The Effects of Belief on Pain

3min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

There was a really fascinating study where they tried to find studies that had three arms in the study now rather than two. A belief you're going to get better can reduce your anxiety, right? I think it also can make pain less unpleasant. On the other hand, I'm pretty convinced that placebos can't do things like kill viruses, kill bacteria, or cure mental physical disorders.

What is 80,000 Hours? What sorts of people should become entrepreneurs? How can you run cheap experiments on yourself? What are some beneficial modes of philosophical thinking?

Arden Koehler is a researcher and writer at 80,000 Hours, a nonprofit whose mission is to help people use their careers to help solve the world's most pressing problems, and an active member of the effective altruism community. Arden has a PhD in philosophy from New York University, with a specialisation in ethics and attitudes toward time, and a B.A. in philosophy from University of California, Berkeley. You can check out her work at 80,000 Hours, and you can email her at arden@80000hours.org.

Staff