WINTER PUZZLES

Every winter I complete a puzzle. Today I started one that was gifted to me by a friend. Three echidnas decorated in flowers walk in a row against a large blue-green background.

As I was sorting out the pieces, it occurred to me that puzzles may be one of the few things left in our world that are absolute. A puzzle piece can fit only in one space, regardless from which angle you are looking at it, in which context you are doing it or what your personal beliefs are. Whatever our political affiliations, we would have to agree on where a particular three-edged puzzle piece in a light shade of green with a brown corner would fit. There would be no alternative option.  There is a relief to such clarity. Perhaps because so few things are that clear these days.

WHAT WE SEE AND BELIEVE

Cognitive psychology has a lot to say about how our brains perceive what is in front of us. Before we even begin to explore political, social or religious beliefs and how our biases impact what we notice, cognitive psychology experiments show that we humans have selective attention. We do not see everything. Indeed, we miss noticing data even when it is right in front of us. A seminal study on selective attention was conducted by Chabris and Simons in 1999. In it, a group of six people are throwing a basketball to each other, half of them dressed in black and the other half in white. The observer is asked to count the number of passes made by the people in white shirts. At some point, a person dressed up as a gorilla strolls into the middle of the action, faces the camera and thumps its chest. It then walks off, having spent nine seconds on screen. You would think that we would all notice the gorilla. In fact, that is not the case. Fifty percent of the observers do not see the gorilla! Have some fun and watch this video to learn more about it what happens when a gorilla is in our midst.  

Another human phenomenon in which cognitive psychologists are particularly interested, is that of the illusory truth effect. First reported by Hasher and colleagues in 1977, this effect can be summarised as, “Repeated exposure to a claim increases the perceived truth of that claim”. Essentially, the more we hear something, the more we perceive it to be true. The combination of Artificial Intelligence and social media platforms makes for the easy spread of misinformation and disinformation, the former unintended and the latter a deliberate misuse of information to shape views and influence beliefs. Much research is now focused on the illusory truth effect and how to combat the spread of disinformation. As you might expect, in an experiment conducted to measure what helps, a ‘rated false’ flag attached to the heading of an article on a simulated Facebook page, was more effective in combating disinformation than a general warning. Here is an interesting article if you would like to read more on this topic.

THE COMFORT OF A PUZZLE

My social media feed undoubtedly looks different from yours. I am selective in what I ‘like’ and therefore what threads I am exposed to. I choose my sources carefully so that I can believe what I read. I include a few sources with whom I strongly disagree. I want to know what they are saying about the things I care about. I am often astonished by how differently they frame a narrative. It seems so obvious to me that they are not calling out the gorilla beating its chest but simply counting the passes of a basketball. No doubt, despite my careful curation, I am exposed to some misinformation here, some disinformation there. I would not know.

It feels exhausting working and living in a world where every piece of news is accompanied by multiple refutations, screams of disagreement and accusations of ignorance. On a cold winter’s afternoon, there is something incredibly comforting about doing a puzzle where there is no room for debate; where a piece simply fits or does not.  

Until next season

Carmel

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PAUSE FOR REFLECTION

1. How much do you think you are exposed to misinformation or disinformation on your social media feeds? How would you know?

2. What are you missing as a team when you look at the data? What are you focusing on so carefully that you may be missing the gorilla beating its chest?

3. What is a simple pleasure you enjoy bringing into your life? When did you last do so?