Thinking about thinking again

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Earlier this year I pondered the true meaning of "ProofOfBrain" something I read in the blue paper long ago, and when I saw this community I realized that it could be, or therefore represent in practice the very idea, a second layer of human meaningful verification for the chain, a way to reward users above and beyond the base layer.

And also too what it means, I pondered, to write with #proofofbrain. I don't want to just write about brains all day, imagine, and sometimes it can feel as if it might seem repetitive. So when I began this excercise I decided not to be bound by the expectations of the experiment, but to allow it to be what I am authentically.

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How much time do I spend thinking about thinking?

I found that I could spend probably a half hour a week thinking about thinking but to spend a whole lot of time thinking about just one question is pointless, except that it stirs the question in the mind. The next logical question I ask is,

What do I spend my time thinking about

If I spend more time thinking about thinking will it increase the efficiency of my thoughts? Over time I also found that the time I spend thinking about thinking decreased over time. I think this might be somehow related to how once you learn something it becomes subsconscious and you can forget about it. There were times I remembered the thought experiment and thought for a few moments about it, and then some other thought came into my mind.

If I spend too much time thinking about "How much time do I spend thinking about thinking" and worry too much about the things I spend my time thinking about, it does distract somewhat from the things I aught to think about. Since I only spend about 30 minutes a week or less thinking about this particular question, I am not worried about spending a few minutes writing something thoughtful today.

To expand on this question and today to propose to the reader that I am not doing this without reason, the next question to consider in thinking about thinking, is;

What am I not spending any time thinking about?

What do I not yet know? What thoughts are there out there that I have not considered before, have not read or heard, and might not be aware of? How many ideas are contained in the millions of books, the billions of thoughts and concepts thought possible at one time or another, that aught to be? And what ideas of course aught never to be? I dare not stray too far away, except to ask, what aught I to think about that I have not yet thought? Is the search for answers an exercise in futility? No.

This is consciousness, to sit and think and let the thoughts flow as they go. Form a picture in the mind of a river and as your hand touches the water it is cold. You enjoy a peaceful moment. A thought like this conveys so much sensory description for the mind that you can perceive the connection between the thought and the words and automatically are transported there in the minds eye. We have the ability to go anywhere in our mind and conceptualize even abstract ideas.

Every day as we live our lives our thoughts write the pages of our story, by our thoughts and words and actions, and over time we gain a greater perspective of what kind of tale we are telling ourselves, and the world. The stories I want to tell4 I have only seen like glimpses through a crack in the window and I should sit and let the words come pouring out like this more often. That perhaps is really why I decided to ask myself these questions. https://ProofOfBrain.io in a way challenges us to think.

In an increasingly automated world3, humans need to specialize.

And while AI has incredible computing capabilities, Human beings are only beginning the conversation about what life really means, and in a way this is a way to verify human meaningful efforts in a dynamically changing world.2 If I can spend a little more time thinking about how much time I am spending thinking, and what I am spending my time thinking about, as well consider what I might not yet have thought, I hope to continue to increase the efficiency of the thoughts I am thinking.

There is no real point , but

At least I hope to gain some perspective on these thoughts. 1


  1. When I was in college I started writing footnotes.
  2. Will there be robots in our homes within ten years?
  3. Bitcoin is a necessary insurance policy for humans.
  4. I can publish my stories on Hive, and I will reach the whole world.

Thinking about thinking again | Ecency