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Steven Pinker lecture on thought, the mind, soul, heredity, evolutionary psychology..

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  • 08-06-2008 2:17pm
    #1
    Dave!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 27,857 ✭✭✭✭


    Hey folks,

    Thought ye might be interested in watching this lecture that I watched last night. The first part is here and you can find the rest along the side:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjVHrJzvbXg

    It's by cognitive scientist Steven Pinker and is quite broad, but it challenges the 'blank slate' theory of the mind (essentially that we are born with little or no innateness and it's our nurture rather than nature that shapes us) head on and reveals some really interesting research, I must say! I believe it was to publicise his book 'The Blank Slate' from a few years ago.

    The most interesting part I thought was when he talks about research into twins, and how they fare compared with each other in personality tests, how they are often similar idiosyncratically, etc. The research compared non-identical and identical twins, living in the same environment, as well as seperated at birth. Surprising (to my mind) results! Suffice to say, parents don't matter as much as you might think :) I'm going over to to shop to try find a book which apparantly covers it in greater detail, 'the Nurture Assumption', by Judith Rich Harris.

    Definitely worth watching, though it is quite long. Good quality sound and video, and he takes questions at the end.


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    #2
    Sir Digby Chicken Caesar
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 23,556 ✭✭✭✭Sir Digby Chicken Caesar


    there should be a thread for cool links and stuff...

    http://thesciencenetwork.org/programs/2005%20Skeptics%20Society%20Annual%20Conference/

    that's about 9 hours long but ****ing *sweet*


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    #3
    Dades
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 25,558 Mod ✭✭✭✭Dades


    Mordances with the proletariat wrote: »
    there should be a thread for cool links and stuff...
    Ahem!
    Related Links


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    #4
    MonkeyBalls
    Registered Users Posts: 437 ✭✭MonkeyBalls


    The Blank Slate is my favourite book. I saw that lecture about a year ago I think - Pinker's very good at collating various strands of information and presenting it in a logical, neat, and cogent way.

    He is my favourite non-fiction writer.
    And all I do is read...

    I cannot praise him enough.


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    #5
    Akrasia
    Registered Users Posts: 22,425 ✭✭✭✭Akrasia


    i really don't accept his conclusion that we're shaped by our genes more than anything else. Our personalities maybe, but our behaviour is certainly shaped by our surroundings. (eg, take an immigrant couple who leave a sweatshop in india and move to britain where they become middle class... their offspring will be totally different to the kids they would have raised in a slum in india.)


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