Description
Steven Pinkers 12part guide to thinking better
A paean to human potential The Telegraph
Cognitive scientist Professor Steven Pinker has spent his life thinking about thinking and now he wants us to join him With the aid of his critical thinking toolkit he hopes to help us make smarter choices become more rational gain a greater understanding of the confused world we live in and maybe even become better citizens
In this fascinating series produced in partnership with the Open University he examines the different ways the human brain can be tripped up from understanding probability to the difference between correlation and causation Joined by an array of other prominent thinkers he explores such diverse subjects as whether formulas can predict how well an athlete will perform why its dangerous to see patterns in the randomness of everyday experience and why so many of us believe in conspiracy theories
He also considers the life and death choices made by judges and juries ponders whether some thoughts are too evil to think asks why making future predictions can be hard and wonders should we eat drink and be merry or make sacrifices now to benefit our future selves And what can the game Rock Paper Scissors teach us about preventing a climate catastrophe In addition he and his fellow experts discuss how we can stop the news distorting our understanding of the world and why getting it right might mean admitting youre wrong
Among his special guests are Tim Harford presenter of BBC Radio 4s More or Less Pulitzer Prizewinning author Siddartha Mukherjee Bill Gates cofounder of Microsoft and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Professor Hannah Fry copresenter of Radio 4s popular science show The Curious Cases of Rutherford amp Fry Daniel Kahneman winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics and one of the most influential psychologists of the 20th Century Elizabeth Loftus
Production credits
Presented by Steven Pinker
Produced by Imogen Walford and Joe Kent
Edited by Emma Rippon
Think with Pinker is produced in partnership with The Open University
Episode 1 Think twice
Featuring Sig Mejdal and Professor Ellen Peters
Episode 2 Methinks it is a weasel
Featuring Charlie Munger and Tim Harford
Episode 3 In touch with reality
Featuring Jonathan Rauch and Ellen Cushing
Episode 4 Dont expect a zebra
Featuring Talithia Williams and Siddartha Mukherjee
Episode 5 You cant think that
Featuring Philip Tetlock and Sally Satel
Episode 6 Future you
Featuring Dr Maria Kournikova and Bina Venkataraman
Episode 7 The climate game
Featuring Bill Gates and Professor Hannah Fry
Episode 8 Rational soothsaying
Featuring Barbara Mellers and Thomas Friedman
Episode 9 Nudges and noise
Featuring Daniel Kahneman and Robyn Scott
Episode 10 Sentence first verdict afterwards
Featuring Judge Nancy Gertner and Elizabeth Loftus
Episode 11 Headlines and trendlines
Featuring James Harding and Anna Rosling Rutland
Episode 12 Being right
Featuring Julia Galef and Daniel Willingham
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 18 November 2021 3 February 2022
2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd P BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
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