Posts by sandygautam
Cognitive Map continued :The importance of color and other irrelevant facts as to my journey towards color vision
5 years ago
There is an article on EurekaAlert regarding the necessity of colors for identifying say members of your favorite football teams when engaged in a match with an adversary team. The contiguity provided by colors of uniforms worn by players ensures we are able to keep track of which member belongs to which team. As per the article in the absence of colors , we cannot track more than 3 objects at the same time.
The application of this to the cognitive map is evident. In the absence of colors, we may view the world in Black, White and Gray and would be forced to make arbitrary decisions of clubbing everything in one category or the other. This will limit us to make sense of the world in TriColor (if color can be used in this B&W context) (say of satve, rajas and Tamas gunas) by joining some isolated regions together to bi-or-trifurcate the world in some 2 or 3 arbitrary qualities/regions. Thus the world as located on our cognitive map would be made up of 2 or 3 qualia and different colors used to represent different but interconnected and hence same regions. One is reminded of the shloka from Gita ” tri-state is all of creation, be non-tri-state O Arjun”
With even 3(RGB) or 4 (CYMK) or 6 colors (??) at our disposal (and in the language of cognitive maps the ‘colors’ may be equivalent to the ‘emotions’ and thus reflect how we feel about that part (region) of the Map), we can have infinite combinations of colors to code the Map and thus either have a kaleidoscopic view of the world (in which there are more colors then can fit our working memory (limited by size constraints of 6 +-2 ); or we can stick to the 4 or 6 colors that are primary and see all the different regions of the cognitive map having the same color(out of the 4 or 6 primary colors) as one particular quality /qualia of the world. Thus all the red regions on our cognitive map may signify all the parts of our life (time-space event) that are felt by us as colored Red or arousing angry feelings (If Red is associated with Anger. Here is a link to V S Ramchnadran’s site that carries many research on synesthasia, though association of color with emotions is not discussed.)
Thus with the correct color coding (either MCYN or yet to be discovered 6 primary color schema….And that color mapped to ‘color’ as applicable in cognitive Maps) and the correct cognitive MAP nature ( a Rotating Sphere or a klien bottle ) with some other type of ‘spin’ one may be better adapted to understand reality and act accordingly knowing which parts of Cognitive map are more or less the same and which Cognitive Map is to be used for which season.
The article contains a quote from the original article viz
. “We found that humans are unable to store information from more than three sets at once,” Halberda said. “This places an important constraint on how humans think about and interact with sets in the world.”
As per this quote even when we have extended sets (say many regions on an Atlas covered in Cyan only- and thus forming one set), we can keep in memory no greater than 3 such sets. Thus we may be able to keep Cyan sets, Magneta sets and Yellow sets in the cognitive Map, but would miss on the Key (or Black set). This seems to be a limitation that has been observed experimentally and needs some thinking. Maybe later experiments (say done on Tibetan Lamas) could verify that more than 3- maybe upto 6 sets can be distinguished.
Before venturing forth and elaborating more on the Cognitive Map theme, I would like to backtrack a bit and again indicate from where I come: I believe that the personality traits from the Five-Factor Model can be mapped to successful or unsuccessful completion of the 5 development tasks that a child need to undergo before becoming an adult (or has an ego, or becomes a hero with a thousand faces!). After the first five developmental task are the 3 qualitatively different tasks that require him/her to reach out to others and thus develop traits that would not be captured by factor analysis that has as its reference an individual; but might possibly be revealed when one talks (or does a factor analysis) about say a pair. Are the pair intimate? are they a case of ‘sleeping with the enemy”? are they sacrificial etc? Broadly the first task and Factor would have to be intimacy and sharing and has to be attained not by an individual but by the pair. Intimacy with married partner may be one task that literally expands your horizons or lets you see issues from both sides of the coin, or with different spins applied to it!
The second (or sixth if the first 5 are also counted) task is related to group performance and solidarity. One could be instrumental and active in competitive groups, co-operating groups, creative/synergetic groups, or even destructive groups. How group dynamism is achieved, how synergy is created, how one submits one’s freedom to the greater good , how one starts understanding when to be competitive, when co-operative and when to go with the flow ( and when to stand up against the tide), all these would be tasks that need to be completed before achieving the feeling of efficacy.
The third (or last or eighth ) task would be to broaden your group identity and start extending it to others – say to whole of live creation. The end result of this would be peaceful death or passage to next life with no guilt feelings. Otherwise feeling of despair may occur instead of feelings of integrity with the world.
Much of the background for above is the ashtang yoga having 5 physical aspects – yam, niyam, asan, pranayam, pratyaharare and after these 3 mental aspects – Dhyan, Dharna and Samadhi.
Also, the analogy with the traditional 4 varna-ashrams that one should observe: Brahmacharya (in which ego identity is achieved while learning- and five personality factors deepened and come to terms with: this has to be completed by 25th B’day and till that time pure celibacy maintained), then Grahastha (next 25 years of your life devoted to marriage so that pure intimacy and union could be achieved), then Vanprastha ( next 25 years of life spent wandering in the forests with like minded people and planting seeds in the form of upnishads etc), Sanyas (the last 25 years of age being at peace with the world and oneself, relaxing and not felling bitter about old age/ physical conditions etc, reflecting on life). Thus the theory predicts to 3 more traits or factors , but these would be applicable to pairs, groups and universe respectively.
On another note, much of insights I have got regarding the 6th and 7th developmental tasks is from studying vision and Eye. After an eye is formed, then one needs a pair for binocular/depth vision. This is the 6th developmental task for eye (to pair up with another). after that one could have different movements of eye leading to different visual capacity: Smooth pursuit (involuntary), Saccadic (voluntary) and Nystagmus (sort of involuntary rhythmic movement).
Another parallel is formed in the physical motion subsystem with 6th step being the contraction and relaxation of muscle to produce desired motion and 7th step being differentiated muscle groups to serve different functions: Smooth muscles (involuntary for ex in stomach), striated/skeleton (voluntary used for locomotion) and cardiac (involuntary rhythmic with some randomness thrown in in the form of pacemaker cells).
Thus, to me the 6th stage of development/evolution normally corresponds to pairing with similar type (but different in some aspect) and then utilizing the pairing to achieve something qualitatively different. The 7th evolution/development stage is normally related either ‘colors or ‘movements’ or ‘group dynamics’ and again leads to new qualities and abilities. Finally the 8th stage is delegating control to someone higher up (say Eye delegating control to brain…Except for some control still retained over the Nystagmus or the muscles of entire body delegating control to brain (CNS) except for some pacemaker cells in the heart.
Pointers to other who would like to build:
1) start thinking about 5 ‘normal’ senses and then the other neglected senses like vestibular, kinesthetic etc.
2) revisit Howard Gardner’s 8 intelligences or EQ’s
3)revisit quarks their properties and dynamics etc
Why the number 8?
reason is Maths: Fibonacci series. Evolution works by building on what is. So assuming initially we have 1, the series of evolution, development becomes 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21 and so on.
Assuming somehow that one unit of something gets created. Then any complex system can be theoretically reduced to that one unit. Next come dualist system who can differentiate between the qualities that came into existence when a pair was formed. After that 2+1 units merge to form a new unit with 3 qualities. After that 5 qualities are possible, then eight is possible and then 13 or 21 is possible. I’ll stop here because the Tarot that I used to decipher the Fibonacci (and DA vinci code) has only 21 cards in Major Arcana if one discount the 0 card representing the fool). More about that in later mail. (Some caution, I don’t much believe in Tarot etc, but believe in the archetypal strength of such concepts as they have stood test of time).
So we in 21st century may start with 0 or may move further to 45
Another teaser: Tolman in his other article hints behavior-cues, behavior-object and behavior act as the next 3 steps in his behavioristic cognitive map theory. This makes for the eight fold development stage complete. Interestingly he continues beyond that on problems of Motive and hints at the next 5 spiritual/mental qualities that may be involved ” Finally, the problem of the relation of behavior-act to behavior-object is the extremely important problem of motive. It is the problem of desire, emotion, instinct, habit, determining set.” .
also we should always remember that world and reality is more like Mandelbrot set and each components of one puzzle may end up making an equivalent puzzle to us.
Endgame: is it top down or bottom up: what about say hands (2 of which would come together on 6th stage, and which would individually contain 5 fingers/thumb specialists for different tasks- the result of earlier 5 developmental/evolutionary tasks; what about the seventh task? Also can we just like analyzing from bottom down, start with universe and come down to quantum equations and come to closer approximations in terms of determining sets etc that Tolman was hinting in his other article.
The Cognitive Map continued: Its nature and implications: Is my Map different from Yours?
5 years ago
Would like to elaborate a bit more on the theme of the Cognitive Map especially as applicable to Humans and focusing more on the last 3 learning mechanisms relevant to ensuring that your Map reflects Reality as well as possible and is in accordance with the Reality Principle instead of some other principle (like the Pleasure Principle if it exists!)
In the forthcoming discussion, when I’ll refer to Map, I would start with assuming it to refer to a literal spatial map as outlined on a sphere. ( say a globe representing earth in which all the countries are mapped). The Map is thus 2 dimensional in nature, though outlawed on a 3-D object (Sphere or Oval of the earth shape)
6) Which Map to use for Which Season ( Regression as a pathology?) :
The assumption is that successive Cognitive Maps are placed on a sphere and the globe keeps rotating ensuring that we have the arrest cognitive Map in front of us. If one doesn’t stick to the globe analogy, one can also see the Cognitive Maps as being placed on a tape and when rewinded, they may appear as a movie.
A number of earlier Cognitive Maps not relevant to today’s’ experiment are still with Mice as they had earlier learned or internalized those Maps: Once the Mice or men have formed a Cognitive Map reflecting say the actual spatial location and 2-D nature of the table surface and objects that was used in mice experiments and are able to understand the concepts of either R, theta angular geometry or X,Y Cartesian Geometry , then it may happen that over time they realize that different experiment situation require them to use different cognitive maps (say in one situation they would be required to use the cognitive map using angular geometry concepts and then in other X,Y geometry concepts, then they may come to a logical conclusion that at times it is necessary to use earlier Cognitive Maps that were relevant in some earlier situation and may Regress to an earlier Map when their current Map (more in touch with Reality) does not help in the latest experimental setup. This is the first of the Many problems that they have to overcome before ensuring that they can use a broadly consistent Cognitive Map and become immune from the problem of regression. Imagine a Mice, who has just formed a spatial cognitive Map that has given him insight as to the nature of 2-D space and the location of food object/light in it. Imagine suddenly that he finds that these concepts although valid across many previous situations are no longer valid in the present situation, but force him to change his cognitive map. Then the Rat in an attempt to use an appropriate cognitive Map may start using an earlier map (may regress)
Another Analogy is that of Spinning. You might store your Map in a right-spinning globe, while another rat may overlay the cognitive Map on a left-spinning globe. Thus though the maps are identical, but due to different spins the subjective perception may be different. This may be analogous to the fact that though most groups (tribes/clans) of humans have past in back and future in front, some tribes (eg.. Aymara) actually have past in front and future in back. A word of caution though, here too the past and future are so to say linearly spoken of. In Indian languages, the word for day-after as for day-before is same and may suggest a spherical or repetitive nature of Cognitive Maps/ Reality.
Thus, even when your Map is Correct, it is not a single Map but one that is overlaid on a sphere and thus needs to be revolved in a particular direction to update with most accurate cognitive Map. Even when you have done this, if you don’t want to regress, you may have to take help of another mice to ‘see the map from a different angle’/ Assuming that you pair with a mice of different spin orientation, you would then be able to is any Map for any situation. Interesting to note that recent experiments have revealed that people take help of their spouses in storing memories. This may also explain why loss of spouse may be the most triggering factor for regression.
7) How many Colors do you need to paint your Map (which color is your umbrella):
After the Cognitive Maps have been developed and the trick of spinning there globe in clockwise or anti-clockwise direction to get an appropriate Cognitive Map is learned, the difficult question of how to distinguish the cognitive Map appropriate for the situation arises. Before deciding appropriateness, one must first face the problem of how to distinguish the different Maps. (Here I take Map as referring to a contiguous region on a globe- like a country). The answer is simple; a -priori- we need four colors as per four-color theorem. This would be true if the cognitive Maps were indeed mapped on a sphere. In this case one can use CMYK system as used in color printers (a subtractive system). We want pure colors for Mapping- we do not want to mix colors as that may lead to confusion as to us remembering a lot of different colors due to different shaded maps.) Also by using these 4 colors we can still print on our mental map the different shades of all hues. Thus this can give us an opportunity for identifying regions/Maps in ‘pure’ colors as well as identifying regions/Maps in their ‘actual/mixed’ colors. Point to note that in CMYK, the K stands for Key which is usually represented by Black ink. Thus, in CMYK system some regions would be marked as black.
Some notes though:- There are other strong contenders for how we may color our maps.
1. One is the HSV model, whereby one would assign a different Hue to every region(and this is done in terms of an angle), and a saturation (how ‘pure’ and non-grey is the color) and a brightness (how bright or high energy the region/map is). This model would be learned most easily by this rats who learned the R.Theta angular geometry. HSL is also similar.
2. The second is RGB model. Here every region is given a Cartesian co-ordinate corresponding to R, G and B values which start form 0 at origin and move towards infinity as we move away from origin.
3. The third is YUV model. Hereby there is one luminance components (Y) and 2 chromonence componenets (u,v). The primary advantage of this model is that it is compatible with black and white (or grayish) view and coloring of Maps. Thus with this system, one can choose to see the Maps in color or in grey at whim!
Before closing on the color theory of maps, would like to throw one more gauntlet. It seems a Klien bottle (which is a surface that has no inside and outside ( and in this respect is similar to mobius strip) is the only surface that does not follow a rule in mathematic for calculating the number of colors needed to paint regions on that surface. The klien bottle requires 6 colors . My personal view is that our reality as well as the cognitive Maps we make follow more the Kline bottle surface and hence would need 6 colors to fully color them. These may be 6 colors or 6 factors related to color/luminance etc). I am pursuing thus path because of analogous 6 types of flavors in quarks (up,bottom, top, strange, charm, down). Also the previous discussion of spins is partly influenced by the isospin of quarks.
A dysfunctional (or incorrectly colored cognitive map) map would lead to problems like fixation. If the map is painted all Red and no other colors are used(and if red is associated with anger in that person’s internal language), then we have a case whereby the person who uses excessive red in his map is fixating his energy on anger (or a previous map that was excessively red)
Parting note on this: the colored cognitive map theory may explain the charm of Picasso or stained glass windows.
Who shares your map and who doesn’t :
Ultimately, when a mice or (wo)man acts, it has to determine not only what cognitive map is relevant for the situation, but also who else would share that cognitive map . This info is necessary irrespective of whether the motive is to compete or co-operate. Slowly over the different experiments the mice learn that not only they themselves know a bit about the maze, but that other mice (as well as the experimenter 
) knows about the Maze. In such insight situations, if the mice feels frustrated it may either seek help from conspecifics or direct his anger towards non-conspecifics (like the experimenter). Thus, after this last set of experiments he may start co-operating and sharing his Cognitive Map with others or retreat and exhibit “displacement of aggression”. This would work even in case of husband-wife agression displacement, if the spouse does not understand the map of the other.
An instructive way of looking at these Cognitive Maps an be form the other end of the spectrum (i.e instead of analogies with quarks/particles look at the analogies with light/waves) . tolman seems to have taken a similar approach in his another landmark article. Here he discusses behavior tendencies, behavior acts et and they seem more like quantum Fields and collapse of the quantum wave. More on that in a later post.
For now a parting link to a recent article that grants more intelligence to mice than was customary till now.
The Cognitive Map : How Mice and Men learn when in the Mouse Trap
5 years ago
As a continuation of the Mouse Trap theme, would like to share links to a very insightful paper in Psychology that had marked a departure from behavioral to cognitive explanations and provided a very relevant concept of Cognitive Maps. This original article by Tolman is a delightful and easy read, though some background in classical behaviorist theories of Instrumental and Operant Conditioning would help. What delights is that Tolman uses and explains these concepts without the associated jargon.
I find the 5 different cognitive modes of learning, he identifies, quite instructive and intriguing:
1) Latent Learning (the mice are not blind, though they may act as such if not motivated enough to have eyes:-): They learn the maze, though if not rewarded they may not exhibit that learning in their behavior. This type of learning helps to clarify the difference between learning something and behavior in-line with that learning; and it is clear that the appropriate behavior is mediated by motivation. Learning happens automatically, irrespective of mediation by goal-directed or reward-presence, maybe subconscious in nature, and in the form of a Cognitive Map that is formed latently; but if no incentives are there to make use of the Cognitive Map then that learning is not reflected in the behavior. In the presence of motivation, learning may become conscious and manifest in behavior.
2) Vicarious Trial and Error Learning (The million dollar question in the Matrix: Which door leads to the Source:-) and the billion dollar question superseding that : which door would Neo choose? : This learning behavior that Mice exhibit on a decision or choice point should not have been called Vicarious Trial and Error Learning. The name somehow misses the point. I also do not agree with the explanations. My own two cents: the mice ‘choose’ between the options presented on a choice point and this VTE is just an observable external behavior reflecting their internal dilemma : whether to choose food or to choose the locked door and fool the Experimenter:-) As mentioned in the Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, it may end up that mice were experimenting on us all the way! On a more serious note, if we do assume that there may be reasons for mice to choose non-food at some times, lets say when it is satiated and does not really need food but prefers the thrill of bungee jumping back to the start point, then it makes sense that VTE would be observed more in conditions in which the Mice is able to differentiate easily between the options and thus use discretion /discrimination. These are the easy learning situations of the contrasting Black and White doors. For the dark grey and Black doors situation, the learning task is more difficult and so when the Mice doesn’t really know which door would lead to food and which to non-food, there is little point in deliberation and he may as well choose any door (or rather the choice he makes may be factually incorrect, so he need not hesitate to choose deliberately – he may as well choose randomly – as he doesn’t really have that much control ). Only when choice is real- that is he knows that he has sufficient information to make an informed choice, would there be observed deliberation and choice and associated VTE. Interestingly VTE starts increasing in difficult tasks too, as learning starts to happen and choice become real. An intriguing observation is that the stupid mice do more VTEing in mazes than intelligent ones: are they the really intelligent mice who are acting just stupid and experimenting on Humans?
3. Searching for Stimulus (Who let the dogs out? ): This seems related to the fact that mice would actually indulge in some behavior (in this case looking around their cage for the preponderant stimuli) that is directed towards identifying the salient features of the environment that are associated with their immediate prior experience. They are interested in finding the cause of the effects that they have just witnessed. This interactivity/connectionless view is limited as the experiments focused mostly on avoidance learning and new insights may be available from the similar behavior observed during escape/approach learning if that too exhibits the learning style typical to this avoidance learning : viz searching for stimulus that can be associated with the experience post facto. Interesting to note that when the stimuli following the responses are random, then as the mice’s ‘search for stimulus’ throws an exception, the mice acquires ‘learned helplessness’ whereby it stops monitoring/analyzing its environment. Thi sis presumed to be the mechanism behind clinical depression in humans.
4. The ‘Hypothesis’ experiments (the search for patterns/ pattern recognition : to look for the most apt Cognitive Map relevant to this situation): As per this type of learning the mice presumes or forms a hypothesis of what the desired sequence of steps leading to correct outcome should be, actively indulges in systematic exploration to verify the hypothesis and gives up and tries another hypothesis if the results are not favorable. This is the classical ‘scientific method’ and it is amazing that the mice use that! It is limited in the sense that the experiment is restricted to approach learning. Interesting to note that this type of learning presupposes the existence of ‘concepts’ like left, right, light and dark in the mice and presupposes an ability to sequence these in temporal fashion and act accordingly.
5. ‘Spatial Orientation’ learning (Let there be light!): This particular dimension of learning was the most instrumental in Tolman coming up with the Cognitive Map concept. In this, the mice while exploring the maze and learning the sequence of steps that lead to the food box (or goal, which significantly is paired with light in this case), also apparently learnt the precise spatial location of the food box, so that if the maze was replaced by a radiating spokes of alleys, then after some exploration of each alley, the Mice would finally ‘choose’ one of the alleys and run all the way down the alley (without looking back till it escapes from the alley to find wither the food box or the alley ends into an opening ) and in one particular experimental setup when no other intervening variables were present, the alley that was chosen was significantly related to the presence of food box (light source). Few points to note: Light (or an adequate point of reference like the Sun), seems essential is this sort of learning, maybe the different light/shadow interactions/ intensities are integrally required to from concepts of location. Also, in the first experiment only one light source ( and possibly diffractions effects maybe relevant, while in the second there are 2 sources of light – leaving scope for things like interferences effects to have been instrumental in the learning process. Haven’t yet figured out an explanation for the behavior exhibited in the second experiment, but one thing is evident – the presence of a third light (L3 labeled in the diagram) , would have indicated to the mice, that their starting positions and orientations have been changed, and thus they focused on the right direction (left and right …And thus perpendicular to the walls of the room/table) but missed out on the location. Interestingly this second experiment too exhibits ‘escape’ behavior, whereby once a mice has chosen an alley, it goes all the way down that alley. I would sum this up mostly as Insight learning regarding the 2-dimensional nature of table-space, wherein the mice learn the 2-dimensional spatial location of an object (food box) and either use the r, theta co-ordinates (angular geometry) to guess its location and behave accordingly, or use the other ‘Cartesian’ X,Y co-ordinate system to guess the location of the object and take an alley which is perpendicular to the walls of the table (which serve as reference co-ordinates) in its search of the object. In both cases, if my hypothesis is correct, the Rats should ideally not go all along the way down the alley chosen and exhibit the strong escape behavior; but in Radius, theta case should stop/ hesitate when the radius they have covered is sufficiently greater than the actual radial distance; and in the X,Y case, should stop/ hesitate and look for a turn when the reasonable X, or Y distance has been covered, and if the alley does have a perpendicular turn / choice point after some time, than they should turn in the right direction of where the food is located). Interesting hypothesis, but I am afraid I cannot verify these. Isf someone can conducts these experiments for me and inform me of outcome I will be really grateful. In any case, in the present circumstances, this learning mechanism seems to mostly mediate escape behaviors and that too in the presence of light source and is restricted to learning about spatial locations and the nature of Space (2- D for rats)
Interestingly in another article on the web in TIP , these mechanisms are represented in the reverse order and that too with one important transposition wherein the order of Escape and Approach is reversed. : 1) approach 2) escape, 3) avoidance 4) choice point and 5) latent. This is described under ‘sign learning’ and I find that fascinating as I am currently hooked to things like Da Vince Code ( haven’t read the book or movie, jut documentaries on the same) or tarot and looking for subtle signs that would help in uncracking the code/ breaking the matrix. A tidbit from this page that I find intriguing is that Tolman was also investigating motivation for war.
Resuming discussion on the original article, it also mentions 3 mechanism related to Cognitive Maps that are observable in Humans ( I presume this is over and above the 5 Learning mechanism that are definitely present in both Mice and Men). These, of a different dimension, are briefly mentioned below, but seem to be based on Freudian defense mechanism and are generally speaking unhealthy (defense) mechanism that we may use by referring to Cognitive Maps that are not in touch with reality ( and the learning and behavior instead of being based on Reality principle are based on Pleasure principal). These are summarized below (though haven’t though about them in details and will follow up in a later mail with more elaborations) and this sort of learning ideally needs to be unlearned in order for effective behavior.
6) Regression : Reverting back to earlier learned cognitive maps that are no more relevant in the present situations when dealing with things like emotional loss ( the exact example given is of a loss of spouse…And this concrete example may have much to do with the situations in which this ‘learning’ becomes relevant)
7) Fixation : Using one particular Cognitive Map in all situations as it may have served well in one particular situation in which it was associated with high reward/ motivation.
Displacement of aggression onto outgroup : This, on first look, appears to be the classical displacement (of anger) that is touted as a defense mechanism when a man that returns home angry on the boss, shouts on his wife; but this is made contingent to the fact that aggression is directed on outgroup and is thus qualitatively different. This assumes concepts like group and belonging to group as well as ability to differentiate and discriminate between group and outgroup. It also involves deliberate hate ( and not just prejudice of the outgroup) towards the outgroup, who is made a willing target of aggression in case of frustrations within the group.
All the above 3 negative learned mechanisms Tolman maintains is a result of narrow cognitive Maps. The article ends on a very philosophical note!!
Before concluding, I would just like to briefly summarize my position on the experiments done in the mouse traps:-). I believe the correct order ( an this does matter in the theory I am trying to build up) should be
1) Latent 2) Choice point 3) Avoidance 4) Escape and 5) Approach
6) regression 7) fixation Displacement to outgroup
the only difference I propose in ordering is that 4) Escape (learning related to Space) comes before 5) Learning related to time ( sequence of steps / patterns in time that lead to correct outcome)
Also, to briefly give you an idea from where I come from
I believe in the eight stage developmental theory of Erikson with the 5th step of ego formation being a definitive step in development of self, whereby the adolescent tries many roles in different situations, and achieves ego integrity (or finds the role that he is supposed to play) on successful completion of this step. The rest 3 development tasks of Intimacy, efficacy and Integrity are of qualitatively different nature that the preceding five tasks. Of course I don’t take the Freudian background or explanations of these stages/ tasks but am more into the cognitive developmental theories fir eg of Piaget.
Do comment and let us rock!!
More From TheMouseTrap
- Major conscious and unconcoscious processes in the brain
- The Altruistic Mice: how they help a conspecific in a trap.
- Child Psychology: The Mouse Trap turns 3
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The Genesis of The Mouse Trap
6 years ago
I first wrote a draft story titled “The Mouse Trap” in the year 2002. As expected, it is still in the draft stage:-) and I look forward to finish it within the lifespan of this blog:-)
I took it as an apt illustration for my CogSci blog as I believe it hints at my other idiosyncrasies : interest in astrology or occult, interest in literature and above all interest in the battle of the sexes!!
So am starting the blog with snippets from the still-in-making short story that inspired the name of this page.
( I was delighted recently while watching a movie adaptation of Hamlet and it dawned to me that Hamlet had used “The Mouse Trap” as the name of the play he staged for his mother and uncle. What a co-incidence that I refer to Hamlet’s famous line “To be or not to be…” In this story)
So here are excerpts from the short story:
>>
The Mouse Trap
The mouse lay in that room, unaware of the cat, never fearing that cats could exist and gently bringing magic to the lives of other mouse, bringing a smile on their face and moving around a lot in all the other rooms, making friends and whiling her time away. Whenever she had a lazy afternoon all by herself, she felt so selfish and miserable at her selfishness, that she made up to it, by moving around a lot with all the other mouse on the next day. But this evening was one of the days when she was exhausted from her constant caring about other mousses, and was feeling a bit indulgent (and a byte more selfish and guilty).
She saw the cat and she closed her eyes, for she knew that if you close your eyes cats do not exist. She was pleased at her intelligence and opened one eye slowly and surely to check if the cat exists. Of course it did…and it was all the more nearer. She started dancing, desperately trying to lift her blues and manage her emotions in the face of crisis. She knew this was a wheel of life and if she was so close to being eaten, in some time she’ll be back to lying lazily in the sun. What goes up also comes down. And being the Just one, she thus justified, her guilt when she was enjoying the sun….
“Well you know, you are such a handsome and big cat. Don’t you think you are doing something wrong by attacking me?”
The Cat was flattered” Oh yes! Yes! I am big…no doubt about that. But….u r so beautiful, don’t you think it will be just right that cat as big as me should have a mouse as beautiful as you”
This was firm logic, and the cat could not deny it. Besides, she was pleased on being called beautiful “ you see its like this….you need to eat me…and I need to run away….your attacking me is fine on your part, on the other hand wont it be unjust if I did not defend myself”. She had already sized up her opponent and was all thrilled by the competition that and conflict that lay ahead After all “Isn’t it the competition that makes the Victory worthwhile”
The cat stood there amused, seeing her take arms and move from one corner to other and then he noticed that there were two exits, close-to-each-other from the room. He positioned himself, such that if she took either of the roots, he would be able to reposition quickly and she will walk straight in his jaws.
The mouse saw the two doors and knew that safety lay behind them and no matter which door she chooses, she will be safe and victory was all hers. Yet she could not decide which one was better. She closed her eyes, and moved first towards one door and then towards the other and kept doing so till she forgot whether she was in front of the left door, or the right door, or the wrong door, or the door that was left. So she stood in deep trepidation (& meditation), and realized that the issue involved were really simple…it was whether she wanted to be eaten or not. Once she realized that, she moved straight out of the door that was in front of her.
Meanwhile the Cat who had been repositioning himself, each time she moved one way or the other, had got a much needed respite during her time of meditation and to overcome his own confusion had rested in the middle of the two doors ready to catch her whichever way she took., but he was so bored up by the time she made her mind, that he dozed off to sleep, and she went past him confidently with her eyes closed and straight to another room, where there was a party that was going on and she forget all about the Cat as she started dancing once again.
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The cat was furious and wanted to chase her all the way to the room in which the mice were partying, but he knew that she would have become quite popular by now, and he’ll have to face an army of hostile mice, so he ventured forth to a room that looked as if it had been recently overhauled and transformed. The mouse was still bus peeling off old plasters and repainting them with another hue.
When she saw the cat enter, she was already on her guard. But she knew she could never be defeated, nor could someone know better how to handle such a situation. But she was not sure whether it was a cat or a dog in cat’s clothing.
“Stop there”, she thundered, “Are you cat or dog ion a cat’s clothing. Fear not me, for if you are a dog, you need not cover yourself, but if you are a cat indeed, I ought to know your motives for entering my den.”
The Cat didn’t reply. He just purred. Then he said in a lame voice “I have come to kill you”. It sounded so funny. He was sure the mouse would laugh. But the mouse stood there with the stern look in her eyes. “You cannot fool me. That is not the real reason. Come on. Tell me. Out with the truth.”
The cat didn’t say anything but started advancing. The mouse suddenly pulled a rabbit mask over her face and said in a seductive voice” Why do you want to eat some stupid mouse, when a rabbit is available”….as the Cat advanced towards the rabbit, she again pulled a mask and this time she was a frog “ Frog, I’m sure you know , are a delicacy…and more tasty than rabbit or rates…but tell me what do you want”…thus she kept him confused, pulling masks of different shapes and sizes…and she never waited for an answer. Suddenly, it appeared as if she was transformed and had finally decided to trust the cat and let her steam out. She broke in a passionate discourse over “How mice keep fooling themselves that cats are after them, while all cats want to have is some fun” and speaking so she leaped in one Jump and ( by this time she was almost in reach of the cat), gave him a passionate kiss on the lips. The Cat felt weak in his knees, and found his entire grip melting away. And in no time the mouse had run herself to safety in the next room. And she stared from there towards the cat with an ominous look in her eyes. The cat shivered form the apprehension of things that were to come and decided to go elsewhere.
************************************************************
The Cat darted into the next room and found no one. He was about to leave, when something fell out of the ceiling.
“Oh dear me! What were you up to?” the cat started advancing even as he drawled.
“I was pondering over the mysteries of the sky and what better ways than to climb onto the ceiling and gaze at the sky. I suspect, a thunderstorm is coming tonight”
“Isnt the room covered, I see a ceiling instead of a sky.” The cat was advancing all the time, keeping her engaged, but yes he was cautious and even reluctant, for he was not sure what he was doing here. He wanted to ask the mouse the same but he said instead” What did you find in the sky?”
“Oh! I couldn’t see the sky. There was a cobweb in the corner of the ceiling and I got caught up in it. I had to first walk through all the myriad of threads of that web and only then could I move on. I hope you understand.” The Cat’s expression didn’t look any close to comprehension, so the mouse explained” The web of our life is made up of mingled yarn –that was said by Shake Chilli, and he was so right. Sheikh Chilli had a way with webs…”’…the mouse continued backing away inch-by-inch as the cat advanced and this infuriated her, for she was getting distracted from her prime task of explaining all the silken threads she had discovered and how they gave meaning to life, by this constant bewilderment on who the cat was and what he wanted from her? Suddenly, she stopped mid-way, with an unfinished thread still hanging in the air, as she exclaimed, “ you are a Cat and you are out to kill me”, the matter so settled, she was now at ease , and stopping her retreat,, once again got immersed in her web.
The relief was mutual. For the Cat too, reassured of his motives, did not find any room for hesitancy now and pounced on her in one leap. She had finished the excited narration of her discovery of how the sky indeed exists (and how she had accidentally discovered it one day…and had forgotten all about it until she remembered it today) and how you just have to touch the ceilings to listen to the sky and so on and so forth…but seeing that this was not having any effect on the Cat, she decided to go on the offensive. For she thought it highly unjust. That a Cat should kill a mouse and on purely Ratatarian grounds decided to intervene. Though her concerns were limited to the rats that inhibit this earth, she didn’t mind pulling a few cats out of her bag to save Ratanity. So she pulled forth a litter of them and started her discourse
“Why don’t you form a group of Cats and to feed each-other, decide to die by draws! That would make perfect sense…alone you may never be able to feed yourself, but as a part of a big group of like-minded Cats, you will be able to solve your problems! We do the same for rats here. I once discovered a prophet who told me that we must all unite to redeem ourselves and from that date I have been bringing like-minded rats together and spreading his message of truth…Of course being an inventive little mouse I had once built a safety-trap to escape from Cats. And I can easily save myself and escape to safety, but how can I forget all my other brethren who will perpetually live in danger of being attacked by the Cats and all you lost Cats who would be in danger of losing their souls by eating more mice. I am not afraid of dying, for dying is just as certain as sunset and sunrise. But I get saddened when I think about you. Don’t you realize you have eaten enough mice and now is the time to go to Haz? So listen to me. Do not do what the real you doesn’t want to do, and reflect whether 10 years from now, you will feel good or bad about all the mice that you have eaten and the Haj pilgrimage you have not taken.
“To eat or not to eat, that is the question,
Whether it’s nobler in the stomach to suffer
The stabs and pangs of outrageous hunger,
Or to take a Haj pilgrim instead,
& by getting stampeded, end them”
I am such a fan of Shake Chilli u know….So think and think deeply…Its all in your hands… how do you want to feel 10 years from now”
“I’ll just like to feel not hungry” said the Cat in a miserable voice, for he was starting to feel the pangs of conscience and hunger at the same time.
Just when he was about to put her in his mouth, she suddenly enquired quite innocently “why do cats have whiskers? Funny you never notice things of importance unless they stare you in the face” and she was so tickled by her joke that she laughed at her own naivete and broke into a smile that was graced by all the stars in the sky.
The cat was lost in her smile (for it stretched form one corner to the other (of her mouth) and then to his astonishment continued spreading further until it filled the whole room and enveloped him too. Thus as the smile kept spreading and turning and embracing him, he found himself caught up in it and felt a bit lost in all those dazzling loops), when she brought him to his senses by repeating the question on whiskers.
“Well….ummm” the cat muttered trying to find an answer.
Suddenly, a bolt of lightening hit the ceiling and a crack the size of two eyes appeared in the ceiling. The mouse shrieked a cry of excitement and jumped from the Cats paws to take a look at the skies. What she saw drew her towards it with such a force that first her head, then her neck, and then her stomach squeezed through that tiny space, and disappeared from the Cat’s view, until finally as the last of her tail disappeared, the Cat was again brought to his sense by her departing words “The Cats have whiskers, so the good mouse can see the sky. And the sky is beautiful and worth seeing, and I’ll comeback after counting all the stars….and then her voice got lost and she became so fascinated by the sky that she forgot all about the Cat and the mouse trap.
******************************************
>>
PS: Endgame: Can someone identify which sun signs the 3 mouses refer to? The original idea was to depict the typical courtship behaviour and attitudes associated with a Sun Sign.
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