Think Differently: Words, Pictures, or Pure Thought?

[jacquesb]

Do you think with words? Do you feel the words follow the thought, or they make the thought? Do you hear them or see them mentally?
Or do you think with pictures?
Or with none of them, only pure thought?

 

[BvU]

Don't forget sounds, smells, other feelings !
Sometimes the images follow the thoughts (e.g.: try not to think of an elephant), sometimes the other way around (you see one and realize it can be dangerous).
It's all associations.

 

[BillTre]

In addition to what @BvU said, I would think in a self-aware body-sense before doing a complex movement.

For example, throwing fielding and throwing a baseball involves things like:
getting to the right place, (spatial sense, visual)
getting into the best stance to do what I want to do, (body sense, proprioception)
catching the (base-) ball, (body, hand-eye)
getting the ball out of the glove into my throwing hand, (body sense)
visualizing where I want it to go, (visual, spatial)
and then throwing it. (body sense, hand-eye)

Like he said:

It's all associations.

 

[PeroK]

Do you think with words? Do you feel the words follow the thought, or they make the thought? Do you hear them or see them mentally?
Or do you think with pictures?
Or with none of them, only pure thought?

Thinking can be rather absurd at times.

 

[jim mcnamara]

Moved to General Discussion

 

[ISamson]

It is all about consciousness and self-awareness.
"The Future of the Mind" by Michio Kaku. Great book.

 

[berkeman]

Do you think with words? Do you feel the words follow the thought, or they make the thought? Do you hear them or see them mentally?
Or do you think with pictures?
Or with none of them, only pure thought?

No fair. Your go first.

And even though this has been moved to the General Discussion forum, it would be good PF manners for you to post links to the reading you have been doing on your question so far.

I have a pretty important contribution to make about your question, but I'm not inclined to post in a thread with such a lazy thread start...

 

[dlgoff]

I have a pretty important contribution to make about your question, ...

Waiting with bated breath!

 

[berkeman]

Waiting with bated breath!

I know! it's one of my most important Aha! moments and mental tools in my life. I would love to share and discuss. But, well, you know...

 

[256bits]

Still thinking about, though, are you.

 

[Tom.G]

Back when I first got my hands on a digital computer, I found myself thinking in Assembly language for getting it to do things. I do hardly any programming these days, so that is no longer an issue. Having a discussion with people, I think in concepts then try to dredge up the words to express the concept... but sometimes that dredging up fails in one way or another... sure can get awkward on occassion!

 

[256bits]

Thinking can be rather absurd at times.

that looks like an interesting play.
I will have to look into it..

 

[AlexCaledin]

I think with mental templates. A mental template may include statements in words, patterns of imagination (e.g. mental pictures or simulated sensations). Every mental template works as a proposal for a coherent way of thinking. As I fix my attention on a mental template, I somehow estimate it as "good" or "bad". I then continue to "look" at the good templates more attentively and try some action according to them; then they come re-composed and I have to re-estimate them.

 

[nitsuj]

Do you think with words? Do you feel the words follow the thought, or they make the thought? Do you hear them or see them mentally?
Or do you think with pictures?
Or with none of them, only pure thought?

by comparing things, pure comparing things...lol

Things is stuff that can be compared...like stuff and things.

 

[jim hardy]

They asked Einstein that question. His complete reply is printed in "Ideas and Opinions"
but here's the thrust of it in an easier to copy&paste format
credit to these guys http://www.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/Goodies/Einstein_think/index.html

Here's a longer extract from Einstein's answer:

"(A) The words or the language, as they are written or spoken, do not seem to play any role in my mechanism of thought. The psychical entities which seem to serve as elements in thought are certain signs and more or less clear images which can be "voluntarily" reproduced and combined. There is, of course, a certain connection between those elements and relevant logical concepts. It is also clear that the desire to arrive finally at logically connected concepts is the emotional basis of this rather vague play with the above-mentioned elements. But taken from a psychological viewpoint, this combinatory play seems to be the essential feature in productive thought--before there is any connection with logical construction in words or other kinds of signs which can be communicated to others.

(B) The above-mentioned elements are, in my case, of visual and some of muscular type. Conventional words or other signs have to be sought for laboriously only in a secondary stage, when the mentioned associative play is sufficiently established and can be reproduced at will.

(C) According to what has been said, the play with the mentioned elements is aimed to be analogous to certain logical connections one is searching for.

(D) Visual and motor. In a stage when words intervene at all, they are, in my case, purely auditive, but they interfere only in a secondary stage, as already mentioned.

(E) It seems to me that what you call full consciousness is a limit case which can never be fully accomplished. This seems to me connected with the fact called the narrowness of consciousness (Enge des Bewusstseins)"

From "A Mathematician's Mind, Testimonial for An Essay on the Psychology of Invention in the Mathematical Field by Jacques S. Hadamard, Princeton University Press, 1945." in Ideas and Opinions.

so " Picture Thinkers Unite" - you're in good company.
Myself i try to think but nothing much happens...

old jim

 

[HAYAO]

It have this network of imagery of certain "something" I am thinking about.

I never think with words. This is exactly why I suck at explaining my feelings, thoughts, opinion, and arguments with words. It comes out all wrong and awkward. Whenever I try to express something, I have this "what was that perfect word that best explain what I am trying to say!?" thing going on for a while, and if I can't remember, I give up.

 

[Fig Neutron]

I try not to think in words because words are much slower. The subconscious mind doesn't use words and is much faster than the conscious mind. For example think of something you're going to say (but don't say it, try to use images and other sensations), then say it in your head. Which was faster?

@HAYAO I know what you mean. I never seem to know how to say things.

 

[dlgoff]

Myself i try to think but nothing much happens...

Yea, right.