A Roll of the Dice Changed the Sentence
The first number you hear pulls your answer toward it, even when that number means nothing. Young lawyers who rolled a 9 on loaded dice gave longer sentences than those who rolled a 3.
AnchoringTested advice
Every Tuesday
Episodes
Each one takes a single way your mind misleads you, the real studies behind it, and what to do about it.
Every TuesdayThe Tuesday note
A short note each Tuesday with the new episode: the study it's built on, one thing to try, and where to read more.
Can You Draw a Bicycle?
You feel you understand how something works, until you have to explain it. Over 40 percent of people couldn't draw a bicycle that works, though nearly all of them had learned to ride one.
The illusion of explanatory depthTested advice
You'd Defend a Choice You Never Made
People explained why they'd picked a face they had actually turned down. Most of the time, they didn't notice the swap, and the reasons they gave sounded just as sure.
Choice blindnessOur suggestion
How we work
Real studies, read in the original paper. Every one cited, with its limits, and every tip labelled tested or not.
The evidence rules
Coming November 10, 2026
A new study every Tuesday
One way your mind misleads you, the real study behind it, and what you can do about it.