Psychologyspeaking topic
A baby assumes a toy that leaves its sight has stopped existing; growing up means learning that what disappears from view is still there. If that knowledge isn't innate, how exactly do we learn to trust that reality continues without us watching?
— object permanence (Piaget)
practice with this topic
Set the timer (5-30 min), take 20 seconds of prep if you like, start talking. Jot your thoughts onto the sticky-note board.
similar topics
- Growth mindset and fixed mindset, Dweck: whether we believe abilities are innate or developable changes everything. Is 'I'm just not a math person' really a fact, or a cage?
- Someone across from you on the bus yawns, and you yawn. Even reading the word 'yawn' is enough. It has nothing to do with your own tiredness. Why is your body so permeable that it involuntarily mimics someone else's state?
- The visuospatial sketchpad: this is the system that lets us close our eyes and walk through our room in our mind. Do imagining and remembering draw on the same resource?
- Grit, Duckworth: in long-term success, the ability to stay loyal to a goal for years may matter more than talent. Which creates the bigger gap, intelligence or refusing to quit?
- All-or-nothing thinking: failing once and concluding 'I'm a total failure'. Why is it so hard to see shades of gray?