• The roots of discontent arise from chaos. Regardless of how much money/intellect/luck one may possess, “the universe is simply indifferent” and individuals can’t affect the universe. That’s a gravity problem.
• Maslow's hierarchy of needs apply to most, but once the physiological needs are met, people’s desires begin to creep indefinitely.
• Culture has shielded people from the threat of chaos. It helps explain phenomenons that are hard to understand. But this leads to cultural hubris, aka a sense of entitlement that they are in control of the universe.
• Although mankind has collectively improved our material powers over time, we have advanced very little in terms of improving the content of experience.
• Consciousness is our ability to process the information that engages our nervous system (sight, smell, sound, touch). There’s a limit to how much info it can process.
• pleasure v enjoyment
  • a challenging activity that requires skills
  • the merging of action and awareness
  • clear goals and feedback
  • concentration of the task at hand
  • the paradox of control
  • the loss of self-consciousness
  • the transformation of time
• autotellic
• you can find enjoyment in any activity. it could be difficult, mundane, simple.
• your body is like a probe made of sensitive devices that contain huge potential to experience flow: sight, sounds, taste…
• the flow of thought: memory, words, history, science
  • words, names, numbers, concepts, rules for combining them in predictable ways
  • Memory used to be a powerful skill. People memorize poems and stories to share critical learning. Memorization allows for control over consciousness, and is a great flow activity that requires very limited resources. However, the commercialization of writing and printing systems rendered this skill less critical. Today, what skills are valued by society?
  • amateur v professional
  • philosophy means “love of wisdom”
  • lifelong learning