Red
Well-Known Member
Just had a delightful synchronicity. A friend messaged me to say he was in Facebook jail again, because, in a gardening group, he said: “use Dr. Zymes Nuke Em”. Facebook jail was the result, because the algorithm nailed him for “nuke em”, but the product itself is real, that’s what it’s called, so fundamentally an injustice. But no biggie in the grand scheme.The best we can do is to put more effort into strengthening critical thinking skills,
Anyway, so we got to talking disinformation, and I am emphasizing how problematic a position we find ourselves in, and I carry on on how Facebook and social media allowed baser instincts and impulses and disinfo to find a place to both roam free and cast social influence. We sign off, and then, I randomly surf the tv and come across a lecture by a biologist, Carl Bergstrom, titled “Calling Bull**** and the Threat of a Show Vaccine”, which was excellent. Had not heard of this biologist before, googled him, and found this review of a book he co-authored:

Calling Bullsh*t By Carl Bergstrom & Jevin West — Review
A useful and accessible guide to how to think critically about the information and research we read about in the news

Which is essentially, apparently, a guide to the development of critical thinking skills in our present circumstances, in this era of information overload and BS galore. One hell of a synchronicity, and I do love synchronicities. And which brought me full circle to the point you wanted to make regarding the need to rely on critical thinking.