Best Arguments For and Against Climate Model Credibility

Below are competing links on the credibility of climate change models. One makes the case that the models do a good job. The other makes a case that the models are not credible. See which one you find more persuasive. As I have been saying all along, I can’t tell…

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The Illusion of Knowledge

Yesterday I kicked the hornet’s nest by suggesting that no scientist really believes that complicated models with lots of variables can reliably predict the future. This is a subset of my larger point that no non-scientist can evaluate the claims of climate science because BOTH sides look 100% convincing to the under-informed. …

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The Climate Science Challenge

I keep hearing people say that 97% of climate scientists are on the same side of the issue. Critics point out that the number is inflated, but we don’t know by how much. Persuasion-wise, the “first offer” of 97% is so close to 100% that our minds assume the real number…

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The Kristina Talent Stack

Over the past eighteen months or so my girlfriend Kristina Basham grew her Instagram following from zero to 2.5 million followers. She adds about 10,000 new followers per day. That’s ten thousand new followers per day. You might think this kind of accomplishment is easy for her because of her extraordinary attractiveness. Sure,…

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The Mustache Prediction

Prior to President Elect Trump filling the Secretary of State job, I blogged here that Bolton’s mustache would be a problem. Today I see this: Trump rejects John Bolton not because he’s deranged but because he has a mustache. You can’t make this up. https://t.co/nimhTU60U4 pic.twitter.com/hjQHsu0Q4m — Jonathan Chait (@jonathanchait) December 22, 2016 — Have…

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How to Be Unpersuasive

I’ve been teaching you how to be persuasive for the past year. But I should also tell you what doesn’t work for changing people’s minds. Analogies: Analogies are good tools for explaining a concept to someone for the first time. But because analogies are imperfect they are the worst way to persuade. All…

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Called It

26 years ago I wrote this comic. It’s official now! 26 year later. @ScottAdamsSays @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/uDVNzK7Lqn — ThomasTheTrumpTrain (@ttannerut) December 20, 2016 And today this was the headline.

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Watching the Climate Science Bubbles from the Outside

I often hear from people who are on one side or the other on the topic of climate change. And I think I spotted a new cognitive phenomenon that might not have a name.* I’ll call it cognitive blindness, defined as the inability to see the strong form of the other side of…

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The Wikileaks Persuasion You Missed

Do you remember when Wikileaks first started releasing the hacked emails from the DNC? Julian Assange told us the good stuff was coming later. Then some more emails were released, but still no good stuff. Just stuff.  But the really, really good stuff was coming, Assange assured us. Not this…

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Time to Fire the Director of the CIA?

CIA refuses to brief Congress about the Russian hacks? Fire the Director of the CIA TODAY and walk him out. https://t.co/etfO28slfw — Scott Adams (@ScottAdamsSays) December 15, 2016

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Remind Me Why Russia is Our Adversary?

One way to look at the recent election in the United States is that Russia (allegedly) subverted our democratic process to ensure that Trump would win. The facts seem to point in that general direction, although we can’t know how much influence Russia really had. Another way to look at…

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Fake News Versus Misleading News

I’m watching the mainstream media have fits over so-called “fake news.” The theme they are pushing is that fake news stories are more damaging to society than normal news that includes the following: 1. True stories told out of context to intentionally mislead. 2. Biased reporting that the media doesn’t realize…

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The Time That Reality Forked Right in Front of You

We’re living in one of the most interesting times in human history. We just witnessed reality forking into two separate paths right in front of us. As regular readers of this blog know, my background in hypnosis and persuasion has erased my belief that some people can see reality for…

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Trump and the Secretary of State “Brand” Decision

The most important job opening that Trump has to fill – at least from a “brand” perspective – is Secretary of State. You can get away with hiring loyal supporters for less-visible cabinet positions, but you need to get the Secretary of State job right because it directly reflects on…

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The Non-Expert Problem and Climate Change Science

Before I start, let me say as clearly as possible that I agree with the scientific consensus on climate change. If science says something is true – according to most scientists, and consistent with the scientific method – I accept their verdict.  I realize that science can change its mind, of…

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