Frequently Asked Questions

• Why this FAQ?
• Do you have any authority to answer these questions?
• Why do I have to do homework?
• What is the meaning of life?
• How do I stay healthy?
• How should I handle confusion or anxiety?
• Should I let my head or my heart lead the way?

[Note to the reader: This post reflects the context of when it was written, while investigating the subject of models and re-presentation, and would need substantial changes to the content if it were to reflect current perspectives on these topics and questions. But I am leaving it unedited (for now), should it be of any interest. For more current views on these and other subjects, please read later posts. Thank you.]

Question: Why this FAQ?

Answer: I can't write a book. And if I could write a book, no one would read it. But the Q&A format has proven durable for centuries (consider religious catechisms and popular advice columnists). You can quickly find the subtopic you are curious about, and I can add to it later as needed. This FAQ is about models and how they can help solve problems. I was provided numerous models growing up, and I want other people, in particular younger generations, to benefit from whatever additions or refinements to those that I can provide.

Question: Do you have any authority to answer these questions?

Answer: No, I am not a special authority on these questions. That might be obvious but it is an important point. Adults tell children that they know better, and so children should listen to and respect them. That is very good advice in most situations, especially those concerning health and safety. But adults are just making their "best guess" about most things, and even if they make good guesses, it doesn't mean they are always right. And adults have also made a lot of bad decisions. You probably can tell that there are many things in the world that don't work as well as they should, or don't work like they were supposed to work. We made a lot of mistakes, a lot of bad guesses. Sometimes we even knew better and just didn't do the right thing. That's why it's important to know how to think on your own, so when you are an adult you can make better guesses and maybe avoid some of the mistakes we made.

Question: Why do I have to do homework?

Answer: Homework provides practice, and lets you test whether you have the knowledge and skills you'll need to be a "responsible and independent adult". I put that in quotes because it is one of those phrases you'll hear a lot, but nobody really knows what that is. Basically, it means you'll need to have a bunch of "mental models" in your head, like tools in a toolbox, so you will know how to handle most of the common situations you may find yourself in. Your most important job as a student, and what your homework should help you with, is to know how to develop and use a wide variety of mental models. We'll hear more about what those are later. But, you may well ask, do you really have to do homework to acquire the mental models you will need later in life? Maybe not, however you will likely need some form of practice with them, regardless of what that actually looks like.

(When I was younger, I was given a copy of "Why Won't the Landlord Take Visa?": The Princeton Review's Crash Course to Life After Graduation. This book provided one possible, highly condensed model of some of the common responsibilities that young adults faced at the time it was written. But times change, and it was far from complete even then. Here I want to provide you with the less often stated ideas behind books like this. What's so special about models?)

Question: What is the meaning of life?

Answer: Abraham Maslow called it "self actualization". Karl Friston called it "self-evidencing". Thomas Metzinger suggests it may be as simple as the pursuit of intellectual and moral integrity through having a highly consistent self-model. But these aren't really answers so much as arrows pointing to something else, something that only you can discover for yourself by taking risks, failing, changing course, and recovering. There is no right or wrong way to develop good models of yourself and the world around you. Ultimately you will find the ones that work best for you. Whatever those may be, they will shape what you see and direct your attention. They will tell you what is important, what counts, and what to look for. So understanding the models that you have of yourself and your relationships is very important. It will improve your ability to predict the future, prevent what you don't want, prepare for what you cannot prevent, and plan for what you want to achieve. The universe has no responsibility toward us to make sense, and evolution didn't shape us to be consistently happy, only to survive, so it's normal to feel conflicting feelings, both happiness and frustration. It's a model of reality that fits much better than one of unachievable bliss.

According to Karl Friston, "valuable behavior is the accumulation of evidence for internal models of our world". Perhaps the first internal model for which we seek evidence is that of our conscious, thinking, and (usually) active selves. It's the perennial question "Who am I?" But Friston later added: “An agent does not have a model of its world—it is a model. In other words, the form, structure, and states of our embodied brains do not contain a model of the sensorium—they are that model” Is this a paradox? The internal model and the modeler are one, and modeling and doing are one process. That means accumulating evidence for internal models is "self-evidencing". We do this every day by simply living. As we learn and develop, our strengths, interests, and social networks mature. Each stage of growth builds upon those preceding it. And so we accumulate model evidence, self evidence, by building upon our strengths. This is valuable behavior. What can I do? What would I like to be able to do? And how do these relate to me, insofar as I am a model of the world in which I live? We can build on our foundation by starting right here, right now.

This can lead to some surprising conclusions. Consider that if the "self-evidencing model of the world", which I am, contains other self-evidencing models, such as you, then by helping you to accumulate model evidence for your self I am also helping me to accumulate model evidence for my self. In this way, when the personal becomes the suprapersonal, model evidence takes on an added dimension. It's the ancient insight that when you help others, you help yourself. This ability that we, as models, have to "model another model" is equivalent to having a "theory of mind", also known as mind-reading. Sometimes the only way I can find the model evidence I need (for a mutually rewarding relationship) is through finding the model evidence that you need.

Question: How do I stay healthy?

Answer: When I was around five years old or so, the full implications of the fact that all living things will eventually die was devastating news. But soon I realized that there's a lot I can still do before that day comes, and maintain good health for many years. Our bodies use models for basic physiological processes, like thermoregulation, to keep us alive and in good condition. Some models are cultural, like language, social norms, and traditions. And other models are acquired by us as we grow and develop. You are continuously building and updating models of your environment with evidence you collect, all in the service of making the world a more learnable, predictable place. But in order to make these models, you have to learn what to attend to, and what to ignore. The world is full of information and distractions, so you'll need to be careful what you give your attention to and how you spend your time.

Question: How should I handle confusion or anxiety?

Answer: To stay alive we use models for navigating into the future. But when I'm confused or unsure of myself I sometimes question my models and wonder what my values really are. I might change my usual patterns and the way I normally respond to things. Maybe I just want to eat, sleep, and avoid the world. Maybe I feel like I'm living outside of social norms. If I am trying to find my way out of the fog of confusion or sadness, it can be a very dangerous time. My senses and thoughts might feel dull, and I might fail to notice things, both large and small, that I might normally think are important. But if you were to ask me why this is so while I am in the middle of feeling this way, it would be hard for me to explain. I would probably say "I don't know" why I have poor judgement or neglect my responsibilities. If you were to tell me the consequences, I would probably feel sad and maybe scared. I might tie myself in knots looking for an excuse. And I might look for a way to escape the bad feelings, but even fantasy would only offer temporary relief. The results of my behavior are unintended and my choices are irrational, and that's because I probably don't really understand the sources or consequences of either, even though I later feel ashamed when confronted about it.

So why does it happen? What can I do about this? First of all, this is normal. People have always had these feelings, though they might seem more common today. At worst, they can lead to denial, lying, blame, anger, violence, and lead to domino effects that impact our physical, emotional, and social health further down the line. Do I have my basic needs for health and safety met? If I do, then I can ask a few questions. (1) How do I relate to my models of the world? (2) How do my models relate to the things they are supposed to model? The first point is important because I use models to evaluate myself and reinforce the positive or negative beliefs and expectations I have about myself and others. Models tell me which cues in my environment, the objects, patterns and other signs, that I should use to tell me whether I am doing good or bad, and whether I should feel satisfied or anxious. Karl Friston calls this "model evidence". Albert Ellis was a psychologist who suggested that if I feel anxiety all the time then maybe I should ask myself if I am really interpreting these cues the right way. Maybe I'm actually doing better than I thought!

The second point is important because after I shape my models, my models shape me, to paraphrase Marshall McLuhan. It's like a circle. I get my models from you, and you got them from someone else. It's a cultural legacy that literally let's us see through the eyes of our ancestors. So you are not blind. They gave us this toolbox to survive in the face of an uncertain future, and each generation adds new tools to the box. You can shed a brighter, more focused light on things and see what was formerly invisible. You can make a path into the future, strive for what you want, adapt, and survive. Sometimes our models, strategies, and tools are different, but they compliment one another. Example: I wash the dishes and you do the laundry. Sometimes they are different, but in conflict. Example: I throw away the broken toy that you were going to fix the next day. And sometimes they look the same, but are done for different reasons. Example: We both dig a hole, but I'm planting a tree, and you're looking for lost treasure. This goes for everything. Inside another person's mind is a different world, and it usually has different goals and ways of measuring success. So it can be hard to know how to relate to others and even to ourselves. But take a look in your toolbox and ask yourself a few questions when you are confused or feeling anxious. Maybe you'll come up with something no one thought of before.

Question: Should I let my head or my heart lead the way?

Answer: In order to live, we need certain things: food, shelter, family and friends, clean air and water... the list is long. To ensure we can enjoy these things we have to use our heads. We imagine many possible futures, each based on a model of the world where things are slightly different. Some models are good. We go out hiking near a mountain valley with access to fish, game, and wild berries. Others may be bad. We get in a car accident, maybe we hit a patch of ice on a curve, or an oncoming vehicle crosses the centerline. These are all predictions about the future. About things that are both in our control and some things that are not in our control. They won't all happen, but some will.

So for example, what's the chance that you will want to catch some fish or gather berries if you hike into the valley in the fall? If this is a model that you'd like to see happen, then take your fishing gear and some berry buckets. That makes it more likely to come true. Take the right path, during the right season, with the right tools, and the right knowledge for how to use them - all of this is evidence that your preferred model will come to pass. This is "model evidence", and you want as much of it as you can get. If you discover the river bridge was washed out, or a freak early snowstorm blows in, this is not the evidence you want. Although you came prepared, it was not to be.

Likewise, if you hike into the woods but do not know the trail, do not bring any gear, and make your trip during the wrong time of year, then should you expect to catch any fish or gather a harvest of ripe berries? ...Unless this was a particularly bountiful valley or you were able to fashion your own tools, you would probably be naive to think so. Similarly, to reduce the chance of a vehicle accident we perform routine maintenance and reduce speed when driving conditions are dangerous. This is "model evidence" for the ability to arrive at our destination safe and sound. Cutting corners through mountain passes in a snowstorm is not.

In both examples, we've constructed a model of a world in which we are able to thrive (or simply survive), by actions we take to either find a positive outcome or avoid a negative one. And in both cases we strive to maximize the evidence for the model we want, whether it's a pleasant trip and a healthy harvest, or simply a safe journey to our destination. We can now say that "valuable behavior is the accumulation of model evidence". In contrast, psychopathological behavior is either the construction of an inaccurate model of the world, or a model in which, for whatever reason, we are unable to find much evidence that we will meet with success. The person who persistently believes that they can gather food without the materials or knowledge to do so would likely fall into the second category.

The first order of business is to identify a model that is at least adequate, if not optimal, among the hundreds of possible models of the future. Then we try to use this model to anticipate what we'll need to do. This is where it gets complicated. It's easy to imagine a possible model of success. Harder to maximize the evidence for it. If my model of success is mere survival, then my model evidence is only what is required for the basic life functions of growth and reproduction. But we are much more complex than that. Even simple social interactions and navigating through daily life (let alone achieving new insights) will involve a variety of activities and qualitative perceptions, ethical norms, and aesthetic values. Things like beauty, honor, wonder, and trust are constant considerations. How are these to be evaluated as "model evidence"? However that is done, the task of selecting the right model evidence among the salient features of the environment is as much a form of art as it is a science. And for that we need our head and our heart.