This is the first time the show has mentioned the name Delos, the name of the corporation that owns Westworld, in dialogue. It can be seen on signage in previous episodes, as well as being known from promotional sites and email subscriptions related to the show.
When Stubbs disarms the hosts participating in the robbery/massacre and decides to have them spend the night in lockup, he mentions having one of the host girls from the Mariposa sneak them a key in their breakfast. This is a nod to the original film, Westworld (1973), when one of the guests has a host sneak one of the main characters an item in his breakfast that subsequently aides him in his escape from the Sheriff's Jail.
The song playing in the saloon is the intro to "A Forest" by The Cure.
Episode title refers to psychologist Leon Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance, in which a person experiences mental tension as a result of having conflicting attitudes and actions, leading to a change in attitude.
The giant machine Ford is using to reshape the park's landscape is real. Called the Bagger 293, it is a bucket-wheel excavator built in Germany in 1995 for use in coal mines. It is the biggest land-bound machine of all time at 96 metres (314.9 feet) tall, 225 metres (738.2 feet) long, and weighing 14,200 tonnes (31.3 million pounds).