Advertisement
Filtering water closely parallels the filtration of our daily information intake. It takes time and effort. Full filtration is particularly expensive, costing a great deal of time and effort; however, the cost may be less severe with cleaner sources.…
When we’re young, the world unfolds in found talismans and nursery ditties. Singsong superstitions are verses in the narratives we construct about our lives. I was no exception. Sidewalks transformed into mythical landscapes, each crack a fault line through which my mother’s well-being might crumble.…
...conspiracy theories have steep costs for Americans, both as individuals and as a society. They erode trust in institutions, from the government to the press, making it harder for these bodies to function effectively on our behalf. Personal relationships become strained as folks become deeply invested in views that set them at odds with friends and family.…
Asimov then traces 1,500 terms through history, starting at their roots—their etymologies, their origins. Because so many science words have Greek and Latin roots hidden inside them, learning even a few of these roots can seriously help students, professionals, and anyone frustrated by their doctor’s medical gibberish.…
For fun this summer, to learn about confirmation bias, we mind-travel to the great and prosperous town of Biasville, where the people have odd names and the drama never ends. It’s not hard to find Biasville: You can get there by traveling through Emotion Junction, Ingroup Outpost, Heuristic Harbor (aka, the Mental Shortcut), Faux Memory Lane, Overconfidence Overpass, or—shudder—the Valley of Dissonance.…
Watch out! That medicine will make you sick! You’ll regret taking it!” Words hold immense power over our minds and bodies. Just as Dumbo believed in the magic feather and flew across the circus tent—even after he learned the feather was a placebo, an empty talisman—our beliefs can shape our experiences in unexpected ways. However, there is a darker side to this phenomenon—the “nocebo” effect. Brace yourself as we now step into the darker shadows of the circus tent and…
Citizen Science No. 5 by Jamie Zvirzdin The Power of the Placebo Effect,Part I: Magic Feathers and Medical Transparency Dumbo! C’mon, fly! Open them ears! The magic feather was just a gag! You can fly! Honest, you can!” I can recite many Disney movies almost word for word, but I also recall that the 1941 version of “Dumbo” made me acutely sad and anxious. And no wonder: a poor baby elephant with big ears is mocked by others at the…
This isn’t a hand-wringing article about the moral decrepitude of cheaters, however; it is a wake-up call to teachers and educational administrators to change the game. Our expensive, competitive, performance-based emphasis on exams and grades have created a conflict-of-interest situation for students.…
While the analogy of “panning for science” has as many holes as a sieve, it is true that we humans are easily fooled by false scientific claims. Hope springs eternal: If it worked for them, surely it will work for me, too, we think. But a testimonial is not science. Real scientists—and citizens who understand science—will stop and sift the gathered data very carefully before joining the ranks of eager squealers.…
The vast majority of us want to be wise, we want to be safe, and we want to be good to our planet and each other, especially our kids. But false alarms stress us out: How can we keep our families and flocks safe from both wolves and little boys who cry wolf?…