Julia Galef Writer and public speaker

Perspective is everything, especially when it comes to examining your beliefs. Are you a soldier, prone to defending your viewpoint at all costs — or a scout, spurred by curiosity? Julia Galef examines the motivations behind these two mindsets and how they shape the way we interpret information, interweaved with a compelling history lesson from 19th-century France .

She then goes on to explain the concept of motivated reasoning :

Finally, when your steadfast opinions are tested, Julia asks :

“What do you most yearn for?

Do you yearn to defend your own beliefs or do you yearn to see the world as clearly as you possibly can?”