Comment by alecst | Hacker News Reader

Comment by alecst | Hacker News Reader

The only way I can put my mind at ease is to realize that when I die I'll be no more human than dolphin, dust mite, seashell, moon rock, or electron. In an abstract sense my contributions to humanity mean nothing. So it makes little sense to fret about my impact on humanity, and in addition I do not strive to "live on" in the minds of humans (whatever that means) or any other beings.

If you buy this philosophy then the importance of time vanishes and there is no need to pretend that you have all the time in the universe. Choosing to waste time is not objectively worse (though it may be boring) and on these grounds I agree with the author.

However by the author's same reasoning it is not important to be happy either. After you have died it will not matter how you felt while you were alive. So to me the conclusion is silly.

But I nevertheless enjoyed the article. I do ponder my own life from time to time and I like reading about how other people deal with the finiteness, or rather infinitesimal-ness- of it all -- just the idea terrifies me. (So does the idea of living forever -- a pretty unfortunate Catch-22.)

You misinterpret my conclusion. It's important to be happy because psychologically (because of the way our brain is wired and evolved over thousands of years), we must seek happiness. Even if it doesn't matter after you die, why would you want to live an unhappy life? However, the same conclusion doesn't apply to spending time on "worthwhile" activities. Evolution per se doesn't care if we strive to write a new compiler, go to professional conferences or work hard at a bank earning millions. All it cares about (apart from our reproduction) is our happiness.

Apparently, happiness is also linked to reproduction and many "worthwhile" activities are ultimately linked to happiness. But I'm digressing here... Brain seeks happiness and in absence creates discomfort that is by definition undesirable and that is why (so obviously) it is important to be happy even if "nothing really matters" ultimately.

> All it cares about (apart from our reproduction) is our happiness.

This isn't quite true. All evolution cares about is reproduction, that's literally it. It only tangentially cares about happiness/earning millions/whatever if it improves reproductive ability (which they probably do).

This also isn't quite true. Evolution cares about nothing. Evolution just happens.

In these discussions, just translate "cares about" as "is affected by" or "consists of".

> However by the author's same reasoning it is not important to be happy either. After you have died it will not matter how you felt while you were alive.

But being happy does matter in terms of how you feel now or while living. I think one point is that it does not make me happier to worry about how big my legacy is in regard to contribution to the world in financial, technological or social ways.

If I can make this world a better place, that's great, and a worthy objective. But as the goal posts are always changing, and because we are inherently limited in how much we can achieve, it is good to take time and make sure to enjoy life (as happiness not only feels good but enables greater achievements).

So, be happy and do as much as you can instead of doing as much as you can and always feel bad because it will never be enough.

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