How Your Brain Uses Mental Shortcuts

Your reality is actually just a massive web of mental shortcuts. It’s called cognitive

economy, and without it, your brain would crash trying to process a simple

chair. You categorize everything using prototypes, which are like the perfect average

of a thing. That’s why you recognize a robin as a bird faster than a penguin—it fits the mold better.

But you also use exemplars, which are specific memories like your childhood dog.

Your brain connects these dots in a giant network so you don't have to relearn how the

world works every single time you wake up.