Thread: Visual thinker task, can you do it!

If you do vocalize text don't worry, as even I can't fully stop it. Just try your hardest to surpress all verbal thought.

I just tried and thought to myself "Well this isn't so hard".

Language makes communication so much easier. I'm sure if I couldn't speak I'd be able to do it no problem, but as it stands, I can't.

I always have something vocal going on in my head, even if it's just a song (actually I don't remember not having music in my head, ever).

Originally Posted by Alex D

I always have something vocal going on in my head, even if it's just a song (actually I don't remember not having music in my head, ever).

There's always some kind of music in my head too. It sometimes starts up during a WILD attempt, but I try my hardest to stop it.

I just tried and thought to myself "Well this isn't so hard".

Read something without saying it in your head.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RNA
Do you understand it

If you don't think of something hard to do then it is easy, like how solving a childs cross word puzzle is easy.

Originally Posted by wendylove

Read something without saying it in your head.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RNA
Do you understand it

When thinking verbally, I could kinda understand that; but when I tried to think visually, my brain just broke.

When thinking verbally, I could kinda understand that; but when I tried to think visually, my brain just broke.

Yeah, thats why visual thinking is hard, however it can be done.

Originally Posted by Wiki Link

Since its origins in the 1950s, cognitive science has assumed that the mind's native representational format is something like symbolic logic

The mind's native representational format of thought is conceptual thought. Hence, what you are trying to reproduce here isn't "visual though". It's conceptual thought. The mind thinks in concepts by default and on the subconscious level. Not verbally or visually.

It isn't possible to think through "images" because not all concepts are represented visually. Nor are all concepts necessarily verbal but words can be used to describe most concepts so it's a common conscious practice for people to think verbally on the surface while beneath all that lies the subconscious (including in dreams), thinking in conceptual thought - the most optimal form of thought possible (while verbal thought compared to it is horribly awkward and slow).

Thanks Merlock I would look up more for conceptual thought

Nor are all concepts necessarily verbal but words can be used to describe most concepts so it's a common conscious practice for people to think verbally on the surface while beneath all that lies the subconscious (including in dreams), thinking in conceptual thought - the most optimal form of thought possible (while verbal thought compared to it is horribly awkward and slow).

It is impossible to think conceptually. In which I mean you can only think visually, verbally or both using your conscious mind. Unless you can control your subconscious(don't say hypnosis).

Yeah I get what you mean, in this issue of newscientist they say we are mostly reacting subconsciously to the environment.

This task seems pointless now.

Actually, it isn't impossible to use conceptual thought consciously. It's just very, very, very tough. But it can be trained like anything else. You do it half-consciously every time you drop into deep thought: while solving maths in your head, remembering a memory from long ago in silence to yourself for a short moment, etc.

Ah, good old conceptual thought.. Still haven't given up trying to get ppl to understand I see XD

Well, I'll throw my 2 cents is.

Visual and verbal thinking are simply representations of whats happening in the background.

Now, scientists try to use cases where something is missing to try to figure something out or figure out more about it. I'll use that. Have you ever had a time when you had a word that was on the tip of your tongue but you didn't know what word? You can find words that are similar and you know what the word is supposed to mean but you can't quite grasp it. This is a concept without its verbal representation.

The concept is, in essence, the meaning of the word. It is attributes, colors, connections. If you ever infer something without it sounding off in your head, your thinking conceptually. if you see somebody that's angry or annoyed and you consciously realize it without hearing in your head "he's angry" then you've had a conceptual thought.

I wouldn't be able to use visual representation only for even a minute... XD Right now, as I'm typing this, my head is sounding off things I should write, things people might say to it, things I might say to that and just generally dictating everything.. XD

This task is something I have been doing for a few years now. It's very relaxing and fun. Plus, it's fun to empty your mind of all thought and completely enjoy the moment you are in right now. Time is short, and sometimes it can slip past you, without you even noticing.

I used to think in speech, especially in puberty... I was learning two languages, so I got kind of used to thinking in them (as well as my natural language)

but now as years have passed, it's rare for me to find a speech in my mind... I mostly think visually and kinaesthetically

so I kind of understand the difference between them

for example, in dancing classes, I learn by trying to feel the movement being performed by my body (kinaesthetic that is) and most of the time copy the teacher's movement with my body

shouldn't be hard to do.. at least not for me (I guess).. I'll post results

I think neither visually nor verbally.

Originally Posted by Merlock

Actually, it isn't impossible to use conceptual thought consciously. It's just very, very, very tough. But it can be trained like anything else. You do it half-consciously every time you drop into deep thought: while solving maths in your head, remembering a memory from long ago in silence to yourself for a short moment, etc.

If anyone has heard of Daniel Tammet, I have a strong suspicion he uses conscious conceptual thinking when he imagines numbers as having shapes, colors, and textures.

Originally Posted by M-Cat

I think neither visually nor verbally.


If anyone has heard of Daniel Tammet, I have a strong suspicion he uses conscious conceptual thinking when he imagines numbers as having shapes, colors, and textures.

um... if you hadn't noticed... shapes, colors and textures are visual representations.

Originally Posted by arby

um... if you hadn't noticed... shapes, colors and textures are visual representations.

It's possible to associate them with tactile sensations, however. For example, blue is cold, red is hot, etc. Textures can also be "felt" in your mind.

Originally Posted by arby

um... if you hadn't noticed... shapes, colors and textures are visual representations.

um... if I hadn't noticed... lol

You're like an ant making fun of a dog's intelligence because you don't understand things the dog understands.

You think that looking at a yellow square and thinking "4,345,981" is visual thinking? Pfft, lol.

Aw well, just try not to make such asinine comments anymore! I forgive you this time

It's impossible to read without verbalising it. There's a difference between reading text and thinking visually. An example of me thinking visually would be I imagine making myself a sandwich. You can't do that with language and text as they are dependent on the other. This flow diagram represents what I'm saying. Eg. you can't get to text from images without using a language. you see?

Images -> Language -> Text

Originally Posted by •Neko•

Textures can also be "felt" in your mind.

what do you call that? it can't be imagining because that only applies to images.

im·ag·ine /ɪˈmædʒɪn/Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[i-maj-in]Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciationverb, -ined, -in·ing.
–verb (used with object) 1.to form a mental image of (something not actually present to the senses). 2.to think, believe, or fancy: He imagined the house was haunted. 3.to assume; suppose: I imagine they'll be here soon. 4.to conjecture; guess: I cannot imagine what you mean. 5.Archaic. to plan, scheme, or plot. –verb (used without object) 6.to form mental images of things not present to the senses; use the imagination. 7.to suppose; think; conjecture.


so what is it when you can feel something physically in your mind that you aren't actually feeling, or what about tasting or smelling for that matter? (you can't technically imagine a taste or smell) no one has been able to give me a decent answer to that. someone said "sensing" but i think that is way too general.

Originally Posted by M-Cat

You think that looking at a yellow square and thinking "4,345,981" is visual thinking? Pfft, lol.

um.. now you've reversed it.. No, numbers are not visual. But the square is...

but to your original question, no its not conceptional thought. He has synesthesia. This means his senses "overlap" (thats a bad word to use but what the hell...).

And can you please tone your ego down a little? Remember what happened last time you tried going on an ego trip?

For the feeling thing, paperdoll, look at definition number 6. It fits perfectly.

doesn't it say mental images?


i looked up Daniel Tammet on wikipedia. oh my god i don't know why i haven't heard of him, he's fascinating. i have synethesia too and i'm really interested in it, but i just see a different colour for every letter and number. it's nothing like THAT.

In his mind, he says, each number up to 10,000 has its own unique shape and feel, that he can "see" results of calculations as landscapes...

seriously, that is awesome. i have to read his memior now.

Really? You're synethesia? Thats awesome =D Does it ever seem to get in the way? Well.. I guess you can't realy compare to what it would be like without it..


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Synaesthesiatest.jpg

^ will the 5s and 2s in there pop out with different colors?

Anyways, about him seeing "landscapes". when he thinks of numbers. Can you see landscapes normally? Perhaps if you could, you might be able to see them when you think of numbers. But I have no idea how it works so i don't really know =O

it doesn't get in the way, i didn't even know about it for a long time. (actually on the contrary i think it helps me remember some things). a friend of mine was talking about it in an IM conversation and i realized i "see" a different colour for every letter and number. i don't actually see it, i just know it. at first i thought i was the type that saw colours for music, because i noticed once that i saw a different colour for certain songs. that was when i listened to CDs in a CD player (oldschool, haha). but i figured out it was the track number and not the music.

as for the picture, the 5's are orange to me and the 2's are yellow, but i don't think i could point out the triangle any faster than a non-synesthete. i think it's more obvious to some people with it.

and i doubt i could ever see what Daniel Tammet sees. it wouldn't come to me naturally anyway. i just see a colour, that's all.

Originally Posted by paperdoll

doesn't it say mental images?


i looked up Daniel Tammet on wikipedia. oh my god i don't know why i haven't heard of him, he's fascinating. i have synethesia too and i'm really interested in it, but i just see a different colour for every letter and number. it's nothing like THAT.

seriously, that is awesome. i have to read his memior now.

Honestly this is why I first became interested in acid. I had studied synethesia and thought it extremely fascinating, especially if you could train your mind to use it in ways in which it became more than a disorder as psychologists describe it and more of a genetic improvement. I then heard that acid induced similar conditions to synethesia in your brain and it was my new favorite drug. Of course I have no way of knowing how similar it actually is.

Originally Posted by arby

um.. now you've reversed it.. No, numbers are not visual. But the square is...

but to your original question, no its not conceptional thought. He has synesthesia. This means his senses "overlap" (thats a bad word to use but what the hell...).

And can you please tone your ego down a little? Remember what happened last time you tried going on an ego trip?

For the feeling thing, paperdoll, look at definition number 6. It fits perfectly.

What he does is conceptional thought.

Tammet doesn't solve equations consciously. He doesn't use visual thinking or tactile thinking. He looks at a math problem, and has a visual image as an answer, but not the MEANS to that answer. He gets that image through conceptual thinking. I'm not saying he doesn't have synesthesia. If synesthesia is below the conscious level, then it could be a form of conceptional thinking.

And I find it funny that people are jealous of my ego. Just because you don't have an intellect to be proud of, doesn't mean you have to accuse people of taking "ego trips" like you're a little 6-year-old. And in case you haven't noticed, that post was a parody of your own posting style. Little hypocrite.