The Science Instinct | Andrés Gomberoff | TEDxFrutillar

Does science discover or create? In this TEDxFrutillar talk, Chilean theoretical physicist Andrés Gomberoff uses optical illusions, the viral dress and a cat's ear to argue that the brain partly builds our sense of reality. The talk also dismantles flat-earth claims. It explains why science can be trusted even though it is a human creation: it fits into a wide web of mutually supporting ideas. The speaker argues that everyone carries a scientific instinct.

• Optical illusions and the viral dress as examples of how the brain constructs reality
• Why science, as a human creation, can still earn trust
• A rebuttal of flat-earth claims

Does science discover or create? With optical illusions, the viral dress and a cat's ear, this talk shows that our brain invents reality and that we all carry a scientific instinct within. By dismantling flat-earth claims, it explains why we can trust science even though it is a human creation: because it fits into a vast web of ideas that hold one another up. Andrés Gomberoff is a Chilean theoretical physicist and Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology at Universidad Mayor. He is one of Chile’s leading science communicators. His book “El Instinto Científico” explores the natural scientist we all carry within. His work examines how science, though a human creation, earns our trust. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx