#698 James Zimring - Partial Truths: How Fractions Distort Our Thinking
RECORDED ON AUGUST 1st 2022.
Dr. James Zimring is Thomas W. Tillack Professor of Experimental Pathology at the University of Virginia. He is the author of What Science Is and How It Really Works (2019). His latest book is Partial Truths: How Fractions Distort Our Thinking.
In this episode, we focus on Partial Truths. We start with the premise of the book, and explain what a fraction is. We go through some biases and heuristics, like the confirmation bias and the availability heuristic, and talk about their evolution. We discuss bias within the criminal justice system. We talk about finding patterns where they do not exist, as in conspiracy theories and prophecies. We discuss why the Universe appears to be designed. We talk about bad uses of statistics in science. We discuss social cognition, and an interactionist model of human reasoning, as opposed to an intellectualist one. Finally, we ask if it would really be good to overcome errors of reasoning.
Time Links:
Intro
The premise of the book
Fractions, and errors involving them
Biases and heuristics, especially the availability heuristic and the confirmation bias
Shouldn’t biases and heuristics work well, if they have evolved?
Cherry-picking
Bias within the criminal justice system
Finding patterns where they do not exist – conspiracy theories and prophecies
Why does the Universe appear to be designed?
Bad uses of statistics in science
Social cognition
An interactionist model of human reasoning
Even if we could overcome errors of reasoning, should we do it?
Follow Dr. Zimring’s work!
Follow Dr. Zimring’s work:
Faculty page: https://bit.ly/3JWNxHt
Website: https://bit.ly/391VTkh
Amazon page: https://amzn.to/3aoI4NR
Partial Truths: https://amzn.to/3uU191G