logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2019
36m 10s

Noam Chomsky: Language, Cognition, and D...

LEX FRIDMAN
About this episode

Noam Chomsky is one of the greatest minds of our time and is one of the most cited scholars in history. He is a linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic, and political activist. He has spent over 60 years at MIT and recently also joined the University of Arizona.

This conversation is part of the Artificial Intelligence podcast. If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/ai or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts or support it on Patreon.

This episode is presented by Cash App. Download it (App Store, Google Play), use code “LexPodcast”. 

Here’s the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.

00:00 – Introduction
03:59 – Common language with an alience species
05:46 – Structure of language
07:18 – Roots of language in our brain
08:51 – Language and thought
09:44 – The limit of human cognition
16:48 – Neuralink
19:32 – Deepest property of language
22:13 – Limits of deep learning
28:01 – Good and evil
29:52 – Memorable experiences
33:29 – Mortality
34:23 – Meaning of life

Up next
Jun 26
#473 – Iran War Debate: Nuclear Weapons, Trump, Peace, Power & the Middle East
Debate on Iran war between Scott Horton and Mark Dubowitz. Scott Horton is the author and director of the Libertarian Institute, editorial director of Antiwar.com, host of The Scott Horton Show, and for the past three decades, a staunch critic of U.S. foreign policy and military ... Show More
4h 11m
Jun 15
#472 – Terence Tao: Hardest Problems in Mathematics, Physics & the Future of AI
Terence Tao is widely considered to be one of the greatest mathematicians in history. He won the Fields Medal and the Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics, and has contributed to a wide range of fields from fluid dynamics with Navier-Stokes equations to mathematical physics & quantu ... Show More
3h 23m
Jun 5
#471 – Sundar Pichai: CEO of Google and Alphabet
Sundar Pichai is CEO of Google and Alphabet. Thank you for listening ❤ Check out our sponsors: https://lexfridman.com/sponsors/ep471-sc See below for timestamps, transcript, and to give feedback, submit questions, contact Lex, etc. Transcript: https://lexfridman.com/sundar-pichai ... Show More
2h 17m
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2022
Special Episode: Language in Brains and Machines
A special interview from the Padverb Podcast, in which I discuss my research on language in the brain and thoughts on AI. The discussion covers topics such as backpropagation, how humans acquire language and concepts, how artificial neural networks differ from biological neural n ... Show More
1h 2m
Jun 2023
#126 Noam Chomsky: Decoding the Human Mind & Neural Nets
Welcome to episode #126 of Eye on AI with Craig Smith and Noam Chomsky. Are neural nets the key to understanding the human brain and language acquisition? In this conversation with renowned linguist and cognitive scientist Noam Chomsky, we delve into the limitations of large lang ... Show More
58m 27s
Jan 2021
Noam Chomsky || On Human Nature and Human Progress
Today it’s great to have the legendary Noam Chomsky on the podcast. Noam is a public intellectual, linguist, and political activist. He’s the author of many influential books, including Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media, and his latest book with Rober ... Show More
1h 10m
Nov 2022
#304 — Why I Left Twitter
Sam Harris explains why he deleted his Twitter account. He then speaks with Cal Newport about the fragmentation of modern life. They discuss the history of computer science, how information technology has changed our lives, the effects of social media, the business model of the I ... Show More
1h 9m
Nov 2022
#302 — Science & Civilization
Sam Harris speaks with Neil deGrasse Tyson about his new book, Starry Messenger. They discuss what makes science a unique human endeavor, the tension between respecting scientific consensus and overturning it, confusion about paradigm shifts and scientific controversies, the soci ... Show More
49m 52s
Sep 2022
#295 — Philosophy and the Good Life
Sam Harris speaks to Kieran Setiya about the relevance of philosophy to living a good life. They discuss the existence of objective moral truths, being happy vs living well, our response to grief, the difference between "telic" and "atelic" activities, the power of reframing, FOM ... Show More
44m 17s
Dec 2023
Best of Series: On Human Nature and Human Progress With Noam Chomsky
Today it’s great to have the legendary Noam Chomsky on the podcast. Noam is a public intellectual, linguist, and political activist. He’s the author of many influential books, including Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media, and his latest book with Rober ... Show More
1h 10m
Jun 2023
Podcast Improv Jam || Dan Lerner
Today we welcome Dan Lerner to the podcast. As an in-demand speaker, author, strengths-based performance coach and instructor of one of the most popular undergraduate courses at New York University, Dan’s expertise in positive psychology helps people lead thriving, successful liv ... Show More
56m 20s
Apr 2022
#280 — The Future of Artificial Intelligence
Sam Harris speaks with Eric Schmidt about the ways artificial intelligence is shifting the foundations of human knowledge and posing questions of existential risk. If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episod ... Show More
38m 4s
May 2024
613: Shift Your Mindset & Change Your Life with Robin Arzon, Nick Santonastasso, Gretchen Rubin, Colin O'Brady, and Andy Grammer | Mastermind Series
This Episode Originally Aired - March 15, 2023Get the Start Today Journal - https://starttoday.com/products/start-today-journal In this episode of the Rachel Hollis podcast, part of the Mastermind series, Rachel Hollis explores the transformative power of mindset through profound ... Show More
1h 18m