I believe that the ocean is deep. I'm quite confident about it, in fact, but if someone ever asked me, "What are your sources for believing that the the ocean is deep?", I would probably stutter for a few seconds and fail to come up with any kind of respectable answer. My belief is built … Continue reading Communication is Hard →

Let's say that I'm trying to understand a tricky political issue like healthcare reform, without simply accepting the collective opinion of my in-group. I'm searching for the best experts in the world to help me untangle this mess and choose the best policy goals. The first thing I'm going to do is ignore 99% of … Continue reading The Edifice of Knowledge →

I work hard to challenge my beliefs and I like to think that I'm a very open-minded person. But then I think about all the people who are way more open to crazy ideas than I am. What about all of the conspiracy theorists who think the moon landing was faked? Or that lizard people … Continue reading Open-Minded Versus Gullible →