Do we have Cranium Commandos running the show in our head? Robert Kurzban, author of Why Everyone (Else) Is a Hypocrite: Evolution and the Modular Mind tackles this and other questions in this fascinating TEDx talk sponsored and hosted by the Princeton Public Library.
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Robert Kurzban, author of Why Everyone (Else) is a Hypocrite, will be speaking at the Princeton Library on June 1 as part of the TEDx Cornerstone event. Tickets are $35 – $45 and can be purchased here. The event is limited to 100 people, so get yours soon!
Location: Princeton Public Library, 65 Witherspoon St., Princeton, NJ 08540
Date: June 1, 2011
Time: 12:30 p.m. – 9 p.m.
To find out more about the event see the TEDxPrincetonLibrary facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/TEDxPrincetonLibrary/171561042856183
Hope to see you all there!
Continued »We’re all hypocrites. Why? Hypocrisy is the natural state of the human mind. In his new book, Why Everyone (Else) is a Hypocrite, Robert Kurzban shows us that the key to understanding our behavioral inconsistencies lies in understanding the mind’s design. Don’t miss your chance to see Professor Kurzban at these two upcoming events, where he will explain to you the roots and implications of our inconsistent minds, and why it is perfectly natural to believe that everyone else is a hypocrite.
Date: Tomorrow, Thursday, March 31.
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Where: Town Hall Seattle, 1119 Eighth Avenue, Seattle, WA.
More Info: Here.
Date: Monday, April 4, 2011.
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Where: Bagdad Theater & Pub, 3702 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR.
More Info: Here.
Be sure to check out the official Facebook Page of Why Everyone (Else) is a Hypocrite for updates on all events and book news.
The Invisible Hand speaks with Robert Kurzban, author of Why Everyone (Else) Is a Hypocrite in this podcast. Click over and have a listen.
The Invisible Hand is one of the best podcast shows available online for in-depth interviews with smart people. It is a lot of fun to dip into their archives. For example, I see they recently spoke with Elizabeth Currid, a former PUP author, about her new book Starstruck.
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Date/Time: Monday April 4, 2011 – 7:00 p.m.
Location: Bagdad Theater
3702 SE Hawthorne Blvd.
Portland, Oregon
Do I contradict myself?
Very well, I contradict myself,
(I am large, I contain multitudes.)— Walt Whitman, Song of Myself (Section 52).
As human beings, we tend to be (in agreement with Kurzban and Whitman himself ), great contradictory beings. We’re capable of inconsistency, falsity and irreverence. We’re all hypocrites. Why? Hypocrisy is the natural state of the human mind. Robert Kurzban, author of Why Everyone (Else) is a Hypocrite will be presenting on the reasons why this is so.
Robert Kurzban is an associate professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his PhD from the Center for Evolutionary Psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and did postdoctoral work in economics and anthropology. In 2008, he won the inaugural Distinguished Scientific Award for Early Career Contribution from the Human Behavior and Evolution Society.
Most Science Pubs fill quickly, so come early for food, drink, and to get a seat!
No RSVP or tickets required.
Doors open at 5:00pm.
Science Pub is open to ages 21+, or minor with adult.
For more information on the event, click here.
Continued »“No one likes a hypocrite, or so the saying goes. But in a world driven more and more by technology like social networking, hypocrisy has never been so glaring. It has become part of pop culture to expose self-contradiction, with cable news networks and programs like The Daily Show placing contradictory political remarks side-by-side on a nightly basis, pointing out instances of hypocrisy to great effect. What if there was a scientific explanation? In a recent School of Arts and Sciences Knowledge by the Slice lecture series appearance, Robert Kurzban, Associate Professor of Psychology, discussed his most recent book, Why Everyone (Else) Is a Hypocrite: Evolution and the Modular Mind. Using biology as a stepping stone, the book applies evolutionary insights to human behavior, arguing that the mind does not function as a single unit, but instead a collection of adaptations—modules—customized to take over when a given situation arises.”
Click over to U. Penn’s web site to read the complete article, or click here to watch a video of Kurzban’s talk.
Continued »At his event with Zocalo, Robert Kurzban offered up an explanation of hypocritical behavior by politicians:
For more on how our brains modularity contributes to contradictions, read Rob’s book Why Everyone (Else) Is a Hypocrite.
Continued »We enjoyed a nice long break for the New Year, but we’re happy to present Issue 9 of Princeton Global Science. Richard Crossley, author of The Crossley ID Guide, explains in two videos how you can make your backyard more bird-friendly by incorporating bird baths and bird feeders (Check out the gorgeous birds in this [...]
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In the last PGS Dialogue, I wrote “Math is everywhere,” and now I find that, with a small modification, this short statement is as applicable to the subject of this Dialogue as the last. I could just as easily write “Hypocrisy is everywhere” and still be on solid ground.
Robert Kurzban, author of Why Everyone (Else) Is a Hypocrite, spoke with editor Eric Schwartz about his new book, his research, and of course, what might be on the horizon. Read on below. |
We have been partnering on author events with Zócalo in Los Angeles for the past year and more so I was incredibly pleased to see this LA Times article about the program here.
Invariably they put on stellar events across a broad range of subjects and in a variety of top-notch venues. Authors they have hosted include Ted Miguel, author of Economic Gangsters; Ian Buruma, author of Taming the Gods; Ben Wildavsky, author of The Great Brain Race; and Mark Kleiman, author of When Brute Force Fails. We have one event on the roster for the late winter — Robert Kurzban, author of Why Everyone (Else) Is a Hypocrite will lecture to a Zócalo crowd on February 7.
But, I should note that Zócalo’s contributions to the intellectual scene in Los Angeles are far greater than simply assembling a calendar of events. Their Web site features interviews and reviews of recent books. A few PUP titles that have been reviewed on their site over the last year or so are “If You Leave Us Here We Will Die” by Geoffrey Robinson; A Constitution of Many Minds by Cass Sunstein; Swindled by Bee Wilson; Portfolios of the Poor by Daryl Collins, Jonathan Murdoch, et al.
I apologize if this post is getting a “But wait, there’s more”-vibe, but there truly is more. The Zócalo team have interviewed several of our authors as they swing through Los Angeles on tour. Viktor Mayer-Schonberger, author of Delete; Edwidge Danticat, author of Create Dangerously (not posted just yet); and Andrei Codrescu, The Posthuman Dada Guide are a few PUP authors who have sat down with Zócalo in recent months.
So, this is a rather long-winded way of a) saying thank you to Zócalo and b) acknowledging the tremendous value they bring to Los Angeles via their events and Web site. Read the article in the Los Angeles Times for more info.
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The first bit of news is that today is the anniversary of the launch of Cassini/Huygens. I spoke with author and scientist Ralph Lorenz about his memory of launch day in 1997 and what might be next for this important space mission.
We also look forward to another yearly experience — the trek to find The Perfect Pumpkin — with a fun little math article from mathematics editor Vickie Kearn. Drawing on the skills described in Guesstimation: Solving the World’s Problems on the Back of a Cocktail Napkin by Lawrence Weinstein & John A. Adam, Vickie describes how to guess your pumpkin’s weight and cost before you break your back trying to lug one home.
PGS continues to go to the dinosaurs this issue. We have the tail end of our daily dinosaur feature and a sneak peek at an exciting new book for Fall 2011 — Pterosaurs by Mark Witton. His illustration of a pteranodon taking flight would be at home in the world of George Lucas, and the video he recommends fleshes out the process.
We anticipate the publication of Why Everyone (Else) Is a Hypocrite by Robert Kurzban with a terrific book trailer produced by Brandon Baker. Want to create your own fun iPhone application buttons like those in the video? This Web site can help: http://www.quirco.com/iPhoneIcon/.
We also shared sneak peeks at two new catalogs — Birds & Natural History (one of our most popular catalogs) and Cognitive Science (the inaugural catalog in this field).
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Learn more about the book here: http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9271.html
Continued »Featuring commentary and interviews from Princeton University Press authors, the PUP Blog is a highly respected, timely and indispensable source for learning, understanding and reflection.
