Physical fatigue is lack of ATP and happens through the day as oxidation builds up. Cognitive fatigue is a build-up of used neurotransmitters that also build up over the day. These two processes interact with each other though where neurotransmitter reuptake uses a lot of ATP. I see that connection between them as ego depletion. If true, the best solution to it is a nap because that will help clear the junk out.

You should write to the researchers, so they can stop wasting their time.

That the advice lines up with folk wisdom means they’re probably on the right track.

I feel there is more than one type of mental fatigue. Some of them can be forced through (e.g. the emotional kind that happens when you have to do something you don't want to do) and some can't (e.g. not having enough sleep for prolonged time).

Ego depletion isn't a thing if you don't believe in it? Who said that? Dr. Goggins?

Haha! Listen, the "you can do it if you believe in yourself" stuff always sounds bogus. But there was some stuff around ten years ago about this. Here's an example: https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.1313475110#F1

I don’t think its completely bogus. There are lots of things you can do that you don’t realize you can. But 40-50 hours of work a week, even if you don’t even leave your house, still takes a lot out of you.

Also when I last checked, "willpower as a finite resource isn't a thing" was simply the scientific consensus

But I agree that doesn't necessarily translate to "willpower is infinite"

I think Daniel Kahneman's System 1 (habits, unconscious) and System 2 (learning, "error correction", conscious) are physical systems, and System 2 takes a LOT more energy to run.

So, when you get tired, System 2 leans more and more on the much more energy efficient System 1. So you get behaviors that look like unrestrained habits: poor impulse control, lowered emotional regulation, etc

Edit: I wrote more about this idea if anyone is curious: https://1393.xyz/writing/alzheimers-is-the-symptom-not-the-p...

I love the simplicity of the System 1/2 breakdown - but is there any actual evidence behind it? It seems like such a classic pop-psychology observational deduction of how something might work with no science to prove it.

In cognitive psychology there's all sorts of evidence that we have two distinct processes, but I don't think anyone has really mapped it to a physical system yet.

Modeling two physical systems is pretty interesting though because dementia ends up looking like a clear failure of System 2. Really neat idea generator even if imperfect.

I do appreciate when people write up their ideas like this. It would be great if you had an RSS feed.

Should have added one sooner! Here you go: https://1393.xyz/rss.xml

Subscribed. Thank you.

My very controversial interpretation of taoism's wu wei [effortless action] is exactly this concept, which 2500 years later we can express in much more scientific ways.

Motivation, pure effort and stubbornness to change our ways, are wasted energy and a waste of time. The only way to effect behavioural change in ourselves is through the unconscious habits that drive 99% of our daily lives.

I feel not many people are aware that conscious activity is very energy-intense and sporadic. Most people have days that are 100% routine from morning to bedtime.

If you’ve read the book, they stressed many times that this was irrelevant to the model and also probably untrue