Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015) • Hacker News Board

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#21

Post by jeffml84 » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 12:18 AM UTC

This is a little beside the point, but I'm going to hold the author accountable for his take on a pressing issue.

Author makes the mistake of not holding the retailer responsible for what they sell. Walgreens, Target, and GNC, to anyone who knows what they're doing, are NOT reputable, in terms of herbal supplements.

Go to any naturopath or natural health practitioner and they're going to recommend herbal supplements with their own branding, specialty shop, or specific brand. They're not going to give you prescription, and call it into Walgreens like an allopathic doctor will.

Author is effectively saying "It's not the reputable retailers responsibility to stock their shelves with legitimate products."

Why do you think they sell crap instead of quality herbs? The cost is lower.

Think for yourself, and take your health into your own hands and you'll be a healthier person, no doubt.

Calling for the FDA to regulate and save the day because a bunch of uneducated people blindly trusted big corporations...no.

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#22

Post by nemild » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 1:26 AM UTC

Always value contributors to my media literacy guide. This message is a key point that underpins all the examples I list.

https://github.com/nemild/hack-the-media/blob/master/README....

There's also one for engineers in the tech industry:

https://github.com/nemild/hack-the-media/blob/master/softwar...

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#23

Post by nemild » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 1:27 AM UTC

mjlee wrote: post #14

Michael Crichton observed this and called it the Gell-Mann amnesia effect. I think he said publicly that the name was to ride on the coat tails of Gell-Mann's public success: >>> “Briefly stated, the Gell-Mann Amnesia effect is as follows. You open the newspaper to an article on some subject you know well. In Murray's case, physics. In mine, show business. You read the article and see the journalist has absolutely no…

One caveat I would make: it is often over-generalized to then dismiss all media on a topic, especially when readers have some limited knowledge of the topic at hand.

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#24

Post by jdc » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 3:08 AM UTC

nemild wrote: post #23

mjlee wrote: post #14

Michael Crichton observed this and called it the Gell-Mann amnesia effect. I think he said publicly that the name was to ride on the coat tails of Gell-Mann's public success: >>> “Briefly stated, the Gell-Mann Amnesia effect is as follows. You open the newspaper to an article on some subject you know well. In Murray's case, physics. In mine, show business. You read the article and see the journalist has absolutely no…

One caveat I would make: it is often over-generalized to then dismiss all media on a topic, especially when readers have some limited knowledge of the topic at hand.

Right, remember to keep your eyes peeled for that 10 or 20% of media that isn't BS.

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#25

Post by bjelkeman-again » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 4:46 AM UTC

rayiner wrote: post #20

If journalism, as a profession, is to add more societal value than random blog posts, I think there needs to be a fundamental reworking of the medium. As it currently stands, the medium itself encourages sloppiness. A modest proposal: 1) Articles should, like legal briefs, support each non-trivial point with a footnote or citation. Primary sources, such as presses releases, documents, and transcripts, should be hyper…

The the first points are very much on point for me. I don’t get why sources aren’t referenced. Is it because they are afraid the reader will leave the news site? An attempt at sandboxing the user?

The second point, particularly US writing/journalism seems to really have a very different writing culture than the European. It seems to want to be a story with a beginning a history etc before getting to the meat of the article. It often feels like the writer is paid by the word rather than interested to getting the point across. European journalism ties to get the hook in early, and the expand on it and draw you into the article more upfront with the meat of it.

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#26

Post by imesh » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 4:51 AM UTC

jdc wrote: post #24

nemild wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One caveat I would make: it is often over-generalized to then dismiss all media on a topic, especially when readers have some limited knowledge of the topic at hand.

Right, remember to keep your eyes peeled for that 10 or 20% of media that isn't BS.

If only there was some way to know that the 10 or 20% you think isn't BS isn't BS and you aren't labeling the non-BS as BS.

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#27

Post by jdc » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 5:12 AM UTC

imesh wrote: post #26

jdc wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right, remember to keep your eyes peeled for that 10 or 20% of media that isn't BS.

If only there was some way to know that the 10 or 20% you think isn't BS isn't BS and you aren't labeling the non-BS as BS.

Ofc a more nuanced discussion would have to include something like a probabilities of expected values. But given the cost of creating BS is cheaper than refuting it and the media's proclivity for distributing it, I'm very willing to be somewhat biased against it.

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#28

Post by haihaibye » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 5:34 AM UTC

bryanrasmussen wrote: post #16

I don't believe there is anyone I've ever met whose thoughts were original to them in all particulars. I think it has been very seldom where I have met anyone that has had one original thought in their head, I'm pretty sure most thoughts, including mine were thought somewhere else and transmitted via some media. Probably in most cases the only originality lies in the assemblage of the thoughts and how they interact.

"You're not the first to think that everything has been thought before" - Three dimensions by Something for Kate.

Re: Don't Outsource Your Thinking (2015)

#29

Post by bryanrasmussen » Sun, Oct 13, 2019, 12:00 PM UTC

haihaibye wrote: post #28

bryanrasmussen wrote: post #16

I don't believe there is anyone I've ever met whose thoughts were original to them in all particulars. I think it has been very seldom where I have met anyone that has had one original thought in their head, I'm pretty sure most thoughts, including mine were thought somewhere else and transmitted via some media. Probably in most cases the only originality lies in the assemblage of the thoughts and how they interact.

"You're not the first to think that everything has been thought before" - Three dimensions by Something for Kate.

I thought I was quite clear that I did not believe everything has been thought before, but only that most things have been thought before - or more specifically that most people think things that have been thought before but in new configurations.