04-08-2019, 04:44 PM
Very good topic, Rene. Very relevant to VMS research.
I think it applies to plant identifications also.
Over and over I have seen identifications of a specific plant based on the first one someone finds that seems similar. Sometimes it is no more than a similar flower and the rest of the drawing is ignored, but even if it is the whole plant, I'm constantly thinking to myself, "But there are other plants with those characteristics—what about them?"
One almost gets the impression that many people STOP LOOKING as soon as they come across something (anything) that seems to confirm their initial hunch.
It's an easy trap to fall into. Once you start seeing patterns, it's hard not to see other things through the same filter. I sometimes switch gears (e.g., from stars to plants or from plants to text) to try to take myself out of that "space", and come back to it a few months later with the blackboard hopefully at least partly erased so it can be seen again with semi-fresh eyes.
I think it applies to plant identifications also.
Over and over I have seen identifications of a specific plant based on the first one someone finds that seems similar. Sometimes it is no more than a similar flower and the rest of the drawing is ignored, but even if it is the whole plant, I'm constantly thinking to myself, "But there are other plants with those characteristics—what about them?"
One almost gets the impression that many people STOP LOOKING as soon as they come across something (anything) that seems to confirm their initial hunch.
It's an easy trap to fall into. Once you start seeing patterns, it's hard not to see other things through the same filter. I sometimes switch gears (e.g., from stars to plants or from plants to text) to try to take myself out of that "space", and come back to it a few months later with the blackboard hopefully at least partly erased so it can be seen again with semi-fresh eyes.