Everyone has been guilty of it at some point. You’re in the middle of a conversation about politics or music or art, and someone asks, “Have you heard of…?” And despite your complete lack of knowledge of that band or law or artist, you say, “Sure!”
As it turns out, the more you know about a subject, the more likely you are to fib when your knowledge falls short, claiming that some factoid rings a bell when, in fact, there are no bells to be rung. A new study published in Psychological Science finds that when people consider themselves experts, they’re more likely to profess understanding of made-up concepts.
via Mental Floss
