The Dunning–Kruger Effect aka Confirmation Bias on Steriods aka Creationists aka People Who Watch Fox News

In my Does Religious Faith Instill Hatred & Distrust of Science post I mentioned confirmation bias – a person’s tendency to recognize evidence that supports their position, while ignoring and/or downplaying that which opposes their position.

According to the Dunning–Kruger effect, some poor unfortunates suffer from something far more severe.

Apparently, they are dumb + they are prone to confirmation bias + they have an inability to recognize their dumbness + they ironically think that they are the opposite of dumb, and that smart people are the dumb ones.

Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch!

Tags: confirmation bias • creationists • dumb and dumber • dumbness • dunning-kruger effect • fox news • Science

Comments

Subscribe without commenting
E-Mail:

• Your Comments

  • meh: i was number 2 my family wasn’t that religious but i studied the fuck out of it...
  • Rob: Interesting that you can think for God. The important issue for Christians is the...
  • Rob: Good question. It isn’t whether we have need for a soul. We were created in...
  • Rob: Hi – What strengths are there in atheism? I would like to know.
  • Rob: Hi – I am not sure this is helpful. I know that everyone has to either accept or...

• Recent Articles

  • Awesome Godlessness Part II: Not Being Afraid of Your Own Thoughts
  • Awesome Godlessness Part I: Introduction
  • Attention Dave Mabus / Dennis Markuze
  • Getting Past Atheist Anger
  • PZ Myers Weighs in on the Search for a Less Religious Version of “Spiritual”

• Amazing Atheists

  • AnAtheist.net run by James Tracy who also looks after ‘The Atheist Spot’ (an atheist link sharing service)
  • Atheist Climber Thoughts about science, nature and religion, as well as politics, philosophy, atheism and the occasional rant
  • Atheist Revolution by vjack – an unbelievably prolific writer on the subject of atheism
  • Attempts At Rational Behavior Godless liberal firmly supporting separation of church and state
  • August Cline is the atheism & agnosticism author at about.com. He is excellent.
  • Common Sense Atheism Awesome, awesome, awesome awesome atheist blog. End of story.
  • Dangerous Talk an atheist/progressive blog discussing the three most dangerous topics of polite conversation: Religion, Politics, and Sex
  • Daylight Atheism Night time is for dreaming. Daylight is for action.
  • Friendly Atheist warmth and wisdom from the guy who sold his soul on eBay
  • God is for Suckers! Group blog, providing commentary, news, and rants on the evils and stupidity of belief in the big invisible daddy in the sky.
  • Godless Girl Ex-christian sarcasm-a-tron armed with a vag and a brain. Curiosity killed the faith, not the sass.
  • Greta Christina's Blog I don’t think anyone writes more powerfully about atheism than Greta
  • Happy Jihad's House of Pancakes As the title suggests, HJHOP is a fun and quirky (but still thoughtful) critique of religion.
  • Lousy Canuck He’s Canadian and he’s an atheist. Need I say more? ;)
  • Monicks: Unleashed Monica is the tireless force behind the ‘Think Atheist’ community
  • No Religion Blog Nice, clear explanations relating to historical accuracy/claims in the Bible, among other things
  • Pharyngula by PZ Meyers – evolutionary biologist, heathen and communion cracker desecrator!
  • Stupid Evil Bastard What the hell is wrong with you people? (I love that tagline)
  • The Gaytheists group blog for LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgendered) Atheists, Skeptics and Humanists
  • Unreasonable Faith Excellent atheist blog (one of my favorites) by former evangelical Christian Daniel Florien
  • Watching the Wheels see-er. do-er. writer. photographer. thinker. doodler. worker. lover. whiner. reader. cooker. planter. designer. laugher. cleaner (sometimes). remember-er. traveller. questioner. dreamer. organizer. learner. giver. crier. taker. sleeper. imagine-er. eater

• Heathen Bling!

  • 
  • 
  • 
• 
  

  Awesome Atheism Websites

  • Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster Touch his noodley appendage!
  • God is Imaginary 50 simple proofs for non-existence of god
  • Iron Chariots Wiki Awesome encyclopedia of counters to Christian apologetics.
  • Secular Web contains a simply fantastic article library from both modern and past atheist/agnostic writers
  • Skeptic's Annotated Bible Great place to learn about the contradictions, scientific fails and absurdities within the Bible (and there are many)
  • Talk Origins Archive Exploring the Creation/Evolution Controversy
  • The Freethinker Excellent secular focused site based on the magazine founded in 1881 by GW Foote, an outspoken critic of religion.
  • The Panda's Thumb excellent site focusing on evolution/creationism & the defence of science
  • Why Won't God Heal Amputees? Is God real, or is he imaginary?

• Skeptical Rulers of the Universe

  • Doubtful “Skepticism is a process.” This is a great place to learn. Sharon really does her homework for our benefit.
  • Grassroots Skeptics A volunteer organization promoting critical thinking and a reason-centered worldview by helping local skeptics groups to share tools, information and strategies, and connect with skeptical individuals and activists.
  • ICBS Everywhere Knowledge, science, reason, education, philosophy, behavior, politics, religion, and B.S.
  • James Randi Educational Foundation Not-for-profit organization that promotes critical thinking by reaching out to the public and media with reliable information about paranormal and supernatural ideas so widespread in our society today. Home of the $1 million paranormal challenge.
  • Podblack Cat Science, Superstitions and Skeptical Life
  • She Thought women. thinking critically.
  • Skepchick A group of women (and one deserving guy) who write about science, skepticism, and pseudoscience. With intelligence, curiosity, and occasional snark, the group tackles diverse topics from astronomy to astrology, psychics to psychology.
  • Skeptic North The first Canada-wide blog for skeptics. Its mission is to affect and promote positive, science-based change in mainstream media, Canadian culture and education, and in government policy
  • Skeptic's Dictionary Definitions, arguments, and essays on topics ranging from acupuncture to zombies. Detailed information on the supernatural, paranormal, and pseudoscientific. Dozens of topics in logic, perception, science, and philosophy.
  • SkepticReport Extremely well organized and laid out skeptic site. Lots of good information here.
  • Skeptics Society A scientific and educational organization of scholars, scientists, historians, magicians, professors and teachers, and anyone curious about controversial ideas, extraordinary claims, revolutionary ideas, and the promotion of science.
  • Skeptics Society Blog Official blog of the Skeptics Society, featuring the writings of Michael Shermer as well as many others.
  • Skeptigirl dedicated to free thinking, critical thinking, science, and skepticism
  • Woo Fighters Purpose is to promote critical, skeptical, and scientific thinking by inspiring students to become active promoters of scientific skepticism and defenders of science.

• Health & Medicine

  • Quackwatch International network concerned with health-related frauds, myths, fads, fallacies, and misconduct. Primary focus on difficult/impossible to find quackery-related information.
  • Science-Based Medicine Exploring issues and controversies in the relationship between science and medicine
  • Science-Based Pharmacy Turning an eye on the profession, separating fact from fiction on both sides of the counter.
  • The Denialism Blog Discussing the problem of denialists, their standard arguing techniques, how to identify denialists and/or cranks, and discuss topics of general interest such as skepticism, medicine, law and science.
  • The SkepDoc Retired family physician, former U.S. Air Force flight surgeon and skeptic who writes about alternative medicine and quackery.

• Why I Blog

  I'm here to help doubting believers let go of their fear and guilt, to provide an example of an atheist leading a happy, moral and fulfilling life, and to connect with fellow non-believers. Welcome!
  
• 
  

  Subscribe/Bookmark

  
• 
  

  Navigation

  Atheism  (80) About Me  (7) Science  (2) Links  (4) Religion  (16) Family Matters  (4) Funnier Than Hell  (4) Video  (6) Finding Meaning  (11) Religulous  (3) Poll  (1) Understanding  (5) Diabetes  (1) Stuff  (4) Skepticism  (1) Awesome Godlessness  (2)
  Select Month May 2010  (8) April 2010  (5) March 2010  (3) February 2010  (1) December 2009  (2) November 2009  (7) October 2009  (3) September 2009  (8) August 2009  (18) April 2009  (4) March 2009  (1) December 2008  (3) October 2008  (2) September 2008  (1) August 2008  (2) July 2008  (17) June 2008  (11)
• 
  

  On Youtube

• 
  

  Podcasts/Radio

  • For Good Reason Interview program hosted by D.J. Grothe, promoting critical thinking and skepticism about the central beliefs of society.
  • Skeptic's Guide to the Universe Home of one of the longest standing skeptical podcasts.
  • Skepticality Official podcast of Skeptical Magazine
  • Skeptically Speaking Live radio/podcast hosted by everyone’s favorite geek girl, Desiree Schell “Call in. Question Everything.”
  • The Atheist Experience Fantastic call-in atheist TV show out of Austin, Texas with big focus on talking with believers.

• Great Reads

  • Letter to a Christian Nation - by Sam Harris
  • Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible & Why - by Bart Ehrman
  • The God Delusion - by Richard Dawkins

• History & Statistics

  • Adherents.com Excellent statistics and maps on the subject of religious adherence.
  • History of the End of the World This is a great link showing the 220 times the world was predicted to end, but did not.
  • Maps of War: History of Religion
  • What Charles Darwin believed about religion an excerpt from his biography should clear things up

• Favorite Articles

  • Frequently Asked Questions for the Newly Deconverted is for new atheists wondering where they go from here
  • Jesus Myth the case against the historical Christ
  • Why are atheists so angry? Greta Christina has a post that sums the reasons up quite well!

• Communities

  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
• 
  

  Atheist Blogroll

• 
  

  Advocacy & Activism

  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
• 
  

  Favorite Videos

  • Atheist a simply made video with an incredibly inspiring message
  • Intelligent Design on Trial An excellent documentary about the controversy that occured in Dover, Pennsylvania over the teaching of evolution.
  • My Spirituality as an Atheist One of my favorite videos – truly poignant and beautiful.
  • Pat Condell’s Youtube Channel is Atheism on the offensive (controversial, funny & brilliant)
  • Potholer54′s Youtube Channel home of the amazing “Made Easy” series (evolution & natural selection, the scientific method, and history of the universe etc)
  • Why Do People Laugh at Creationists? is an excellent 24 part Youtube video series by Thunderfoot

• The Four Horsemen

  • Christopher Hitchens author of “God is Not Great”
  • Daniel Dennet author of “Breaking the Spell”
  • Richard Dawkins author of “The God Delusion”, “The Blind Watchmaker” & more
  • Sam Harris author of “The End of Faith” & “Letter to a Christian Nation”

• Meaning of Life Type Stuff

  • Ethic of Reciprocity “The Golden Rule” is one of things that guides my life
  • One Source of Morality might be from our feelings of empathy
  • Secular Humanism check out the Council of Secular Humanism affirmations and declarations
  • Secular Humanism on Wikipedia atheism is what I don’t believe & secular humanism is, more or less, what I do

• Kick-Ass Science

  • Action Bioscience Promoting bioscience literacy. Great articles on evolution, genomics, the environment, biotechnology and more.
  • Bad Astronomy My favorite astronomy blog! Written by Phil Plait
  • NASA Image of the Day Pure awesomeness!
  • Sense About Science responds to the misrepresentation of science on issues that matter
  • Wired Science Nice, eclectic mix of science articles from a variety of fields. Always entertaining.

• Fun/Entertaining

  • Atheist Cartoons Best atheist related comics on the web!
  • Jesus & Mo The adventures of modern-day Jesus and Mohammed. What could go wrong?
  • The Onion News Network The best satire news on the web. Not an atheist site, but often satirizes religion and religious beliefs.
  • xkcd A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language

Pages

• About Me
• Archive
• Bookmarks & Blogroll
• Contact Me
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Mojoey’s Atheist Blogroll

Credits

Powered by Vertigo & WordPress
WordPress Themes by Brian Gardner

Admin

• Log in
• WordPress
• XHTML

Stalkers