Kirjahaku

How does language work? How do children learn their mother tongue? Why do languages change over time, making Shakespearean English difficult for us and Chaucer's English almost incomprehensible? Why do languages have so many quirks and irregularities? Are they all fundamentally alike? How are new words created? Where in the brain does language reside?In Words and Rules , Steven Pinker answers these and many other questions. His book shares the wit and style of his classic, The Language Instinct , but explores language in a completely different way. In Words and Rules , Pinker explains the profound mysteries of language by picking a deceptively simple phenomenon and examining it from every angle. The phenomenon,regular and irregular verbs,connects an astonishing array of topics in the sciences and humanities: the history of languages, the theories of Noam Chomsky and his critics the attempts to simulate language using computer simulations of neural networks the illuminating errors of children as they begin to speak the nature of human concepts the peculiarities of the English language major ideas in the history of Western philosophy the latest techniques in identifying genes and imaging the living brain.Pinker makes sense of all of this with the help of a single, powerful idea: that language comprises a mental dictionary of memorized words and a mental grammar of creative rules. The idea extends beyond language and offers insight into the very nature of the human mind. This is a sparkling, eye-opening and utterly original book by one of the world's leading cognitive scientists.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "In our uncertain age, which can so often feel so dark and disturbing, Steven Pinker has distinguished himself as a voice of positivity." - New York Times Can reading a book make you more rational? Can it help us understand why there is so much irrationality in the world? Steven Pinker, author of Enlightenment Now (Bill Gates's "new favorite book of all time") answers all the questions here Today humanity is reaching new heights of scientific understanding--and also 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 clich that humans are simply irrational--cavemen out of time saddled with biases, fallacies, and illusions. After all, we discovered the laws of nature, lengthened and enriched our lives, and set out the benchmarks for rationality itself. We actually think in ways that are sensible in the low-tech contexts in which we spend most of our lives, but fail to take advantage of the powerful tools of reasoning we've discovered over the millennia: logic, critical thinking, probability, correlation and causation, and optimal ways to update beliefs and commit to choices individually and with others. These tools are not a standard part of our education, and have never been presented clearly and entertainingly in a single book--until now. Rationality also explores its opposite: how the rational pursuit of self-interest, sectarian solidarity, and uplifting mythology can add up to crippling irrationality in a society. Collective rationality depends on norms that are explicitly designed to promote objectivity and truth. Rationality matters. It leads to better choices in our lives and in the public sphere, and is the ultimate driver of social justice and moral progress. Brimming with Pinker's customary insight and humor, Rationality will enlighten, inspire, and empower.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "In our uncertain age, which can so often feel so dark and disturbing, Steven Pinker has distinguished himself as a voice of positivity." - New York Times Can reading a book make you more rational? Can it help us understand why there is so much irrationality in the world? Steven Pinker, author of Enlightenment Now (Bill Gates's "new favorite book of all time") answers all the questions here Today humanity is reaching new heights of scientific understanding--and also 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 clich that humans are simply irrational--cavemen out of time saddled with biases, fallacies, and illusions. After all, we discovered the laws of nature, lengthened and enriched our lives, and set out the benchmarks for rationality itself. We actually think in ways that are sensible in the low-tech contexts in which we spend most of our lives, but fail to take advantage of the powerful tools of reasoning we've discovered over the millennia: logic, critical thinking, probability, correlation and causation, and optimal ways to update beliefs and commit to choices individually and with others. These tools are not a standard part of our education, and have never been presented clearly and entertainingly in a single book--until now. Rationality also explores its opposite: how the rational pursuit of self-interest, sectarian solidarity, and uplifting mythology can add up to crippling irrationality in a society. Collective rationality depends on norms that are explicitly designed to promote objectivity and truth. Rationality matters. It leads to better choices in our lives and in the public sphere, and is the ultimate driver of social justice and moral progress. Brimming with Pinker's customary insight and humor, Rationality will enlighten, inspire, and empower.

Kniga izvestnogo kanadskogo lingvista i nejropsikhologa "Jazyk kak instinkt" byla napisana v 1994 godu i s tekh por stala priznannym bestsellerom. Prednaznachennaja dlja samogo shirokogo kruga chitatelej, ona takzhe sluzhit vvedeniem v nauku o jazyke dlja mnogikh professionalov. Stivenu Pinkeru udalos v nej sovmestit entuziazm jarkogo rasskazchika i skrupuleznost podkhoda istinnogo uchenogo. Opirajas na postulaty Darvina i Khomskogo, Pinker idet dalshe i vydvigaet ideju o tom, chto chelovek s rozhdenija imeet sposobnost k jazyku. Rebenok spontanno usvaivaet grammatiku dazhe v smeshannoj kulturnoj srede, dlja razvitija rechi emu ne nuzhny formalnye pravila ili ispravlenija so storony roditelej. Ogromnyj krug problem, podnimaemykh avtorom, ne ostavljaet ravnodushnym nikogo, kto polzuetsja jazykom. V chem sut jazyka? Kak on ustroen? Razrushajut li ego slova, pronikajuschie v nashu zhizn s kazhdym novym pokoleniem? Kak svjazany jazyk i myshlenie? Eti i mnogie drugie voprosy, rassmatrivaemye Pinkerom v knige, chasto zadavalis i otrabatyvalis v khode ego lektsij, stavshikh dlja publiki znakovymi. Zanimatelnye primery iz sovremennogo anglijskogo, v tom chisle poezii, pesen, slenga, delajut povestvovanie legkim i zhivym.

Na protjazhenii neskolkikh stoletij mnogie intellektualy pytalis ustanovit printsipy spravedlivosti, osnovyvajas na ubezhdenii, chto chelovek rozhdaetsja "chistym listom", na kotorom roditeli i obschestvo zapisyvajut ego biografiju. Mnogie avtory otchajanno pytajutsja diskreditirovat predpolozhenie o vrozhdennom kharaktere chelovecheskikh svojstv, ved esli ljudi rozhdajutsja raznymi, to opravdany diskriminatsija i rasizm, esli chelovek - produkt biologii, togda svoboda voli javljaetsja vsego lish mifom, a zhizn ne imeet vysshego smysla i tseli.Pinker ubeditelno pokazyvaet, chto otkaz ot analiza voprosov chelovecheskoj prirody ne tolko protivorechit sovremennym otkrytijam v genetike, nejrobiologii i teorii evoljutsii, no i iskazhaet nashi predstavlenija o samikh sebe. Nasledujutsja li intellekt i talanty? Mozhno li iskorenit nasilie v otnoshenijakh mezhdu ljudmi i gosudarstvami? Suschestvuet li svoboda voli, a vmeste s nej - i otvetstvennost za svoi postupki? Ob etikh voprosakh rassuzhdaet kognitivnyj psikholog Stiven Pinker v odnoj iz samykh znachimykh svoikh knig.

Esli vam kazhetsja, chto mir katitsja v propast, ogljanites vokrug. Ljudi teper zhivut dolshe, oni zdorovee, svobodnee i schastlivee, chem kogda by to ni bylo. V zakhvatyvajuschem dukh obzore sostojanija chelovechestva v tretem tysjacheletii psikholog i populjarizator nauki Stiven Pinker prizyvaet nas otvlechsja ot sensatsionnykh zagolovkov novostej i katastroficheskikh predskazanij, kotorye tak lovko igrajut na svojstvennykh nashemu myshleniju kognitivnykh iskazhenijakh. Vmesto etogo on predlagaet obratitsja k tsifram i s pomoschju semi desjatkov porazitelnykh grafikov demonstriruet nevidannyj progress ne tolko Zapada, no i vsego mira vo vsekh oblastjakh, ot zdorovja i blagosostojanija do bezopasnosti, mira i prav cheloveka.

"Världen blir allt bättre, även om det inte alltid känns så. Upplysning Nu! är min nya favoritbok någonsin." - Bill GatesHåller världen verkligen på att falla sönder? Riskerar religiösa och auktoritära rörelser att försvaga demokratin och det globala samarbetet?Steven Pinker visar att hälsan, välståndet, freden, kunskapen och lyckan ökar i hela världen, men inte till följd av någon kosmisk kraft, utan på grund av upplysningsidealen: förnuft och vetenskap. Här finns försvaret vi behöver för att möta världens problem och fortsätta mänsklighetens utveckling.Steven Pinker är professor i psykologi vid Harvard University. Han forskar i språk och kognition och är känd för sin evolutionspsykologiskt baserade teori om språkutvecklingen hos barn. Han har tidigare skrivit ett flertal uppmärksammade populärvetenskapliga böcker, bland annat The Language Instinct (1994), Ett oskrivet blad: och andra myter om människans natur (2002, på svenska 2006) och The Better Angels of our Nature: Why Violence has Declined (2011)."Om man just nu tycker att det ser mörkt ut i världen ska man läsa Steven Pinkers briljanta Upplysning Nu! . Så trösterikt!" - David Lagercrantz"Pinker är en förebild med just den intellektuella hederlighet och tapperhet vi behöver för att återupprätta samtalet och gemenskapen." - David Brooks, The New York Times"Upplysning Nu! är magnifik och upplyftande, och får dig att vilja rusa till datorn och stänga ditt twitterkonto." - The Economist

Vad är det för fel på folk?Vi föds med ofattbart avancerade hjärnor, anpassade för att ständigt lära sig nya saker om världen. Vår tillgång till kunskap är större än någonsin. Ändå fastnar många av oss i faktaresistens och konspirationsteorier.I sin nya bok argumenterar Steven Pinker för att det rationella resonemanget kan göra världen bättre, på nästan alla sätt. Med intellektuell precision och en stor dos humor visar han varför våra felbara hjärnor ibland går vilse, men också hur medvetna strategier kan göra oss mer rationella.