眼见未必为实

We all suffer from the brain’s ability to trick us into believing things that aren’t true. Our own eyesight, the sense that guides us as we move about the world and allows us to gather information, can’t even be trusted. To rely on your senses alone is a costly mistake.

我们都有过被大脑欺骗而去相信一些不真实事情的经历，指引我们活动并帮助我们收集信息的视觉有时也不可信。仅仅依赖我们的感觉有时也会出错。

Now more than ever, seeing should not be the only requirement for believing. In a world of fake news, retouched images, digital special effects, and powerful people pulling hidden strings, we owe it to ourselves to let reason dominate our thoughts and beliefs instead of our senses. After all, seeing water in the distance doesn’t mean it’s not a mirage, hearing voices in an attic doesn’t mean it’s haunted by ghosts, and watching a performer levitate a playing card doesn’t mean magic is real.

比以往更甚的当今，你认为的事情不应该仅依靠你的所见。在一个充满虚假消息、粉饰形象、数字特技，有权利的人肆意隐藏真相的世界，我们应该用理性主宰我们的思想和信仰而不是感觉。毕竟，远处所见的水并不意味着不是幻觉；听到的阁楼的响动，并不意味着闹鬼，看到魔术师表演补克牌，并不意味着魔法真的存在。

This isn’t to say you should never trust your senses-they’re well suited for helping you avoid danger-it just means we shouldn’t jump to conclusions based on what we see or hear. Give yourself time to process new information, be aware of the mental biases that alter your perception on a daily basis, do your own research, and construct beliefs that fit within the constraints of known reality. Self-deception, as Laertius puts it, is an enemy of knowledge.

这并不是说，你永远不能相信你的感觉，他们十分适合帮助你逃避危险，但是我们不应该根据我们的所见所闻快速的断言某件事情。给自己时间来处理收集到的消息，并意识到在日常生活中改变你认知的心理偏见，独自揣摩，并构建符合已知现实约束的信念。就像第欧根尼.拉尔修所说的，自欺是知识的敌人。