baloney detection kit - you might consider using it

Posted on: March 28, 2021 at 10:52:47 CT

The next tool in the "baloney detection kit" is to encourage debate on the evidence from all points of view. The next tool is that we must realize that an argument from authority is not always reliable. Sagan supports this by telling us that 'authorities" have made mistakes in the past and they will again in the future. The fourth tool in the kit is to consider more than one hypothesis. Sagan adds to this by telling us that we must think of the argument from all angles and think all the ways it can be explained or disproved. The hypothesis that then still hasn't been disproved has a much higher chance of being correct. The fifth tool in the kit is to try your best to not purely stick to a hypothesis that is your own and become bias. Sagan tells us to compare our own hypothesis with others to see if we can find reasons to reject our own hypothesis. The next tool in the kit is to quantify. Sagan tells us that if whatever we are trying to explain has numerical value or quantitative data related to it, then we'll be much more able to compete against other hypotheses. The next tool is that we must know that if there is a chain of argument, every link in that chain must be correct. The eighth and possibly most important tool in the "baloney detection kit" is the use of Occam's razor, which tells us to choose the hypothesis that is simpler and requires the least amount of assumptions. The final tool in the kit is to always ask if a given hypothesis can be falsified. Sagan tells us that if a hypothesis cannot be tested or falsified then it is not worth considering. With the use of this "baloney detection kit" it is easier to critically think and find the truth.