Every so often, I like to have a look at the questions philosophers are currently into, and one I came across recently was ‘does pleasure need a self?’ My first thought was, ugh, here we go, some AI consciousness thing. But it wasn't that — it was about attention. Do you have to notice a pleasure for it to affect you?
Pleasure runs through the same system in our bodies as the rest-and-repair process, and experiencing it has useful effects like lowering cortisol and inflammation. So the question is kind of important, especially in a world where it's so difficult to stay attentive.
Turns out the answer is: it depends on which kind of pleasure.
Some pleasures need your attention to have an effect. A delicious meal, eaten without noticing, is just sustenance. Others don't need the noticing. This is how smell works. It reaches you without you needing to be present or attentive. The pleasure effect happens either way.
I like that.
— Emily
