David McRaney

It might actually lead to better turkey. Also, it doesn’t involve staring at a screen, and you play it with the person instead of avoiding them

How can so many people watch the same event yet “see” so many different realities?
@davidmcraney.bsky.social and I discuss why people often come to different conclusions--even if they watch the same video

Listen: youarenotsosmart.com/2026/02/16/y...
Read here: www.romolocapuano.com/wp-content/u...

You Are Not So Smart

I listened to this ep of You Are Not So Smart with guest Steven Franconeri from Colorado State, and I think every jurisdiction in the country oughta be looking to his lab for help.

Episode webpage: www.youarenotsosmart.com

Media file: stitcher.simplecastaudio.com/aa9f2648-25e...

If this was a reverse psychology ploy, it worked!

Noted. Will refrain in the future

YANSS 331 – The wicked problems that often emerge during debate, disagreement, and deliberation Dr. Martin Carcasson tells us how he, as the Director of the Center for Public Deliberation at Colorado State, trains people how to facilitate deliberation and overcome wicked problems so that they…

Got to meet @davidmcraney.bsky.social at a conference last summer. Knew his books well before we met. He is a journalist who is great as translating research and practice to broader audiences. Last week I had the chance to chat w him on his podcast about my work. youarenotsosmart.com/2026/01/23/y...

Are a few people ruining the internet for the rest of us? Why does the online world seem so toxic compared with normal life? Our research shows that a small number of divisive accounts could be responsible – and offers a way out

Only a small % of people engage in toxic activity online, but they’re responsible for a disproportionate share of hostile or misleading content on nearly every platform

Because super-users are so active, they dominate our collective impression of the internet www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...

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⌛️ Two days left to double your donation to @give-directly.bsky.social for #PodsFightPoverty!

Donate: givedirectly.org/pods

YANSS 328 – The science behind a game (you can start playing today) that turns heated arguments into productive conversations Dr. Steven Franconeri explains the powerful insights and opportunities offered by a game he and his team at Northwestern University created for having better disagreements, better debates, better c…

Want to avoid a terrible holiday dinner? Cognitive scientists at Northwestern have created a game (that you can download for free) that makes it possible to avoid fights and find common ground when addressing the issues you likely avoid discussing.

youarenotsosmart.com/2025/12/22/y...

Thanks for this. I'll dig in and follow up.

YANSS 313 – Why the number of people needed to make a protest movement successful is much lower than you might assume If you want to overthrow a dictator, resist an authoritarian regime, or create a movement that can change the national status quo, you don’t need half the country to join, you only need 3.5 p…

According to actual, real studies into this sort of thing, the number of people needed to ensure a protest movement succeeds is much lower than you might assume:

youarenotsosmart.com/2025/05/14/y...

Apple Podcats: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/3...

Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/6og4...

YANSS 279 - Pluralistic Ignorance (rebroadcast)

Spotify link: open.spotify.com/episode/2oYp...

YANSS 279 - Pluralistic Ignorance (rebroadcast) Podcast Episode · You Are Not So Smart · 01/20/2024 · 1h 26m

Apple Podcasts link: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/y...

YANSS 279 – Why people don’t speak out against, and even defend, norms they secretly despise Have you ever been in a classroom or a business meeting or a conference  and had a question or been confused by the presentation, and when the person running the show asked, “Does anyone have …

Always relevant: youarenotsosmart.com/2024/01/20/y...

My first morning as the writer-in-residence at Ernest Hemingway's house. Info about this place: comlib.org/hemingway/he...

320 - Misguided - Matthew Facciani Podcast Episode · You Are Not So Smart · 18/08/2025 · 1h 9m

Great case for knowing your most cherished identities to recognise when your misinformation radar is likely to fail.

@davidmcraney.bsky.social
@matthewfacciani.bsky.social

podcasts.apple.com/be/podcast/y...

Some states require a verification process to access social media for which BlueSky would need to spend an enormous amount of money to add to its platform. For this reason, and for stated privacy concerns, the company has chosen not to comply, thus blocking the site for users in those states.

It took me too long to tell you "thank you!" but, also, thank you!

Thank you!

Had to use a VPN to get on BlueSky to let you know that I drank chocolate Carnation Instant Breakfast out of a Mason jar for lunch before writing about the role of hermeneutics in the pursuit of intellectual humility when avoiding the fallacy of reification concerning abstractions like "genius" 👋

YANSS 319 – What movies often get wrong about romantic love, relationships, and human mating in general Two psychologists who study love, relationships, and human mating behavior pick apart the movie “The Notebook” and tell us what it gets right and what it gets wrong when it comes to por…

A big THANK YOU to @davidmcraney.bsky.social for featuring the #LoveFactually podcast on #YouAreNotSoSmart!

The episode delves into #TheNotebook, figuring out what the movie gets right -- and what it gets wrong -- about how relationships work.

Enjoy!

youarenotsosmart.com/2025/08/04/y...

‘Center for Enlightened Disagreement’ launches at Northwestern University and the Kellogg School of Management Novel center will attract top academics and thought leaders across sectors to develop better ways to engage across diverse perspectives

I think this is super rad and want you to know about it: I am headed to Chicago right now to attend a conference of scientists who study disagreement at the Center for Enlightened Disagreement at Northwestern. Article about the launch of this place: www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/news/blog/20...

More capable when so motivated, not more inclined

318 - The Intention Action Gap - Britt Frank (rebroadcast) Podcast Episode · You Are Not So Smart · 21/07/2025 · 1h 10m

@davidmcraney.bsky.social talking to Britt Frank is one of my favourite things. I loved this episode both times I listened to it. I just hope it won’t take a third time before I put into practice some of the really useful advice that Britt doles out. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/y...

YANSS 151 – What we can learn about our own beliefs, biases, and motivated reasoning from the community of people who are certain the Earth is flat In this episode we sit down with the director and producers of the documentary film, Behind the Curve, an exploration of motivated reasoning and conspiratorial thinking told through the lives of pe…

As this episode of one of the best podcasts around explains, people who believe in conspiratorial narratives are often intelligent, & their retreat into dangerous nonsense like Q can be seen as a rational (but flawed & fearful) attempt to make sense of an irrational world. @davidmcraney.bsky.social

Reminder: The smarter a person is and the more education they earn, the better they will become at rationalizing and justifying their incorrect beliefs if so motivated..

Critical thinking is a skill, like playing guitar. It must be learned and practiced (and the person must want to do both).

YANSS 313 – Why the number of people needed to make a protest movement successful is much lower than you might assume If you want to overthrow a dictator, resist an authoritarian regime, or create a movement that can change the national status quo, you don’t need half the country to join, you only need 3.5 p…

Seems a good time to re-share this episode of YANSS about why civil resistance is incredibly powerful and how that works (scientifically), but also what it takes to make it work after the soldiers and police arrive. Guest: @chenoweth.bsky.social - Links: youarenotsosmart.com/2025/05/14/y...

YANSS 313 – Why the number of people needed to make a protest movement successful is much lower than you might assume If you want to overthrow a dictator, resist an authoritarian regime, or create a movement that can change the national status quo, you don’t need half the country to join, you only need 3.5 p…

Why civil resistance works, and why the number of people needed to reach a protest movement's goals is much lower than you might assume: New episode with Erica Chenoweth -
@chenoweth.bsky.social - youarenotsosmart.com/2025/05/14/y...

Sure thing. Right here, fourth clickable button thing: www.davidmcraney.com

YANSS 313 – Why the number of people needed to make a protest movement successful is much lower than you might assume If you want to overthrow a dictator, resist an authoritarian regime, or create a movement that can change the national status quo, you don’t need half the country to join, you only need 3.5 p…

Why civil resistance works, and why the number of people needed to reach a protest movement's goals is much lower than you might assume: New episode with Erica Chenoweth -
@chenoweth.bsky.social - youarenotsosmart.com/2025/05/14/y...