Welcome to the Talk Shop Library. Today, more than ever before, there is a lot of content available for free online on a wide range of topics. In fact, the choice is so much, we have difficulty separating the grain from the chaff. On this page, apart from our own content, we have linked to curated content, chosen by us due to their significance.

How we see our world

The world we live in may appear real to us, but it is actually something that we have constructed from an extremely limited data set that we receive in from our senses. This Constructivist School (Wikipedia) of thought has got a lot of scientific support from brain studies and artificial intelligence, which tries to develop machines that think like humans. While this may sound counter-intuitive, the first video below will show how it is the most likely scenario given the notion that evolution favours the most efficient. In this section, we focus on visual perception to explain the basic idea.

1. The argument that we live in a simulated world and everyone around you is just a simulation. (TedX 19:26)
2. A short (5:30 Min) introduction to visual perception and the brain. How context shapes what we see.
3. TEDx Hinze Hogendoorn (16:07): Imagine this: Human beings mostly see the future, they cannot see the present. That is why we can never catch a house-fly in midflight.
4. For many years, the attempt to understand the brain was about localization, mapping the brain (Ted Talk 15.15 min) to see which part of the brain does what.
5. A one-page introduction to the structure (anatomy of the brain)

Human Nature

Much of what we do, how we behave, depends on what we believe about Human Nature (in general). If you believe that people are in general good, then you would act likewise…especially to strangers. Our notion of human nature, in general, is a strong Gestalt that affects how we relate to strangers. At the Talk Shop we believe that the questions about Human Nature are of great importance. The links below are expected to make you think rather than propose an answer to the question of Human Nature. What do you believe about human nature? Whether you have thought about it or not, make no mistake, you do have an idea about it and it continues to shape how you behave.

1. Fratelli Tutti, landmark document written by Pope Francis highlights the importance of human dignity in today’s world
2. A timeless document called The Credo by Erich Fromm is an interesting starting point on any discussion of human nature.
3. Another favourite is Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis by Erich Fromm. Here is the audiobook.
4. Listen to a podcast that explains how a radio program brought peace to Rwanda (NPR | 50 min). This is also a good piece about social science research and how it can be interpreted. It also raises an interesting question – if we can change behaviour (for the better), do we need to care about changing minds?
5. What does the Psychologist, Steven Pinker (Wikipedia) , have to say about human nature? Is Human Nature good or bad? (Youtube | 8:07 min)
6. Are we entering a new phase in Psychology? McRaney(201) Psychology Today. This article brings up the perinneal problem of reductionism in Psychology. Strongly Recommended.
7. Robert Sapolsky From Stanford University gives two lectures on complexity and reductionism. I would strongly recommend these videos as one of the basic pillars for a study into human behaviour.
   1. Introduction to Reductionism and Complexity Theory https://youtu.be/_njf8jwEGRo
   2. Complexity and Emergence https://youtu.be/o_ZuWbX-CyE
8. Larry McEnerny was the Director of University of Chicago’s writing program. Listen to him talk about what works in academic writing and what doesn’t. He situates academic writing in a pragmatic perspective with a healthy dose of postmodernism thrown in. The purpose of scientific writing is not to describe THE TRUTH, but to get one’s paper published, and ultimately “move the conversation among a community of experts, forward”.

Content Authored Dr. Mathai Fenn –

Which of these would you like to see as an e-book?

1. Hermeneutics and Psychology (1998), abstract of my PhD Thesis, submitted the HSS Dept. of IIT Bombay
2. Psycho-Spiritual Counseling. What is the distinction between mind, body and soul?
3. Gestalt Theory: The world we see around us is actually created by our mind from some very sparse data we have via our senses.
4. Why I am not a Christian: Growing up Christian in India and how it has shaped my faith.
5. Five Inner Circles: Five layers of consciousness. A journey to the centre of the self.
6. The Hum of Life: This is a note about the (back)ground of life against which we perceive incidents and experiences of life.
7. Transformative Education: If education doesn’t transform you, it is not working.
8. Blog: More articles that may be of interest
9. Introduction to Psychology: Notes for the Psychology Course.
10. Self Discovery and Personal Growth: A take a journey to meet your own inner self.