I’m writing the current blog post on July 4th, 2025. Summer is in full swing. I went out to a techno bar, had a few drinks.

People don’t understand Artificial Intelligence.

I’m going to write the current blog post on a topic that may catch the eye of the reader: charisma.

I took a class my sophomore year of college called Knowledge and Cognition, which was one of my favorite classes that I took in my entire life.

Knowledge and Cognition was a class that I looked forward to attend in my schedule, and that was the class that cemented in me my belief that Cognitive Science was going to be my official major.

Professor Broude presented slides in the class.

I think I lost my notes, but let me look at the openly available syllabus now to perhaps jog my memory.

You know what?

If I can’t remember myself, then why am I telling you?

Knowledge and Cognition is an ambitious goal for someone to teach.

How are you going to tackle knowledge and cognition

The upper block is not letting me edit.

How are you going to tackle knowledge and cognition in 1 semester?

I’m going to be honest here, there were some people who did not understand knowledge and cognition by the end of the semester.

I am going to make a claim that I gained some understanding.

Professor Broude is a Cognitive Scientist with a sharp wit, and a sharper tongue.

Where a lot of people will see one thing, Professor Broude will see something entirely different.

And somehow, she convinced me from Day 1.

I think the 1st lecture covered definitions.

So – in life – you have to understand that depending on who you ask, the definition of a word will change.

So, the definition of a word, can and will be different to different people.

Let’s say you ask someone, what is the definition of intelligence?

People will have different answers.

Some may say that intelligence is defined by a person’s ability to memorize facts.

Another may say that intelligence is a person’s ability to predict the future.

Both may be right, and both may have a conversation in which they talk of intelligence, but they have entirely different definitions.

Let’s extend the flexibility of definitions of intelligence to another trait which we may call charisma.

I’m going to say that to me, charisma is a sort of grace and magnetism that attracts other people.

Ok, now I’m guessing that you may disagree.

And that’s what’s amazing about Cognitive Science.

Suddenly, we realize that charisma is an emergent feature that is not able to be pinned down to a fixed definition.

The definition of charisma may change depending on the circumstance, and the people.