Episode 13: Chmess

In this episode we discuss Daniel Dennett's distinction between chess, or research worth doing, and 'chmess,'  research not worth doing. We discuss ways to determine whether our research is chess or chmess, and how to avoid being sucked into lines of research we don't particularly care about. 

 

Shownotes

• Dennett, D. C. (2006). Higher-order truths about chmess. Topoi, 25, 39–41.
• Dunnette, M. D. (1966). Fads, fashions, and folderol in psychology. American Psychologist, 21(4), 343.
  • Folderol means 'a useless ornament or accessory', and is used to indicate something is 'nonsense'. 
• Dweck, C. S. (2022). Mindsets: From bathtubs to hot beliefs to social change. In Kassin, S. (Ed.) Pillars of Social Psychology: Stories and Retrospectives, 213–219. Cambridge University Press. 
• The Kardashian Index