Vali2003

Who seriously claims that transgender women can just compete in women’s sports if they have serious physical advantages? This is a minor problem that can easily be resolved, as society adapts to the new situation. Same in regards to women’s private spaces — assuming you mean toilets, changing rooms etc. by this. Don’t act like these are such enormous problems such that we can’t have who have gender dismorphia and transition call themselves men, or women if that’s what they actually identify as.

@Leo Gura Got it. Thank you.

Is epistemology unique in that you should contemplate it from scratch? I remember you saying in "what is insight?," that you should study something first, then go into contemplation. That way you have the dots in your brain to connect and can have insights. In general, I struggle understanding when I should study something first, then contemple vs. derive it from first principles.

I love Cro. Listened to him back when songs like Easy, Bye Bye, Whatever, were big. I don’t know which Album they’re from. I was too young at the time to have a phone, and listen to entire albums haha. Then I re-discovered him a couple years ago and have loved his music again since.

Amazing! Thank you so much. I’ll listen carefully tomorrow and report back. Excited for this

@musicandmath111 My initial thought was to learn more about the music of different countries and find great songs in languages I’d previously been ignorant of. I also find this interesting though, and I’m sure others do as well so post on if you have more of this.

Ah, ok. Thanks for letting me know

@Cireeric Yes, this is fascinating. Lol. Great shares. This is one generation before me music-wise. First one is peak German humor.

@musicandmath111 Yes, feel free to share in any language, not just your native

@Jannes Really nice. The contrast between German back then to now is insane.

@daydrinking https://www.musixmatch.com/lyrics/Yung-Hurn/eine-nase/translation/english Lyrics are essential for this one

https://genius.com/Genius-english-translations-annenmaykantereit-tommi-english-translation-lyrics https://en.muztext.com/lyrics/dead-dawg-bhz-kleiner-prinz https://www.musixmatch.com/de/songtext/OHO-BANI-Ericson/OLYMPIA/ubersetzung/englisch https://www.musixmatch.com/en/lyrics/Edo-Saiya/Kalt/translation/english https://www.musixmatch.com/lyrics/RIN-Bausa/Keine-Liebe/translation/english https://www.musixmatch.com/ja/lyrics/Ufo361/40K/translation/english https://www.paroles-musique.com/eng/lyrics-Tarek-K-I-Z-Nach-wie-vor-en-translation,t1114487 https://lyricstranslate.com/en/ich-liebe-i-love.html https://lyricstranslate.com/en/alles-möglich-everything-possible.html

@Judy2 One thing that has mightily helped with decreasing stress is having one hour before bed, where all I do is relax. It primes me for sleep and resets the stress that accumulated throughout the day. I, for example, often watch the sitcom "friends" before sleeping. I've seen it before, so nothing exciting or arousing happens and it allows me to just relax. I understand from reading this thread that adding things on to your to-do list - even if that's "relaxing" - adds stress, instead of helping you relax. But it's important that you get the principle of relaxing. Basically the essence of what it means to relax. It's a melting, mellow kind of sensation. I'm sure you know it. Put your awareness to your body, and try to relax right now so you see what I mean. Find an activity that puts you in this state, whether that's stretching, meditating, taking a walk, listening to music, drinking tea (camomille tea is great for relaxing btw.), progresive relaxation exercises, relaxation visualisations (there are some great ones in the book Psychocybernetics) or something else. Then do it every day before you sleep. Doing only relaxing stuff for one hour before sleep works great for me, but experiment with what time works best for you. You will notice hat much less stress accumulates over time, you'll be less irritable during the day, and more capable of confronting stress during the day.

My point is not that the passion itself is what’s attractive. I’m saying it’s the conviction and confidence you have into this specific way of penetrating the world. It’s the masculine energy you display. Your example with the Star Wars figurines is a strawman, because the person you imagine when you read this is not somebody who has any confidence in his pursuit. You imagine somebody who hides in their mother’s basement out of fear that somebody sees his true self. Funny enough, a friend of mine paints Warcraft figures and has a collection of them in his room as a hobby, and he has a super cool and good looking girlfriend (by my judgment). I think the advice of “be fun and stoic” is bad advice because it points away from the principle that, in my experience, actually leads to attraction. And that is to impose yourself on the world in whatever way you think is good and right. If you take “be stoic and fun” as absolutely true principles for attraction then that leads to people trying to be some way they’re not which I think is rather unattractive. Anyways, I feel there’s some truth to fun and taking her on an adventure as true principles for attraction, and I’m not sure how they relate to my previous point. I’d have to contemplate that a bit more.

@Vercingetorix Women are attracted to masculine energy. But masculine energy isn’t being stoic, or being relaxed, or being fun. At its essence, masculinity is simply you penetrating the world. How you do that is up to you and will be unique to your personality, interests etc. You “penetrate” a woman, by inviting her onto your unique island and giving her a great experience there, telling her all the lore about your island (your perspective on the world, basically) and so forth. Do you see how this “penetrates” her? When I met my girlfriend for example, I told her all about the 2022 NBA finals at the time. How Steph Curry’s legacy would change if he won his fourth championship, how he’d move into top 10 OAT player-lists if he won again, without KD and more. Of course she didn’t give a fuck about basketball and the NBA, before. But I made it intriguing because I thought it was so intriguing. Maybe you, too, don’t give a fuck about basketball but your thing is doing ice-skating. So you go and do that together with her, and maybe afterwards you, just being you and being completely convinced that ice-skating is the greatest thing ever, will have made her fall in love with you. Also, maybe not. You can’t be attractive to everybody if you’re authentic. This is the reason why just be confident is good advice at its core but people misunderstand it and turn into some macho douche. To connect it back to your initial question: You don’t necessarily need to be fun to be attractive. But if your thing is to be fun, then that’s great. Also if your thing is that you’re not fun but you currently try to be more fun, then that’s also great. Just be confident in whatever your thing is and penetrate the world with it.

It‘s important not to be too choosy with who you consider a good fit as your friend in the beginning. Go do stuff you enjoy anyways, chat people up there, get their contact information and meet up with them, even if you think they‘re a bit weird. For example, just chat up the person that was next to you in the yoga class afterwards and get their contact info. It’s not super important that you think they’re amazing or god-realized or anything. Next step is to meet with them regularly. That means at least once a week, but it’s better if you meet more often. This is, of course, easier if you have something to do together, like study, do sports, or something like that. You‘ll probably grow to like them, or you won‘t, but you will definitiely get to know other people you do like through them. They’ll probably introduce you to their friends. Also, you‘ll get invited to other social events where it‘s much easier now, and less awkward to meet people. Now you can maybe start being more selective about who you want to be friends with. But maybe, as you’ve spent so much time with your first friend, you’ve grown to like them. The most crucial point is not to be too picky at first. As soon as you get into ANY social circle, it gets easy to make friends. But first, you need some way to get in. That problem is solved by not being too picky.

@Natasha Tori Maru @Joshe Glad it resonated

@czar24 I think you make being fun and feeling free around women too complicated. The easiest way to have fun is just to, well, try to have fun. There really isn‘t much more to it. Of course, as you get better at being fun you‘ll be able to make more distinction. And don‘t say you don‘t know how to have fun, I‘m sure you‘ve had fun before in your life at some point, no? It‘s uncomfortable to accept this as the solution, because it‘s hard to do something if you’re unsure you can do it 100% correctly. It’s always like that when learning something new. But that’s inherent to growth, so you gotta eat the bullet. Try to notice how serious you‘re being, stop, try to be fun, and iterate from there. That‘s the most direct way I know.

Lately, I’ve opened up to seeing how narcissistic, and immature I (and other men) sometimes act in relation to women. This connects to the discussion about men/women being dramatic somewhere back in this thread. For example, sometimes, I would tell my girlfriend a potentially hurtful truth, like me having a crush on another woman. I act all stoic, and as though I’m simply a messenger of truth, and am there for her to cry on my shoulder, or hold space for her or whatever. In that moment, I feel like that’s just the truth, and she has to deal with the truth. Just like I would. It’s a really self-absorbed kind of perspective. In that moment, I’m completely disconnected from how I’d react if she told me she had a crush on some dude. I’d probably react “worse” than she does, but she’d likely be more considerate than me in how she told me, and less self-absorbed. I hope the comical nature of this comes across. I don‘t want to idealize women, but it shows - at least in my experience, and I feel this applies to many men - the self-righteousness, men feel entitled to, simply due to centuries of being in a position of power over women or being seen as superior. Whether that‘s societally, academically, or in a relationship. And it‘s fascinating how much I can feel this self-righteous, entitled belief that there‘s something about me that makes me better, smarter, more truthful etc., than my girlfriend simply because I‘m a man. And, boy, does it hurt when that belief gets shattered by reality. Waking up to this understanding makes me see feminism in a different light too. And it makes me notice how big of a dick I can be, and makes me very grateful for my girlfriend. I think most men drastically underestimate - or are completely ignorant of - the chokehold that their need for power and superiority over women has on them.

There are a couple positive use cases for boosting your understanding, but overall I think any claims like “It will 10x your learning” are completely overblown. One way to use it productively is as a sparring partner for debating a certain topic. Letting it come up with counter-examples, prompts for you to think about etc. But even then, I think the upside is limited compared to contemplating a question on your own. Another function that is really useful is DeepSearch. You can give really specific prompts about topics, it may otherwise be difficult to find quality information on. You can let it create in-depth guides 10+ pages long. But, I must say, there has never been an AI output so far that really changed my perspective or impacted my life meaningfully like has happened through some excellent books I’ve read. I don’t know if that is due to my expectations to it or a different reason. So I think even when you use it responsibly, the potential for it to significantly boost your building of your theoretical foundation is quite limited. All that being said, I do often use AI to help me understand some concept that I struggle with and it’s quite good for that. But the main purpose always has to be for it to serve my understanding. And the problem is, it’s quite easy to slip into accepting whatever output comes out as valid and not thinking critically about it anymore, which will definitely decay your mind.

The White Rose was a resistance group in Nazi Germany fighting against the Nazis, not supporting them. I think they’re only referring to the aesthetic style the resistance takes, but I think South Park is incredibly funny.

Thank you for the answer. Let me try and make a more substantial argument for this training, as I did not intend to sell anything, but I see, that's essentially what I did. As I said already, there is no peer-reviewed research at this point, and I also can't claim that it has impacted the scientific community in a meaningful way (at least not in public). I would add here, that many researchers, for example Dr.Robert Schleip, are proponents of other fascially based pratices (for example rolfing for Dr.Robert Schleip), which would cause them to be partial when it comes to conceding superiority of one specific training method. The whole space of "fascia training" is wide open, so to say, therefore everybody wants to come out with their set of exercises on top, which makes the field very open and muddy (maybe that is just my limited view of it though). This is obviously difficult for me, as the human body is a complex thing and my understanding of it has limits. But I can at least give some explanation of the mechanism as I understand it (I'll work towards it, as you said). The way this training makes you stronger is the same way it can heal injuries. By remodelling the fascial structure and increasing fascial tensioning. I'll talk about each of these aspects seperately, but they are, of course, interlinked (For example, having more myofibroblast cells will increase the speed of remodelling in the fascia). On a meta-level the training works by significantly increasing the glutes and abs response in every movement, as a result of optimal fascial structures which distribute energy more effectively. I'll try to explain, how that is possible. Fascial tensioning The way this works is through a differentiation of fibroblast cells (the main cell in the fascia), into differentiated myofibroblast cells. These cells express alpha smooth muscle actin, which enables the cells to contract. The force generated by the contraction then get's transmitted to the extracellular matrix. The myofibroblasts are also significant contributors to collagen synthesis (collagen is one of the main components of fascia), which enables them to patch up wounds quickly. So, if you have a muscle strain -- or basically whenever the tissue experiences significant stress -- fibroblasts differentiate into myofibroblasts, which enhances their contractile abilities, supporting a quicker healing process. The cells then self-destroy within 100 days, and return to normal fibroblasts. In some chronic cases, the myofibroblasts persist and constantly continue synthesising collagen, while the old collagen get's shipped of -- resulting in scar tissue. Hyperarch Fascia Training basically claims to have found a way to consciously (through a specific way of tensioning the foot) differentiate fibroblast cells into myofibroblast cells. Not the same kind of cells as in wound healing, however, as these cells would be a permanent part of the fascial matrix, without being chronic (There is always a certain number of permanent myofibroblast cells in everyone). This can be proven -- but has not been done, nor do I know how difficult it would be -- by seeing if people who have a significantly higher glutes response (as can be measured through EMG), also have more permanent myofibroblast cells in their fascia. Of course this would only be correlation, not causation, but certainly a step towards proving the mechanism. This increased amount of myofibroblast cells improves the ability of fascia to remodel quickly (which explains quicker recovery times in some people), but also increased glute and abs response, as a result of higher fascial tension during movement. In movement, the myofibroblast cells contract,in effect tensioning the fascial network. This changes how energy get's distributed throughout the body, and the glutes and abs get activated more. How this works can be explained with the tensegrity model (https://flexotape.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/10/Tensegrity_pink_wood.jpg) The fascia and bones work similarly to the strings and struts of the traditional tensegrity framework. Now, if you increase the tension in the strings, the energy will be transferred to different to different areas within the network. The claim is, that higher tension in the fascia leads to more energy being transferred throughout the whole body, but especially the glutes and abs. This is where the catchphrase "holistic" comes from, but it is very accurate in this case, as the body truly starts move more like a network connected through a tensegrity structure, instead of isolated parts. This can be best understood through experience, for example in the exercise towel curls. In the beginning of doing this exercise you will feel mostly the calf and foot being activated and almost cramping (assuming you have a low tensioning level). But as you keep on training, you will feel less in the calf, and more in the glutes, until all that you'll feel are the glutes. Now, I think the most common point of skepticism here is the question of why. Why would there be a mysterious mechanism that has this effect? Why would this not just be the norm for everybody, if it exists? The answer is, that it probably is the norm, but maybe technological innovation in form of the shoe has come in the way, with genetics also playing a role. The shoe The explanation would be that our shoes (which have become more and more cushiony), shut off most of the sensory information that the foot normally receives. Imagine, if you're barefoot on rough surfaces, the foot would constantly receive signals (the foot contains an exceptionally high density of mechanoreceptors within fascial structures, which is why the foot is special in this regard), and adjust the fascial tensioning to its demands, through an increase of myofibroblast cells. But this doesn't mean you can just jack off the shoes and everything will return to normal as the sensory functions strongly degenerate over time and it's not obvious that they will simply regain function through use. Genetics Not everybody who has high fascial tension walked around barefooted as a child, so it's assumed that genetics also play a large role in how strongly your feet react to stimulation. Some people would require only little stimulation for the same effects, while others would require a lot. Remodelling the fascial structure Remodelling the fascial structure is also vital for improving energy distribution throughout the tensegrity network. If fascia is tangled up and not aligned properly, it will 1. be potentially painful, as nerves are compressed and the tissue is dehydrated and 2. it will be less effective in energy distribution, resulting in energy leaking at joints, or muscle groups that are not designed to carry a large load (which can lead to overuse injuries like shin splints or tendonitis for example). Picture: Movement in general helps to keep your fascia hydrated and organized. However, many physically active people may still have disorganized and dry fascia through a lack of tension, as the body moves suboptimal and compensation patterns form. You can test if your fascia has good organization or not, by rolling on your calf muscles with a tennis ball for example. Feel if it's unsmooth and painful, or smooth and painfree. If your fascia is organized properly you will not experience pain and it will be smooth. Other common remedies for disorganized fascia include foam rolling or myofascial release. Some people think that foam rolling can "break up" adhesions. That is not true, as far as I can tell. Instead, foam rolling can help by "rehydrating" the tissue. Still, this does not work with more severe disorganized fascia, where maybe it's partially torn or strongly disorganized. But the fascia has the ability to remodel itself along the lines of tension (Myofibroblasts and fibroblasts synthesize collagen along the lines of movement or tension). Hyperarch fascial training uses this, by having exercises that target the fascia more than the muscles -- muscles are obviously still involved in the movement, but the goal is having the fascia slide more than usually -- to elicit a greater remodeling responds. Aditionally the remodelling process is more effective due to the increase of myofibroblast cells. My case is the only one I can explain with detail and I did that already. Even though I did in a salesy way, the experiences I mentioned are all true. Otherwise, I wouldn't say the case studies on his YouTube are detailed in general, but the three I linked to in my initial post are the ones with the most detail there are. But you are right in that detailed case studies presented in a scientific way lack so far. Here are actually several possibilities: EMG, adhesion tenderness, myofibroblast count, subjective glute response. EMG With an EMG, you can test the glutes response before a 12 week training cycle and after. If the result afterwards is significantly higher, then the training has succeeded in improving glutes function. This does not prove any of the mechanistic explanations I mentioned, but does prove the effectiveness of the training in improving glutes function. Of course this one is rather impractical, because who has access to an EMG machine. Adhesion tenderness As the training goes, your adhesions (painful knots in the fascia), should become less painful until the pain completely disappears. This can be tracked, by ranking all the adhesions on a tenderness scale from 1-10 (1 being almost no pain, and 10 being a lot of pain). This ranking can be updated weekly to see if there are improvements. While it is a subjective scale, the difference between a 10 on the scale and a 1-2 is not subtle at all. Myofibroblast count This is another objective measurement, that no normal person has access to, but is highly relevant for proving the method. The amount of myofibroblast cells could be measured in people who have a higher than average glute response. While not necessarily causative to glutes function, it would show that it's possible for some people to have a higher amount of permanent myofibroblast cells and therefore open the door for the desribed mechanism to be proven true. Subjective glute response The glute response can also be measured subjectively, by looking at the response during the exercise called "towel curls." This is scientifically less relevant than the EMG, as it is measured in a specific movement and it's subjective. However, it can still be useful, beause, again, the difference between 0/10 glutes response and 6/10 glutes response is hardly subtle. Also you can simply touch your butt during weight bearing anytime and see if it's hard. Over time it grows much harder during movement, as you tap into more of the muscle. I tried to do this above, referring to the current scientific understanding of fascia. I see the main limitation in the lack of empirical evidence, and also lack of standardizes training protocols and explanations of the training. Of course, it's likely that a large degree of the mechanistical explanation is false or inaccurate and will have to be improved through scientific rigor. I hope this serves as a more substantial basis for discussing this training, and apologies for my initial post being too salesy. That was not my intention. Glossary for fascial terms used (definitions from fascia research society https://www.fasciaresearchsociety.org/fascia_glossary_of_terms.php): Adhesion: Adhesions are bands of scar-like tissue that form between two surfaces inside the body. Alpha smooth muscle actin: Alpha smooth muscle actin is an isoform typical of smooth muscle cells and one of six known types of actin. In addition to its presence in organ tissue, alpha smooth muscle actin has been identified in myofibroblasts, where it plays an important role in focal adhesion maturation and in inhibition of cell motility. Collagen: Collagen is an abundant protein that constitutes a major component of fascia, giving it strength and flexibility. At least 14 types exist, each composed of tropocollagen units that share a common triple-helical shape but that vary somewhat in composition between types, with the types being localized to different tissues, stages, or functions. In some types, including the most common, Type I, the tropocollagen rods associate to form fibrils or fibers; in other types the rods are not fibrillar but are associated with fibrillar collagens, while in others they form nonfibrillar, nonperiodic but structured networks. Differentiated myofibroblast: Differentiated myofibroblast describes a myofibroblast that is capable of expressing alpha smooth muscle actin. Extracellular matrix: Extra-cellular matrix refers to any material produced by cells and excreted to the extra-cellular space within the tissues. It takes the form of both ground substance and fibers and is composed chiefly of fibrous elements, proteins involved in cell adhesion, and glycosaminoglycans and other molecules. It serves as a scaffolding holding tissues together and its form and composition help determine tissue characteristics. In epithelia, it includes the basement membrane. Fascia: Fascia is a term which continues to carry different meanings for various professions and perspectives. Based on the connecting nature of this tissue and the interdisciplinary range of related professionals working with it, the Fascia Nomenclature Committee (FNS) of the Fascia Research Society recommends the following two major usages: a fascia is a sheath, a sheet, or any other dissectible aggregations of connective tissue that forms beneath the skin to attach, enclose, and separate muscles and other internal organs. See "A fascia and the fascial system". the fascial system consists of the three-dimensional continuum of soft, collagen containing, loose and dense fibrous connective tissues that permeate the body. It incorporates elements such as adipose tissue, adventitiae and neurovascular sheaths, aponeuroses, deep and superficial fasciae, epineurium, joint capsules, ligaments, membranes, meninges, myofascial expansions, periostea, retinacula, septa, tendons, visceral fasciae, and all the intramuscular and intermuscular connective tissues including endo-/peri-/epimysium. The fascial system surrounds, interweaves between, and interpenetrates all organs, muscles, bones and nerve fibers, endowing the body with a functional structure, and providing an environment that enables all body systems to operate in an integrated manner. Fibroblast cell: Fibroblasts are flat elongated fascial cells with cytoplasmic processes at each end, having a flat, oval, vesicular nucleus. Fibroblasts, which differentiate into chondroblasts, collagenoblasts, and osteoblasts, and myofibroblasts form the fibrous tissues in the body, including tendons, aponeuroses, supporting and binding tissues of all sorts. Mechanoreceptors: Mechanoreceptors are sensory receptors that respond to mechanical pressure or deformation. They include Pacinian corpuscles, Meissner‘s corpuscles, Merkel‘s discs, Ruffini corpuscles, and some interstitial nerve endings. Tensegrity: Tensegrity is the property of materials made strong by the unison of tensioned and compressed parts.

This is gonna be my summer jam for the year

What would you understand as substance (not a rhetorical question)?

Oh shoot. I forgot to mention you have to subscribe to my email newsletter for that.