While the community has a very simple premise, there’s no question that r/Hmmm is extremely popular. In fact, the group receives 477K visitors and over 3K contributions each week. It’s a safe space where people can share photos that they’ve taken or found online that definitely got the wheels turning in their heads.
From funny pics of animals to bizarre behavior observed in public, this community is a wonderful reminder that you never know what you’re going to encounter when you leave the house. In fact, you don’t even have to go outside to see something strange; you can simply scroll through this list to get your fix of thought-provoking photos!
If you’re feeling utterly confused by the photos shared on this list, don’t fret. That might actually be a good thing! Tania Lombrozo at NPR published a piece explaining how confusion can benefit us, and she noted that it is an important step on the path to learning. In fact, a 2004 study involving participants learning basic computer literacy through an automated tutoring system found just that.
The researchers realized that participants who spent a greater portion of the lessons in a state of confusion eventually exhibited significantly greater learning gains. On the other hand, those who spent a large portion of the lessons feeling bored exhibited much lower learning gains. So don’t fear the feeling of confusion; embrace it!
As far as why confusion can be so beneficial, Lombrozo explains that it’s not exactly helpful on its own. But being confused does indicate that an important cognitive process is taking place. A person who is trying to learn something new has acknowledged inconsistencies or deficits in their current scope of understanding. They will then feel motivated to figure out exactly what information they’re lacking to remedy their confusion, which ultimately requires them to learn something new.
Now, feeling confused isn’t always a great thing. If the textbook you’re reading is so dense that it makes absolutely no sense, or your teacher seems to be speaking a language that you don’t understand, your brain can become overwhelmed and simply shut down. And if you become frustrated, you’re likely to disengage. So it’s best to experience confusion under the right circumstances. If you feel comfortable asking questions and getting clarifying information, that’s great. But if you’re unable to receive help or support, the lack of understanding can become exhausting.
If we want to learn from our confusion, Gregor Kennedy at the University of Melbourne notes that it’s important to first recognize it. There’s often a stigma associated with admitting that you don’t know everything, but that’s silly. Nobody knows everything, and refusing to be open to learning new things will only limit you. Becoming comfortable with confusion and not understanding new concepts is the first step in expanding your knowledge.
When you are looking to learn something new, though, Kennedy urges you to seek out challenging information. Nowadays, there are countless videos and articles with a simple surface-level analysis of what could be an extremely complex concept. But these explanations probably won’t push you to learn anything new. They’ll give you a false level of confidence in your understanding of these topics. So seek out information that’s more difficult to understand, and don’t be scared of the discomfort that comes along with confusion.
