Knowledge Illusion

democracy is based on the notion that voters will know what is best.

Our system of free-market capitalism is premised on the idea that customers are never wrong.

our liberal system of education instructs pupils to engage in independent thinking.

Modern man is far less self-sufficient can be identified by fact that even though we require experts to fulfill almost all our needs, we falsely think that, on an individual level, we know much more than our Stone Age ancestors.

Modern man often falls prey to what scientists have deemed “the knowledge illusion” in other words individuals tend to believe they understand a lot simply because they treat the knowledge that other people possess – for instance, how a zipper functions – as though they possessed it, too.

The consequences of the knowledge illusion are that individuals, modern man often fail to understand just how complex the world really is and how ignorant they are of that complexity.

So next time someone gives you their opinion, dig a little deeper to find out how much they really know about the subject in question. You might be surprised.