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Magical Thinking
Gabe Ortiz   @signalnine
“Magical thinking is the
interpreting of two closely
occurring events as though one
caused the other without any
concern for the causal link.”
The Post-Hoc
   Fallacy

Coincidences

The Power of
  Symbols
the
post-hoc
fallacy
post hoc ergo
propter hoc
correlation is not causation
Causality is hard.
VACCINES AND AUTISM
Jenny
McCarthy
is an idiot.
coincidences: the law of big numbers
The world is a
pretty big place,
sometimes strange
things happen.
That doesn’t make those
events unexplainable.
FAITH HEALING AND GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES
CONFIRMATION BIAS
LOOKING FOR MIRACLES IN ALL THE WRONG PLACES
We are hardwired to see
patterns in everything.
“WAKE UP, SHEEPLE!”
the power of symbols
Symbols are
powerful tools.
SYMBOLIC MEDICINE AND OTHER GAMES OF CHANCE
Like cures like.
 Then, you dilute it until
 there’s nothing left.
SAINTS AND BAD TELEVISION
CRITICAL THINKING. NOT JUST
FOR DUDES WITH BEARDS
ANYMORE.

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Magical Thinking