Google Answers Logo
View Question
 
Q: Is life complex, or simple? ( No Answer,   17 Comments )
Question  
Subject: Is life complex, or simple?
Category: Relationships and Society
Asked by: dtnl42-ga
List Price: $20.00
Posted: 22 Nov 2004 04:41 PST
Expires: 22 Dec 2004 04:41 PST
Question ID: 432258
Are our lives simple, made complex by ourselves, our "society" and
things like technology?
Or is life really this complex
Answer  
There is no answer at this time.

Comments  
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: geof-ga on 22 Nov 2004 05:23 PST
 
A human life would be simple, if it was lived alone, naked, and
feeding on uncooked plants and raw meat. But as soon as one moves to
any form of social  living, life becomes complex, even in "primitive"
societies. For example, take what some people call "the simple life",
of Amazonian Indians or Australian Aboriginals. As well as all the
practical problems of hunting/growing food, making your own home &
clothes, and trying to remain fit & healthy, there would be all the
mental/emotional complexities of observing religious and social
customs & rituals. In some ways, life in technologically developed
societies is simpler, in that many things which "primitive" people
have to do for themselves (hunting, home-building, planting etc) are
done for us by other people and machines; but we make up for that by
finding yet further complications, often in the form of diversions and
entertainment, such as the Internet.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: benjaminsisko-ga on 22 Nov 2004 17:40 PST
 
Hi Dtnl42,

I think neither.
Life, (in itself) is simple (survive and reproduce)
But OUR lives are made complex by ourselves, our society and things
like technology.

Kind regards,

Benjamin
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: mast-ga on 23 Nov 2004 14:00 PST
 
From the Bible, Good News translation (there are more accurate translations):

Ecclesiastes 7:29 This is all that I have learned: God made us plain
and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: vsixu-ga on 24 Nov 2004 03:50 PST
 
La vida es compleja.
Ya que su condicion natural se fundamenta en la interaccion con
multiples subsistemas propios asi como sistemas externos incluyendo
los subsistemas internos de estos sistemas externos.

Totally Complex
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: ferdelance-ga on 27 Nov 2004 06:43 PST
 
Question-how complex is the human brain?Your answer lies there grasshopper.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: kohmatsu-ga on 27 Nov 2004 22:03 PST
 
They are both. It is a duality in your perception. When your conscious
of this, you may choose your answer.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: omnivorous-ga on 28 Nov 2004 10:12 PST
 
Life begins simply with a protein or two
But that's way back at the ori-gene;
Then they organize to build the animals you see,
And pretty soon there are 23 chromosomes and you.

So is life complex or simple?
At the base it's A, T, C and G
But zip them together, multiply them
Millions of times and it's me.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: neilzero-ga on 01 Dec 2004 08:31 PST
 
We can make our lives less complicated by making a short list of
things you consider really important: chldren, spouse, not getting
fired from your job. Tentatively, we can consider all else trivial
and/or optional. An occasional item will need to move temporarilly to
the important list and you should do a bunch of the trivial things,
but without stress.   Neil
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: alex101-ga on 03 Dec 2004 11:48 PST
 
It is simply complex.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: raxis-ga on 06 Dec 2004 14:40 PST
 
I believe that the greatest complexities of our life are created by
social interaction.  Even groups of apes weave complex social
structures that they must follow and manipulate to better position
themselves in their group.  A human removed from society would
suddenly find his/her life very simple without the need for social
interaction.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: mucci007-ga on 07 Dec 2004 19:03 PST
 
Life is what you make it.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: fractl-ga on 08 Dec 2004 06:36 PST
 
The human mind is capable of much more than the simple skills we need
to survive.  Just like a tiger pacing in a zoo cage, we need something
to do to keep our sanity.  A combination of this need to challenge
one?s self and the social nature of mankind has led to the current
complexity of life.

Can one live a simple life?  Even during the easy, monotonous,
automated tasks one performs the mind tends to wander into new and
exciting realms, looking for a problem to solve or a scenario to play
out.  Just as simple things make the mind reach for complicated ideas,
one must go through many complicated procedures to force the mind to
be simple (perhaps the Zen koans are a good example of this.

Our lives are simple and complex.  We simply need them to be
complicated.  The onslaught of tasks, the prioritization, the rush,
panic, frustration all come with the territory.  Some people choose to
subject themselves to more or less than others; some are forced into
situations that are over their heads.  On the very basic level though
all the complexity is superficial.  If your only goal is survival,
when friends, family, language and law disappear, life (or the
sustaining of life) becomes a simple task; simple in that it does not
require much thought to do, not that one can survive easily.

A direct response to your question would then be that our LIVES (the
act of living) are simple.  Made complex by our MINDS. Society and
technology are products and outlets for our urges to communicate,
create and contemplate.  Life (the whole kit and caboodle) is complex.

-Fractl

A GA discussion on idle minds (thinking in the shower):
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=428860

A few Zen koans...to get you thinking about thinking about not thinking:
http://www.tarunupadhyay.com/koans.html
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: proplan-ga on 10 Dec 2004 09:52 PST
 
Sounds like you are trying to understand your purpose in life? or why
life appears complicated/or difficult at times?

Perception is everything. You could interview 100 people with similar
situations (stressors) and receive 100 different answers. This is what
I do know about the "human experience" we call life: every one has
different "coping skills" some more mature than others, every one has
been "behaviorally shaped differently by experience" (life: parents,
siblings, environment), everyone as a different personality structure
fixed at an early age , everyone makes life "choices" that either
negatively or positively impact them and those around them. So what
power do you have over life and life's circumstances. Not much, except
for what personal choices you make and how you choose to respond to
situations or circumstances.

The AA model clearly describes what power we really have, "God grant
me the power to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to
change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

The answer to your question is highly personal and individual. I would
suggest, you observe how others, perhaps with circumstances more
"complex" than yours, cope or deal with adversity. Ideally, hooking up
with a "well-balanced" mature mentor and "mimicking" their behavior
until it becomes a part of you is beneficial.

DG, MSW
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: cynthia-ga on 10 Dec 2004 10:52 PST
 
The only time a person can affect their life is in the present moment.
 We live a long progression of "present moments" and in each and every
present moment, we have free choice.  The past is over, and the future
is not here yet. I believe that as long as a person remains fixed in
the present moment, life can remain simple.  If you poison the present
moments you live with feelings of guilt or regret about the past,
...or worry, or dread about possible future events, life does indeed
become very complex.
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: fractl-ga on 10 Dec 2004 11:36 PST
 
Due to the nature of space-time living in the present is not only a
good idea, it's mandatory.  Mentally concerning one's self with the
past or future, due to the nature of the human mind, is equally
mandatory.  To ignore one's past is to deny what makes you individual.
 If you forget the past you forget the lessons you learned or the
happiness you have experienced.  One must also anticipate what will
occur in the future.  You need a goal to work towards and a future to
hope for.  Life disregarding ones past and future is much like living
dependent on a drug.  You may be happy at one moment, sad the next but
you wont remember any of it the next morning.  One extreme case of
this is in the movie Memento.
	Our ability to gain knowledge and to predict our next steps is what
makes us so capable.  I remembered a snake bit me 15 minutes ago, and
that?s why I am planning on going to the hospital now.  Creatures that
can?t think on this level may live a more carefree life, but I?m not
sure if they know the feeling of satisfaction one has when a difficult
task is finally completed.  An ant may not feel depressed or
overwhelmed, but for all it?s efforts I doubt it feels any joy either.
	A human who tries (against ones own mind) to ignore the past and
think little of the future will have a tough time surviving.  There
are some things (like a career) that ones present self must bear to
allow the future self to live.  There are other things (bad memories)
that the present self may not want to deal with, but must to prevent
that pain from recurring in the future.
	We need complexity in our lives, a mind that is constantly challenged
is more capable of surviving and accomplishing it?s goals.  Seeking a
simple life is a step backwards down the evolutionary ladder.  We have
achieved great things with our minds in the past millennia, and I will
try my best to contribute to that legacy.
	If it ain?t broke, don?t fix it.

-Fractl
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: alekzander-ga on 19 Dec 2004 03:16 PST
 
First, Complex is not the same as complicated, Complicated is
something that can't be decomposed into simple... Simple is what can
be understand. I think that complicated things once understood are
very simple, or complex...
Thus, Life is Complex, even if we report at physycs (the proprierties
of the particles and the relationships between them are very complex),
or at our society, even our universe is a complex System, but being
complexe it can be discomposed and discomposed (in the society domain-
actually psichological)until we raeach the individual... the so called
"brick" of the system. But the individual it self is not simple,
because we can enter another sphere (medicine for example)... and we
cand discompose him into other parts.. of an other system. So , we are
complex from the structure of our body, through our way of thinking,
and through this larger organism, long living.. the society. But to
understand the system, we must analise (this breackeing into simpler
parts) and the one that trully understands I think is the one that can
see the complex as simple, never forgeting that simple often becomes
complicated...
Subject: Re: Is life complex, or simple?
From: oaths-ga on 12 Mar 2005 10:12 PST
 
Would the answer be simpler if strong but caring social structures are
achieved? http://www.oaths.com

Important Disclaimer: Answers and comments provided on Google Answers are general information, and are not intended to substitute for informed professional medical, psychiatric, psychological, tax, legal, investment, accounting, or other professional advice. Google does not endorse, and expressly disclaims liability for any product, manufacturer, distributor, service or service provider mentioned or any opinion expressed in answers or comments. Please read carefully the Google Answers Terms of Service.

If you feel that you have found inappropriate content, please let us know by emailing us at answers-support@google.com with the question ID listed above. Thank you.
Search Google Answers for
Google Answers  


Google Home - Answers FAQ - Terms of Service - Privacy Policy