logo
episode-header-image
Sep 24
1h 57m

Steven Pinker Returns (on common knowled...

Armchair Umbrella
About this episode
Steven Pinker (When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows: Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life) is a cognitive psychologist, psycholinguist, and author. Steven returns to the Armchair Expert to discuss how in general things have gotten better, that tracking the data can make one more optimistic than reading headlines, and the d ... Show More
Up next
Nov 21
Armchair Anonymous: Dental Disaster
<p>Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about a dental disaster.</p><p>Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wonder ... Show More
46m 11s
Nov 19
Andrew Ross Sorkin (on stock market crashes)
<p>Andrew Ross Sorkin (1929: The Inside Story of the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History) is a financial columnist, TV anchor, and author. Andrew joins the Armchair Expert to discuss a kid telling him when he was young that god drew him wrong, actually working with Aaron Sorkin ... Show More
1h 47m
Nov 17
Billy Crudup
<p>Billy Crudup (The Morning Show, Jay Kelly, Almost Famous) is an Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor. Billy joins the Armchair Expert to discuss his interpretation of his findings on Finding Your Roots, how he both appreciated and struggled with having a dreamer for a dad, and th ... Show More
2h 16m
Recommended Episodes
Sep 23
The Rise of Cancel Culture, Distrust in Science & Misinformation: Dr. Steven Pinker Reveals The Hidden Psychology That Threatens Society.
The Rising Risks of Cancel Culture & The Psychology & Language That Built It! In this explosive episode of Mayim Bialik's Breakdown, Dr. Steven Pinker (renowned Harvard psychologist and author of When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows) joins Mayim Bialik and Jonathan Cohen for a ... Show More
57m 27s
Sep 24
Part Two: The Rise of Cancel Culture, Distrust in Science & Misinformation: Dr. Steven Pinker Reveals The Hidden Psychology That Threatens Society.
The Rising Risks of Cancel Culture & The Psychology & Language That Built It! In this explosive episode of Mayim Bialik's Breakdown, Dr. Steven Pinker (renowned Harvard psychologist and author of When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows) joins Mayim Bialik and Jonathan Cohen for a ... Show More
54m 41s
Sep 27
167. The Secret of Humanity? It’s Common Knowledge.
<p>Steven Pinker’s new book argues that all our relationships depend on shared assumptions and “recursive mentalizing” — our constant efforts to understand what other people are thinking. He and Steve talk about the psychology of eye contact, the particular value of Super Bowl ad ... Show More
58m 45s
Sep 23
231. Secret Signals: Why We Rarely Say Exactly What We Mean
<p><em>Why what isn’t said can communicate more than what is spoken.</em></p><p><br></p><p>We often speak in hints and half-truths, not because we can’t be direct, but because subtlety protects our relationships. “An awful lot of the time, we don’t just blurt out what we mean,” s ... Show More
25m 18s
Feb 2025
What Evolution Really Tells Us About Life | A Conversation with Steven Pinker
In this episode of The Poetry of Reality, Richard Dawkins engages in an insightful conversation with Steven Pinker about evolution, his motivation for writing The Blind Watchmaker, and a breakdown of his latest book, The Genetic Book of the Dead Steven Pinker is a Canadian-Americ ... Show More
1h 29m
Sep 22
329 | Steven Pinker on Rationality and Common Knowledge
<p>Getting along in society requires that we mostly adhere to certainly shared norms and customs. Often it's not enough that we all know what the rules are, but also that everyone else knows the rules, and that they know that we know the rules, and so on. Philosophers and game th ... Show More
1h 16m
Mar 2024
796: Over the Rainbow, Rock Hudson, & Quantum Leap
<p>We start with a rummage through the old mail bag with some feedback from listeners about recent episodes. Yikes. We hear why some people think Over the Rainbow was plagiarized, but others think it's similarities are a coincidence. We discuss some famous musical thefts and how ... Show More
1h 3m
Sep 22
The Mystery of Common Knowledge & Why Some People Are Never On Time
If I showed you some photos of yourself and asked you to pick out the one that most accurately represented what you really looked like – could you do it? Listen as I begin this episode by explaining why you most likely could not. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/06/1506 ... Show More
49m 11s
Sep 16
Trapped in a ChatGPT Spiral
<p><i>Warning: This episode discusses suicide.</i></p><p>Since ChatGPT began in 2022, it has amassed 700 million users, making it the fastest-growing consumer app ever. Reporting has shown that the chatbots have a tendency to endorse conspiratorial and mystical belief systems. Fo ... Show More
43m 56s