Observation Spaces

Observation Spaces

Cognitive Processing Time

These are rough estimates. According to cognitive processing literature it takes about 200-500 ms to have an "attentional episode".
This is orienting one's attention toward a stimulus or idea.

It might take about 5-30 seconds to instantiate a rough concept,
and between 1-5 minutes to visualize a small space or "room" with 3-5 constituent pieces, ideas, elements, etc. or to flesh out a singular concept when committing it for the first time to memory.

We can think of this processing time as equivalent to short little daily routines, so that it's easier for us to conceptualize what we are doing when we are wandering The Garden.
It might take about 200-500 ms to press a button or pick something up/put it down or engage in a small motion.
It might take about 5-30 seconds to perform a small task that doesn't require a lot of cognitive load.
It might take between 1-5 minutes to perform a slightly bigger task, such as making coffee or brushing one's teeth.

If you want to go on a walk, however, you will probably want to take a bit longer.
How does a 10 minute walk feel? A 15 minute walk? A 30 minute walk? An hour walk?
Depending on the time slot you choose, you can spend your time differently:

  • A longer walk allows you to go farther
  • Or it allows you to devote more attention to a smaller space, giving individual time to all of the consitutent parts and letting them unfold in greater detail.

Working Memory

The average working memory of human beings is about 3-4 items.
That means you can probably hold about 3-4 simultaneous "chunks" in working memory at a time.
Some people can hold more, some less.

Piecing Together Wholes

  • The Natural World and its beauty and danger
  • A spiritual core, or phrased a different way, a core that goes back to one meaning-well.
  • A recounting of the ways in which things are currently broken and become broken
  • Maps of Structure Spaces
  • Human-created beauty and interpersonal relationships : Human-to-Human Plane
  • Interior Experience
  • Process of Life and Ritual : Skillsets and How-Tos