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Interlude XXXIII - The Geometry of Intimacy: Space, Distance, and the Social Nervous System
In this interlude of The Observable Unknown, Dr. Juan Carlos Rey examines one of the most overlooked dimensions of human consciousness: space itself.
Long before words are exchanged, before faces are read or gestures interpreted, bodies negotiate meaning through distance. How close we stand. How we angle our torsos. How quickly we withdraw or remain. These spatial decisions are not arbitrary. They are governed by deeply embedded neural and cultural systems that shape trust, threat, intimacy, and belonging.
Drawing from the foundational work of anthropologist Edward T. Hall on proxemics…
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