EDWARD'S LECTURE NOTES:
More notes at http://tanguay.info/learntracker
C O U R S E 
Buddhism and Modern Psychology
Robert Wright, Princeton University
https://www.coursera.org/#course/psychbuddhism
C O U R S E   L E C T U R E 
Modular Theory of Mind and the Non-Self
Notes taken on May 31, 2016 by Edward Tanguay
modular view of the mind
there is no chief executive in your brain
but many modules that take turns exerting dominant influence on your thought and behavior
this corresponds with the Buddhist idea of the self
that there is no self at the core that persists coherently through time
Buddhist mediation
can the module view of the mind help in meditation and help explain what is going on in people's minds when they meditate
jealous state of mind
a modular mechanism that coordinates various thoughts and perceptions to a specific end
mechanisms bubbling up and down in different levels of activation
"default mode network"
gets activated when the mind isn't engaged in anything in particular
gets quiet during meditation
often doesn't get quiet easily
can be seen as a collection of modules trying to get your attention
e.g. affiliative module: "I wonder if I offended that person yesterday"
responsible for maintaining friendships and navigating the social landscape
e.g. mate-attraction module: "that person was quite attractive, I wonder if they would go out to eat with me, what clever things could I say?"
these examples don't always suggest that information in the immediate environment triggered the module
quieting of the default mode network
concentration meditation
particularly effective in quieting the default mode network
once you establish the concentration and equilibrium, you head up in a different path from the concentration mediator
mindfulness meditation
looking at things in your mind with
more objectivity
less attachment
then carrying this view into everyday life
your feelings
you view them in a new way
they don't get the same kind of traction they used to have
feelings are what trigger modules
show a scary movie, it activates a different module than seeing a romantic movie
jealous triggers a certain set of modular operations
there are always feelings associated with modules
modules bid for your attention with feelings
e.g. "did I offend that person"
you make it go away by finding a solution
e.g. I will send an e-mail to that person
the modular has done its work
feelings are things that give modules power over you
you can read feelings as signs which modules are vying for your attention
is this a useful way of talking about modules which are introduced by feelings over and above simply talking about the feelings themselves
e.g. hatred
a feeling that defines enemies
you can be angry as someone who is a friend, but if you hate them, they are an enemy
natural select has seemed to given the human being particular ways to deal with enemies and particular ways to deal with friends
when our friends do something good, we attribute it to their inner essence
if they do something bad, we attribute it to some external factor, some circumstance
similar to our own behavior
with our enemies it is the opposite
when they do something bad, we explain it as their nature
when they do something good, it is a result of some external circumstance
it's in our interest to undermine our enemies, the people who can do us harm
this is a kind of propaganda tool, but to spread the propaganda more effectively, we actually believe this
the not-self doctrine
the Buddhist theme on the not-self is open to differing interpretations
one less ambitious interpretation
there is no part of your mind that has to be a part of yourself
there is no feeling you have to own, no thought you have to own
you can choose which things to let go of
to translate this into module terms
there is no module you have to be
each module is trying to become the self for awhile
this is why they are referred to as sub-selves
there are people who have had meditative experiences who claim to have seen the absence of a self in themselves, I guess I should put that last selves in quotes perhaps, but they have experientially come to know the doctrine of the not-self.
how does the modular view of the mind help us to understand these experiences