In this episode, we sit down with neurologist Robert Burton, author of On Being Certain, a book that fundamentally changed the way I think about what a belief actually is. That’s because the book posits conclusions are not conscious choices, and certainty is not even a thought process. Certainty and similar states of “knowing,” as he puts it, are "sensations that feel like thoughts, but arise out of involuntary brain mechanisms that function independently of reason."

<p>In this episode, we sit down with neurologist Robert Burton, author of On Being Certain, a book that fundamentally changed the way I think about what a belief actually is. That&rsquo;s because the book posits conclusions are not conscious choices, and certainty is not even a thought process. Certainty and similar states of &ldquo;knowing,&rdquo; as he puts it, are "sensations that feel like thoughts, but arise out of involuntary brain mechanisms that function independently of reason."</p>

You Are Not So Smart is a show about psychology that celebrates science and self delusion. In each episode, we explore what we've learned so far about reasoning, biases, judgments, and decision-making.

<p>You Are Not So Smart is a show about psychology that celebrates science and self delusion. In each episode, we explore what we've learned so far about reasoning, biases, judgments, and decision-making.</p>

You Are Not So Smart is a show about psychology t…

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