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The User Illusion:

Cutting Consciousness Down to Size
Front Cover
28 Reviews
A. Lane, 1998 - Medical - 467 pages
As John Casti wrote, "Finally, a book that really does explain consciousness." This groundbreaking work by Denmark's leading science writer draws on psychology, evolutionary biology, information theory, and other disciplines to argue its revolutionary point: that consciousness represents only an infinitesimal fraction of our ability to process information. Although we are unaware of it, our brains sift through and discard billions of pieces of data in order to allow us to understand the world around us. In fact, most of what we call thought is actually the unconscious discarding of information. What our consciousness rejects constitutes the most valuable part of ourselves, the "Me" that the "I" draws on for most of our actions -- fluent speech, riding a bicycle, anything involving expertise. No wonder that, in this age of information, so many of us feel empty and dissatisfied. As engaging as it is insightful, this important book encourages us to rely more on what our instincts and our senses tell us so that we can better appreciate the richness of human life.

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Review: The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size

User Review  - Ahsan - Goodreads

When I read books as a kid, I had a sense of mystery. In my innocence and my ignorance, every book was a exciting journey. But now I have lost it; I have lost the sense of mystery. Now - now with age ... Read full review

Review: The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size

User Review  - Socraticgadfly - Goodreads

Still good, still thought-provoking after many years. I bought this about the time it first came out, and recently finished a re-read of it. Some parts of it are a bit dated, some parts are perhaps a ... Read full review

All 24 reviews »

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Contents

Preface
ix
Computation
xv
Throwing Away Information 23
xxxv
Copyright

18 other sections not shown

Common terms and phrases

References to this book

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References from web pages

Countering the User Illusion, Designing for the Me - Susan Harkus
Tor Nørretranders, The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size, Gyldendalske Boghandel, 1991. Penguin translation, 1998. p.174 ...
users.bigpond.net.au/ susan_harkus/ TheUserIllusion.html

User illusion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size. Viking. ISBN 0-670-87579-1. This philosophy-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by ...
en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ User_illusion

Tor.dk » The User Illusion
This is the wordpress blog of Danish science writer Tor Nørretranders.
tor.dk/ category/ in-english/ books/ the-user-illusion/

Phys Comp Notes: The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size
The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size. Tor Nørretranders ©1998 Viking Press; ISBN: 0670875791. Makes the case that much of our experience of ...
www.tigoe.net/ pcomp/ blog/ archives/ / 000072.shtml

the susijn agency | Tor Norretranders
According to Nørretranders (The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size ), "costly" actions, like sharing one's food and expending valuable energy ...
www.thesusijnagency.com/ authors/ norretranders.htm

Psychology - 2007 Catalog - DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY (Page 4)
Tor Nørretranders. THE user illusion. Cutting Consciousness down to Size “Nørretranders, a top Danish science writer, makes his American debut with this ...
ppi-pwf.texterity.com/ ppi/ psychology2007/ ?pg=4

quotes
The mind, in short, works on the data it receives very much as a sculptor works on his block of stone. In a sense the statue stood there from eternity. ...
3stages.org/ c/ gq.cgi?first=throw+away+information

Chaitin, The Unknowable
See T. Nørretranders, ``Maxwell's Demon,'' chapter 1 in The User Illusion—Cutting Consciousness Down to Size, and hc von Baeyer, Maxwell's Demon—Why Warmth ...
www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/ ~chaitin/ unknowable/ ch7.html

Ming the Mechanic: Exformation
by Flemming Funch Mentioned by Bala Pillai. What is exformation?:. This word is used by Tor Nørretranders in his book The User Illusion, published in Danish ...
ming.tv/ flemming2.php/ __show_article/ _a000010-001298.htm

Extracts from Reference Guide
Turning Information Overload. into Intelligence Advantage. By Steve Barth. Competitive Intelligence (CI) has more opportunities than ...
www.coemergence.com/ news/ pdf/ TurningInfoOverloadintoIntellAdv.pdf

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