Steven Pinker How Everyday Words Reveal Who We Are Monday, September 17, 2007, 7 p.m. National Academy of Sciences 2100 C St., N.W., Washington, D.C. In collaboration with the Smithsonian Resident Associates Resident Members $15, Senior Members $13, General Admission $25 Click here to purchase tickets or call (202) 357 – 3030 EVENT CODE: 1J0-311 Photo ID Required
Renowned scholar and best-selling author Steven Pinker offers a new perspective on how the mind works, focusing on what we can learn about human thought, emotion, and social relationships from language. He shows, for example, how our use of prepositions and tenses taps into peculiarly human concepts about space and time; our nouns and verbs illuminate our conceptions of matter and causation; our swearing can be a window into our emotions; and sexual come-ons and other innuendoes can be a window into social relationships. Pinker notes that his new book ranges from deep theoretical questions, like whether language affects thought and which of our concepts are innate, to everyday curiosities like why the government cares about dirty words, why bulk email is called spam, and why popular names for babies change every decade. Author of How the Mind Works, The Language Instinct, and other books, Pinker is the Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology at Harvard University. The Stuff of Thought (Penguin) is available for signing after the program. Photo: Rebecca Goldstein

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