Thinking about the futureHumans are the only animals who plan for the future. However, planning for the future doesn't only mean planning for college or a future job. It may be as simple as planning what to eat in the future. Unlike animals who only live in the moment, in the present, humans have the capability of looking beyond, of looking "elsewhen". This was made possible 3 million years ago when the first humans began developing a frontal lobe. The frontal lobe is a structure in the brain found just above your eyes, responsible for planning skills, temperament and personality. Individuals who have a damaged frontal lobe have trouble thinking of the future, and when asked simple questions such as "What will you do tomorrow?" they are stumped. They understand the concept of future and time, but both concepts are completely abstract for them. They are meaningless. Planning and visualizing the future is something so human that we take for granted, but that is present every single day of our lives.
|
However, what is so special about being able to visualize the future? Many studies suggest that it is useful for survival. For instance, when we visualize things that may happen, we might anticipate danger, or may act in a way that will ensure we aren't harmed. It has been an important survival skill for a lot of humans. Similarly, anxiety is tied with planing for the future. However, don't think of anxiety in this case as something bad. In this case, anxiety allows us to prevent bad things from happening in the future. Since we feel anxiety in anticipation to an event, we will do everything in our power to change the outcome and make sure the ends are as successful as possible.
|
|