MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'illusion'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 02:13:04 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4984498&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2011%2F06%2F29%2Fthe-illusion-of-confidence%2F We often overestimate our abilities, and overestimate the abilities of others who exude confidence.  Are we correct in thinking the athlete who radiates confidence must be competent in her/his sport?  The salesman who speaks with extensive knowledge and confidence must know what they are talking about, right? These scenarios are often manifestations of the illusion of confidence. Confidence is often considered a “true” signal of the extent of one’s memory, knowledge, skill, and ability.  However, confidence is often misleading and not congruent with ability.  This type of unwarranted confidence leads to “epistemic irrationality,” or more commonly known as simply delusion and self-deception. The illusion of confidence has two distinct but related aspects.  Fi... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4984498 Wed, 29 Jun 2011 19:12:36 +0100 4984498 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4847998&cid=t_176774_107_f&fid=36672&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sciencebase.com%2Fscience-blog%2Fis-freewill-a-happy-illusion.html – Is freewill real or is just one of our happy illusions? According to a post on 3quarks, it might be that believing in freewill makes your brain behave as if you actually have it. "When people’s belief in freewill was experimentally reduced [not sure how that's done], pre-conscious motor preparation, or that activity that precedes action, in the brain was delayed by more than one second relative to those who believed in freewill – an eternity in brain time." That's plenty of time for "conscious" choices to be made, choices that one might call freewill, whether one believes in it or not. Related Posts:Boiling sun, alchemist, freewillScience sightings from sciencebaseThree touches of scienceScientists are known for…Six science snippetsI... Sciencebase Science Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4847998 Fri, 20 May 2011 08:00:01 +0100 4847998 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4258869&cid=t_176774_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fthe-illusion-of-healthcare-reform%2F2010.12.13 The greatest minds are assembled to discern the answer in healthcare reform. Powerful interest groups are aligned to design solutions to protect their turf. Rubrics, formulas, slogans and taglines get designed, spun, pitched and thrown out. The burden of finding alignment, an answer, a plan that suits everyone seems insurmountable — unless we don’t. The idea of a fit for all is an illusion. Justice and equity are seen differently. We imagine some public consensus at our own peril. But honesty has been in short supply. To paraphrase Oprah: What do we know for sure? Some people want a relationship with a trusted doctor who knows them well. They want to pick the doctor, the neighborhood and the hospital they attend. Others want immediate access and have little trust or interest in a p... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4258869 Mon, 13 Dec 2010 21:00:00 +0100 4258869 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4225449&cid=t_176774_122_f&fid=34736&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FChannelN-PodcastsPoweredByOdiogo%2F%7E3%2F5KkQJRgk9ck%2F How Magic Changes Our Expectations About Autism Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in a study were more subsceptible to a cognitive illusion, compared to controls. Watch the multimedia pubcast at SciVee, synced to the original article How Magic Changes Our Expectations About Autism, Kuhn et al., Psychological Science, 2010. (Source: Channel N) Channel N blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4225449 Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:30:01 +0100 4225449 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3994019&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=34786&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdrmichelletempest.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F09%2Felephant-illusion.html How many legs does this elephant have? (Source: The Psychiatrist Blog) The Psychiatrist Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3994019 Thu, 23 Sep 2010 08:58:00 +0100 3994019 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3993881&cid=t_176774_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FevdN6f_RRzU%2F By Daniel J. MitchellOur tax system in America is an absurd nightmare, but at least we have some ability to monitor what is happening. We can’t get too aggressive (nobody wants the ogres at the IRS breathing down their necks), but at least we can adjust our withholding levels and control what gets put on our annual tax returns. The serfs in the United Kingdom are in much worse shape. To a large degree, the tax authority (Inland Revenue) decides everyone’s tax liability, and taxpayers have no role other than to meekly acquiesce. But now the statists over in London have decided to go one step farther and have proposed to require employers to send all paychecks directly to the government. The politicians and bureaucrats that comprise the ruling class then would decide how much to... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3993881 Tue, 21 Sep 2010 20:54:30 +0100 3993881 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3729926&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2010%2F07%2F06%2Fbad-research-a-comparison-of-ipad-kindle-and-book-reading-speeds%2F We love a usability study as much as the next person. But we love well-designed, elegant studies that rightfully point out their own limitations and are printed in peer-reviewed journals most of all. We have less love for studies that act as propaganda, or researchers who draw conclusions not supported by their own data. Bad research can be found anywhere — even by consultants who make their living from doing research on usability. Well-meaning folks like Jakob Nielsen for one. Recently he released a study on his website on the usability of the Kindle, the iPad, a PC and a book for reading a piece of short fiction. After noting there was no statistical difference between reading on the Kindle or iPad, and then noting that the data did not reach statistical significance for the iPad v... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3729926 Tue, 06 Jul 2010 15:45:48 +0100 3729926 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3342718&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F03%2F07%2Fsheena-iyengars-situation-and-the-situation-of-choosing%2F Last week, Situationist friend, Sheena Iyengar, was interviewed on the Diane Rehm Show (American University Radio) about her new book, “The Art of Choosing.” The show’s description is as follows:  “The power of choice: Understanding the motivations, biases, and cultural influences that determine the choices, large and small, we make in our lives.”  As interesting as those issues are, the interview itself is at its best when Sheena discusses her own remarkable situation and how that influenced her research. You can listen to the entire podcast here. * * * For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “Sheena Iyengar on ‘The Multiple Choice Problem,’”“Can’t Get No Satisfaction!: The Law Student’s Job Hunt – Part II,” “Da... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3342718 Sun, 07 Mar 2010 20:34:07 +0100 3342718 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2019235&cid=t_176774_165_f&fid=37959&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthskills.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F12%2F05%2Ffreaky-friday%2F Quick post today for Friday Funnies…I’ve been playing around with flash photography today (off camera flash or strobist) shots, so not a lot of time for interweb crawling. Curious facts to start the post: (surprise your colleagues at YOUR Christmas function this week!) Did you know: The average person laughs 13 times a day. Do you know the names of the three wise monkeys? They are: Mizaru(See no evil), Mikazaru(Hear no evil), and Mazaru(Speak no evil) Women blink nearly twice as much as men. German Shepherds bite humans more than any other breed of dog. Large kangaroos cover more than 30 feet with each jump. A whip makes a cracking sound because its tip moves faster than the speed of sound. Two animal rights protesters were protesting at the cruelty of sending pigs to a s... HealthSkills Weblog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2019235 Fri, 05 Dec 2008 06:11:23 +0100 2019235 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1755337&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F09%2F03%2Fcategorically-biased-abstract%2F Ron Chen and Situationist contributor Jon Hanson recently posted their article, “Categorically Biased: The Influence of Knowledge Structures on Law and Legal Theory” (77 S. Calif. L. Rev. 1103) on SSRN. Here’s the abstract. * * * This Article focuses primarily on one slice of social psychology and social cognition research, namely the vast and vibrant field examining the integral role that knowledge structures play in the way we attend to, remember, and draw inferences about information we encounter and, more generally, the way we make sense of our world. The human system of processing information is, in many cases, an efficient means of understanding our worlds and ourselves. Classification of people, objects, and other stimuli is often both indispensable and ineluctable... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1755337 Wed, 03 Sep 2008 04:01:29 +0100 1755337 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1547074&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F06%2F25%2Fthe-situation-of-illusion%2F In a paper that Ronald Chen and I wrote a few years ago (part of our “Illusion of Law” series), we summarized a few of the ways that “magic” happens and the key role played by “the way people think.” Here’s an excerpt from that paper (note: we are quoting Nathaniel Schiffman’s book, Abracadabra! Secret Methods Magicians & Others Use To Deceive Their Audience (1997)). * * * Explanations that are outside of our schemas – what we believe or what we want to believe about the things we see – will rarely be activated. It is often the case that we simply cannot fathom that the magician might be doing what he is doing: . . . when Blackstone did his famous birdcage vanish (a cage with a live bird vanished from his bare hands) he would hold his arms outrigh... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1547074 Wed, 25 Jun 2008 23:26:47 +0100 1547074 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1543089&cid=t_176774_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F06%2Fillusion-of-choice-they-are-at-it-again.html It is time to re-visit “choice” again. “Choice” within the NHS or, as most doctors would say, the illusion of choice.First, some simple facts. In 1997, until New Labour took over, I could refer my patients to any NHS hospital in the country. At that time, theoretically, I could refer them to any hospital within the EC, although I never tested the hypothesis. Over 90% of my patients went to local hospital by choice. They were not interested in going elsewhere. Occasionally, one would give a gentle steer to a hospital further afield. For example, there was one consultant who we knew was not performing well, who had matrimonial and alcohol problems, and who has now taken early retirement. His normally high standards were slipping. Nothing that would show in a league table, but we knew... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1543089 Wed, 25 Jun 2008 11:36:00 +0100 1543089 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1536788&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F06%2F22%2Fthe-rubber-hand-illusion%2F * * * For related Situationist posts, see “The Body Has a Mind of its Own,” “A (Situationist) Body of Thought,” and “A Closer Look at the Interior Situation.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1536788 Sun, 22 Jun 2008 16:00:36 +0100 1536788 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1526947&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F06%2F18%2Fillusion-sciences-why-are-we-surprised-by-only-some-of-the-things-that-we-see-2%2F Arthur Shapiro has posted another of his remarkable illusions this week on his outstanding blog, Illusion Sciences. * * * This illusion has special significance to us because, it is a “situationist illusion.” As Professor Shapiro explains: One of my favorite places on the web is The Situationist, a blog that explores how the “situation” (or context) affects interpretation. The site has numerous examples of how objects, people, and events in one context are interpreted differently from the same objects, people, and events placed in another context. * * * The visual display above presents an example of the effects of the visual “situation.” In one situation (vertical orientation for the disks), the viewer interprets the disks with reference to the background context (i... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1526947 Wed, 18 Jun 2008 04:01:31 +0100 1526947 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1489178&cid=t_176774_122_f&fid=36506&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.feedburner.com%2F%7Er%2FBrainSciencePodcastBlog%2F%7E3%2F303928978%2F I want to recommend this short piece on the Scientific American website: http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=the-neuroscience-of-illusion It includes an excellent slideshow that I am sure you will enjoy. (Source: the Brain Science Podcast and Blog with Dr. Ginger Campbell) the Brain Science Podcast and Blog with Dr. Ginger Campbell blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1489178 Tue, 03 Jun 2008 18:53:16 +0100 1489178 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1446563&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F05%2F15%2Flucy-in-the-sky-illusion-1%2F To read more about what you’re seeing and why, go to Arthur Shapiro’s Illusion Sciences Blog. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1446563 Thu, 15 May 2008 16:00:07 +0100 1446563 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1434648&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F05%2F10%2Farthur-shapiros-amazing-lucy-in-the-skies%2F To read about what you are seeing and why in this award-winning illusion by Arthur Shapiro, go to Illusion Science Blog. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1434648 Sun, 11 May 2008 14:00:15 +0100 1434648 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1352023&cid=t_176774_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2008%2F04%2F04%2Ffriday-flashback-for-april-4-2008%2F Last week I welcomed readers to Spring and then it promptly snowed (just a little) up here in New England. True to April, however, it’s now raining and warmer, and this is one of those cloudy Fridays that seems like it just goes on and on forever. 10 Years Ago on Psych Central Changes and Illusions We all go through transitions in our lives, and some are more painful than others. But transition teaches us valuable lessons, too, if we’re open to listening for them. Life is short, fleeting, and we all comfort ourselves in a world made of partial illusion. Without such illusion, however, life may be unmanageable for many. 5 Years Ago on Psych Central The Seven Warning Signs of Bogus Science “There is, alas, no scientific claim so preposterous that a scientist cannot be... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1352023 Fri, 04 Apr 2008 18:04:29 +0100 1352023