Anchoring your brain

The other day I was asked this question- which year did Napoleon become emperor of France?
Despite being a history buff, I did not know the answer. but I could not accept defeat and attempted answer the question. I formulated a base educated idea that he was first exiled to Elba in 1814 (which is true). so he must have become king a few years ago at the very least because I had read several stories about his glorious reign and his bravery in battles. But I did not go as far back at the 1700s because the French Revolution had just ended and there was a lot of turmoil for at least a decade. so made a wild guess of 1802. I was two years off. 
Contemplating my failure, I came to realise that my whole 'thesis' arose from one main piece of knowledge that Napoleon was captured in 1814. Had I been wrong then, my whole reasoning would have tumbled down the hill. I came to realise that these base assumptions or 'anchors' are essential to any sort of educated guess or claim. 

An anchor is a bias which leads people to rely too much on the fist piece of information or the 'base', from which they make their final answer. The anchor can be compared to the foundations of a building. If the foundation is weak, no matter how well you build the rest of the building, your creation will collapse. similarly, if your anchor is wrong, your reasoning, no matter how perfect, will implode.

In one study, Nobel award winner Daniel Kahneman carried out a study where he tested a bunch of students with multiplication. They were asked to multiply the first 8 numbers from one onwards. The students were given 5 seconds to do so. After the first few multiplications, they had to guess the rest and make assumptions. since the sequence started with small numbers, the median they estimated was around 512. The correct answer was 40,320. The anchoring comes in here when after a first few multiplications, the students began making increasing adjustments on their answers. Almost all the answers answers were usually not sufficient and a great deal of importance was given to the anchor. 

It is said that before answering a question or making a base assumption as your anchor, one must at least have three source of information which are credible. So, back to the Napoleon question, apart from the abdication year, had I known the age he became emperor and the age when he abdicated, my answer would have been surely correct. 

Anchors are dangerous territory and do not let the grim sirens attract you to their jaws. Be careful treading in their paths and always have a back up no matter what. If you do not know the answer to a question, simply give up and say "I don't know" (benefits of that in my other blog -http://bagriaanjaneya.blogspot.in/2016/12/the-three-hardest-words-in-english.html)

everybody or nobody

Either everybody person does it or nobody does it.

 This is the famous statement made by several people on several matters, but what is the real meaning of this?We often feel awkward when ever we do something new, especially when we are with a group of friends who are also not used to doing nothing. We can often get criticised for doing it and can also be insulted. But why is this? 
This can be related to the fact that if something is new, everybody is sceptical about it. For examples, in Renaissance times, nobody supported the printing press or inventions or even any literature which was against the papal authority or against anything which the people at that time believed in. But there is always one person in the herd to come up with something new. More than often would he get ostracised for his actions. He could also get excommunicated. This is because not everybody is  in open to change. Nobody wants to go out of their way to discover something new or evil step out of the shell. We are lethargic and want everything handed to us. This is why when something new is first discovered, we are very sceptical and do not believe in its use. That is the same reason as to why several poets and alchemists have been persecuted and executed for their works. 
It is the ignorance that causes problems with society. But, let's not digress for this is a separate topic for a different day. 
When cars were introduced in India in 1826, nobody saw the use of a car. Everybody thought that the horse and carriage will be much better and much more officiant in the long run. But, when all the officials and the rich people started using cars instead of horses, everybody realised how useful they were and began using it as soon as possible. In another incident, when telephone and telegraph lines were introduced in India, people were very ignorant and did not think that it was good but thought that it would be used to hang prisoners. Little did they know that it would revolutionise the way of communication for ever.
This is the problem-we are never open to new things and always remain attached to the past and the simplistic ways of life. We never want to advance that even though progress is the goal, we stay relaxed without the thought  in mind about the future.

We should try to enjoy new experiences and not shoot them down the moment we hear new ideas. If we have a crazy idea, we should always be open to try it out for new experiences need to creativity which have led to the greatest of invention of all time. Even these 'happy' accidents I was out from creativity and trying a new experiences. We should truly be more progressive in our thinking and always look for a scope to advance and do better. Just because nobody is doing something, it doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. But definitely you should understand between doing something new and creative and doing something bad. there will always be people who try to bring you down but you have to move past that and only when you do so you can move up the stairs of glory.

why aren't kendrick Lamar or logic anybody's role model?

The 21st century is one where a lot of genres of music has emerged and 2017, in fact, is the first year when the hip hop genre surpassed the rock genre in most heard genres. Kendrick Lamar's album, 'DAMN', was deemed the most popular album in the USA this year.

Logic's song '1800-273-8255', on the day of its release, increased calls to suicide prevention lines by 27%. 

So why aren't people like these role models? why do we always take the great people as role models? 
A role model does not have to be a great person. It can be anybody who inspires you in some way to live in a particular way. there is so much to learn from the shadows as compared to the light.

Kendrick uses his power and status to talk about social issues and problems in the government and society. He himself says that he is gifted with a voice to translate what he feels and what those who cannot voice out feel.
Kendrick asks us to change the negativity around us to positivity. We can really learn from his raps, but instead, we prefer to just hear them for how dope they are. A lot of raps have deeper inner meanings which really mean important things. 
Logic is a new and upcoming rapper. To me, he is an amazing person and rapper. His verses are one of a kind and always leave me amazed. 
Logic's main aim is life is to spread peace, love and positivity. He mentions it in many of his songs and says that these make you versatile.
Logic wrote 1800 because he was inspired by one of his fans. While on tour, he went a fan's house for dinner and saw that the fan had his lyrics tattooed on his arms and kept telling him that he saved his life. Logic just wanted to make good music and had no intention of 'saving lives' but now that he realised this, he decided to help save lives and wrote 1800. 
Logic tells us to move away from positive and negative appraisals. Positive appraisals, he says, make you develop a big head and ego while negative appraisal makes you depressed and dark minded. 
Both these rappers are extremely authentic and have very devoted fans who often claim that they save their lives, literally. 

We can learn a lot from our world indeed. all the teachings are right in front of us but we need to interpret them. If we are successful in doing so, we can achieve great heights. 

More teenage stereotypes

Lets tackle some stereotypes

There are a lot of stereotypes about teenagers going around whether they are good or bad. Lets discuss a few-

1) The average teen
Every teenager today is more or less the same. We have become robots and are shadows of our true selves. We do what everybody does and individualism does not have a place in society. It is either be like the rest or be a nobody. It is  pretty cut throat. So, what is the average girl like? 
The average girl:
a) Has an instagram account
b) Uses obnoxious and played out quotes from a stereotypical        book or movie like The Divergent Series or from wattpad
c) Has at least one beach photo in which she is looking into the ocean
d) Has at least two photos with a snapchat filter
e) Loves 'The Chainsmokers' or any other musician she can 'relate to'.
f) Has read less than five books in her life.
g) Always complains about how nobody 'gets her' even though she treats everybody like a personal butler.

The average boy:
a) Always looks down in any given photo or covers his mouth.
b) Has medium to long hair to look emo.
c) Does not smile in any picture.
d) Supports a football team-without knowing the players in the team-because it is cool.
e) Behaves like an emotional person and keeps posting emotional pictures with abhorrent quotes about life which were probably said by felons.

2) Clothing 
Every girl dresses with as less clothes as possible. Their clothes are all from the same brand and they all wear rings, necklaces and played out lipstick colours. They colour their hair to copy their favourite artist or to show how 'punk' they are. They all adore the 'Adidas superstars' which are now a standard for teenage girls' footwear.
Boys wear the same baggy jeans and hoodies everywhere even if it is a beach. They all wear snapbacks and Nike shoes. 

3) Activities
Every girl wants to feel special and dates boys so that the boy can 'understand her'. Boys date girls because they don't want to be lonely or the laughing stock of their friend circle. Every girl tries to get popular on social media and hence tries to socialise a lot. This includes backstabbing friends and relations as well. A lot of teenagers consume alcohol and drugs because of peer pressure and a chance to be 'cool'. Nobody focuses on academic excellence because to them, their parents are always there and 'life will work itself out'. Stereotypical girls adopt shih-tzu dogs and take like 37 photos of every thing they come across. 

There are many more stereotypes which I will discuss later in my blogs. These are the basic ones.
Are you one of them? If you are, there is nothing to worry about. Everybody is like this and nobody will judge you. However, if you are not, then you will often be regarded as different or weird even though you are trying to stay authentic. Be yourself and be unique. God has not created us to be like another or to follow a herd. We should be individuals with different interests and disinterests. Liking or doing something which everybody is doing is useless and is like bringing sand to a beach. There is no shortage of typical boys and girls because if there would be, there would be more leaders of the world and lesser people who believe that the earth is flat.

PLOT TWIST

Don't ask for the change, bring the change.

Said the bus conductor with a very annoyed tone.

The petty and insignificant German tourist was being teased for his peculiar moustache 

With a fire in his heart,"One day they will regret teasing me and know my name." said Adolf to himself.

We all love the highly underrated style of story telling, also known as plot twists. They are random, out of the blue and exciting. a few famous plot twists are: Star Wars episode V, Fight Club, any given episode of Game of Thrones, sherlock s4 ep 2 & 3 and Rick and Morty s3 ep7. This blog focuses on how to write insane plot twists and a few gags.

Step 1: Eliminate obvious facts and details 

The primary way to make funny and clever plot twists is to remove all possible doubt that something cannot be the reason for the story. For example, in Hounds of Baskerville, nobody expected the sugar drug to be the causative of the crazy things people saw. The reason is that Doyle removed all possible evidences. sugar was used quite often in the plot but never so much or so importantly that people would think that it was relevant to the plot.

step 2: Throw off the reader 

It must be kept in mind that in mystery books, readers are aware that something will jump out onto them with a twist. The aim of the writer must be to throw off the scent of the reader. Make something look like the big solution to the problem but hide the real solution. Use the alibi to throw off the scent the reader. You aim to make the reader say,"wait...what?"

here are a few funny or creepy stories with twists for your mind to tie a knot:

I saw my reflection blink.

He was hesitant to talk and hoped she wouldn't look into his eyes. he was sweating for he knew he was not ready. he couldn't think straight but looked blankly at her. suddenly, the teacher said,"Mike, get up and tell me what a mitochondria is."

"Its a boy! It's a boy!", he shouted as he ran out of the room,"I'm never coming back to Thailand again!"

I saw a picture of me sleeping on my phone. I live alone.

Wubba lubba dub dub

Rick and Morty is arguably the best animated show on air. It has three seasons and is already loved across the world. In fact, it has a Monopoly game made after it. It portrays the various adventures of the smartest man on earth, Rick, and his not so smart grandson Morty. Every episode is different and the duo cross galaxies and planets to do different things. The show uses the concept of infinite alternate universes. so, in a few episodes Ricks from other parallel universes meet and confront the main character- Rick C-137 - and often arrest him. the show relates a lot of its episodes to current events and entertainment. For example, one episode is based on The Purge (2013), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). the rapper LOGIC features in one episode. The latest episode, season 3 episode 3, is probably the best featuring rick turning himself into a pickle and surviving for a day while taking down a bank.    

mad max 

the purge

PICKLE RICK

SO WHAT MAKES THE SHOW FAMOUS?

The show implores hilarity in rick's adventures and innovation from the producer's -justin Roiland- mind. But for me, the best part about the show is the philosophy it gives to the viewers through quotes and inner meanings. 

Rick is the smartest person in the universe and not all of his quotes are funny or scientific. Rick's wife died very early when his daughter Beth was born, delving him into science. over the years his view on life has changed many times and e has often tried to commit suicide. He tells Morty, who wants to fall in love, that love is a chemical reaction which compels animals to breed. It hits hard and fades away leading one to be in a loveless marriage, much like Morty's parents'. 

Rick also talks about not caring for others' opinions and tells morty to take his opinion and shove it waaaaaay up his butthole. 

Not caring about others' opinions is the most important thing to do if you're about to do something new or different. Half the enthusiasm and motivation is lost when you pay heed to criticism. Several great thinkers and inventors were heavily criticised for their actions and creations but they never took heed and believed in themselves and went on to make a mark in history.

Rick also talks about mental growth and tells Morty on an alien island, that even though he is afraid and in a new place and the situations are intimidating and scary, charging them head on like a bull and meeting them face to face is how we grow as people. this is my favourite quote in the show. This shows us that we should love and cherish new situations, hardships and experience and not run away form them. We should boldly face them and brave them for that is how we grow as people.

Rick and Morty is a one-of-the kind tv show that is a must watch. it is, in my opinion, better than all other animated shows including The Simpsons, Family Guy, South Park, Futurama, and Archer, amongst others. its funny, smart and different. 

imdb- 9.3/10

Hulu- 4.8/5

rotten tomatoes- 100%

leave bad habits behind

Leaving bad habits behind

 We all have bad habits and we all wish that we can quit them. But if we keep thinking 'I wish' and not 'I will', we can never break the bat. here are a few ways to reduce, if not stop bad habits:

1) Identify your problem:

If you're an alcoholic, accept it. If you're a drug addict, accept it proudly and say that you plan on ending this addiction to drugs or alcohol or any other vice. Tell your friends about your decision and your plan. 

DO NOT try to rationalise your problem by saying that you're just going to drink one glassier check your phone 10 times. 

2) Take active steps and incentives

Teach your garden how to weed it self. I've written a previous blog about it and for more depth, check It out.
incentives play with your mind and reward you for completing certain tasks. 
For example, if you're a smoker, set an incentive that if you don't smoke for a whole week, you will get an extra cigarette on the last day of the week.


The main problem with incentives, however, is the people are not alway honest to themselves and the incentives. 
To solve this, tell somebody to conduct the incentive plan.

3) Interventions, interventions and more interventions:

If you know anybody close to you who has a problem like alcoholism or drug addiction, stage an intervention.
Talk about how you feel about it and get a bunch of people close to the person whose to be spoken to and ask them also to say things about the problem.
Find the root problem of the addiction, be it peer pressure or pleasure and try solving it by calm talking and reassurance.
This is by far the most helpful thing to do for somebody who has a bad addiction.

Summing up

1) Accept your addictions and vices and get prepared to leave it
2) Get a hold of friends who are willing to help you
3) Set up incentives to make your plan work
4) Hold interventions for friends who are influenced by vices.