Philosophy
If I tried to sell you the painting to the right for a hefty sum, I'm pretty sure you'd think it wasn't worth your time, or that I was trying to pull your leg. Never mind the artistic talent and effort that indubitably went into the piece, you'd argue it's obviously a forgery and hence not worth very much. But why should that matter?
And if you want to see how easily people can be fooled by fancy names and brands, check out how Penn & Teller do it.
- Placebos, Doctors, And Patients
We know that the placebo effect is real. Some people will actually get better if they think they are being treated. It is not that they think they're getting better, they actually are. So, if I am ill and my doctor thinks that given what he knows...
- Apollo Robbins - The Art Of Misdirection
If you don't know who Apollo Robbins is, you might want to check a fascinating profile of him published in The New Yorker in January of this year. Quite simply, he is probably the world's best, and most honest, pickpocket. As you'll gather...
- Penn & Teller - If You Ate Or Drank Crap, Could You Tell?
Though I am perfectly willing to admit my palate is not quite as refined as that of a mediocre connoisseur, I also tend to be skeptical of foodies, as well as coffee, wine and cigar snobs. Most of these people live under the delusion that their powers...
- John Passmore On David Hume
When we try to make sense of our experience of the world, we almost inevitably presuppose certain concepts as either necessary and indispensable or as obviously true. Reasonable people, we tend to suppose, are those whose beliefs reflect the amount and...
- Ben Goldacre - The Placebo And Nocebo Effects
You're probably familiar with the concept of the placebo effect: you pretend to provide some sort of treatment to a patient (sugar pill, saline shot, shaman chicken dance, homeopathic elixir, etc.), and because there is no actual medicine or treatment,...
Philosophy
Paul Bloom - Essentialism and The Origins of Pleasure
In the following TEDTalk presentation, and using famous and fascinating examples from scientific studies and experiments, psychologist Paul Bloom argues that human beings are natural-born essentialists: we project meaning to our experiences way beyond the information we receive from our senses. Of course, Hume and Kant made that point about 300 years ago, but sometimes it takes science a little while (or a few centuries) to catch up to philosophy :)
Anyway, this is why the placebo effect is so powerful, why our expectations shade our perceptual experiences (like why we think more expensive stuff tastes better) and why we hold on to superstitious beliefs such as the idea that objects have some unchanging essence or sine qua non that gives them their unique identity. And it all starts with a hilarious story about that Nazi bastard Hermann Goering...
And if you want to see how easily people can be fooled by fancy names and brands, check out how Penn & Teller do it.
- Placebos, Doctors, And Patients
We know that the placebo effect is real. Some people will actually get better if they think they are being treated. It is not that they think they're getting better, they actually are. So, if I am ill and my doctor thinks that given what he knows...
- Apollo Robbins - The Art Of Misdirection
If you don't know who Apollo Robbins is, you might want to check a fascinating profile of him published in The New Yorker in January of this year. Quite simply, he is probably the world's best, and most honest, pickpocket. As you'll gather...
- Penn & Teller - If You Ate Or Drank Crap, Could You Tell?
Though I am perfectly willing to admit my palate is not quite as refined as that of a mediocre connoisseur, I also tend to be skeptical of foodies, as well as coffee, wine and cigar snobs. Most of these people live under the delusion that their powers...
- John Passmore On David Hume
When we try to make sense of our experience of the world, we almost inevitably presuppose certain concepts as either necessary and indispensable or as obviously true. Reasonable people, we tend to suppose, are those whose beliefs reflect the amount and...
- Ben Goldacre - The Placebo And Nocebo Effects
You're probably familiar with the concept of the placebo effect: you pretend to provide some sort of treatment to a patient (sugar pill, saline shot, shaman chicken dance, homeopathic elixir, etc.), and because there is no actual medicine or treatment,...