What Is the Ability to Respond to Changes in World Information? — Answering Yixian

Xuefeng

April 22, 2023

Any external information stimulates brain activity, and the brain responds by devising a plan to handle that information. For example, when a mother calls, "Child, it's time to eat," this is an informational stimulus. A child who is playing or doing homework must immediately decide whether to continue playing or studying, or to stop and go eat. This demonstrates a person's ability to respond to changes in information from the outside world. A slow or sluggish response indicates poor responsiveness, while a quick response indicates strong responsiveness.

Currently, the internet is flooded with news about young people struggling to find jobs, particularly university graduates who are unable to secure their ideal positions, or even struggling to find work delivering food. This is external information. How should one respond to it? Some choose to "lie flat" (do nothing), some rely on their parents, others tirelessly search for jobs, some opt to pursue graduate studies, some seek alternative paths, and a very few resort to suicide. This illustrates people's varying abilities to respond to changes in external information.

When ChatGPT swept in like a tsunami, even Elon Musk, the "Iron Man" of Silicon Valley, seemed somewhat shaken, calling for a six-month halt to the development of ChatGPT-5. Many countries have legislated against its use, with many people fearing that the rapid evolution of AI could lead to widespread unemployment. Some even fear that robots might eventually wipe out humanity. Meanwhile, some are very excited, hoping the storm intensifies even further, and many are taking advantage of the ChatGPT wave to develop software that solves problems in specific fields and earn money. This demonstrates how people respond differently to changes in external information.

Currently, the internet is awash with information about inflation or deflation in China's economy. Some say that 2023 will be the best year of the next decade, while others claim that China's economy is on the brink of recession, with an economic crisis imminent. How should an ordinary person respond to such information? This concerns one's ability to respond to changes in external information. Those with strong abilities will take preventive measures to safely weather the economic crisis, while those with weaker abilities will suffer, with some possibly feeling so trapped that they contemplate extreme actions.

Moreover, as unemployment continues to rise and people struggle to make a living, looting and various forms of fraud will become increasingly pervasive and difficult to defend against. How should ordinary people respond? Should they also resort to cheating and stealing? Should they rebel, hide, or flee? Ultimately, everyone must devise their own response to the information they receive.

Recently, there have been predictions that a world war will break out on May 12, and a few months ago, there were predictions of a major earthquake in the seas around Japan in June, with a tsunami surpassing the one in Southeast Asia, potentially causing catastrophic damage to the Pacific coastal regions. Regardless of whether this information is true or false, it at least stimulates my brain. Since I believe that "false information is still information," I must develop a response plan for such external stimuli. The so-called "guiding dreams" are mainly about responding to this kind of information, and how one responds depends on their ability.

Unless we close our eyes and ears, our brains are bombarded daily by vast amounts of information. We need to filter through it—some information can be ignored, some requires heightened vigilance, and some demands an immediate response. This is what it means to have the ability to respond to changes in external information.