Thomas Gilovich: 2 ideas worth knowing

2 ideas from Thomas Gilovich, each explained in a minute and credited to the original work. Free on Savvy.

Random data always looks like it has patterns — your brain finds them anyway
The clustering illusion is the tendency to see meaningful clusters in what's actually random noise, like wartime Londoners convinced German V-1 rockets were targeting specific neig…
— Thomas Gilovich, How We Know What Isn't So
You think your nerves are written all over your face. They almost never are.
In a 1998 study, people who had just told a lie guessed that far more observers could tell they were lying than actually could, and people forced to taste something disgusting beli…
— Thomas Gilovich, Kenneth Savitsky & Victoria Husted Medvec, The Illusion of Transparency: Biased Assessments of Others' Ability to Read One's Emotional States

Five ideas worth knowing, every week