Are You Seeing Reality, or Your Interpretation of It?

We think we see the world as it is. But we see the world as we interpret it to be, and that interpretation is everything. If we see a picture in the newspaper, and it is a woman crying in front of a burned house, and the caption says, “Woman saved by neighbor,” and we read that and realize this is a happy moment, this isn't a tragic loss. But…

What Pixar Reveals About Consciousness

Like with any scientific model of our universe, we simplify reality so that we can understand it better. By looking at small ecosystems, we can understand how they coexist within larger ecosystems. Similarly, if we want to understand who we are, why we're here, what life is, and the nature of existence itself, there's no better place to turn than good old Pixar Animation Studios.Every single story, novel, film, and…

Is Your Mind Creating the World You See?

Our minds are not much more than universe simulators. It is truly a remarkable feat that our minds can create such a perfect, solid internal recreation of the outer world. The fact that our minds can project all of the details of our universe, all of the intricate architecture around us, all the complicated details of a flower, in such high resolution, with such clear sound, is truly astonishing. But the…

Violence: Accept or Fight Our Biological Reality?

Q: Dear Todd, isn’t violence part of the universe, our biology? Are we supposed to accept it as it is or fight it? TODD ANSWERS: We live in a universe where black holes eat entire planets. Stars are giant nuclear reactors that will destroy anything that gets close. Meteors and volcanoes can wipe out nearly all life. And bears do not care about your feelings, your God, or your concept…