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Analects

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[marginalium] More evidence social media isn't so influential — 12 Jul 2024
[article] How does the brain 'think'? Pt. I — 12 Jul 2024
It’s not exactly clear how often humans really ‘think’. Most of what we do is automatic—habitual responding to a predictable world. But there are a few puzzling examples of thinking, and we don’t really know how they work.
[marginalium] Shamanism and the Origin of the Chinese State - Part Two — 12 Jul 2024
[article] Meditating for fun and for profit — 5 Jul 2024
Meditation generally involves either acknowledging or excluding thoughts, but can be problematic. Movement-based meditations (e.g. yoga, running) are better for people who can’t sit with themselves. More generally, many everyday activities meet the broad criteria.
[marginalium] Thinking about God increases acceptance of artificial intelligence in decision-making — 3 Jul 2024
[marginalium] The man who won the lottery 14 times — 2 Jul 2024
[marginalium] The Story of Our Universe May Be Starting to Unravel — 1 Jul 2024
[marginalium] Status competition is a white-people thing — 30 Jun 2024
[marginalium] What Happened to David Graeber — 29 Jun 2024
[article] Memory and imagination both use the same architecture — 28 Jun 2024
Memory takes the form of neural maps in the brain, tying our experiences and perceptions together. These maps are the same maps we use to process the world, and imagine the future. Mapping memories to old memories is the way to think about it, not storing memories in a bank.
[marginalium] No Quick Solutions: A Different Approach to Hypersonic Arms Control — 27 Jun 2024
[marginalium] "What We Got Wrong About Depression and its Treatment" — 26 Jun 2024
[marginalium] How to extract insights with seemingly limited resources — 25 Jun 2024
[marginalium] Are men still more influential? — 24 Jun 2024
[marginalium] LLM model persuasiveness is capped — 23 Jun 2024

btrmt. (text-only version)

The full site with interactive features is available at btr.mt.

btrmt. (betterment) examines ideologies worth choosing. Created by Dorian Minors—Cambridge PhD in cognitive neuroscience, Associate Professor at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Core philosophy: humans are animals first, with automatic patterns shaped for us, not by us. Better to examine and choose.

Core concepts. Animals First: automatic patterns of thought and action, but our greatest capacity is nurture. Half Awake: deadened by systems that narrow rather than expand potential. Karstica: unexamined ideologies (hidden sinkholes beneath). Credenda: belief systems we should choose deliberately.

The manifesto. Cynosure (focus): betterment, gratification, connection. Architecture (support): inner (somatic, spiritual, thought) and outer (digital, collective, wealth).

Mission. Not answers but examination. Break academic gatekeeping. Make sciences of mind accessible. Question rather than prescribe.

Writing style. Scholarly without jargon barriers. Philosophical yet practical—grounded in neuroscience and lived experience. Reflective, discovery-oriented. Literary references and metaphor. Critical of systems that narrow human potential. Rejects "humans are flawed"—we're half awake, not broken.

Copyright. BTRMT LIMITED (England/Wales no. 13755561) 2026. Dorian Minors 2026.

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About Dorian Minors. Started btrmt. in 2013 to share sciences of mind with people who weren't studying them. Background: six years Australian Defence Force (Platoon Commander, Infantry); Gates Cambridge Scholar; PhD cognitive neuroscience, University of Cambridge (2018-2024); currently Associate Professor, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Research interests: neural basis of intelligent behaviour, decision intelligence, ritual formation/breakdown, ethical leadership, wellbeing.

External projects (links also available via Analects):

Lectures: Podcasts exploring ideologies

Neurotypica: Brain science guide for non-scientists

Black Cortex: Leadership consulting

Analects

btrmt. (text-only version)

Resources

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