rocks sometimes do form crazy things. This is where sacred geometry comes into play. Like the hexagon on the top of saturn. Sometimes nature does create odd shapes.

I've seen some pictures that DO look artificial to me.

reply to post by badmedia


I'm not sure you're getting the point of the study; that there is a particular mind-set that will see patterns that are illusory or non-existent.

I'll summarize it here.....people who feel they lack control in their lives, tend to seen patterns and connections where none exist.

reply to post by MrPenny

there is also evidence that UFO sightings ramp up in times of high national stress.

Source



I like that line too and i agree.
It seems when bad things happen or crisis' are looming... out come the random theories and doom and gloom predictions.

It's an interesting read and something I've often thought about.

Nice one

[edit on 8/10/08 by blupblup]

Good article. Something we studied in psychology years ago. I was especially taken back to those days by the reference in the article to superstitious behavior. It's all interrelated, and brings to mind one of the most important things (IMHO) you can know - correlation does not imply causality.

And yes, just because you see it, doesn't mean it's there. A deep rabbit hole with branches in psychology, philosophy, epistemology, quantum consciousness, and a whole bunch of other things I can spell without understanding.

Originally posted by MrPenny
Fuzzy, indistinct, images of "mining" operations on the moon.....pyramids, faces, and buildings on Mars.....bizarre links connecting religious orders, governments, "New World Orders".....

All of these are examples of subjects that many contributors here simply shrug-off as fanciful, delusion, or farcical musings. I know I've squinted at many an image here; trying in vain to make sense of the pixelated, and monochromatic blobs.

If you're like me....you're left scratching your head...."what are these people seeing and where is this coming from".....

Ah....finally, some research into the subject may shed a little light. Behold:

It turns out that the less control a person feels, the more likely they are to see patterns or make connections that don't exist. The good news is there is a way to fortify yourself against this sort of hard-wired self-deception. Source

Yup....I know....this may be some flame bait. But I'm willing to bet a mature, reasonable discussion can be held about this article and what it means about the cognitive functions in general.

Editing.....that's what I get for multi-tasking....

[edit on 3-10-2008 by MrPenny]

good post...but the problem with trying to debunk the NWO is the amount of evidence that exists to back it up...same with the existence of alien life.

shapes on the moon..yep..i have yet to see one that is really convincing..but even here i have heard of personal testimonies from people i would never have dreamt that seem to also point in this direction..that there is something there..

reply to post by MrPenny


What i get the most from the article is that FEAR is a big factor in people percieving these patterns. When one feels secure and in control, these patterns no longer seem significant.
Given the high levels of fear in some western societies, and the excess of media that promote and feed of this fear(umm....is that a pattern that I am just seeing...lol), the current economic crisis, wars, ummmmm global warming fear, its easy to see alot of patterns. People just trying to make some sense of their world when feeling insecure(even when the form of that sense conflict with a reality others percieve).
Good find OP.

The results of the study, written by the researchers themselves, is apparently only available by subscription from Science. Hey, for only $10.00 US I can get access to the paper for one entire day. Nuts. I'd really like to read the article right from the horse's mouth....so to speak.

I did dig up an interesting quote from the researchers. I'd swear it was written for just such a time and place as this;

According to Whitson and Galinsky, that psychological need is for control, and the ability to minimize uncertainty and predict beneficial courses of action. In situations where one has little control, the researchers proposed that an individual may believe that mysterious, unseen mechanisms are secretly at work. McCombs School of Business

"Mysterious, unseen mechanisms"......hmmmm. Like Galactic Federations? The NWO? Illuminati?

How many of you have seen a co-worker, deprived of a promotion or raise, rant about the boss's favorites and how it's not their fault they didn't get what they want? All the while, ignoring their own record of absences, mistakes, etc.....I think that's a classic example.

Originally posted by MrPenny
reply to post by badmedia

 

I'm not sure you're getting the point of the study; that there is a particular mind-set that will see patterns that are illusory or non-existent.

I'll summarize it here.....people who feel they lack control in their lives, tend to seen patterns and connections where none exist.

Well, I think that could be applied to 99.9% of the population most likely. I am constantly seeing people making patterns and such out of things that aren't real. I mean if you want to get into politics, then all the people who actually believe there is a difference in republicans and democrats, and think the other party is to blame is a prime example.

Maybe i'm not fully understanding. I mean I can spot patterns in things that the average person can't. Just because most people can't see them, doesn't mean they don't exist. If the pattern in genuine, then it can be proven by predicting the next part.

Or are we talking about physical images? Like seeing things in the clouds? When I was a teen, I used to buy my smoke from a guy who would take pictures of the clouds at night in front of the moon, and he would always say there were demons in the clouds. He also got arrested mulitple times in Kentucky for trespassing on this island saying the gate to hell was there. Are we talking that kind of thing? Because I always thought he was just reading into things too much.