Choices

In an artificial neural network, every neuron chosen has certain parameters or weights and biases associated with every feature. So decision making is basically dependent on the weights that we assign to the different parameters and the assigned biases. The weights are adjusted as we move through the back propagation so that the loss is minimized. This is also the way in which a rational choice happens. All our decisions are based on certain evaluation criteria or factors. We already have inherent biases that influence that decision making process. The weights are adjusted according to our perception or analysis of the situation often driven by our ego or emotional conditions. We rationalize our decisions. So in effect there is nothing black and white. Its all shades of gray that we operate with. The world is a complex maze of choices that operate within the realms of gray of varying degree. In choosing our partners to choosing the political party to choosing the religion or for that matter in any choice in our daily life, we work on the same pattern. We tend to overrate certain features whole overlooking some others in making the decision, meaning that the weights assigned to these decision parameters are adjusted and our inherent bias and tendencies, our education, upbringing, environment and other conditioning factors influence those decision parameters, which gets configured in our mind. It is difficult to change that configuration as often we associate them closely with our ego. Therefore the choices that we make are apparently rational but actually very irrational. Also there is nothing fundamentally wrong in those choices. Our perspectives differ because for the same feature different people tend to assign different weights and biases and hence their decision varies. Neither are we perfect, nor are our decisions or choices. When we select we seem to think that we are making the best decision given all the circumstances and that anybody differing with us is fundamentally flawed. But we tend to overlook that in this "us vs. them" battle, we are simply enhancing the values or weights of certain features or parameters (e.g what we consider as good qualities) while disregarding the flaws as highlighted by others to that choice, by giving it a lesser or zero weight. As Mahabharata has taught us repeatedly, the world is not black and white. We need to either accept the world in its present form or reject it altogether. We cannot take a morally superior stance. We need to keep in mind that when we are making the choices or decisions we are actually overlooking some negatives that are more obvious to others who are seeing the same matter of choice with a different sets of features (or perspectives) with different weights (e.g giving more weights to the negative features) and their inherent biases colour their version of the choices. That's why we can never be objective or rational. Lets keep that in mind and respect every opinion and either re evaluate or stick to ours own. Lets not disparage others or think ourselves to be the most correct, most perfect, most unbiased ones. Because then we are nothing but hypocrites. Its far better to acknowledge our biases and relative weights or importance of the features of our choice than to behave as if our choices are the best. They may or may not depending on how accurate our weights are as compared to the outcomes resulting from that choice.