Duck AI just introduced a new model. Decided to check it out and just popped in a random thought that came up while driving. Was an interesting meander through my own head but decided to just give the model the basic thought and see where it went with it. Needless to say not in the direction I went, but interesting enough to expand on so I gave it follow-up idea.
Me: I had a thought. In modern society we are so unaware of our environment and the effects of our actions. Could this be because we have become so used to being safe and comfortable as a species?
GPT-OSS 120B: It’s a plausible hypothesis. When basic needs—food, shelter, protection from immediate threats—are reliably met, our brains allocate less conscious attention to environmental cues and long‑term consequences. Evolution favored quick, instinctive responses to immediate dangers; once those threats receded, the same wiring can lead us to overlook slower‑burning impacts like climate change, resource depletion, or ecosystem disruption. Comfort also creates feedback loops: modern conveniences reinforce habits that feel safe, while information overload and abstract risks make it harder to feel personally responsible. Recognizing this bias can help us deliberately re‑engage with the broader effects of our choices.
Me: No concern for the medium to long term effect of our actions can also be caused by the other extreme, viz when the immediate danger is so great that what happens to others and the environment becomes irrelevant
GPT-OSS 120B: That’s the opposite end of the same attentional bias. When a crisis looms—war, pandemic, natural disaster—our nervous system shifts into a “fight‑or‑flight” mode that prioritizes short‑term survival over abstract, collective concerns. In that state:
* **Cognitive resources** are monopolized by immediate threat assessment, leaving little capacity for long‑range planning.
* **Social focus narrows** to self‑preservation or the safety of close kin, so the welfare (including environmental health) recedes in priority.
* **Emotional bandwidth** becomes dominated by fear or urgency, which crowds out the slower, more reflective emotions needed to consider broader impacts.
Both extremes—excessive comfort and acute crisis—compress our mental horizon, just in different directions. Recognizing the pattern can help societies build structures (e.g., institutional foresight, education, resilient governance) that keep medium‑ and long‑term considerations alive even when comfort is high or danger is immediate.
