Listen free for 30 days
-
Think with Pinker
- How to Be a Better Critical Thinker
- Narrated by: Steven Pinker, Various, Tim Harford, Bill Gates, Hannah Fry, Daniel Kahneman, Siddartha Mukherjee, Elizabeth Loftus
- Length: 5 hrs and 29 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Think with Pinker
Buy Now for $24.59
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's Summary
Steven Pinker's 12-part 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 it's 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 you're wrong...
Among his special guests are Tim Harford, presenter of BBC Radio 4's More or Less; Pulitzer Prize-winning author Siddartha Mukherjee; Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Professor Hannah Fry, co-presenter of Radio 4's popular science show The Curious Cases of Rutherford & 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: Don't expect a zebra
Featuring: Talithia Williams and Siddartha Mukherjee
Episode 5: You can't 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
You may also enjoy...
-
Rationality
- What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 103
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 79
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 79
In the 21st century, humanity is reaching new heights of scientific understanding - and at the same time appears to be losing its mind. How can a species that developed vaccines for COVID-19 in less than a year produce so much fake news, medical quackery, and conspiracy theorizing? Pinker rejects the cynical cliché that humans are an irrational species - cavemen out of time saddled with biases, fallacies, and illusions.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Dull and Underwhelming .
- By Kindle Customer on 2021-10-21
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
How the Mind Works
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Mel Foster
- Length: 26 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 49
In this delightful, acclaimed bestseller, one of the world’s leading cognitive scientists tackles the workings of the human mind. What makes us rational—and why are we so often irrational? How do we see in three dimensions? What makes us happy, afraid, angry, disgusted, or sexually aroused? Why do we fall in love? And how do we grapple with the imponderables of morality, religion, and consciousness?
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
great, but slow at times
- By ben kuzmich on 2018-07-07
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
Your Deceptive Mind: A Scientific Guide to Critical Thinking Skills
- Written by: Steven Novella, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Steven Novella
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 345
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 289
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 285
No skill is more important in today's world than being able to think about, understand, and act on information in an effective and responsible way. What's more, at no point in human history have we had access to so much information, with such relative ease, as we do in the 21st century. But because misinformation out there has increased as well, critical thinking is more important than ever. These 24 rewarding lectures equip you with the knowledge and techniques you need to become a savvier, sharper critical thinker in your professional and personal life.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great book worth a listen but maybe I'm bias.
- By Martin on 2018-01-15
Written by: Steven Novella, and others
-
The Better Angels of Our Nature
- Why Violence Has Declined
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 36 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 169
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 141
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 137
Faced with the ceaseless stream of news about war, crime, and terrorism, one could easily think we live in the most violent age ever seen. Yet as New York Times bestselling author Steven Pinker shows in this startling and engaging new work, just the opposite is true: violence has been diminishing for millennia and we may be living in the most peaceful time in our species's existence.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Better read than listened to
- By Mike Reiter on 2018-01-02
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
The Blank Slate
- The Modern Denial of Human Nature
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 22 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 149
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 125
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 123
In The Blank Slate, Steven Pinker, one of the world's leading experts on language and the mind, explores the idea of human nature and its moral, emotional, and political colorings. With characteristic wit, lucidity, and insight, Pinker argues that the dogma that the mind has no innate traits, denies our common humanity and our individual preferences, replaces objective analyses of social problems with feel-good slogans, and distorts our understanding of politics, violence, parenting, and the arts.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating study of human cognition
- By Stéphane on 2018-10-27
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
The Stuff of Thought
- Language as a Window into Human Nature
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Dean Olsher
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 12
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 10
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 9
In The Stuff of Thought, Steven Pinker marries two of the subjects he knows best: language and human nature. The result is a fascinating look at how our words explain our nature. What does swearing reveal about our emotions? Why does innuendo disclose something about relationships? Pinker reveals how our use of prepositions and tenses taps into peculiarly human concepts of space and time, and how our nouns and verbs speak to our notions of matter.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
It’s not in Steven Pinkers written words
- By Lory Nixon on 2019-05-05
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
Rationality
- What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 103
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 79
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 79
In the 21st century, humanity is reaching new heights of scientific understanding - and at the same time appears to be losing its mind. How can a species that developed vaccines for COVID-19 in less than a year produce so much fake news, medical quackery, and conspiracy theorizing? Pinker rejects the cynical cliché that humans are an irrational species - cavemen out of time saddled with biases, fallacies, and illusions.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Dull and Underwhelming .
- By Kindle Customer on 2021-10-21
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
How the Mind Works
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Mel Foster
- Length: 26 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 49
In this delightful, acclaimed bestseller, one of the world’s leading cognitive scientists tackles the workings of the human mind. What makes us rational—and why are we so often irrational? How do we see in three dimensions? What makes us happy, afraid, angry, disgusted, or sexually aroused? Why do we fall in love? And how do we grapple with the imponderables of morality, religion, and consciousness?
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
great, but slow at times
- By ben kuzmich on 2018-07-07
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
Your Deceptive Mind: A Scientific Guide to Critical Thinking Skills
- Written by: Steven Novella, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Steven Novella
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 345
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 289
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 285
No skill is more important in today's world than being able to think about, understand, and act on information in an effective and responsible way. What's more, at no point in human history have we had access to so much information, with such relative ease, as we do in the 21st century. But because misinformation out there has increased as well, critical thinking is more important than ever. These 24 rewarding lectures equip you with the knowledge and techniques you need to become a savvier, sharper critical thinker in your professional and personal life.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great book worth a listen but maybe I'm bias.
- By Martin on 2018-01-15
Written by: Steven Novella, and others
-
The Better Angels of Our Nature
- Why Violence Has Declined
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 36 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 169
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 141
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 137
Faced with the ceaseless stream of news about war, crime, and terrorism, one could easily think we live in the most violent age ever seen. Yet as New York Times bestselling author Steven Pinker shows in this startling and engaging new work, just the opposite is true: violence has been diminishing for millennia and we may be living in the most peaceful time in our species's existence.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Better read than listened to
- By Mike Reiter on 2018-01-02
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
The Blank Slate
- The Modern Denial of Human Nature
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 22 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 149
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 125
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 123
In The Blank Slate, Steven Pinker, one of the world's leading experts on language and the mind, explores the idea of human nature and its moral, emotional, and political colorings. With characteristic wit, lucidity, and insight, Pinker argues that the dogma that the mind has no innate traits, denies our common humanity and our individual preferences, replaces objective analyses of social problems with feel-good slogans, and distorts our understanding of politics, violence, parenting, and the arts.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating study of human cognition
- By Stéphane on 2018-10-27
Written by: Steven Pinker
-
The Stuff of Thought
- Language as a Window into Human Nature
- Written by: Steven Pinker
- Narrated by: Dean Olsher
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 12
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 10
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 9
In The Stuff of Thought, Steven Pinker marries two of the subjects he knows best: language and human nature. The result is a fascinating look at how our words explain our nature. What does swearing reveal about our emotions? Why does innuendo disclose something about relationships? Pinker reveals how our use of prepositions and tenses taps into peculiarly human concepts of space and time, and how our nouns and verbs speak to our notions of matter.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
It’s not in Steven Pinkers written words
- By Lory Nixon on 2019-05-05
Written by: Steven Pinker
What the critics say
"A paean to human potential." (The Telegraph)
What listeners say about Think with Pinker
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story3 out of 5 stars
- Anton Vikoch
- 2022-12-29
Disappointing list of topics and depth
Disappointing list of topics and depth of discussion for anyone expecting Steven Pinkers typical thoroughness.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!