Chunking

 

The chunking thing

This concept of "chunking" shows up everywhere once you start looking for it.

When you learned to read, you started by recognizing individual letters. Then you learned to chunk letters into words. Then words into phrases. Now you chunk entire sentences, maybe paragraphs, into single units of meaning.

A beginner reader sees individual letters. An expert reader sees ideas.

Same thing happens in every domain.

A beginner programmer sees individual lines of code. An expert sees patterns. That's a sorting algorithm. That's a recursive function. That's an off-by-one error waiting to happen.

The narrowness of their views

"Narrowness" is a nonbiblical BofM term that Edwards used.

The following excerpt was written by one of his daughters.

And allowing my opinion differs from the common opinion: for one to differ from a number that are all in one common interest, perhaps it will not appear so very bold if you consider the great depravity of all mankind for dominion, and their universal proneness to err through the narrowness of their views and great partiality to themselves; which gives rise to a maxim amongst you, that no man must be a judge where he is a party. And in this case, the wisest of you must be considered as of a party. 

As for my having an opinion that is differing from the wisest divines or divines in general, I am not convinced it is so; but be that as it will, if I am obliged to believe as divines believe, I hope, till they are universally united in sentiment, I may choose on whose sleeve to pin my opinion

http://edwards.yale.edu/archive?path=aHR0cDovL2Vkd2FyZHMueWFsZS5lZHUvY2dpLWJpbi9uZXdwaGlsby9nZXRvYmplY3QucGw/Yy4zOToxLndqZW8uNjQwNDA=

Spiritual pride commonly occasions a certain stiffness and inflexibility

 

Spiritual pride commonly occasions a certain stiffness and inflexibility in persons, in their own judgment and their own ways; whereas the eminently humble person, though he be inflexible in his duty, and in those things wherein God's honor is concerned; and with regard to temptation to those things he apprehends to be sinful, though in never so small a degree, he is not at all of a yieldable spirit, but is like a brazen wall; yet in other things he is of a pliable disposition, not disposed to set up his own opinion, or his own will; he is ready to pay deference to others' opinions, and loves to comply with their inclinations, and has a heart that is tender and flexible, like a little child.

http://edwards.yale.edu/archive?path=aHR0cDovL2Vkd2FyZHMueWFsZS5lZHUvY2dpLWJpbi9uZXdwaGlsby9nZXRvYmplY3QucGw/Yy4zOjQud2plby40ODYwNzMuNDg2MDc5