Rational Future

Rational Future

Welcome to the Rational Future Institute

Advancing Rationality as an Academic and Professional Skill

Advancing Rationality as an Academic and Professional Skill

Rationality is not a personality trait. Rationality is a skill, just like science, medicine, or driving a car.

We only think rationality is a personality trait because we do not explicitly teach rationality.

We are here to change that.

About

Welcome to the official page of The Rational Future Institute!

The goal of the Rational Future Institute is to create a cultural awareness of the principles of ideal rationality and of the ways we humans predictably deviate from rational thinking.

The RFI is non-partisan, and does not advocate for specific conclusions to social, scientific, moral or political arguments. Our focus is on promoting public understanding of ideal rational methods and of cognitive bias. The RFI is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, not-for-profit organization.

 

What is rational thinking?

Despite the importance of rationality in our daily lives, there’s one question that’s rarely discussed or even considered: What exactly does it mean to think rationally?

We believe that our culture should be literate in the principles of rationality, and that everyone should have an appreciation for our cognitive biases and limitations.

Resources

We are developing and curating a collection of educational resources on the topic of rational thinking.

For educators: syllabus and lesson plans

For everyone: general resources

Join Us

Support us through our member program, and get early access to teaching materials, event announcements, and access to our forums

How You Can Help

  • Use our teaching materials or contribute your own
  • Support Us through our member program, and get early access to teaching materials, event announcements, and access to our forums
  • Join us on social media
A Rational Renaissance
"Clever" is something of a catchall word. According to Dictionary.com, it has the following meanings, among others: 1. mentally bright; having sharp or quick intelligence; able. ......
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Lesson Plan: Induction
Lesson Plan: Induction
DRAFT Overview UNIT: Inference GRADE LEVEL: 8 The goal of this lesson is to develop the student's intuition for inductive...
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Lesson Plan: Knowledge & Belief
Lesson Plan: Knowledge & Belief
DRAFT Overview UNIT: Rationality CONCEPTS  GRADE LEVEL: 8 The goal of this lesson is to explore the concept of belief...
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Drafting a syllabus
Drafting a syllabus
Science has learned much about rationality over the last 50 years, and practically none of this knowledge is part of...
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Bayes’ Theorem: Some Intuitive Principles, Part III
Bayes’ Theorem: Some Intuitive Principles, Part III
In the first two parts of this series, I expressed the practical consequences of Bayes' theorem in terms or two...
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Bayes’ Theorem: Some Intuitive Principles, Part II
Bayes’ Theorem: Some Intuitive Principles, Part II
In my last post, I began to explain the practical implications of Bayes' theorem in terms of simple principles. My...
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About

Welcome to the official page of The Rational Future Institute!

The goal of the Rational Future Institute is to create a cultural awareness of the principles of ideal rationality and of the ways we humans predictably deviate from rational thinking.

The RFI is non-partisan, and does not advocate for specific conclusions to social, scientific, moral or political arguments. Our focus is on promoting public understanding of ideal rational methods and of cognitive bias. The RFI is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, not-for-profit organization.