Language, cognition, and human nature : selected articles af Steven Pinker (Bog)

Summary: Pinker's seminal research explores the workings of language and its connections to cognition, perception, social relationships, child development, human evolution, and theories of human nature. This eclectic collection spans Pinker's thirty-year career, exploring his favorite themes in greater depth and scientific detail. It includes thirteen of Pinker's classic articles, ranging over topics such as language development in children, mental imagery, the recognition of shapes, the computational architecture of the mind, the meaning and uses of verbs, the evolution of language and cognition, the nature-nurture debate, and the logic of innuendo and euphemism. Each outlines a major theory or takes up an argument with another prominent scholar, such as Stephen Jay Gould, Noam Chomsky, or Richard Dawkins

Bogen samler en række af Steven Pinkers vigtigste og mest indflydelsesrige artikler om sprogets struktur, menneskets medfødte kognitive evner og de evolutionære rødder til adfærd og tænkning. Artiklerne giver et overblik over udviklingen i moderne kognitionsvidenskab og viser, hvordan sprog og sind hænger sammen med menneskets biologiske natur.