Bestselling author Michael Shermer's comprehensive and provocative theory on
how beliefs are born, formed, reinforced, challenged, changed, and extinguished

In this work synthesizing thirty years of research, psychologist, historian
of science, and the world's best-known skeptic Michael Shermer upends the
traditional thinking about how humans form beliefs about the world. Simply put,
beliefs come first and explanations for beliefs follow. The brain, Shermer
argues, is a belief engine. From sensory data flowing in through the senses,
the brain naturally begins to look for and find patterns, and then infuses those
patterns with meaning. Our brains connect the dots of our world into meaningful
patterns that explain why things happen, and these patterns become beliefs. Once
beliefs are formed the brain begins to look for and find confirmatory evidence
in support of those beliefs, which accelerates the process of reinforcing them,
and round and round the process goes in a positive-feedback loop of belief
confirmation. Shermer outlines the numerous cognitive tools our brains engage
to reinforce our beliefs as truths.

Interlaced with his theory of belief, Shermer provides countless real-world
examples of how this process operates, from politics, economics, and religion
to conspiracy theories, the supernatural, and the paranormal. Ultimately, he
demonstrates why science is the best tool ever devised to determine whether or
not a belief matches reality.

Download File Size:2.54 MB

---