THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS IN PUBS

PORTOBELLO

BEGINNING

1 MOVING A TRAIN

Frank and Molly go for walks together every fortnight or so. They both like being outside and on the move while they catch up. They notice the seasons slowly change and the way London’s energy changes with them.

Today was a brilliant bluebird day with golden sun and crisp air, but it's 4pm and already getting dark. The wind is picking up and the temperature is plummeting.

Molly shares something she’s been pondering for a couple of days, since New Year’s Eve:

“I’ve been wondering why the year starts in the middle of January? Like wouldn’t it make more sense to start it in Spring, when everything comes to life again?

Come to think of it, why do we start the 24 hour clock in the middle of the night? Why doesn’t it start at sunrise? I guess it would be quite chaotic if the clocks changed every day to keep up with sunrise, but midnight does seem to be a strange choice.”

Frank:

“No it doesn’t. The reason midnight works is because everyone is asleep, they don’t notice the reset, they just wake up to it. If the day started when you woke up, it would be so stressful. It would feel like a race!

I guess that’s also why I think starting the New Year in January makes sense. It means we can ‘wake up’ slowly. We have a headstart before Spring kicks off. January, February, and March are a good time to get organised, get fit, and get stuff done, you’ve just got to start slowly and speed up as you go. I think of it like moving a train.”

Molly:

“What do you mean ‘moving a train’?”

Frank:

“It takes a lot of energy to get a train moving, and you have to do it slowly. But once it’s going, it doesn’t take nearly as much energy to keep moving and you can go quite fast.

So the key is to not rush at the beginning, move slowly, deploy your energy wisely. Momentum will build up and soon you’ll be flying.”

Molly:

“I guess that doesn’t work with new years resolutions then, does it?”

Frank:

“It does. Actually it works really well. You just have to approach the resolutions like a train.

If your resolution is to start running, start with 5 minutes a day. No more, no less. Even if it feels silly to go for a 5 minute run, stick to it. It’s a miniscule run, so it's very easy to achieve. You can probably do it in jeans.

Then slowly work up from there. Maybe you spend the whole of January just doing 5 minutes a day, then in February you add one minute every other day. Before you know it you’ll be running for hours and the habit will be really established. It works with anything: meditating, writing, etc. etc. Just think of trains.”

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

What do you think of the new year starting in January? Do you like it? Does it feel intuitive?
Does the train metaphor feel helpful? Or are you more of a sprint start person?
What other metaphors can you think of for January energy?
How do you/don’t you approach new beginnings? Do you find them helpful?
Why do you think humans feel the need to mark the start of a new year?

SOURCE: BA, THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS IN PUBS Group Member

2 DIE BEFORE YOU DIE

You’re in the middle of a cloud.

You stretch out a hand and wave it though the air and the brilliant whiteness curls and disturbs in its wake.

But the air is warm and dry, which it wouldn’t be if you were really in a cloud.

So where are you?

You can’t make out anything besides billowing white in every direction, including beneath your feet.

Pinching yourself, you begin to feel a little concerned. You don’t seem to be asleep and dreaming.

You wonder if you’re in a coma, if there’s been an accident that you don’t remember.

A bored little voice says:

“It’s not a coma, don’t worry. Nothing bad has happened.”

With a start, you look around. Are you hallucinating?

Something catches your eye. Slowly materialising, a tiny creature made of the same white billowy substance as everything else becomes gradually more defined.

It says, in the same bored little voice,

“We’re trialling a new intervention because we’ve had some complaints.”

You stare at it and it continues:

“I won’t go into specifics about the complaints, GDPR and all that, but let's just say that lots of people have said they wish they’d had the chance to ‘die before they die’.”

At your still baffled expression, the creature sighs and continues:

“Those that arrive at the afterlife never having had a near death experience in their lifetimes have been talking to those that have and they’re jealous. They wish they had a ‘second bite at the apple’ so to speak. So that’s why we’re trialling this.”

You ask:

“What is this? Am I dead?”

The creature replies:

“Not at all. You’re paused. You have the opportunity to carry on with your life exactly as before, or you can treat this as the wake up call you always needed. What we’re suggesting is that you look at your life with fresh eyes. Re-evaluate everything. Keep the stuff that you think is worthwhile and change the rest. Think of it like existential decluttering.

I’ll hand you over to Sheila now, she’ll help you go through things step by step. I’ve been told I don’t have the patience or demeanour for it.”

Still reeling, you watch as the creature dematerialises and in its place, another little creature appears. This one is very similar to the first, but with a faint orange glow about it. It says in a much cheerier voice than the other creature:

“Hi! I’m Sheila. I’m here to support you through your life evaluation. The best way to start is by imagining that everything in your life has been wiped. You have no responsibilities, work, or chores; no people you need to see or places you need to go. All plans, past and present, evaporate. Then, we’ll begin putting things back in, but only the things you really want.”

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

What do you think of this new cosmic intervention? Would you appreciate it? Do you think it would be valuable to most people? Anyone?
Suppose you indulge Sheila’s exercise, starting with a blank slate, what would you add back into your life? Is it a lot? Or a little?
Near death experiences are known to bring about “pervasive changes in attitudes and behavior” (Greyson, 2013). Why do you think this is?
Is it possible to “die before you die” without a near death experience? If yes, how?
Why do humans stick to habits/routines/relationships that are non-essential and not making them happy?
What helps when trying to let go of such things?

SOURCES:

BA, THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS IN PUBS Group Member inspired by: https://tommccallum.com/2021/06/23/if-you-had-a-clean-slate-what-would-you-add-back/

Greyson, B. (2013). Getting comfortable with near-death experiences: An overview of near-death experiences. Missouri Medicine, 110(6), 475–481. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6179792/

3 FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Edgar’s New Year’s Resolution is to improve his first impression. He’s realised this is a weakness of his.

He was listening to famous therapist Esther Perel’s podcast over the Christmas break and found her opening line “Where shall we begin” stressful. Just imagining himself sitting on the couch and being asked that raised his heartrate.

He’s always found job interviews nerve-wracking. And dates.

Once he’s got to know someone a bit, he warms up. His friends describe him as an extrovert, just not at first.

Public speaking has always been an absolute no-go.

But this year, Edgar is determined to face this challenge.

He’s just not sure how to begin, which feels irritatingly ironic.

So he asks you, a few of his closest friends, to help him.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

What would you suggest?
Do you think this is a worthwhile new year’s resolution?
Is it possible to change the first impression one gives?
How much of a first impression is about confidence? How much about physical appearance?
How much is it in the eyes of the beholder?
How important is a first impression?
Supposing you are a benevolent group of Edgar’s friends and you have the opportunity to talk about this together before seeing him, how would you decide to respond as a group?

SOURCES:

BA, THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS IN PUBS Group Member