Hey friends,
Welcome back to another issue of Thought Caffeine, a weekly newsletter where I share my favourite productivity tips, random party facts, and other interesting finds throughout my week.
💸 Sunk cost fallacy
Though this phenomenon is often thought of in the context of a macro scale, it is actually a very common theme within society. This can range from benign behaviours such as wasting our time in a boring movie or book because we've invested half an hour into it, to those with more serious and lasting implications, such as choosing majors.
Additionally, the sunk cost fallacy explains why we are less likely to change our opinion even with convincing contradictory evidence. We fear of being stamped as hypocrites for failing to demonstrate consistency, and so we do the only thing that's tangible and that's strengthen our belief in the lie.
On one famous case, a forensic pathologist wrongfully sentenced an innocent man for a matched bite mark which he later confessed in an off-the-record tape that he knew it was incorrect but couldn't change his opinion since his knees were already "in too deep".
Though I'm sure things like ego and personality do play a part in explaining such behaviours, it’s difficult to discredit the invisible hands of the sunk cost fallacy in play.
🎙 Podcast: Tim Ferriss w/ Mr Money Mustache
This episode has been sitting on my queue for some time and I was excited to see it come up on last Thursday’s run. I’ve been fan of Mr Money Mustache’s blog for some time now, as it had previously appeared on many of my social recommendations.
Some things I learnt from this episode:
- Cars are more expensive than you think to own. Peter cycles everywhere, which he encourages everyone else to do — since it’s healthy and cheap. He says you shouldn’t live more than walking distance from where you work, and even if you need a car, he advises to buy one that costs 10 grand tops, and to make sure it lasts a long time.
- He spends only on the things that make him genuinely happy (happy ≠ excited). His household of 3 spends no more than 27 grand a year for total living expenses. He also says that your spending shouldn't rise with increases in your pay check, because that would put you on the hedonistic treadmill, where you're never satisfied with what you have.
- He effectively retired at 30. He realises that with his current lifestyle, he could live off the rest of his years with his savings and passive income (e.g from investments). Most people overshoot their retirement and leave the Earth with way too much unspent time. They internalise that more money = more happiness — which as most successful people can attest to, is rarely ever the case.
- Teach your little ones about the importance of saving and personal finances from a young age. It’ll train them to be a more financially reasonable grown up.
👨🏻⚕️ First week in Neurology
I just spent the first week of my clinical rotation in Neurology. The main difference between Neurology and my experience in previous departments is the sheer demand of rote memorisation and critical thinking. You need to be absolutely rapid and accurate with your judgement.
From symptoms conveyed by the patients to physical examination findings, doctors are expected to be able to accurately pinpoint the location of a pathology along the convoluted wiring that make up our nervous system. You’re like a computer technician, only you can’t see the wires you’re meant to fix and the monitor that’s supposed to tell you signs could be well, unresponsive.
This leaves very little room for error. For a junior doctor like me, you can probably imagine how daunting this feels.
📱 Documentary: The Social Dilemma
This is the first documentary I watched in 1.5x speed thanks to Netflix’s new feature on the mobile app. Of all the other things 1.5x speed works good on, I think documentaries make a pretty good candidate.
Social Dilemma is documentary that paints a harrowing picture of a future dystopian Earth, a path we're likely heading towards, where humans are controlled by the very softwares that are marketed to “optimise our lives”. I see this documentary as a hybrid of Yuval Noah Harari’s Homo Deus and the entire Black Mirror franchise. Very freakishly insightful. Here were some of my takeaways:
- "If you're not paying for the product, you are the product" (in reference to free apps like Google, Facebook, and Instagram)
- Positive reinforcement on the refresh button mimics a Vegas slot machine. This subtly instills an addicting behaviour without you even knowing it.
- The 3 main goals of social media: (1) Engagement (2) Growth (3) Advertisement. Every feature, every update focuses on improving each aspect (e.g the animated ellipsis for when someone is “typing” is a growth tactic; it makes you stay longer.)
- Facebook realised that they can affect real world behaviour and emotions without ever triggering the user’s awareness. They are left completely clueless.
✍️ Article: The Healthiest Fish To Eat
A recent scientific paper deemed the pesco-Mediterranean diet to be the healthiest diet science has yet to offer. The "pesco" in "pesco-Mediterranean" refers to gems of the sea — but not all of them are created equal. This article will guide you through the best and worst seafood to consume, and talk a little bit about preparation methods.
If you'd like to read more of my articles, click on the little green button down below 🌿
📖 Quote of the Week
“Logical ideas often fail because logic demands universally applicable laws but humans, unlike atoms, are not consistent enough in their behaviour for such laws to hold very broadly.”
From Alchemy by Rory Sutherland. Resurfaced via Readwise.
🐦 Tweet of the Week
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Have a blast of a week! 🛵
John
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