Our gut feeling is not very reliable. Even good general knowledge and scientific expertise do not protect us from serious thinking errors. Before we know it, the thinking trap snaps shut. It's better not to stumble into it at all. Because avoiding mistakes is a skill that can be learned. Mathematician Christian Hesse shows how. The world we live in is complex and not always benevolent towards us, and our lives are short: we are under pressure to succeed and manage our time. Therefore, evolution has equipped our brains with certain thought patterns that help us reduce effort and complexity or select relevant information from the vast amount available. Indeed, these shortcut methods generally work quite well in everyday situations. However, caution is advised in more demanding contexts, such as in science. Particularly subtle thinking errors should be avoided.