----- "Jim Swayze" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: 
> 
> I think anything amounts to hubris when one is certain of one's views 
> despite the existence of a degree of potentially compelling evidence 
> on the other side. Sometimes we as humans just need to say "I'm not 
> sure," or "this seems to be the case." 
> 
> Jim Swayze 
> www.fireholecanyon.com 

Confirmation bias affects every last one of us. We have a lower standard of evidence when examining claims that agree with our preconceptions than we do when considering claims that contravert them. On this list, we are quick to dismiss studies that seem to support the virtues of vegetarianism, or whole grains, but we'll accept just about any study that supports the virtues of meat. When paleo critics do this sort of thing, it infuriates us, but we do exactly the same thing. There's no escaping it, really; we can only struggle to try to minimize the effects of confirmation bias in our own thinking. 

Todd Moody 
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