web01.fireside.fm Wed, 29 Apr 2026 13:14:54 -0500 Fireside (https://fireside.fm) Increments - Episodes Tagged with “Reason” https://www.incrementspodcast.com/tags/reason Fri, 20 Jun 2025 10:15:00 -0700 Vaden Masrani, a senior research scientist in machine learning, and Ben Chugg, a PhD student in statistics, get into trouble arguing about everything except machine learning and statistics. Coherence is somewhere on the horizon. Bribes, suggestions, love-mail and hate-mail all welcome at incrementspodcast@gmail.com. en-us episodic Science, Philosophy, Epistemology, Mayhem Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani Vaden Masrani, a senior research scientist in machine learning, and Ben Chugg, a PhD student in statistics, get into trouble arguing about everything except machine learning and statistics. Coherence is somewhere on the horizon. Bribes, suggestions, love-mail and hate-mail all welcome at incrementspodcast@gmail.com. no Philosophy,Science,Ethics,Progress,Knowledge,Computer Science,Conversation,Error-Correction Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani incrementspodcast@gmail.com #87 - Gullibility, Belief, and Conformity (with Hugo Mercier) https://www.incrementspodcast.com/87 d20165d0-2913-4a2f-808e-c03ce3d9d906 Fri, 20 Jun 2025 10:15:00 -0700 Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani full Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani Hugo Mercier joins us to discuss his book "Not Born Yesterday" and his work on belief, gullibility, and how we change our minds. 54:13 no Ben and Vaden test their French skills and have Hugo Mercier on the podcast to discuss who we trust and what we believe. Are humans gullible? Do we fall for propaganda and advertising campaigns? Do we follow expert consensus or forge ahead as independent thinkers? Can Vaden go for one episode without bringing up Trump? Hugo Mercier (https://sites.google.com/site/hugomercier/) is a research director at the CNRS (Institut Jean Nicod, Paris), where he work with the Evolution and Social Cognition team. Check out his two books: The Enigma of Reason (https://www.amazon.com/Enigma-Reason-Hugo-Mercier/dp/0674368304) and Not Born Yesterday (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0691208921) . We discuss Mercier's thoughts on the cognitive bias literature Open vigilance mechanisms Criticism of the System 1 vs System 2 dichotomy Why Kahneman misinterpreted the bat and the ball thought experiment Do flat earthers really believe the earth is flat? The Asch conformity experiment Preference falsification vs internalization of professed beliefs How important is social signaling? Trump, MAGA, gullibility, and Tariffs How effective are advertisements? How effective is propaganda? Is social science reforming? References The Enigma of Reason (https://www.amazon.com/Enigma-Reason-Hugo-Mercier/dp/0674368304) by Hugo Mercier and Dan Sperber Not Born Yesterday (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0691208921) Our previous episodes on Not Born Yesterday (https://www.incrementspodcast.com/84) and The Enigma of Reason (https://www.incrementspodcast.com/39) Socials Follow us on Twitter at @hugoreasoning, @IncrementsPod, @BennyChugg, @VadenMasrani Come join our discord server! DM us on twitter or send us an email to get a supersecret link Become a patreon subscriber here (https://www.patreon.com/Increments). Or give us one-time cash donations to help cover our lack of cash donations here (https://ko-fi.com/increments). Click dem like buttons on youtube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_4wZzQyoW4s4ZuE4FY9DQQ) How much system 2 thinking does it take to misunderstand system 1 vs system 2? Tell us at incrementspodcast@gmail.com Special Guest: Hugo Mercier. reason, rationality, belief, information, communication, trust Ben and Vaden test their French skills and have Hugo Mercier on the podcast to discuss who we trust and what we believe. Are humans gullible? Do we fall for propaganda and advertising campaigns? Do we follow expert consensus or forge ahead as independent thinkers? Can Vaden go for one episode without bringing up Trump?

Hugo Mercier is a research director at the CNRS (Institut Jean Nicod, Paris), where he work with the Evolution and Social Cognition team. Check out his two books: The Enigma of Reason and Not Born Yesterday .

We discuss

  • Mercier's thoughts on the cognitive bias literature
  • Open vigilance mechanisms
  • Criticism of the System 1 vs System 2 dichotomy
  • Why Kahneman misinterpreted the bat and the ball thought experiment
  • Do flat earthers really believe the earth is flat?
  • The Asch conformity experiment
  • Preference falsification vs internalization of professed beliefs
  • How important is social signaling?
  • Trump, MAGA, gullibility, and Tariffs
  • How effective are advertisements?
  • How effective is propaganda?
  • Is social science reforming?

References

Socials

  • Follow us on Twitter at @hugoreasoning, @IncrementsPod, @BennyChugg, @VadenMasrani
  • Come join our discord server! DM us on twitter or send us an email to get a supersecret link
  • Become a patreon subscriber here. Or give us one-time cash donations to help cover our lack of cash donations here.
  • Click dem like buttons on youtube

How much system 2 thinking does it take to misunderstand system 1 vs system 2? Tell us at incrementspodcast@gmail.com

Special Guest: Hugo Mercier.

Support Increments

]]> Ben and Vaden test their French skills and have Hugo Mercier on the podcast to discuss who we trust and what we believe. Are humans gullible? Do we fall for propaganda and advertising campaigns? Do we follow expert consensus or forge ahead as independent thinkers? Can Vaden go for one episode without bringing up Trump?

Hugo Mercier is a research director at the CNRS (Institut Jean Nicod, Paris), where he work with the Evolution and Social Cognition team. Check out his two books: The Enigma of Reason and Not Born Yesterday .

We discuss

  • Mercier's thoughts on the cognitive bias literature
  • Open vigilance mechanisms
  • Criticism of the System 1 vs System 2 dichotomy
  • Why Kahneman misinterpreted the bat and the ball thought experiment
  • Do flat earthers really believe the earth is flat?
  • The Asch conformity experiment
  • Preference falsification vs internalization of professed beliefs
  • How important is social signaling?
  • Trump, MAGA, gullibility, and Tariffs
  • How effective are advertisements?
  • How effective is propaganda?
  • Is social science reforming?

References

Socials

  • Follow us on Twitter at @hugoreasoning, @IncrementsPod, @BennyChugg, @VadenMasrani
  • Come join our discord server! DM us on twitter or send us an email to get a supersecret link
  • Become a patreon subscriber here. Or give us one-time cash donations to help cover our lack of cash donations here.
  • Click dem like buttons on youtube

How much system 2 thinking does it take to misunderstand system 1 vs system 2? Tell us at incrementspodcast@gmail.com

Special Guest: Hugo Mercier.

Support Increments

]]> #84 - A Primer on Not Born Yesterday by Hugo Mercier https://www.incrementspodcast.com/84 96bd27a0-94ea-4390-bb03-cb7fd1fe85b7 Thu, 17 Apr 2025 14:00:00 -0700 Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani full Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani A discussion on Hugo Mercier's Not Born Yesterday. 1:09:39 no Some thoughts (arguments?) on Hugo Mercier's Not Born Yesterday (https://www.amazon.com/Not-Born-Yesterday-Science-Believe/dp/0691178704), which advances the thesis that humans are not as gullible as is commonly thought. This is our second episode on Mercier's work, and we're as intrigued as ever. But this time we have different interpretations of his thesis, so it's a good thing the man himself is coming on soon to sort us out. We discuss If humans are less gullible than is commonly believed Evolution of Communication Theory Gazelles jumping in the air Are humans too stubborn? Is one of your hosts who shall go unnamed too stubborn? When do humans actually change their minds? Does Mercier's work conflict with Popper? How much of our reasoning is motivated reasoning? How much is social conformity? Socials Follow us on Twitter at @IncrementsPod, @BennyChugg, @VadenMasrani Come join our discord server! DM us on twitter or send us an email to get a supersecret link Become a patreon subscriber here (https://www.patreon.com/Increments). Or give us one-time cash donations to help cover our lack of cash donations here (https://ko-fi.com/increments). Click dem like buttons on youtube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_4wZzQyoW4s4ZuE4FY9DQQ) Did you know that "gullible" isn't in the dictionary? Tell us at incrementspodcast@gmail.com. mercier, reason, social, gullibility Some thoughts (arguments?) on Hugo Mercier's Not Born Yesterday, which advances the thesis that humans are not as gullible as is commonly thought. This is our second episode on Mercier's work, and we're as intrigued as ever. But this time we have different interpretations of his thesis, so it's a good thing the man himself is coming on soon to sort us out.

We discuss

  • If humans are less gullible than is commonly believed
  • Evolution of Communication Theory
  • Gazelles jumping in the air
  • Are humans too stubborn? Is one of your hosts who shall go unnamed too stubborn?
  • When do humans actually change their minds?
  • Does Mercier's work conflict with Popper?
  • How much of our reasoning is motivated reasoning? How much is social conformity?

Socials

  • Follow us on Twitter at @IncrementsPod, @BennyChugg, @VadenMasrani
  • Come join our discord server! DM us on twitter or send us an email to get a supersecret link
  • Become a patreon subscriber here. Or give us one-time cash donations to help cover our lack of cash donations here.
  • Click dem like buttons on youtube

Did you know that "gullible" isn't in the dictionary? Tell us at incrementspodcast@gmail.com.

Support Increments

]]> Some thoughts (arguments?) on Hugo Mercier's Not Born Yesterday, which advances the thesis that humans are not as gullible as is commonly thought. This is our second episode on Mercier's work, and we're as intrigued as ever. But this time we have different interpretations of his thesis, so it's a good thing the man himself is coming on soon to sort us out.

We discuss

  • If humans are less gullible than is commonly believed
  • Evolution of Communication Theory
  • Gazelles jumping in the air
  • Are humans too stubborn? Is one of your hosts who shall go unnamed too stubborn?
  • When do humans actually change their minds?
  • Does Mercier's work conflict with Popper?
  • How much of our reasoning is motivated reasoning? How much is social conformity?

Socials

  • Follow us on Twitter at @IncrementsPod, @BennyChugg, @VadenMasrani
  • Come join our discord server! DM us on twitter or send us an email to get a supersecret link
  • Become a patreon subscriber here. Or give us one-time cash donations to help cover our lack of cash donations here.
  • Click dem like buttons on youtube

Did you know that "gullible" isn't in the dictionary? Tell us at incrementspodcast@gmail.com.

Support Increments

]]> #39 - The Enigma of Reason https://www.incrementspodcast.com/39 21d2237b-a7e7-48a7-a37e-4f10ed93f7c1 Wed, 27 Apr 2022 18:00:00 -0700 Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani full Ben Chugg and Vaden Masrani A discussion of The Enigma of Reason by Hugo Mercier and Dan Sperber. 1:01:59 no The most reasonable and well-reasoned discussion of reason you can be reasonably expected to hear. Today we talk about the book The Enigma of Reason by Dan Sperber and Hugo Mercier. But first, get ready for dogs, modern art, and babies! *We discuss * - Reason as a social phenomenon - The two roles of reason: To justify our actions, and to evaluate the reasons of others - Reason as module of inference, and how that contrasts with dual-process theories - The "intellectualist" vs the "interactionist" approach to reason - Nassim Taleb's notion of "skin in the game" - The consequences of reason having evolved in a particular (social) niche - The marshmallow test and other debunked psychological findings Quotes: The interactionist approach, on the other hand, makes two contrasting predictions. In the production of arguments, we should be biased and lazy; in the evaluation of arguments, we should be demanding and objective— demanding so as not to be deceived by poor or fallacious arguments into accepting false ideas, objective so as to be ready to revise our ideas when presented with good reasons why we should. EoR (pg. 332) In our interactionist approach, the normal conditions for the use of reasoning are social, and more specifically dialogic. Outside of this environment, there is no guarantee that reasoning acts for the benefits of the reasoner. It might lead to epistemic distortions and poor decisions. This does not mean reasoning is broken, simply that it has been taken out of its normal conditions. EoR (pg. 247) References Dan Sperber's talk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXsjWo6K4w0) at the Santa Fe Institute Image credit: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/charlottehigginsblog/2009/oct/20/classics-barack-obama Social media everywhere Follow us on Twitter at @IncrementsPod, @BennyChugg, @VadenMasrani Check us out on youtube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_4wZzQyoW4s4ZuE4FY9DQQ Come join our discord server! DM us on twitter or send us an email to get a supersecret link Send a reason, any reason, any reason at all, to incrementspodcast@gmail.com. reason, rationality, bias, psychology, evolution, cognitive biases The most reasonable and well-reasoned discussion of reason you can be reasonably expected to hear. Today we talk about the book The Enigma of Reason by Dan Sperber and Hugo Mercier. But first, get ready for dogs, modern art, and babies!

*We discuss *

  • Reason as a social phenomenon
  • The two roles of reason: To justify our actions, and to evaluate the reasons of others
  • Reason as module of inference, and how that contrasts with dual-process theories
  • The "intellectualist" vs the "interactionist" approach to reason
  • Nassim Taleb's notion of "skin in the game"
  • The consequences of reason having evolved in a particular (social) niche
  • The marshmallow test and other debunked psychological findings

Quotes:

The interactionist approach, on the other hand, makes two contrasting predictions. In the production of arguments, we should be biased and lazy; in the evaluation of arguments, we should be demanding and objective— demanding so as not to be deceived by poor or fallacious arguments into accepting false ideas, objective so as to be ready to revise our ideas when presented with good reasons why we should.
EoR (pg. 332)

In our interactionist approach, the normal conditions for the use of reasoning are social, and more specifically dialogic. Outside of this environment, there is no guarantee that reasoning acts for the benefits of the reasoner. It might lead to epistemic distortions and poor decisions. This does not mean reasoning is broken, simply that it has been taken out of its normal conditions.
EoR (pg. 247)

References

Social media everywhere

Send a reason, any reason, any reason at all, to incrementspodcast@gmail.com.

Support Increments

]]> The most reasonable and well-reasoned discussion of reason you can be reasonably expected to hear. Today we talk about the book The Enigma of Reason by Dan Sperber and Hugo Mercier. But first, get ready for dogs, modern art, and babies!

*We discuss *

  • Reason as a social phenomenon
  • The two roles of reason: To justify our actions, and to evaluate the reasons of others
  • Reason as module of inference, and how that contrasts with dual-process theories
  • The "intellectualist" vs the "interactionist" approach to reason
  • Nassim Taleb's notion of "skin in the game"
  • The consequences of reason having evolved in a particular (social) niche
  • The marshmallow test and other debunked psychological findings

Quotes:

The interactionist approach, on the other hand, makes two contrasting predictions. In the production of arguments, we should be biased and lazy; in the evaluation of arguments, we should be demanding and objective— demanding so as not to be deceived by poor or fallacious arguments into accepting false ideas, objective so as to be ready to revise our ideas when presented with good reasons why we should.
EoR (pg. 332)

In our interactionist approach, the normal conditions for the use of reasoning are social, and more specifically dialogic. Outside of this environment, there is no guarantee that reasoning acts for the benefits of the reasoner. It might lead to epistemic distortions and poor decisions. This does not mean reasoning is broken, simply that it has been taken out of its normal conditions.
EoR (pg. 247)

References

Social media everywhere

Send a reason, any reason, any reason at all, to incrementspodcast@gmail.com.

Support Increments

]]>