Tell me more ×
English Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 2 down vote favorite

For a mental model, connecting what has just happened with what will happen in the very near future is the task with the highest stakes.

That sounds unnatural to me. Can someone suggest a rewording?

share|improve this question
Can you at least suggest what you are actually trying to say here? – JeffSahol Jun 7 '12 at 17:55
For mental models (as opposed to complete scientific theories or computer models) connections between events in the immediate past and immediate future are the most critical. They reward you the most, in your ability to manipulate the world. The smaller the time between the events, the more important it is to be certain of the correlation. – Nathan Jun 7 '12 at 18:30
See amended answer...you supplied the word that was needed, "critical". – JeffSahol Jun 7 '12 at 18:40

closed as not a real question by FumbleFingers, Jasper Loy, Mitch, kiamlaluno, Daniel δ Jun 27 '12 at 23:01

It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.

3 Answers

up vote 1 down vote accepted

It sounds like this is about mental models understanding cause-and-effect, so...

The most critical task for a mental model is connecting past events to future results.

or

For a mental model, connecting past events to future results is the most critical task.

Most critical task seems to convey the same meaning as "the task with the highest stakes". For concision, you could probably drop the most and just call it the critical task.

share|improve this answer
-1 Good rewording, but I think you lost the nearness of the events i.e. just happened and very near future. To get that meaning back you should say "The most critical task for a mental model is connecting very recent events to immediate future events." As well, there is no causation between past and future events implied in the original statement, so I don't think you can use "results" in your rewording. – zooone9243 Jun 7 '12 at 18:58
@zooone I personally feel that causation was implied. A mental model is a system designed to find causation and discover patterns. I did drop the proximity of the events, while could easily be added in. – Lawton Jun 7 '12 at 19:27
up vote 1 down vote

For a mental model, connecting what has just happened with what will happen in the very near future is the task bearing the greatest risks and greatest rewards.

share|improve this answer
up vote 0 down vote

For a mental model, connecting what has just happened with what will happen in the very near future is the most critical task.

share|improve this answer
"stake" == "risk"/"importance". "payoff" == "reward". "reward" != "risk"/"importance". – SigTerm Jun 7 '12 at 17:46

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.