#WB Critical Thinking
Why do intelligent people defend bad ideas?
Intelligence doesn’t protect us from false beliefs—worldview attachment does the real work.
What’s the difference between intentional change and wishful thinking?
Mistaking intent for causation is a core thinking error that keeps habits, self-stories, and outcomes locked in place.
Why do we only remember the good parts of vacations, forgetting the bad?
The Rosy Retrospection cognitive bias filters memory "positively" through emotion and preserving highlights.
Is Occam’s Razor always right?
In the realm of idea evaluation, Occam’s Razor is a tool that stands out, but it was never meant as a law of truth. It's ...
Was Pythagoras’ thinking flawed?
Yes and no. Pythagoras combined enduring empirical insights with personal beliefs that overpowered sound reasoning.
Is cause and effect certain?
With the motion of life, cause and effect feel certain. We see stable patterns. But Hume reminds you, correlation does not guarantee causation.
What does the Crinum coal mine teach us about dating methods?
Radiometric dating is scientifically sound, but it's true that scientists need to carefully rule out contaminants. Sound thinking recognizes that a method's validity depends on ...
Does Musk’s Mars vision highlight poor reasoning?
Ambition isn’t the problem — confusing futuristic spectacle with practical priority is.
Does the Fermi paradox lack good thinking?
Good thinking isn’t just about asking big questions like the Fermi Paradox—it’s about recognizing the biases that shape our answers and staying open to possibilities ...
Is the prisoner choosing bread over a key to freedom a critical thinking error?
During life, your present bias will pull you to choose what feels good now over what serves you later. Sometimes that's okay, sometimes not. Weigh ...
What is the preservation bias?
Preservation bias shapes what we think we know by favoring durable evidence over what decays.
What is the Ebbinghaus Illusion?
The Ebbinghaus Illusion reminds us that our senses don’t report reality directly; they interpret it.
What is information theory?
Information theory is the science of information and how it is encoded, transmitted, and preserved.
Was math discovered or invented?
Math is discovered in the structure of the Material World but invented in the symbolic systems minds use to describe that structure.
What is the difference between anthropology and paleontology?
Anthropology uncovers culture, and paleontology uncovers ancient life.
What is the difference between a heuristic and a cognitive bias?
Heuristics are natural mental shortcuts that speed decisions. Cognitive biases are ingrained thinking errors. Both are reinforced by experience. Both help us move forward quickly, ...
What is the cherry picking logical fallacy?
Cherry-picking turns partial truth into misleading truth. When a claim feels convincing, pause and ask: What evidence was left out? A single fact may be ...
Is it logical to vote for a candidate based on just one issue?
Focusing on a single issue can feel logical, but it risks cherry-picking. When you do it, just be aware that you are simplifying complex decisions.
Is there evidence for other dimensions?
There is no empirical evidence for other dimensions—only mathematical speculation and theoretical exploration.
What are social constructs and how do they apply to AI?
Social constructs are human-made rules, and AI will either inherit their flaws or help us outgrow them.