At the end of the video ,
( 55.01 Ways of Thinking),
Richard explained how he discovered that people think differently. He practiced an exercise in which he counted for 60 seconds. He calibrated the speed that he counted to be 46 in 60 seconds. Then he practice doing other things while counting. and discovered he could do many things. He could read but he could not talk at the same time he counted. A colleague did the exercise then, they calibrated that he counted to 58 in 60 seconds. The colleague had no difficulty speaking while counting, but was unable to read while counting. Why? Richard's mind vocalized the counting, so his mind could hear the counting and read at the same time because Richard reads words visually. His mind could see and listen at the same time. The colleague visualized a clock ticking off the numbers. He could talk to Richard while watching the numbers in his mind with no problem, but he could not read while counting because both task used visualization and he can only visualize one thing at a time.
This intrigued me greatly because I have long considered the process of language as being a joining of sound and image in the mind. I presumed that the image of a door in the mind elicits the sound of the word door. I presumed that this event is the same in all peoples minds, but of course, it is not. People all think differently. Still language is the joining of image and sound in the mind but the way people arrive at that joining is completely individual.
At the beginning of the video Richards talked about personality. Some people find science interesting, some people prefer music. A person will pursue, study and practice the skills and tools required by the field of their interest. Personality then, will also direct the interpretation of a person's experience in their mind, enabling the formation of language.
Feynman is describing the physical universe verbally. He says, "little balls shaking." . I visualize what that sound means in my mind. The way his mind and my mind share an understanding is tested by questions and answers until both are satisfied we are visualizing the same event. Now I must consider that communication is so mysterious, that there is no explanation for the way any two minds arrive at an agreement , only that they do. And then we have language.
A poet or artist or musician who is putting sound and images in a mental soup develops a process whereby they distill, refine, or even only grab out, a sound or an image bit by bit until a new song, word or image is finally presented through the physical manipulation of the media they have linked their personality to. Wow!
Now also the acknowledgement that personality dictates every step. So in fact, the stepping stones across the river of nothing are formulated, then discovered by each person individually.
The truth that we can agree at all, that the earth is down and the sky is up is truly miraculous.
FUN TO IMAGINE with Richard Feynman onecloud