Think Again: Brain Models to Advance Decision Making

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* When an intelligence analyst is presented with photos taken from a satellite or an unmanned aircraft, he is able to look at the images and piece them together with supplemental data to draw conclusions and make decisions.

But along the way, he may form cognitive biases that cloud his judgment and prevent him from considering other explanations for what he is seeing. Being able to understand and predict when and how that bias might interfere with the analytical process--and finding a way to mitigate it--could improve the accuracy and speed of intelligence information that military commanders ultimately rely upon to make critical decisions.

The Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Agency is funding a multi-year program that aims to build a cognitive …