Quote Originally Posted by Alric View Post
I don't think they are a valid source of knowledge at all, in fact, I don't think you can gain any knowledge from them what so ever. What I think they are good for is interrupting data. Intuition is just processing data quickly, and for it to be accurate you need to already be knowledgeable of a subject. If you lack the knowledge on a subject then intuition is worthless.

Emotions are the same, and don't provide new information at all. The emotions are based off our past experiences with things, and we try to judge things based off that experiences. Which is why so many people have irrational fears, because at some point something happened that seemed bad to them, and that past experience colors their emotions towards things that are similar. Those emotions are only as good as the initial experience however and if you face something totally new and original your emotions are not going to be useful for figuring out that new situation. The only time they are useful, is if the new situation is similar to an old one you experienced.

So no, I don't think either are a useful source of information or knowledge. They provide no knowledge what so ever, and they are only as good at the information you already have. If you got bad information they are going to give bad results.

Emotions provide knowledge about yourself, thats seriously important. A simple way to understand how emotions reveal important information for your life is this: What feels good? What feels bad? (this is not a question of morality, but a reflection of the choices you've made)

But for the sake of this discussion, its good to separate emotions from intuition. Emotions are generally subconscious reactions to a situation. (depression and peace being exceptions) For the most part, emotions are temporary states of being and we feel we have little control over them.

Intuition on the other hand doesn't seem to be a reaction to any certain event. It's generally a very subtle feeling - only in rare cases is it ever strong. Intuition is also a long lasting persistent feeling- lasting months, years! And over time, that persistent feeling can grow stronger and stronger until you feel crazy not to listen.

A lot of people give intuition a bad rap, because they think its judging a situation emotionally. Intuition is not about judging a situation emotionally. Rather it is knowledge that you EXPERIENCE emotionally, however the knowledge was still a logical brain process. Its like this, imagine a music cd. Imagine all the digital information that cd has. But you don't experience that cd as digital computer information, no, you hear music. Intuition may be a feeling - but theres a hotbed of information behind it.

I dont know if all scientists agree with this but, theres a theory out there that pretty much says intuition is a function of the right brain. Now the left brain and the right brain process information differently. Its been said, because of how the right brain functions it can logically understand the 'big picture' better than your left brain. Right brain - big picture. Left brain - details.

In other words, while your right brain has come to some sort of understanding, the left brain is still fitting the pieces together. Unfortunately for the right brain, it doesn't convey ideas with words or numbers. It conveys ideas with emotions and pictures - and there you have intuition. Right brain knowledge that you experience prior to the left brain being able to explain it.

In middle school, I had a deep intuitive feeling that there was something really wrong about suburbia, something that made life feel meaningless. All in all the american dream made me depressed, but I couldn't give you any concise reasons why.

It wasnt until college that I started to hear arguments that suburbia actually destroys a sense of community-which is like essential for our human needs. My left brain finally understood what my right knew for all those years!

That's how intuition works. It's extremely important that we dont ignore it, it is after all a legitimate brain function.

A logical left brain without intuition lacks foresight! The deficiency of foresight is why we are in a huge environmental mess. Plastic bottles? Great for business. You think they planned to drown the sea in plastic? No one saw it coming. Our entire culture thinks almost solely with the left brain. Without engaging in that creative right brain - we are deficient in foresight.

Now, a lot of people think listening to intuition is dangerous. Its not dangerous, its more dangerous to ignore it. Almost all of formal education is geared for the left. We don't really study emotions in school. And we sure as hell didn't understand our own emotions as students. So I can understand why theres a lot of mistrust when it comes to following intuition. "I followed my heart and now my heart is broken!".

The real problem is people are confusing emotions with intuition.

Following intuition = good. Following emotions = bad. Emotions are reactions! Basing an important decision off a fleeting emotion can be really really bad. I mean, tomorrow you might feel completely different!

Unfortunately, people trying to follow their own intuition end up following fleeting temporary emotions. But the more you spend time on self-reflecting your feelings the more you can spot the difference. Intuition is not fleeting.

That intuitive feeling can be described as "the feeling that you know or understand something prior to putting it in words". This intuitive feeling is never 'anger' 'hatred' or even 'passion'. Its simply that subtle feeling of knowing.

So, because intuition is wrapped up in spiritual circles, some people conclude its the folly of religion and anti-logic and anti-science. Its not anti-science because its not anti-logic. Its simply how the right brain packages and delivers information. Lots of scientists follow their intuition when setting up experiments. And because intuition is not the experience of anger or hatred, it has nothing to do with any self-righteous fundie casting judgement on another.

Does this mean that intuition is always right? Of course not. However, because the right brain deals with the big picture, when it comes to important decisions, its wisdom is greater than that of the left. Of course an even better brain is one that uses both equally.