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“People say believe half of what you see…and none of what you hear” Auditory Illusions: Shepard’s Tones http://vimeo.com/34749558 What better proof of our perceptual limitations than… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3iPrBrGSJM&feature=iv&src_vid=voAntzB7 EwE&annotation_id=annotation_262395 You can’t trust your instinctive conclusions We are wired to detect patterns, causes As with faces, we can be lead to believe in causal relationships where there are none The Illusion of Confidence - Dunning-Kruger Effect Subjects were asked to self-evaluate on ability in 4 area; those abilities were quantified; put in quartiles and compared. The more you learn, the more you recognize how little you know. This is why, for example, respected climate scientists never state without a doubt “Isn’t it also true that confidence in males is a highly desired element of sexual attraction? Thus, a lot of jerks get the dates, not because of inherent superior qualities, but because of delusional self-confidence. And think of how that affects the gene pool.” (Brian Crouch https://twitter.com/briancrouch) The Illusion of Confidence – Cont’d Doctors visits An MD who consults a reference is seen as not as competent Group decision process First to speak is perceived as confident, and becomes the leader! “Con” in Conman” comes from “confidence” And, now time for a little test… First one half of the room… Now the other half of the room… As quickly as you can tell me what you see… The illusion of certainty – An example Elon U break-in case Woman studied assailant’s face in detail Picked out suspect’s face from photographs Identified in line-up Conviction based solely on eye-witness, considered credible because of her confidence. Re-trial after another convict confessed to a related crime, eyewitness “has never seen new suspect before”, sentence for original suspect increase When DNA analysis became available, conviction overturned –it was the other convict! Victim is now an advocate for doubting eyewitness testimony "It's a human system," Cannino said. "We are fallible. We make mistakes. There are practices that can be put into place." The Illusion of better-than-usual “Flashbulb Memory” Space-shuttle “Challenger” disaster January 28th, 1986 2 Days later, a psychologist at Emory had 70 students write down when, where, how, with whom etc. they first heard the news 2 ½ years later, found 45 of those students, had them repeat the exercise Average “correspondence” was poor (3 out of 7 features) Even when shown original report, some claimed later version correct!? “Repressed Memories”: actually, “Implanted Memories” Childhood story experiment One fictitious event suggested, at first not recalled, but later “remembered” Many were confident in the recall, some even elaborated on the original “memory” Elizabeth Loftus Eyewitness experiment Video that depicted a traffic accident. Subjects were then asked either: “How fast were the cars going when they smashed into each other?” “How fast were the cars going when they hit each other?” Participants cued with “smashed” were more likely to claim that they’d seen shattered glass (there wasn’t any) and to give faster estimates of vehicle speed Some things improve accuracy of memories Emotional content Up to a point (i.e., great stress does not help) “Multimodal context” – sight, sound, associations… Having objective reminders (tests, photos, videos) Mnemonics Picturing items on a list as if in a familiar place, assigning memorable items to numbers, etc. Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory Having “Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory” Excellent recall of their lives Every memory that could be tested was correct Does not mean they recall everything Normal short-term memory, “1 day later memory” They appear to not forget, even emotional impact No evidence that this can be acquired. Found as early as 6 years old Present in only 1 of a pair of twin boys! Even neurosurgeons can get fooled by their brains Over-confidence in his recollections Misremembered facts (infection, level of consciousness, weather…) Misunderstanding of how “real” mental states can feel Lack of appreciation of perceptual errors and suggestibility Lack of appreciation of alternative explanations “It is curious that he does not allow this obvious and natural explanation, but instead insists on a supernatural one. To deny the possibility of any natural explanation for an NDE, Alexander does, is more than unscientific - it is antiscientific. It precludes the scientific investigation of such states.“ Oliver Sacks, Atlantic Monthly, December 12, 2012 Article that investigates the author and the book: http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/interviews/a23248/the-prophet/ The Powerful, Fallible, Over-confident Brain – Summary You can’t completely trust everything you see, hear, or remember. Because our brains are wired to look for patterns and cause and effect, we often “see” what is not really there. What we perceive is influenced by what we expect to see (which is influenced by our experience) Confidence/Certainty is seductive – but not necessarily informative These imperfections are normal, has nothing to do with lack of intelligence or sanity or character Appropriate skepticism is in order in dealing with anecdotal claims. This is why good science requires rigor and is difficult. You have some knowledge that is difficult for many people to accept (that their senses, perceptions, memories, confidence are, naturally, fallible). Be tolerant, and a good messenger, and remember this all applies to you too! Recommended Reads / Listens Thank you for your attention Questions? Comments? HSAM - cont’d People with HSAM don’t have superior short-term memory Many people feel they have HSAM, but don’t