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> A father and son are in a horrible car crash that kills the dad. The son is rushed to the hospital; just as he's about to go under the knife, the surgeon says

> A father and son are in a horrible car crash that kills the dad. The son is rushed to the hospital; just as he's about to go under the knife, the surgeon says, "I can’t operate—that boy is my son!" Explain. Well, so "silk" is priming your mind to think of similar words. Here are possible hypotheses about the doctor riddle: 1) The presence of a father in the story is priming the listener to think about fathers and not mothers. 2) The tone of a riddle implies there is a paradox, which suggests to the listener that the doctor is the father. 3) We are biased to think doctors are men. And you're saying that the author thinks it's inconceivable that #1 or #2 could be complete explanations? I think she admitted such... she believes that the bias exists and is merely looking for evidence. I don't think she is saying the study is conclusive though. Taken alone it doesn't prove anything. But there are lots of other studies showing similar effects. You can run the tests on yourself: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/ https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/ I wish you would say a little more about what, specifically you are accusing the author of.

DanBC 10y ago
The Implicit Bias tests have been sort of debunked. http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2017/01/psychologys-racism-measuring-tool-isnt-up-to-the-job.html http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2017/01/psychologys-racism-meas... These kinds of biases are a problem, but that's why we need to guard against bullshit like this riddle or the Implicit Bias tests, because they discredit the message.
never-question 10y ago
I didn't see anything resembling an accusation in the parent, just a quick demonstration of the linguistic tricks our minds can play on us and some sarcasm. What is it about pushing diversity that puts people in a near-constant defensive/attack posture? I understand that adoring surface-level diversity is not a universally accepted stance despite leagues of loudly fervent believers, but it seems unlikely that anyone thinks this posture is actually helpful. Or at least from the outside, it's pretty clear it isn't, maybe when you're in it, it feels right. I wish I got it.
- apostacy 10y ago
  > What is it about pushing diversity that puts people in a near-constant defensive/attack posture? (emphasis mine) I think your answer is embedded in your question. It is human nature to respond with hostility to things being "pushed" on us. Are you really that surprised? You would do the very same thing, if I pushed what I thought was right on you. I would at least understand where the hostility came from. Before I go on, let me first say that I'm a minority (sadly, that fact will carry more weight with you), and you would probably ruffle a lot of feathers trying to "push" me into your workplace. And I would not want to be there. Do you understand how patronizing it is to shove people aside at the grown ups table and bring a high chair for us to sit at?? I'm sick of being fetishized. Look, sometimes change needs to happen. But your shock that there would be any pushback indicates that you can't even conceive of why, because, in your mind, you are so righteous that nobody could be justified in disagreeing with you. That's a really pigheaded attitude. When you must make changes, it's helpful to at least understand why people would push back, even if you think you're 100% correct.
08-15 10y ago
What am I accusing the author of? An attention-grabbing headline, a long-winded unreadable article that refuses to get to the point, and an opening example that is implicitly interpreted as showing bias when it could show any number of things. I just took the male/female vs. family/career IAT. It starts out with a couple dumb questions where the correct answer "Wat?!" isn't even available. Then I get "weak association between male and career". But the funny thing is that this is based on how fast I answer, not on correctness. The test where male/career and female/family each share a key is last. By that time I've seen the same words so often that I simply respond faster because I read faster. What a surprise. And finally... > she believes that the bias exists and is merely looking for evidence She'll find it if only she keeps looking for it long enough. Am I the only one who thinks that's not exactly scientific?

DanBC 10y ago

The Implicit Bias tests have been sort of debunked. http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2017/01/psychologys-racism-measuring-tool-isnt-up-to-the-job.html http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2017/01/psychologys-racism-meas... These kinds of biases are a problem, but that's why we need to guard against bullshit like this riddle or the Implicit Bias tests, because they discredit the message.

never-question 10y ago

I didn't see anything resembling an accusation in the parent, just a quick demonstration of the linguistic tricks our minds can play on us and some sarcasm. What is it about pushing diversity that puts people in a near-constant defensive/attack posture? I understand that adoring surface-level diversity is not a universally accepted stance despite leagues of loudly fervent believers, but it seems unlikely that anyone thinks this posture is actually helpful. Or at least from the outside, it's pretty clear it isn't, maybe when you're in it, it feels right. I wish I got it.

apostacy 10y ago
> What is it about pushing diversity that puts people in a near-constant defensive/attack posture? (emphasis mine) I think your answer is embedded in your question. It is human nature to respond with hostility to things being "pushed" on us. Are you really that surprised? You would do the very same thing, if I pushed what I thought was right on you. I would at least understand where the hostility came from. Before I go on, let me first say that I'm a minority (sadly, that fact will carry more weight with you), and you would probably ruffle a lot of feathers trying to "push" me into your workplace. And I would not want to be there. Do you understand how patronizing it is to shove people aside at the grown ups table and bring a high chair for us to sit at?? I'm sick of being fetishized. Look, sometimes change needs to happen. But your shock that there would be any pushback indicates that you can't even conceive of why, because, in your mind, you are so righteous that nobody could be justified in disagreeing with you. That's a really pigheaded attitude. When you must make changes, it's helpful to at least understand why people would push back, even if you think you're 100% correct.

08-15 10y ago

What am I accusing the author of? An attention-grabbing headline, a long-winded unreadable article that refuses to get to the point, and an opening example that is implicitly interpreted as showing bias when it could show any number of things. I just took the male/female vs. family/career IAT. It starts out with a couple dumb questions where the correct answer "Wat?!" isn't even available. Then I get "weak association between male and career". But the funny thing is that this is based on how fast I answer, not on correctness. The test where male/career and female/family each share a key is last. By that time I've seen the same words so often that I simply respond faster because I read faster. What a surprise. And finally... > she believes that the bias exists and is merely looking for evidence She'll find it if only she keeps looking for it long enough. Am I the only one who thinks that's not exactly scientific?