The Psychology of Everything: What Compassion, Racism, and Sex tell us about Human Nature
Paul Bloom, Brooks and Suzanne Ragen Professor of Psychology, Yale University
Give Paul Bloom one hour, and he'll teach you "the psychology of everything," illustrating some of the most fundamental elements of human nature through case studies about compassion, racism, and sex. He discusses some of the biggest questions in the nature versus nurture debate, including "Are we hard-wired to care about others?" Bloom points out why stereotyping can be both detrimental and beneficial, and he even explains what the porn preference of monkeys tells us about our own sexual choosiness, or lack thereof. After the hour is up you'll understand why Bloom calls psychology, because of its cross-disciplinary nature, "the perfect liberal arts major."
The Floating University
Originally released September 2011.
Additional Lectures:
Michio Kaku: The Universe in a Nutshell
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NbBjNiw4tk
Joel Cohen: An Introduction to Demography (Malthus Miffed: Are People the Problem?)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vr44C_G0-o
Steven Pinker: Linguistics as a Window to Understanding the Brain http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-B_ONJIEcE
Leon Botstein: Art Now (Aesthetics Across Music, Painting, Architecture, Movies, and More.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6F-sHhmfrY
Tamar Gendler: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Politics and Economics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mm8asJxdcds
Nicholas Christakis: The Sociological Science Behind Social Networks and Social Influence
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wadBvDPeE4E
