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pangloss comments on Rationality Quotes - April 2009 - Less Wrong
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That is an interesting contrast with Spinoza's view that all ideas enter the mind as beliefs, and that mere apprehension is achieved by diminishing something about the idea believed.
I don't think it's a contrast. The point is that it takes practice to do the necessary diminishing.
Spinoza was ahead of his time: there's more recent psychological research confirming that when you hear a statement -- even if the context makes it clear that no one is seriously telling you it's true -- the effect is to make you believe it more; and that this effect is stronger if you're having to use more of your brain for some other task at the same time. I forget all the details, but I think there was some discussion of this on Overcoming Bias 6-18 months ago (90% confidence interval).
Oh, that's a good point. I was assuming Aristotle was commending people who could hear it without coming to believe it, but it could easily be that he is commending people who diminish their belief rapidly, and acquire a state of mere apprehension.