Why Facts Don’t Change Our Minds. "Myside Bias"

**incisor** · 25th May 2019, 08:37 PM

Originally Posted by Slunnie

I have a friend who is pretty intelligent but was always posting all of this conspiracy theory stuff on FB. I asked her why she thought that these little 2bit unkown websites were more credible in getting the truth out there than mass media all over the world. She never really posted any conspiracy theory stuff after that.

geez i know a few people that need to have a chat with you

**mekon76** · 25th May 2019, 09:25 PM

No one thinks critically anymore. Whatever 2 bit conspiracy theory website or hippie medical website, David Avacado Wolfe says seems to carry more weight than science. Must be related to the advent of the internet and the proliferation of bull**** over the network. A lot of people are thick as pig ****.

**Eevo** · 25th May 2019, 11:14 PM

Originally Posted by DiscoMick

Some people, including anti-vaxers, think their opinions and prejudices are more reliable than actual facts.

this is what society teaches people as important to being successful.

**rick130** · 26th May 2019, 07:01 AM

I haven't read the link but I've studied a lot of psychology and the bottom line is everyone has an emotional response to everything around them. When we form an opinion it takes a lot to change, and regardless of the evidence most won't
If we 'feel' something is a certain way, oftentimes no amount of evidence to the contrary will sway us, and we then go looking for evidence to back our point of view, pulling the tinniest line out of a report, taking something totally out of context or grabbing hold of the most obscure and often unverified 'evidence' to back our 'feeling', sorry, rational argument.
This is called confirmation bias.
Think of climate change deniers, anti-vaxxers, anyone that embraces a conspiracy theory.

I laugh at people telling me how 'rational' they are, particularly Alpha males! who tend to be the most irrational of all. They are totally beholden to their hormones (especially testosterone)
I've had long discussions with psychs on this and our feeling (so empirical!) is that most people, and I'm pulling numbers out of my arse here but my psych friend reckoned in her clinical and life experience it was pretty true, is that everyone lies to themselves to justify habits and behaviours, and that 95-99% of people arent that aware, and lack any critical self-awareness.

**350RRC** · 26th May 2019, 07:03 AM

I find the anti renewables people that I know 'interesting'.

If the wind is blowing say 30 knots they'll start rattling on about the wind turbines being shut down for safety.

If you show them the live NEM watch gizmo it will show Vic and SA belting power from wind into the grid which then gets them saying its faked.

Similarly if the power goes out for any reason here (and its very rare these days) then its a brownout / load shedding caused by not having Hazlewood. (which has only happened once)

Any potential symptom is used as 'evidence' of their argument and real root causes of problems are ignored even when they easy to research.

The other side of the coin is when you get a few days in the high 30's and it gets called a heatwave, maybe even record breaking, in the media.

When you have a colder than average month it never gets reported, but hotter than average will get a gig every time.

DL

**Saitch** · 26th May 2019, 07:27 AM

Originally Posted by mekon76

No one thinks critically anymore. Whatever 2 bit conspiracy theory website or hippie medical website, David Avacado Wolfe says seems to carry more weight than science. Must be related to the advent of the internet and the proliferation of bull**** over the network. A lot of people are thick as pig ****.

Agree!

**goingbush** · 26th May 2019, 08:20 AM

I'm just misanthropic , I’ll need to add it to my profile

,

… I take exception at the narrow minded bit though.

synonyms: antisocial, unsociable, unfriendly, reclusive, uncongenial, unneighbourly, inhospitable, cynical, suspicious, distrustful, sceptical, jaundiced, narrow-minded

**NavyDiver** · 26th May 2019, 10:15 AM

VMO advertising has a screen at the local pool gym. It has a add for Elderberries and Flu among some other claims which its is stated are proven by Sydney University research. The add is to inspire us all to buy Elderberry supplements.

Their so called proof was on a web page of the UNI which was pulled down as it is rubbish - Error 404 now

Almost no supplements are need if we eat a balanced diet and do some exercise. I run about 100km a week on the same food and diet my wife and kids eat. I toss in a few extra bits of fruit and nuts some times. The Chemists who sell so much rubbish as if it is needed to live drive me nuts. Fools are their money

I'd consider supplements if my doctors or a dietician suggested I needed them. Happily I do not.

"https://sydney.edu.au/.../eating-elderberries-could-help-minimise-influenza-symptoms....
Apr 24, 2019 - A group of chemical and biomolecular engineers has determined that elderberries can help the fight against influenza, by reducing symptoms ..."

**goingbush** · 26th May 2019, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

VMO advertising has a screen at the local pool gym. It has a add for Elderberries and Flu among some other claims which its is stated are proven by Sydney University research. The add is to inspire us all to buy Elderberry supplements.

Their so called proof was on a web page of the UNI which was pulled down as it is rubbish - Error 404 now

Almost no supplements are need if we eat a balanced diet and do some exercise. I run about 100km a week on the same food and diet my wife and kids eat. I toss in a few extra bits of fruit and nuts some times. The Chemists who sell so much rubbish as if it is needed to live drive me nuts. Fools are their money

I'd consider supplements if my doctors or a dietician suggested I needed them. Happily I do not.

"https://sydney.edu.au/.../eating-elderberries-could-help-minimise-influenza-symptoms....
Apr 24, 2019 - A group of chemical and biomolecular engineers has determined that elderberries can help the fight against influenza, by reducing symptoms ..."

Yes Humanity somehow managed to get through the last 120,000 years without supplements, and they most likely never had balanced diets. (hmm maybe they were eating elderberries ).

**JDNSW** · 26th May 2019, 10:48 AM

And had a much shorter life expectancy - but that had nothing to do with diet, or not exactly - the major reason we have a much longer life expectancy is knowing how to prevent most of the infections that used to kill people, especially children, and getting enough to eat. A relatively minor factor is that we now know a lot more about "what to eat", and how much, but few in our society take much notice of that.

Although there were a lot of erroneous ideas about diet in the past (for example, that children should not eat fruit, or that white bread was better for you than full grain!), relatively few people took much notice of them, so few were affected. Most people, for most of history and prehistory, ate what they could get.

One of the significant factors in extending life expectancy in the cites in Britain in the late 19th century was the introduction of steam trawlers - this meant cheap fish, and fish and chips provided, for many urban lower class people the only protein (fish) and vitamin C (potatoes) they ate.

As someone said a few posts back, you don't need much vitamin C to make a big difference if you are getting none.

But the really major difference for life expectancy in cities was safe water.

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