It's also just basic hypothesis testing - formulating and then proving/disproving a null hypothesis. But most of the people I talk to can't remember what that m

It's also just basic hypothesis testing - formulating and then proving/disproving a null hypothesis. But most of the people I talk to can't remember what that means, if they ever knew. Hence assumptions and attacking as the language - they can work that out. Also, Farsighted is a great book. If you liked it, you'd also get a kick out of Creating Great Choices, The Choice Factory, Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense, and How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of Intangibles in Business.