The Neglected Virtue of Curiosity. Curiosity is the most superficial of all the affections; it changes its objects perpetually; it has an appetite which is sharp, but very easily satisfied; and it has always an appearance of giddiness, restlessness and anxiety. - Edmund Burke, A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful Curiosity is the first virtue: "[a] burning itch to know is higher than a solemn vow to pursue truth. " Yet I find surprisingly little material about curiosity on Less Wrong. Sure, AnnaSalamon shows us how to use curiosity, lukeprog ponders what curiosity looks like, Elizabeth discusses the limits of curiosity, and Eliezer_Yudkowsky offers the meditation on curiosity.
But we have never been provided with an overview of the science of curiosity, as has been done for procrastination, motivation, and happiness, for instance. Perhaps most Less Wrongers score high on curiosity already, so there hasn't been much need to study it. But I often wish I were more curious. Health. In Search of Meaning – Why Intellectual Curiosity is Not Enough « Good Generation.
Curiosity. The%20virtue%20of%20wonder. Culturosity.com, Come Grow Your Global Mind. Curiosity and Exploration. California State University, Northridge By Susan Edelman(spring 1997) What makes people curious? Why do individuals explore the unknown? The research in these areas is inconclusive and often contradictory. Are curiosity and exploration motivations or drives?
Curiosity is defined as a need, thirst or desire for knowledge. What exactly are curiosity and exploration? Curiosity and exploration are difficult to define independently when looking at them from a psychological perspective, the concepts motivation and drive come into play and become intertwined. Roget's Thesaurus says that the absence of curiosity is boredom, ennui, satiety, take no interest, mind one's own business, uninquisitive. Historical Overview of Curiosity & Exploration The earliest discussions of curiosity were conducted by philosophers and religious thinkers and centered on the question of curiosity's moral status rather then on its psychological underpinnings. William James (1890) pointed out two kinds of curiosity. Curiosity. Curious children gather around photographer Toni Frissell, looking at her camera Curiosity (from Latin curiosus "careful, diligent, curious," akin to cura "care") is a quality related to inquisitive thinking such as exploration, investigation, and learning, evident by observation in human and many animal species.[1][2] The term can also be used to denote the behavior itself being caused by the emotion of curiosity.
As this emotion represents a thirst for knowledge, curiosity is a major driving force behind scientific research and other disciplines of human study. Causes[edit] Children peer over shoulders to see what their friends are reading. Although many living beings have an innate capability of curiosity, it should not be categorized as an instinct because it is not a fixed action pattern; rather it is an innate basic emotion because, while curiosity can be expressed in many ways, the expression of an instinct is typically more fixed and less flexible.
Brain[edit] Attention[edit] David Deutsch: A new way to explain explanation.