Brain Food #730
Apophenia
Every Wednesday, I will be sharing a new cognitive bias or mental model that you can add to your thinking toolbox. Being aware of our biases can help us change perspectives, be better humans, and make wiser decisions. Last week, I wrote about the halo effect, a form of cognitive bias that lets a single attribute of a person affect our entire perception of them.
Thoughts of the day
Our brains are trained to see patterns, and the ability to do this is often a sign of intelligence, even having the highest correlation with the ‘intelligence factor’, according to some researchers.
IQ tests include pattern recognition exercises, either through identifying what the next logical number is in a series or predicting the subsequent changes in a combination of shapes. Our fascination with patterns, beyond being an inherently human characteristic, stems from nature itself, which is filled with patterns, from the surface of leaves to the motion of waves. There are also patterns in human behaviour, though this exploration might be better done in a longer essay.
But we also tend to seek and see patterns and meaning in random information, the result of a cognitive bias called apophenia. When you look at the clock and it’s 11:11, or when you happen to see faces in inanimate objects, these are both examples of apophenia. Similar to the frequency illusion, our brains search for meaning where there is none, perhaps hinting at the larger driving force behind the state of being human.
Sometimes, there is no logical next step. Yet, we seek to find order in chaos. Being aware of apophenia can help us see the patterns where they matter, and filter out the noise.
Seeing people or animals in the shapes formed by the ‘seas’ of the moon is an example of pareidolia, a form of apophenia. Interestingly, depending on where you stand, and which culture you are a part of, what you see might change. If anything, our quest for meaning can ignite the imagination.
Thank you for reading today’s Brain Food. Brain Food is a short daily newsletter that aims to make you think every day, without taking up too much of your time. If you know someone who would like it, why not forward it to them? And if you have just come across Brain Food, you can subscribe to it below:
For longer thoughts and Brain Food highlights from the archives, visit Medium.