Morpho Designs

Plums in the Deep

July 15th, 2008 | by Mitchell Allen |

Photo by mrpattersonsir

“The next empires will be empires of the mind.”

- Winston Churchill

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This is the conclusion of an essay about changing perceptions, which begins with

The Continuum of Mutability and continues with

Interweaving Change and Power

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As mentioned in part two, Interweaving Change and Power, deciding to change the way we look at the world requires us to take stock personally.

If that self-inventory leads us to embark on a new course, we must also recall the lesson from The Continuum of Mutability:

Such a flexible change in our attitudes is probably too foreign to contemplate, but clearly, our predilection for perfection can not be sustained indefinitely.

The fact is that most of us fall short of excellence and unfairly punish ourselves for failing.

It is more productive to determine which underlying components are important enough to study further.

Elevating our mutability to such a higher level does require effort, but not maximal effort.

To that end, the first and most important “plum” among our resources is our own brains.
Beyond that, here is an offering of treasures:

• My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D
  

  In an engaging narrative, Dr. Taylor shares her story of stroke and recovery.
  What’s different about this book is that the author is a trained neurobiologist who understood what was happening to her on that fateful day in 1996. Her descriptions, explanations and lessons give us a rare glimpse into the inner workings of our brains.
  Perhaps the most compelling section is her recounting of the “split” between the two hemispheres of her brain.
  She poignantly describes the euphoria of being disconnected from the noise of her rational mind.

• The Assault on Reason by former U.S. Vice-President Al Gore
  

  Mr. Gore gives a pretty good definition of reason and its importance to the survival of democracy in America.
  With the advent of mass media, the printed word has taken a back seat on the propaganda train.
  Using anecdotes and engaging historical vignettes, the rise and fall of the “informed citizen” is charted.
  This book may have an agenda, but should be appreciated for its ability to challenge “conventional wisdom”.

• An Inconvenient Truth, narrated by Al Gore
  

  This documentary provides more thought-provoking fare from the Former Vice-President.
  The topic is global warming, the graphs are gorgeous and the images of a wounded planet are far more powerful than any allegory could be.
  Early in his presentation, Mr. Gore shows this quotation from Mark Twain:

  What gets us into trouble

  is not what we don’t know

  it’s what we know for sure

  that just ain’t so.

  From there, he builds a compelling case for the dangers of global warming.
  Again, this resource is recommended, not for its obvious ethics agenda, but for its ability to evoke an interest in one of the major systems of our world: the ecological system.

• Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Steven J. Dubner
  

  Mavericks produce entertaining and - sometimes - enlightening works in their field of study.
  Freakonomics is both. Mr. Levitt has made a point of “seeking the right questions to ask” about social, economic and political issues.
  From drug-dealers to cheating teachers, he has found many a goldmine of data with which to test his ideas.

• Ideation: The Birth and Death of Ideas
  
  by Douglas Graham and Thomas T. Bachmann

  What is an idea? Who were the greatest innovators throughout history? How can we nurture an idea so that it doesn’t languish, unfulfilled?

  This is a straightforward book that promotes ideas as quantitative assets. Though it is geared more toward corporations than individuals, Ideation contains a blueprint of the creative process for all thinkers.

• The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
  

  Unlike Dr. Taylor’s My Stroke of Insight, which is a personal account grounded in science, The Secret proposes a theory about life, the universe and everything and then attempts to prove it with multiple glowing accounts.
  However one feels about the veracity and applicability of the subject matter, this book is recommended here for one reason: it demonstrates the power of an idea to change millions.

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