自我過濾-我們失落的工具·Self-Filtering-Our Lost Tool
自我過濾：保護還是還是傷害
Self-Filtering: Protection or Harm
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自我過濾從何而來？
Where did self-filtering come from?
在自然界中，最有效率的就是最好的。人和動物處理自己感官所接收到的信息的能力並不是無限的，因此自然界中能在某一場景或者事件中最有效地提取「重要信息」的個體能才會獲得最好的生存率，而這種物競天擇的生存法則讓我們天生便擁有了自動判斷重要性的行為。
In nature, the most efficient is the best. People and animals don』t have an infinite capacity with processing the information that they receive from the out side world, therefore the individuals that can extract the 「Vital information」 most efficiently from an incident or surrounding will have the best survivability.This natural selection process made us born with the behavior of determining the importance of a specific matter.
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在一望無際的非洲草原上，我們的祖先和獅子都在尋找獵物（這是對自己有益的，因此是重要的）；而在尋找庇護時，我們與羚羊一樣，同時也在搜尋掠食者（這是對自己有害的，因此是重要的）；同時忽略著其他的信息。
On the infinite fields of Africa, we searched our prey (What is beneficial, thus important for us) along with the lions ; when we looked for shelter, we search for predators (What creates harm, and thus is important) along with the deers; as we ignored the other information.
而隨著我們的大腦變得越來越發達，我們不但能夠更好地處理真實的當下，也能在抽象的事件中尋找到關鍵信息…
And as our brains developed to be more and more advanced, we not only are capable of dealing with the present, but can also search for vital information within a abstract matter.
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也就是說，我們認為與我們最有關的信息。因為這樣的過程對於我們來說至關重要，自我過濾漸漸的變得「自然」，甚至是「使人享受」。
And therefore, what we believe to be most related to us. Due t the fact that such processes are so important for us, the course of nature has turned the self-filtering process to be 「natural,」 or even enjoyable.
在我們的內心深處，想要過濾這些「與我們有關的信息」，但我們需要讓這項功能為我們所用，而不是反過來像癌症一樣傷害我們。
Deeply inside our bodies, we want to filter out the so-called 「Relating Information,」 butwe must use this capability to our advantage instead of letting it hurt us like cancer.
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我們覺得什麼與我們」有關「？
What exactly do we deem the most 「related」 information?
我們曾經通過對我們得到的信息進行過濾來存活，而漸漸地我們失去了曾經強迫我們關注真正的「有用的」信息的生存慾望。讓我們生活變得更好的事情漸漸變得越來越抽象，而我們自然的「過濾系統」並不總是擅長在這些抽象的概念中找出什麼是對我們有效的信息，反而會在很多情況下（尤其是生活中），在我們沒有意識到的情況下造成我們自己的判斷失誤。
We used to survive by filtering the information that we receive. However, we gradually lost the thrust of survival that once forced us to pay attention to what is 「useful.」 What improves our lives become more and more abstract, andour original naturalistic 「filtering system」 is not always good at extracting effective information among the abstract ideas, and often lead to misjudgments without having us noticing, especially in our everyday life.
根據每個人不同的價值觀，過濾的信息可能會走向極端，從而偏離它原來的幫助我們的目的，轉而導致我們對於情況的判斷失常，從而最終導致生活中產生問題。
According to our systems of value, the information filtered out can approach extremities, derailing it away from its goal of helping us. At this point, it causes improper determination of us toward a situation and can eventually cause problems in our lives.
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在某個極端情況下，我們生活中總是有一兩個的過度自大的人。
At one side of the extremity, we have the people that we always remember one or two in our lives, the ones that are overly confident, or even egotistical.
不論證據多麼明顯，他們都認為錯誤不在自身；不管他人付出了多少努力，他們都認為功勞都是自己的。這些看起來毫無理智的，甚至自欺欺人的行為，在他們被畸形地調整過的過濾方式處理過後變得理所當然，甚至是理智的。
No matter how obvious the evidence is, they insist that the fault is not theirs; despite how hard the others work, they believe the main contributor is always themselves. The seemingly illogical or even self-deceiving behavior becomes a norm or even reasonable after their deformed filtration method processes the information.
因為他們所在乎的「有關信息」單純是讓自己感到舒適的信息，包括那些可以給自己開脫的借口或是能給自己增添功勞的線索。
This is because what they care for, the 「related information」 is simply what make themselves comfortable, including the excuses that frees themselves from responsibilities, or the clues that add credit to themselves.
為了滿足自己身體對於正面感覺的慾望，這樣的人的思維集中在尋找那些可以滿足自己證明自己能力甚至是「偉大」的信息上。漸漸地，他們的自我過濾從找到對自己生活有益的信息變為了尋找自我滿足的信息，有的成為了人人厭惡的蠻橫之人，而有的則成為了社會底層怨天尤人的所謂「垃圾」。
To satisfy the thirst of the brain for positive feelings, the thinking of such people concentrate in finding information that proves themselves to be capable or even 「Great.」 Gradually, their filtering process shifts from looking for what benefit their lives to what make themselves feel good. Some of them are the 「egotistical bastards」 that may look disgusting every day, and some became the 「garbage」 at the bottom of the society, blaming everyone else for their fault.
這並不是說在事件中尋找對自己有利的線索是一無是處的，只是在極端的情況下可能讓我們忽略事情的本質，並導致問題。
It doesn』t mean that the process of finding what make one looks good is useless, it only causes problems when it is pushed to the extremes. At such point, it prevents us from receiving the full message passed by an occasion, therefore misleading our actions.
事實上，另一個極端也一樣會摧殘一個人的心智。
In fact, the other side of the extreme can also destroy a person』s mind.
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你上一次看到一個整天念叨慘劇，隨時隨地都能變得悲觀的人是什麼時候？
What is the last time that you saw a person that talks about tragedy all the time, and can turn pessimistic at any moment?
可能不是那麼長時間以前。
Probably not that long ago.
比起拚命尋找讓自己自信的信息，時時刻刻保持著過度的警惕也同樣能對我們的精神造成巨大的傷害。這樣的思維造成的心理疾病人人皆知：抑鬱症，單雙向情感障礙，失眠……但我們並不是總能想起自我過濾，造成這些現象的主要原因之一。
Compared to working all the time to find self confidence, paying too much alert all the time can also deal serious damage to our mental health. This kind of filtering can create all kinds of famous mental disorders: depression, bipolar disorders, insomnia… However, we don』t always think of self-filtering, one of the main causes of these diseases.
別誤會，尋找危險是這項系統的本來工作之一，釋放讓我們警覺並沉思的信號在很多場合下能讓我們解決問題。過濾出的「負面信息」正是推動著我們繼續前進的主要力量之一：安全問題，食品問題，社交問題，我們能注意到的每一樣可能危險都應當是幫助我們生存的一部分。
Don』t get me wrong, searching for danger is one of the original functions of the system, releasing signals that makes us alert and keep us attentive can solve issues for us under many occasions. The 「Negative information」 being filtered out is one of the major forces that thrusts us forward
關於「負面信息」對我們的影響，我在公眾號中有一篇單獨的文章，在微信公眾號聊天框中打出」負面「，或者點擊以下鏈接「負面」的故事 -- A Brief History of "Negativity"來更多地了解這樣時常折磨我們的東西。
We have a separate article discussing the detailed impact of 「Negativity」 on our lives. Type in 「Negativity」 or click on the link below to know more about the often torturing feeling.
但是當這樣的系統被過度運轉時，便會造成這些被過濾出的，甚至想像出的負面的信息衝垮我們的心靈，摧毀我們的生活，讓家人和自己都處在無盡的痛苦之中，造成另一個極端。
When the filtering system goes on overdrive, the filtered or even imagined negative information may crush our minds, destroy our lives, and place one』s family and self within infinite amount of pain, creating another extreme.
杞人憂天式地拚命尋找潛在的危險，卻毀了自己，值得嗎？
Searching for danger yet overworked ourself, is it worth it?
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這兩種極端在表面上看起來毫無聯繫，但是實際上它們（至少在一定程度上）都起源於對信息的錯誤處理。我們的自我過濾本是為了找到讓我們能夠更好的生活的信息，而在錯誤的使用下，它反而留下了那些讓人困擾的信息。
The two extremes seem to be unrelated on the surface, but they all originate from the mistreatment of the information.Our filter has been designed to find information that helps our lives, but now they only leave the bothering ones.
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（前者的形成原因是過度專註於讓自己對自己的能力感到自信，從而產生快感；或是通過給自己開脫保護自己的自尊心，並避免對自己自信心的傷害；而後者是因為生活經歷中的事件造成人的重點集中在「阻止可能的負面結果」，卻讓得到的可能的負面信息遠遠超出自己能夠處理的範圍，最終堆積起來。若是感興趣後者的原理，可以點擊這裡來查看我的另一篇文章「負面」的故事 -- A Brief History of "Negativity"，或是在對話框中輸入「負面」）
(If you are interested in the detail about how 「Negativity」 works, you can click here:「負面」的故事 -- A Brief History of "Negativity", or type in 「Negativity」 in the message box.
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簡單來說，由於我們越來越強的認知能力，我們的過濾系統已經不再能一直自然地選擇出對我們最有用的信息了。
In short , the filter can no longer naturally choose out the most useful information due to our increasingly strong cognitive capabilities.
它不再能自然地完成它原本應當完成的任務了。
It can no longer naturally complete the mission that it is designed to.
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那我們又應該做什麼呢？
What should be our reaction?
自我過濾的初衷並不是壞的，在很多情況下它依舊非常有效。我們中的許多人都看過偵探在案件中進行推理的過程，而那些傳奇般的偵探便是使用了這樣的過濾系統來找到對自己辦理案件，也就是所謂的最有效信息。律師們也會在一件案件中找到對自己有利的證據，分析出自己所需要的東西……達成這樣機制的原本目的。
The original goal of self filtering is not bad, and it is still very effective in many cases.A lot of us have seen how the detective can work through an issue so effetely at a crime scene, and it is exactly this system that enables the detectives to achieve their legendary status: By finding the most important and related information. Lawyers do this as well, analyzing the situation for the most advantages clues in order to gain what they need… Thereby, they both achieve the original purpose of the mechanism.
也就是人為地檢查自己是否真正在觀測自己所需要的信息。
Which means, they are artificially checking wether they are really observing what they actually need for their lives.
的確，在無聊的課堂上聽取知識或是在讓人疲憊的會議上抓取重點是這樣過程的一部分；但是更重要的是清楚自己在什麼時候是在擔心過度，而在什麼時候在故意自己給自己一種感覺良好的假象，後兩者是我們經常忘記的事情。
Indeed, listening for knowledge in a boring class or grabbing key information during a tiring meeting is one part of the process; but identifying the moments that we overestimate or underestimate the components of a situation is even more important, as they are often form=gotten.
即使我們不再自然地過濾我們所需要的，在這樣的干涉之後，我們仍能讓這項本能為我們服務，從而讓自己和自己身邊的人的生活更加美好。
Even if we no longer naturally filter out what we need, we are still able to let this natural function serve us well after the interference, therefore improving our and others』 lives.
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