Library:A Field Guide to Lies
| A Field Guide to Lies: Critical Thinking in the Information Age | |
|---|---|
| Author | Daniel J. Levitin |
| First published | 2016 |
| ISBN | 978-1-101-98382-8 |
| Role | Analysis |
| Domains | Science & Environment Technology & Media |
| Tactics | Statistical & Evidentiary Distortion |
A Field Guide to Lies: Critical Thinking in the Information Age is a 2016 book by Daniel J. Levitin.
Summary
Daniel J. Levitin, a neuroscientist and cognitive psychologist at McGill University best known for This Is Your Brain on Music, published this book in 2016. It is a practical guide to evaluating the information people encounter every day, organized as a set of skills rather than a list of debunked claims. A later paperback edition was retitled Weaponized Lies.
Evaluating numbers
The first part deals with statistics and graphs. Levitin teaches readers to check whether a number is even plausible before accepting it, often with a quick estimate. He explains how averages can mislead, how graphs distort through manipulated axes and scales, how to read probabilities correctly and how the way a sample is collected determines what it can show. Many of the examples are everyday ones, from news reports to advertisements.
Evaluating words
The second part turns to verbal claims. Levitin explains how to judge expertise: whether a source actually has knowledge in the relevant field, and whether its claims have been checked by others. He shows how to look for alternative explanations a claim leaves out. He also discusses "counterknowledge," misinformation packaged to look like fact, which spreads quickly because it often seems more interesting than the truth.
Evaluating the world
The third part explains how science works and how to reason about evidence. Levitin introduces deduction and induction, explains common logical fallacies and offers an accessible introduction to Bayesian reasoning: updating beliefs in proportion to the strength of new evidence. He applies these ideas to real cases, showing how a careful thinker would work through a confusing claim.
The approach
Levitin's emphasis throughout is on habits rather than cynicism. He argues that the goal is not to doubt everything but to know which questions to ask and to make quick, reasonable judgments about what deserves trust.
Relevance to Bullshitopedia
The book is one of the most accessible practical guides in the bibliography and suits new editors and general readers alike. Its plausibility checks and source-evaluation questions map directly onto the Statistical & Evidentiary Distortion tactic and onto the site's standards for judging evidence.