Book Reading #41: Why We Make Mistakes



Book Author: Joseph T. Hallinan

chapter 2:

This chapter delves into memory recall, how it works, techniques to enhance memory, and differences that exist amongst people. Hallinan also gives us examples to illustrate his claims. The problem of memory is illustrated with the "penny description" experiment, and "face,name matching" exercise.  Hallinan also links the problem of memory to historical methods of identifying criminals.

One thing we are introduced to is the tip-of-the-tongue slip where a person replaces one thing with another. He gives the example of crossing Albert Einstein and Joe Thiesman.

chapter 3:

This chapter deals about the process upon which people  connect the dots given a situation.Many times we forget things because a link has been broken that messes up what we thought we knew.

 One interesting thing that is mentioned is about being flexible, and willing to change one's mind. Instead of having a decisive, and resolved attitude, Hallinan explains that doing the opposite can be beneficial as in the case of multiple choice tests where students typically do better if they reconsider their answers.  In the heat of the moment, there may be a process that leads us to choose the wrong answer.

Finnally, we learn about the effectiveness of advertising in influencing people.  For example, a photo can contribute to the victory or loss of a political pundit,  and the reason is that people make connections based on minute details.