Focus

[Cognisant]

While we're on the subject, meditation in general — Zazen, Yoga, etc. Zen Buddhism, for example, takes the position that if you can focus on something as boring as sitting in a room staring at nothing all day (Zazen), then you can focus on, say, the best path to get out of a moving car in a big hurry, or how to dodge a sucker punch at a bar. While it won't make a person superhuman, one should never underestimate the ability to focus when needed.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/EnlightenmentSuperpowers

Ironically I'm too tired/lazy to do the research myself.
Go forth my minions, go and do the research for me.

*yawn* Goodnight.

Oh yeah, and the minion I deem most successful will be rewarded.

 

[Cogwulf]

I believe it's less to do with focusing on something, and more to do with self-control.
In those sorts of situations where meditation is meant to give an advantage, the two things that will slow down your reflexes are emotions, and conscious thought. Meditation is all about controlling those two things, so presumably it could improve reflexes.

I've often thought about a connection between meditation and cognitive functions, meditating could improve how the different functions are used. General meditation could be seen as suppressing Thinking functions. Some forms of meditation may be exploiting Se.

The action of getting out a moving car quickly could be seen as an action that is done best by Se and Si working together. Se sees the approaching danger, and Si acts to repeat the familiar action of opening the door. Without Se you would probably react to the danger too late, and without Si you may end up fumbling with the door and take too long to open it. Although I have never read anything linking MBTI to motor skills before.

 

[Vrecknidj]

This is only tangentially related. I read in a Newsweek article last week that the NIH did an exhaustive study of basically everything that's ever been touted as a way to boost brain performance. They tested everything from drugs to foods to naps to music: basically, if anything has been claimed to be "good for your mind" in the last 50 years, they tested it.

They uncovered that when you factor everything else out of the studies (such as studies of certain foods or certain kinds of diets, etc.) only two things work across the board: exercise and meditation.

Just thought I'd throw that in here, since it kinda, sorta fits (like I said, in a tangential way).

Dave

 

[Adamastor]

Well,
I've always thought that meditating was something like cleaning 'useless' things that were up in your mind. And, in fact, it is much easier to do something more efficiently if that is the only thing you have to bother.

So looking in a random situation pragmatically I'd say that meditating kinda make you superhuman meaning that if not extraordinarily, not in your focused state, you wouldn't do somethings at ease.

Martial arts or sports may be a proof of it.

Although I don't discard the fact that there are people that react more on instinct or are simply wild, personally in a match I found way more dangerously those that are conscious of what they are doing and of you and winning becomes matter of pondering your limitations to reading the fight outcome.

Even though I do not practice track-and-field I wouldn't find it hard to believe that before a competition, the runners would take their time to focus and take out the maximum of their body, pretty much like someone before a fight (most of the people take their distance of everyone and start to focus).

 

[SkyWalker]

I believe focus & perseverence on rationalities is a Te thing