How common knowledge shapes the world | Steven Pinker

How common knowledge shapes the world | Steve...

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Life on the frontlines of war reporting | Jane Ferguson (re-release)

Covering global war stories can be hard and thankless — but it's critical work if the rest of us are to understand what's really going on in the world. For nearly two decades, journalist Jane Ferguson has reported on hostilities across Africa and the Middle East, and she's witnes ...  Show more

Sunday Pick: 20th Anniversary celebration with renowned poets Eileen Myles, Elizabeth Alexander, Sarah Kay, and Amber Tamblyn | from Design Matters

For the 20th anniversary of Design Matters, Debbie Millman revisits conversations with renowned poets Eileen Myles, Elizabeth Alexander, Sarah Kay, and Amber Tamblyn. These excerpts reflect on language, identity, memory, and the lived experience that fuels their work. Together, t ...  Show more

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How common knowledge shapes the world | Steven Pinker
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Common knowledge is the secret engine of social life, letting us coordinate everything from meet-ups to markets to international diplomacy. In this fascinating talk, experimental cognitive scientist Steven Pinker explores its momentous impact, threading together stories of why au ...  Show more

Steven Pinker on Coordination, Common Knowledge, and the Retreat of Liberal Enlightenment
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Steven Pinker returns to Conversations with Tyler with an argument that common knowledge—those infinite loops of "I know that you know that I know"—is the hidden infrastructure that enables human coordination, from accepting paper money to toppling dictators. But Tyler wonders: i ...  Show more

(#5) Elise’s Top Ten: The new political story that could change everything | George Monbiot
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To get out of the mess we're in, we need a new story that explains the present and guides the future, says author George Monbiot. Drawing on findings from psychology, neuroscience and evolutionary biology, he offers a new vision for society built around our fundamental capacity f ...  Show more

Jane G. Goldberg, "Wired for Why: How We Think, Feel, and Make Meaning" (2025)
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WIRED FOR WHY: How We Think, Feel and Make Meaning. (Self-Published 2025) spans eighteen chapters exploring everything from how we manage to stay alive against all odds, to why language separates us from other species, to whether death might be a metaphor. It's a journey through ...  Show more