Ep. 16 Feb. Q & A with Daniel on Science, Research, and Debunking Realities

For our Feb Q & A, Daniel answers a couple of questions from our Facebook Group, “Bits, Spurs, and Good Sense”. We talk about the hackamore vs the snaffle and refute a couple of criticisms about Dr. Robert M. Miller’s Foal Imprinting ideas with the importance of context. Daniel answers another question about a book on the horse’s brain which leads us down a rabbit hole. He gets deep into what Science and the Scientific Method is. He talks about some personal experiences he’s had with the people behind the research and how their experiences, or lack of experiences can affect the outcomes. He gets neck deep into Associative Learning Theory and it’s children, Classical and Operant Conditioning. He’ll talk about some real world examples of each and the practical side of things. He’ll pay special attention to positive reinforcement also.
In the final segment, he talks about what debunking a long standing scientific theory really would entail and if that standard really is met when people like to say things have been debunked. He finishes by giving some tips on these scientific studies and looking up the research for yourself. He’ll tell you some places to find this type of research, how to critically analyze it when you find it, and some common flaws to look for that may nullify what you’re reading and waste your time. If you’re interested in the science of behavioral conditioning, this one’s for you.