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Books by Steven Pinker mentioned on podcasts
Steven Pinker's sociological and psychological works are widely referenced by podcast hosts and guests. On Modern Wisdom, Rob Henderson cited How the Mind Works to illustrate sexual dynamics and mating preferences through a line about women and John F. Kennedy. People I (Mostly) Admire featured Dan Gilbert noting that his colleague Pinker authored several books arguing that the world is improving, while No Stupid Questions discussed Enlightenment Now and The Better Angels of Our Nature to highlight themes of optimism and societal progress. The Joe Rogan Experience touched upon several of Pinker's titles: Jimmy Carr mentioned Enlightenment Now in the context of appreciating the current state of human affairs, David Buss discussed The Blank Slate regarding human nature, and Joe Rogan highlighted Pinker's research on violence over time from The Better Angels of Our Nature. Additionally, The Rubin Report referenced Pinker's perspective on human nature and societal progress while discussing Enlightenment Now.
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The Better Angels of Our Nature
The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker is a sweeping historical and data-driven book arguing that violence has steadily declined over the course of human history.
Discussed“Steven Pinker wrote The Better Angels of Our Nature or whatever it's called. And that was about how everything is better.”
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Enlightenment Now
Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker is a widely acclaimed book that uses data and numerous charts to argue for long-term human progress, global prosperity, and the triumphs of reason and science.
Discussed“And you know, his new book, Enlightenment Now, is that things are trending more positively. But even hearing that is is very hard for a lot of people.”
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The Blank Slate
The Blank Slate by Steven Pinker is a widely read nonfiction book that challenges the traditional sociological doctrine that the human mind is entirely shaped by culture and environment at birth, arguing instead for a nuanced view of innate human nature and genetics.
Discussed“I got you down here for a dozen books, several of them are some of my favorite books. You know, The Blank Slate, which had its own bit of controversy, but it's fun to see an intelligent argument presented into that space.”
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The Language Instinct
Steven Pinker's The Language Instinct is a prominent popular science book that explores the innate nature of human language acquisition and processing.
Discussed“Long story short, it was during this period of no man's land that I was in the summer before college um when I stumbled upon a book by Steven Pinker called the language instinct.”
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How the Mind Works
How the Mind Works by Steven Pinker is a comprehensive exploration of evolutionary psychology that argues the human mind is a system of computation designed by natural selection to solve problems faced by our ancestral hunter-gatherers.
Discussed“I always think of this famous this very nice line in in Steven Pinker's famous book, How the Mind Works. And it's something like most women would rather share John F. Kennedy than have Bobo the clown all to themselves.”
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Rationality
"Rationality" by Steven Pinker examines what rationality is, why it seems in short supply, and why it matters for individual and collective decision-making.
Discussed“And then uh you know, Pinker's book rationality, I thought, yeah, a one-word title. And I've noticed many authors are going to one-word titles now.”
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When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows...
When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows...
Discussed“Steven Pinker has a book out last year called When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows. It's about the immediate change in a social system when private knowledge”
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The Stuff of Thought
The Stuff of Thought by Steven Pinker explores how language reveals the inner workings of human nature and thought.
Discussed“Question: you've got this kind of euphemism treadmill that Stephen Pinker talks about where it starts off as a bad word, but then people use it more and more, and then you get used to it, and then it falls away, and then you need to come up with another bad word.”
Speaker Freakonomics Radio 540. Swearing Is More Important Than You Think 2023-04-20 Listen at 30:16Where to get it
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The Sense of Style
The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker is a modern guide to writing that combines traditional grammar with contemporary linguistics and cognitive science.
Recommended“Stephen pinker's got this great book sense of style that where he unpacks this and it it is my entire Bible of writing”
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