Steven Pinker on Cancel Culture, Common Knowledge & AI

Check out shortform and get a 5-day FREE trial and 20% off the annual subscription at ⁠https://shortform.com/impossible⁠ In this episode, Steven Pinker unpacks how common knowledge shapes everything from why rational people can’t agree to disagree to why markets boom and bust. We explore the risks of falsifying expert claims, the power of social norms, and whether civilization is held together by truths—or by the fictions we all agree to share. — Key Takeaways: 00:00 Intro 00:04 When common knowledge is wrong 01:20 The role of common knowledge in social coordination 06:39 Free will and determinism 13:07 Judging a book by its cover 20:26 Government suppression and common knowledge 30:34 The agree to disagree theorem 36:09 Generosity and charity in human affairs 42:46 The role of common knowledge in religious beliefs 50:44 LLMs and common knowledge 52:48 Outro Additional resources: 📚 When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows… by Steven Pinker: ⁠https://a.co/d/bKJzohi⁠ ➡️ Follow me on your fav platforms: ✖️ Twitter:⁠ ⁠⁠https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating⁠ 🔔 YouTube:⁠ https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1⁠ 📝 Join my mailing list:⁠ ⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/list⁠ ✍️ Check out my blog:⁠ ⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/cosmic-musings/⁠ 🎙️ Follow my podcast:⁠ ⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/podcast⁠ — Into the Impossible with Brian Keating is a podcast dedicated to all those who want to explore the universe within and beyond the known. Make sure to follow/subscribe so you never miss an episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices