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How to Choose?
Article

How to Choose?

When Your Reasons Are Worse than Useless, Sometimes the Most Rational Choice Is a Random Stab in the Dark

Aeon, 2014

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自动生成的音频

Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Applicable
  • Eye Opening

Recommendation

It’s the age of data-driven analysis, neural networks and machine learning. If you need to make a decision, tossing a coin or going with your gut seems irresponsible – even downright negligent. So why does a brief review of world cultures reveal that many of them happily allowed a healthy dollop of chaos into their decision-making processes? Even if you have little respect for ancestral traditions, you have to admit that it’d be unlikely for so many cultures to come to this practice if it didn’t work at all. getAbstract recommends Michael Schulson’s thought-provoking article to people who could use a little relief from the near-constant burden of rational decision making.

Take-Aways

  • Throughout history, cultures have introduced randomness into decision making through lotteries, seeking signs from the natural world and fortune-telling.
  • Though at first glance such behavior may seem purely superstitious, it provides benefits for people who have to make decisions under uncertain conditions.
  • Allowing chance to make a decision can be particularly useful when the danger of bad reasons outweighs the beneficial influence of good reasons.

About the Author

Michael Schulson is a freelance writer and associate editor at Religion Dispatches magazine. 


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