Tidbits:
Stories, Quotes, and FAQs.
The wisdom builder tidbits that feed the columns, articles, and trainer.
Four Mind Traps
Featured Story
Critical Thinking
Story
Maya, Illusion.
Cognitive Biases
Four Mind Traps
We all must live with human cognitive biases, our mental shortcuts that simplify a complex life. We all need to strive to understand them so we can use them wisely. They distort truth and are universal. They are not moral failures. You can control these mind traps by exercising structured reasoning and empirical testing to calibrate your confidence in a belief. This helps to prevent your inflated certainty and tribal thinking.
Featured QUOTE
Featured FAQ
Updated This Week
Critical Thinking
FAQ
Why do we rely on authority figures for information?
Authority
Authority is a necessary shortcut in a complex world, but it is always a risk. That is why you must choose your authorities well and audit them continually. The moment an authority knowingly repeats a lie instead of correcting it, they fail the test. Good authorities do not demand loyalty to error. They submit to evidence, correct themselves, and deserve trust only so long as they do.
Updated Tidbits
Critical Thinking
FAQ
What is the cherry picking logical fallacy?
Cherry Picking Fallacy Defined
05 May 2026
(Updated 19 hours ago)
Critical Thinking
FAQ
What does the Crinum coal mine teach us about dating methods?
Radiometric Dating Explained
05 May 2026
(Updated 4 days ago)
Critical Thinking
FAQ
Is the prisoner choosing bread over a key to freedom a critical thinking error?
Cognitive Bias
05 May 2026
(Updated 4 days ago)
Four Mind Traps
Common Cognitive Errors
Recognizing where thinking goes wrong.
The Four Mind Traps identify recurring patterns of flawed reasoning. These traps—often subtle and emotionally persuasive—distort evidence, oversimplify complexity, and protect belief at the expense of truth. Recognizing them is the first step toward intellectual maturity.
Deep-Dive Articles
The Fermi Paradox is Too Anthropocentric
The Fermi Paradox is the common framework for thinking about the odds of alien life, but we need more data before it can become accurate enough to be useful.
Neanderthal Clue: Reassessing Intelligence Beyond Human Bias
Neanderthals were not dim, brutish failures of human evolution. Growing evidence shows they were intelligent ancient humans with symbolic thought, culture, and abilities that challenge long-standing human-centered bias.
4 Mind Traps: Fallacies, Biases, Heuristics, and Stereotypes
The Four Mind Traps are predictable thinking errors that distort judgment before reasoning even begins.
Appeal to Authority Logical Fallacy
An appeal to authority treats who said something as evidence. It puts who over why and source over evidence.
Logical Fallacies: The Failure of Argument
Logical fallacies are not random mistakes: they follow recognizable strategies that derail reasoning.
Must-Reads
Ancient Humans
Neanderthal Clue: Reassessing Intelligence Beyond Human Bias
Neanderthals were not dim, brutish failures of human evolution. Growing evidence shows they were intelligent ancient humans with symbolic thought, culture, and abilities that challenge ...
Updated Articles
TST COLUMN
01 Dec 2028
Think well.
Draft Paper
4 Mind Traps: Fallacies, Biases, Heuristics, and Stereotypes
Cognitive Obstacles
Fri 12 May 2023
(3 years ago)
Updated 2 weeks ago.
TST COLUMN
01 Jan 2029
Think well.
Article
Logical Fallacies: The Failure of Argument
Critical Thinking
Fri 7 Dec 2018
(7 years ago)
Updated 2 weeks ago.
TST COLUMN
29 Dec 2024
Debut
Philosophy
Article
The Fermi Paradox is Too Anthropocentric
Fermi Paradox
Sun 29 Dec 2024
(1 year ago)
Updated 2 months ago.