Truth filters
What is a truth filter? Think of it as an “if this, then that must be true.” It determines which information you take for granted and which you distrust or discard. What can come in, and what has to stay out?
Everybody has a truth filter. It is crafted and influenced by things like your past experiences, the people around you, your education, and beliefs or religion. It is even influenced by how many hours of sleep or how many drinks you had last night. 😵 The result of this truth filter is how you perceive the world around you. Your lived experience is more than just plain facts and observations. It’s your interpretation of those facts and observations.
When the media reports about science, things get tricky because the press and scientists have completely different truth filters.
The scientific method is an example of a truth filter. It poses a hypothesis and then tries to disprove that hypothesis with an experiment. A scientific study can prove one of two things: 1 this hypothesis is not true, or 2 in this set-up, we have not yet been able to confirm this hypothesis is false. That’s it. There is no more certainty in science. Science can not conclude: “This is true.”
So how come you so often read or hear “scientifically proven to …” in the media?
That’s because most journalists have a completely different truth filter. A rule of thumb for most journalists is to check three experts. If all three experts consider a statement true, journalists will often report it as a fact.
But what if… a fourth expert would have had a different opinion?
Your truth filter should be very good at detecting what is false. Your truth filter should also be filled with enough observations to judge whether the information is true or false. It’s OK for your truth filter to be slightly less accurate in detecting what is right.
The ability to hold two seemingly opposing thoughts at the same time, postponing judgment, can be seen as a sign of critical thinkers. That would be critical thinkers with a good truth filter. You could call them experts.
