A Feature or a Bug?
We all move around the world assuming that the movie playing out in front of us is an accurate potrayal of reality.
That our sensory perceptions are tightly bound to what is actually unfolding out there in the world.
Sure the odd optical illusion trips us up sometimes. But surely these experiences are just bugs.. right? Unfortunate glitches in what is otherwise a clear representation of what is really going on.
Maybe. But perhaps not.
What if they are actually symtoms of a counter-intutive truth, that has been hiding in plain sight for almost all of human history.
What if, as opposed to bugs, our illusionary patterns of perception, self-delusion, controlled hullunications and fictional stories are features?
Neccessary adaptive mechanisms which played crucial roles in the success of our species.
Is it so hard to imagine that fiction could be more useful than truth?
