Category: motivated reasoning

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THREATS: Existential & Otherwise

The good news is, this video is not a rant.

It’s an educational documentary-style attempt to look closely & dispassionately at contemporary trends and events which many find concerning.

The bad news is, this video is longish, 26min 48sec – and you won’t hurt my feelings if you don’t watch. The visuals accompanying the voice-over, however, are, as a mitigating ploy, reasonably engaging. Best viewed 4K on larger screens.

PART I  – 

The human brain protects our self-image by rejecting facts which contradict cherished beliefs, ushering in a “post-truth” era

PART II  – 

Algorithms actively promote fake news & conspiracies to polarize viewers and make a profit, contributing to cultural wars

PART III  – 

Elected leaders no longer represent the will of the people & refuse to compromise, undermining Democracy

You might be surprised to know that nowhere in this video is the suggestion that computers will evolve into some kind of intelligent super brain and take over the world. That’s a slippery slope speculation outside the scope of a balanced documentary.

🙂 🙂 🙂

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Truth Is a 4-Letter Word

We live in a world of lying and fake news. Where public opinion is shaped by appeals to emotion, not facts.

Compounding the problem is human nature. The limbic system of our brain is hard-wired to shield our core beliefs from contradictory evidence, and in debates will automatically deploy strategies to (1) deny facts, (2) dispute the validity of facts – and, if need be, (3) reframe an issue from another perspective so as to make facts irrelevant.

Social media and AI generated deepfakes are also complicit in enabling disinformation campaigns and the war on truth.

🙂 🙂 🙂