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B.S. in Actuarial Science

Otterbein University Course Catalogs

2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
    Mar 29, 2024  
2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog [Archived Catalog]

FYS 1068 - Skepticism in the “Information Age”

Hours: 3
The earth is flat, vaccines cause autism, and global climate change is a hoax. All of these claims, rejected by mainstream science and refuted by voluminous evidence, are alive and well in the digital realm. But how, if we live in the so-called Information Age, can such obviously wrong claims persist? While it is tempting to dismiss these falsehoods as mere quackery, a critical mind would seek to understand how these ideas gain a foothold, and what they can tell us about the way that we all acquire and communicate knowledge. An introduction to areas of commonly held erroneous belief, cognitive errors that contribute to misinformation, and the importance of testable hypotheses and conclusions supported by data.