Psychologist Dr. Steven Pinker discusses his new book and the question of why smart people sometimes believe "wacky" things. Visit AcademicInfluence.com to see over 120 video interviews with the world's top academics. (Photo credit: Rose Lincoln / Harvard University)

GEORGETOWN, KENTUCKY, UNITED STATES, October 28, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- If social media conversations are any indication, people are getting a little “wacky.”

To find out why, Dr. Jed Macosko of AcademicInfluence.com sat down with one of the most influential psychologists of the past 30 years, Dr. Steven Pinker of Harvard University, to discuss how even smart people can act irrationally. This is the compelling topic detailed in Pinker’s new book, Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters:

Are we becoming less rational? | Interview with Dr. Steven Pinker

An excerpt from the interview:
“We did get to the moon, we invented vaccines, we figured out when the big bang was and what the genetic code was. So you can’t just say we’re a bunch of doofuses. How can one species be so smart and so wacky at the same time? That’s the question I try to answer in Rationality.”—Steven Pinker, Ph.D.

In addition to their discussion of rationality, Pinker and Macosko delve into the modularity of language, why reading matters, and how even Nobel Prize winners believe silly things.

Dr. Pinker also spoke with student interviewer Karina Macosko, who got a student’s perspective on Dr. Pinker’s path into the field and his subsequent cognitive psychology work, especially with language:

The Pressing Questions of Psychology | Interview with Dr. Steven Pinker

An excerpt from the interview:
“…in college, I sampled different fields that studied human nature in different ways, sociology and philosophy and English literature and neurobiology, but I settled on psychology because it seemed to address really interesting questions. What makes us tick? What are we born with? What do we learn? How do we see? How do we remember? But in a way that…wasn’t just a matter of speculation; you could actually study it in a lab and make progress.”—Steven Pinker, Ph.D.

AcademicInfluence.com now features over 120 video interviews (and growing) with many of the world’s most influential academics, including such Nobel Prize Winners such as Paul Krugman (economics), Robert Curl (chemistry), and Gerard 't Hooft (physics). Interviews cover a wide range of topics including how interviewees developed their love for their field of studies, who influenced their work, how they overcame career and learning obstacles, what they consider their top achievements, and the latest on discoveries they have made in their field. To make interviews more accessible, each also includes a full transcript.

“That my daughter and I both get to interview these notable influencers in their fields is a genuine blessing—as is the opportunity to share their insights with viewers,” says Dr. Jed Macosko, academic director of AcademicInfluence.com and Wake Forest University professor of physics. “Capturing that passion for knowledge and discovery and passing it along to the next generation of scientists, artists, and innovators is what AcademicInfluence.com is all about.”

How did AcademicInfluence.com arrive at its rankings of the world's most influential academics, many of whom are featured in these interviews? The InfluenceRanking Engine scans and analyzes leading data repositories, mapping thought leadership across a variety of disciplines in order to rank the influence of individuals, schools, and other sources. For further details on the unique capabilities and advantages of this innovative ranking system, see the AcademicInfluence.com About page.

AcademicInfluence.com is the preeminent technology-driven academic rankings site dedicated to students, researchers, and inquirers from high school through college and beyond, offering resources that connect learners to leaders. AcademicInfluence.com is a part of the EducationAccess group, a family of sites dedicated to lifelong learning and personal growth.

(Photo credit: Rose Lincoln / Harvard University)

Jed Macosko, Ph.D.
AcademicInfluence.com
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