Jorge's blog

In the post-truth age, shared reality shatters into endless question marks.   (📷:thymindoman) T o comprehend why our current societal divisions feel so visceral and existential, one must first recognise that the human brain is not merely a machine for individual logic, but a node in a vast, social meaning-making network. Humans are uniquely characterised by an intense motivation to comprehend, manage, and share inner states, including beliefs, feelings, and attitudes, with their peers. This drive for shared reality is not a luxury of civilisation but a fundamental evolutionary imperative. Shared reality involves a subjectively perceived commonality of inner states regarding a specific target referent, providing individuals with the epistemic certainty needed to navigate a complex world. When we jointly form impressions of a new colleague or a political event, we are essentially merging our cognitive models to create a sense of objective truth. This social sharing of inner states...

Prebunking misinformation before it spreads builds cognitive immunity.   (📷:empowervmedia) T he current global landscape is defined by a paradox of connectivity where the tools meant to unite humanity are frequently weaponised to fragment it. According to the 2025 Global Risks Report, misinformation and disinformation have emerged as the primary short-term threats to societal stability, surpassing even economic instability and environmental crises. This "infodemic" is not merely a technical glitch but a structural failure of the digital ecosystem, which was originally designed for engagement rather than accuracy. Structural challenges persist because the information environment was built to prioritise viral content, often allowing falsehoods to travel faster than verified facts. The consequences of this erosion are quantifiable across diverse sectors of public life. In the United States, trust in national news organisations plummeted to just 56% by early 2025, a significant...