Happy week to everyone. This week I have decided to take up the topic of “Thresholds.“ I asked my 16 year old daughter if she had any questions about thresholds and she had no idea what I was talking about. So what exactly is a threshold? A threshold is a checkpoint or an edge. It is not a limit, because things can continue on past the threshold, just that things… change… when that threshold is met. For example, one age threshold in the US is 18 years old. It is not an age limit, people can grow older than 18, but at 18, a person becomes a legal adult in the US. Before age 18, a person cannot vote, but on the day of their 18th birthday, that age threshold has been met, and that person can now vote in elections.
So I asked ChatGPT to come up with a bunch of questions, and I would select the most interesting 20.
Onto the questions:
1. How does the concept of a "threshold" change as we age, both physically and psychologically? Are there universal markers of aging thresholds?
The concept of a threshold changes as we age because the major milestone thresholds end up more and more being in our past. It has been 40 years since I turned 10 and my age became represented as a 2-digit number. It has been 34 years since I passed the threshold for driving. Those were very momentous threshold in my life prior to crossing them. Now, they are mere points of interest in my past. Are there universal aging thresholds? I would only say that when a child turns 1… 1 trip around our star seems to mean something to all cultures… after that threshold, everything else seems to be a cultural construct.
2. What factors can expand or contract a person’s pain thresholds?
Weirdly enough there are studies that show pain thresholds increase when the person experiencing the pain curses. So… curse it up, fuckers.
3. How does quantum tunneling challenge our traditional understanding of physical thresholds in nature? What can this teach us about breaking through seemingly impossible barriers?
Quantum tunneling shows us that even seemingly insurmountable barriers can be overcome, albeit with a certain probability. This can inspire us to challenge conventional thinking and explore new possibilities.
4.How does the Dirac Delta Function illustrate the idea of crossing a threshold between finite and infinite values? Where else do we encounter similar mathematical thresholds in everyday life?
Okay, for the non-math nerds out there, the Dirac Delta Function is a function where the value of the equation is 0 except at a singular point on the x axis where it becomes infinite. Typically the infinite point occurs at x=0. So it looks like this when x = 0, y = ∞, and when x ≠ 0, y = 0. It is an interesting function because it basically goes from nothing to everything. It is a binary operation. Yes or no. So, we do encounter it, in some fashion everyday, but we also don’t see it very much. How's that for vagueness?
5. At the threshold of zero or infinity in calculus, strange things happen. What philosophical implications do these mathematical boundaries have in understanding the world around us?
Well, in all things, stuff gets weird when it is really big or when it is really small… really, really big and really, really small. The laws of Newtonian physics break down on the edges.
6. How do mathematical thresholds help explain the paradoxes of black holes and event horizons, where known physical laws break down?
Black holes and event horizons are basically limits and asymptotes in mathematics. Weird shit happens on the margins.
7. Can mathematical thresholds, like tipping points, help us understand sudden shifts in complex systems, such as climate change or stock market crashes?
Yes. Tipping points are real. That being said, those tipping points and thresholds can be modified by new technologies and “points of no return” can sometimes change.
8. What can your personal approach to dividing by zero tell us about the thresholds where logic and abstract thinking collide?
Okay, dividing by 0 is an interesting mathematical thought of mine. It has to do with mathematical definitions and the difference between the Universal set and the nullset. I won’t go into too much detail here (because no one wants that) but it boil down to the difference between everything that exists, nothing, and everything that does not exist. It is a way to define the undefined and allow for mathematical operations to work in different systems. Think of how irrational numbers and rational numbers interact. In certain systems you can have those 2 vastly differently defined types of numbers combine together to explain mathematical phenomena that cannot be explained by just rational numbers. Same thing with real and imaginary. So, existent and non-existent numbers could be another system that could incorporate how rational/irrational interact or real/imaginary. The biggest issue with mathematical theory (in my mind) is how different number systems’ naming conventions have separate colloquial definitions. Imaginary and irrational means something outside of mathematics, and those definitions temper how people think of those numerical systems.
9. What are the psychological thresholds we encounter when making major life decisions, such as changing careers or moving to a new city? What drives us to cross those points?
The biggest threshold for me has always been inactivity to activity. I have a very strong feeling of “good enough.” As long as things are arbitrarily “good enough” I do not need to change my behavior, but when that “good enough” threshold is crossed, I actively change my life to get back to an acceptable “good enough” state. I do not constantly grow and evolve, I stair step.
10. What happens when someone approaches the emotional threshold of burnout? Are there ways to recognize and mitigate it before crossing into exhaustion?
Emotional burnout is real, you can see it creeping in by looking at how people slowly become more and more frazzled. The problem with burnout is that it is a compounding problem over time. It is like the allegory of the boiling frog thing. The frog doesn’t realize that it is in boiling water because the water was heating up over time. Same thing with people who slowly creep up to burnout. It is often not like flipping a light switch. So, just watch for small explosions of frustration from potentially insignificant transgressions.
11. How does crossing a personal threshold, such as overcoming a long-held fear, redefine someone's sense of identity or capability?
In the example you provided, conquering a long-held fear can open up possibilities because of the new activities that are potentially available. This doesn’t even take into consideration the amount of mental energy needed to maintain the threshold that was overcome.
12. Can you explore the psychological threshold of risk tolerance—why do some people reach a breaking point and some take risks that others would avoid?
Why do some people like cake more than pie. Some people are willing to accept more risk than others.
13. How has humanity crossed technological thresholds throughout history, and what societal tipping points pushed us into the industrial or digital ages?
There are the equivalence of quantum shells in society. There is a bunch of energy storing in the societal/industrial/technological structure until it reaches a threshold and pushes society/industry/technology into the next valence. Animal husbandry, farming, wheel, bronze, iron, steel, printing press… etc… Each time there was a jump in technology, there became a jump in society. Each time a threshold was met and surpassed, there was a shift in how people existed.
14. What cultural factors influence whether a society adopts or resists new technologies, and what threshold marks the point of no return for widespread acceptance?
I think time and utility are the pressures necessary for new technology to become widely adopted. Think about the progression from radio to tv. Most people had a radio of some kind and It took a while for a TV to be in everyone’s living room. TV was new and there were not many shows associated with it, while there were boatloads of shows on the radio. Eventually all the shows migrated to TV and everyone had to have a TV to participate in the cultural zeitgeist. The thing about new technology acceptance is all about the reason for having the technology being taken for granted. It is a slow pivot while it is happening, but seems instantaneous when looking back on it.
15. How do major historical events represent societal thresholds, such as the fall of empires or revolutions, where one era ends and another begins?
I was just mentioning this in the previous technological question. These threshold events and cultural milestones seem instantaneous when you look back at them, but the fall of the Roman Empire took arguably centuries, but the general population seems to picture it as falling in 5 years with a resounding crash. Personally I think the diminishing of the US that seems to be currently going on is actually part of the tale end of the fall of the British Empire. As much as Americans want to differentiate from Britain, we kind a just Britto 2.0. Think of it as The Holy Roman Empire and Byzantium… The United Kingdom and the USA. Come at me history nerds.
16. How do social thresholds, such as achieving wealth or fame, change people's perceptions of themselves and how they interact with others?
Well, there are positive thresholds and negative one. When you hit a positive one, it makes you feel successful, but negative thresholds make you feel like a failure.
17. In the context of global crises like pandemics or climate change, are there societal thresholds we may be approaching that will require radical shifts in how we live?
I think the connectivity of modern society makes the propagation of pandemics alarmingly fast. When the threshold of reliable, safe and (relatively) affordable air travel really became part of society, the potential to quarantine places became significant;y harder. For climate change, the next big leap forward needs to be about affordable, reliable, and clean energy sources. We are closing in on the goal, but not quite there yet. It is not quite reliable or affordable just yet. When it becomes reliable and affordable, there will be a threshold that hits concerning reducing the usage of climatologically harmful energy sources become too expensive.
18. How do near-death experiences reflect the threshold between life and death, and why do so many people describe similar sensations when approaching this boundary?
I think most near-death experiences follow the same pattern because it is about how the brain shuts down electrically. That threshold is all about the draw down of power to the synapses in the brain box.
19. How do ancient traditions, such as shamanic rituals or vision quests, use thresholds as metaphors for spiritual transformation or enlightenment?
Everyone uses thresholds as metaphors for spiritual transformation and enlightenment. Thresholds are a necessity for everything spiritual, even (and especially) cults. You aren’t REALLY part of the cult unless you give the cult all your worldly goods and give the cult leader access to your significant other. That is a threshold to full acceptance into the cult.
20. What role do Threshold Guardians, in the monomyth, play in preventing or delaying the hero from crossing into new realms of knowledge or power?
If I remember correctly, Joseph Campbell’s “The Hero with a Thousand Faces” mentions Threshold Guardians as being a small bump that keeps the hero from going on their heroic adventure. Think of Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen gatekeeping Luke Skywalker until they are no longer a barrier to him going on adventure. Once those Threshold Guardians are removed from the story, the hero is able to move forward on their quest.
To recap:
This was a bunch of writing on my part today
I think I typed “threshold” enough that the word has lost all meaning and now just looks like a string of letters
Semantic Satiation is real, yo
The most exciting ways of consuming this content
Seriously, Substack seems like it is the next future of written essays on the Internets
I use them enough, but I don’t have the income right now to pay for them
I will take gifts though, iffens someone wants to gift me a subscription
I take gifts in general
Still on the prowl for a job
Hit me up if you think of anything or hear of anything
This mortgage isn’t going to pay for itself
Made some amazing gluten free focaccia this week
Caputo Fioreglut flour is stunning
Expensive but worth it
Have a great week everyone