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Those who have read the book know what I'm talking about. Those who haven't need the explanation below.
The brain operates through two main systems for mental tasks and physical commands.
System 1 is very fast and economical, predominating most of the time. It rapidly analyzes shapes and symbols, arriving at practical and routine conclusions without room for reflection. An example is driving a familiar route with no traffic or delays.
System 2 is energy-demanding and lazy, used for more elaborate, deliberate thinking—such as calculating 124 \times 14 or choosing which candidate to vote for based on their government platform's ideology.
On an ordinary day, contrary to what many believe or accept, you use System 1 about 95% of the time.
An experienced echocardiographer can perform a routine exam using exclusively System 1.
Especially in routine check-up and low-complexity clinics.
In this way, they achieve extraordinary speed, completing an exam in under 20 minutes.
However, if a case of severe aortic stenosis appears, they will need to switch to System 2, take unusual measurements, and reflect deeply on the findings.
Their examination time might extend to 40 minutes or more.
The accuracy rate of System 1 is very high among well-trained examiners. It does not deserve criticism based solely on the short duration. Even if they spent 45 minutes, the conclusion would be the same.
Still, the echocardiographer must be capable of recognizing cases that require System 2 and more time.
The worst mistake is treating everything with System 1 and failing to deliver accurate reports in certain cases.
Always using System 2 also offers no benefit to the system, as it creates unnecessary delays and unjustifiable backlogs.
A resident in the early stages of training may spend 45 minutes relying on System 1, but they are still training that System 1 for efficient use.
The brain operates through two main systems for mental tasks and physical commands.
System 1 is very fast and economical, predominating most of the time. It rapidly analyzes shapes and symbols, arriving at practical and routine conclusions without room for reflection. An example is driving a familiar route with no traffic or delays.
System 2 is energy-demanding and lazy, used for more elaborate, deliberate thinking—such as calculating 124 \times 14 or choosing which candidate to vote for based on their government platform's ideology.
On an ordinary day, contrary to what many believe or accept, you use System 1 about 95% of the time.
An experienced echocardiographer can perform a routine exam using exclusively System 1.
Especially in routine check-up and low-complexity clinics.
In this way, they achieve extraordinary speed, completing an exam in under 20 minutes.
However, if a case of severe aortic stenosis appears, they will need to switch to System 2, take unusual measurements, and reflect deeply on the findings.
Their examination time might extend to 40 minutes or more.
The accuracy rate of System 1 is very high among well-trained examiners. It does not deserve criticism based solely on the short duration. Even if they spent 45 minutes, the conclusion would be the same.
Still, the echocardiographer must be capable of recognizing cases that require System 2 and more time.
The worst mistake is treating everything with System 1 and failing to deliver accurate reports in certain cases.
Always using System 2 also offers no benefit to the system, as it creates unnecessary delays and unjustifiable backlogs.
A resident in the early stages of training may spend 45 minutes relying on System 1, but they are still training that System 1 for efficient use.
