Misinformation and Our Brains
All of our choices have consequences—some greater than others.?At the same time, it is essential to recognize that we humans are wired to trust, which isn't very clear when faced with the primary task of making decisions.?As a result, deceptive visuals and textual content often overestimate our knowledge of our environment, leading to careless actions.?
We can use reference class forecasting to avoid frequent mistakes instead of depending on your hazy imagination to make predictions about the present and the future. Looking at examples from the past for a clearer image, such as thinking back to that moment in time, the last time you went out in the rain. What was your attire? Would anything happen if you were caught in the rain without proper clothing?
To understand further how our tendency to believe what our first impression tells us, let me introduce the case of the "Prince of Poyais" to you. A Scottish adventurer and general set to ship from Central America in 1821 and arrived in the United Kingdom. In his travels, he acquired the royal title of His Highness Gregor McGregor, cazique of Poyais, and landed in London with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: he discovered a new promised land: the realm of Poyais.?
Such land was rich enough to produce three harvests in a year. Such proof was presented in Captain Thomas' book where the rivers of Poyais's were lined with globules of pure gold in the soil in his book drawing of the eastern shore, which included the lands of Poyais.?
The Prince of Poyais first opened an office in London, where he unfurled the Poyai's flag and penned the legally binding Poyais's immigration. Weary travelers to Poyais exchanged pounds for Poyai's dollars and bought a portion of Poyais itself for hundreds of today's dollars, returning to Poyais once more. In reality, Poyais never existed; Gregor McGregor made the whole thing up.
"The Prince of Poyais, the Cazique, His Serene Highness Gregor, 'El General Mac Gregor,' are just some of the names belonging to a Scottish soldier; who rose to prominence as one of history's most notorious confidence tricksters. The author of one of the most outrageous con jobs in history was far from the first or the last because many people are nasty, like the famous Captain Gregor McGregor. Throughout history, we have records of people making things up. Most of us think we are suitable lie detectors. That is one of the reasons evolutionarily we are often tricked.?
The Nobel-winning psychologist, Daniel Kahneman, has taught us that we have two distinct ways of thinking. The first system is more instinctual and involves less work, while the second system is more deliberate and requires much focus. Our thoughts and behaviors will be determined based on which of these two systems is in charge of our brain at any given moment.
The bottom line is that noise affects our judgment, which is why I would like to bring this excerpt to your attention. "One thing we've done at Media Matters is try to document how social media algorithms and far-right online communities can radicalize everyday people?fairly easily. I think Rogan is a good example of that. Let's say you're a young man listening to?The Joe Rogan Experience, and you want to get tips on bodybuilding or how to eat healthfully, and then Rogan starts discussing that vaccines are a form of gene therapy with Ben Shapiro, and then perhaps you go to Ben Shapiro's website,?The Daily Wire, and there, you fall into a cesspool of hatred and bigotry, and once you click on a?Daily Wire?article, if you share it on Facebook, you're just going to be led further and further down the far-right rabbit hole. That can take someone from being an everyday person [to] suddenly being fed news and misinformation about QAnon and other right-wing lies. I think it's important to keep in mind that Joe Rogan spreading this misinformation has real-world consequences that can have really dire effects for marginalized people," said Alex Paterson, a researcher at Media Matters. The article titled "What you learn after 350 hours with Joe Rogan" was written by Ashley Carman in The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/7/22821823/joe-rogan-media-matters-hot-pod-spotify-moderation.
Our brains are susceptible to misinformation. How do you make decisions? How do you conclude what is true or not??
I attempt to use reference class forecasting to avoid frequent mistakes instead of depending on your hazy imagination to make predictions about the present and the future. More importantly, I consult with my trusted friends and mentors about any important decision I am about to make. They support me on my journey to Return on Humanity as they help me navigate a world of people who might not have humanity's best interest at heart.?