Curated Video
The Basis of Social Facts
Philosopher Brian Epstein (Tufts University) gives examples of social facts that depend on nothing particularly human at all.
Curated Video
Syntactical Examinations
Neuroscientist Martin Monti (UCLA) discusses what one can learn about the brain by explicitly comparing basic algebra and language.
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Subtitles and Societal Perceptions
David Bellos, Director of the Program in Translation and Intercultural Communication at Princeton University, discusses how the use of subtitles can subtly change our perception of ethnic and cultural groups.
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Speaking with Space
Linguist Carol Padden (UC San Diego) discusses the growing research overlap of sign language linguistics with modern neuroscience.
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Speaking Gendered Languages
David Bellos, Director of the Program in Translation and Intercultural Communication at Princeton University, muses on the differences between native speakers of non-gendered and gendered languages.
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Spatial Impairments
Linguist Carol Padden (UC San Diego), discusses how studying a particular sign-language impairment may lead to a deeper understanding of of how the brain processes both space and language.
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Signing As Language
Sign language linguist Carol Padden relates the importance of Bill Stokoe’s pioneering work for developing a deeper understanding, not only of sign language, but of the linguistic structure of all languages.
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Self-Identification Through Language
David Bellos, Director of the Program in Translation and Intercultural Communication at Princeton University, argues that speech serves a strong sociological function as a form of self-indentification.
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Secularization Delayed
Historian David Hollinger (UC Berkeley) disagrees with those who claim that the United States is a counter-example to Weberian secularization theory.
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Scientific Credibility
Business school professor Andrew Hoffman, University of Michigan, describes how most Americans do trust science and that, eventually, if scientists remain diligent about communicating their findings about climate change, most people will...
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Science vs. Politics
Historian Martin Jay (UC Berkeley) discusses some of the differences between science and politics.
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Rhetorical Dangers
University of Cambridge historian and English professor Stefan Collini relates his core argument for the societal benefit of universities and describes how using various rhetorical devices to make his point can often backfire in today’s...
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Religion and the Education Gap
Historian David Hollinger (UC Berkeley) discusses the link between socioeconomic class and religious belief in contemporary America.
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Religion and Science
Renowned polymath Freeman Dyson (Institute for Advanced Study) gives his views on religion, science and community.
Curated Video
Rediscovering Buddhism
Award-winning author Pankaj Mishra describes how many people educated in the Western tradition, himself included, have only recently come to appreciate the intellectual significance of many aspects of Buddhist thought.
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Recovering Intentionality
Political scientist Mark Bevir (UC Berkeley) highlights the core difference between the social sciences and natural sciences, involving intentionality.
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Reconciliation All Around
Primatologist Frans de Waal (Emory) describes how chimpanzees, along with many other species, reconcile after fights.
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Rabbinic Scepticism
Rabbi Emeritus David J. Goldberg candidly relates his personal, unorthodox views on the nature of God and the Jews, and describes the reactions he received to his public avowals of his beliefs.
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Public Intellectuals and Universities
Classicist and political theorist Josiah Ober (Stanford) reflects on the societal role of universities and the importance of academics engaging with the outside world.
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Predicting, Badly
Tufts University philosopher Brian Epstein describes how his experiences as a management consultant giving completely incorrect predictions of many key features of the social world gave him a deep appreciation of how deceptively...
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Poetry and Prose
Poet and independent scholar Jennifer Michael Hecht describes the relations between her poetry and historical writings.
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Outdated Dualisms
Political scientist Mark Bevir (UC Berkeley) describes how the modern political debate has moved beyond the old markets vs. state distinctions.
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Our Need For Ritual
David Goldberg, Former Senior Rabbi Emeritus of London’s Liberal Jewish Synagogue describes how we all share the need for ritual.
Curated Video
Neuroscience in the Courtroom
Legal scholar Nita Farahany (Duke) describes a modern criminal defense that relies upon neuroscientific evidence.