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DESCRIPTION: Jack explores what human emotions are and how they work–as well as why not knowing how to manage our emotions well can cause us to “shut down” in conversations about the Bible. He gives a basic description of the standard 2-part theory of the mind, as well as the newer 3-part version, and explains how the human “spirit” mentioned in the Bible may just be that 3rd part that some cognitive scientists have recognized. This is the first of a 2-part discussion.

SHOW NOTES

Links mentioned in this episode:

Introduction to Reality-Based Thinking:  https://youtu.be/v3qkk2jA1Jw This is Jack’s video podcast, which only has three episodes, which together comprise a thorough introduction to the concept of Reality-Based Thinking.

Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman.  https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Fast-Slow-Daniel-Kahneman/dp/0374533555 If you’d like to do some extended thinking on how the human mind works, this book is a great place to start. It’s written for a general audience, but even so, you might have to put on your academic “thinking cap” and read it just a bit at a time. Note that Kahneman give’s a 2-part model of the mind, where Stanovich (below) offers a 3-part model.

What Intelligence Tests Miss, by Keith Stanovich. https://www.amazon.com/What-Intelligence-Tests-Miss-Psychology/dp/0300164629 Stanovich demonstrates that IQ Tests do not measure ALL the cognitive skills necessary for Reality-Based Thinking. And he posits a 3-part model of the mind that includes the “Reflective Mind”. This book seems to be a dialog within the cognitive science community, so the nomenclature may slow down the lay person a bit. But if you find this topic interesting, I’d definitely buy the book, whether you’re an academic or not.

Rationality & the Reflective Mind, by Keith Stanovich. https://www.amazon.com/Rationality-Reflective-Mind-Keith-Stanovich/dp/0195341147 This is Stanovich’s formal treatise on his tripartite model of the mind. It’s written to an academic audience, even moreso, it seems than is the other book above, so don’t expect to speed through it if you’re not already familiar with the language of cognitive science.

VIDEO: TedX talk on dealing with unpleasant feelings, by Dr. Joan Rosenberg:  (I’ve embedded the video just below for your convenience.)“….what I found is that what holds people back is their inability, or their challenges with, dealing with unpleasant feelings.  Yet nobody really teaches us what to do or how to handle them.” …. “Make the choice to stay present in the moment”