Scott reviews Julian Jaynes' controversial theory that ancient people lacked consciousness and instead heard hallucinated voices of gods, critiquing some aspects while finding value in the idea of theory of mind as culturally constructed. Longer summary

Scott reviews Julian Jaynes' book 'The Origin Of Consciousness In The Breakdown Of The Bicameral Mind'. The book argues that ancient people lacked theory of mind and instead heard hallucinatory voices they interpreted as gods giving them commands. Jaynes traces the development of consciousness through ancient texts, showing how mental processes were described differently before and after this shift. Scott critiques some aspects of Jaynes' theory but finds value in the idea that theory of mind is culturally constructed and can vary significantly between groups. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander explores the idea that many adults may be missing crucial cognitive abilities, and that rationality and cognitive therapy might be teaching these missing developmental milestones. Longer summary

Scott Alexander explores the idea that developmental milestones in psychology might not be innate but learned, and that many adults may be missing crucial cognitive abilities. He discusses examples like theory of mind, understanding different perspectives, and probabilistic thinking. The post suggests that certain insights from rationality and cognitive therapy might actually be teaching these missing developmental milestones to adults. Scott wonders what mental operations he might still be missing and how to recognize and learn them. Shorter summary