My review for The art of thinking clearly
What if someone told us the filter we use to see the world is flawed big time? This book is that someone. We have lots of biases that shape our worldview.
Let’s take confirmation bias as an example. Two people with competing two ideas interpret the same data in a way supportive of their beliefs. Making this one up: Eating lettuce caused chickenpox for 0.5% of the population. Lettuce proponents: 95.5% of the population didn’t develop any symptoms, so eating lettuce is safe and healthy. On the other hand, the opponents: There is clear evidence that shows eating lettuce causes chickenpox: same data but different actions.
Take misinformation for another example. The reason why it works gradually over time is that people forget the source of information and start believing it, telling it to others, base their worldview on it. This cognitive fallacy costs us a lot. But masses live and breathe on this fallacy every single day. Information sticks more than its source.
The best possible remedy to fix ourselves is to know what sort of cognitive fallacies we have and start recognizing them as they happen. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. We are not that rational after all.